Christmas Reflections and a Longfellow quote...

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's Christmas poem seems especially timely for us even in our 21st century context. It captures the strange mix of emotions that many of us feel at this time of history.

I heard the bells on Christmas day
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet the words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men.

I thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along th' unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.

And in despair I bowed my head
"There is no peace on earth," I said,
"For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men."

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
"God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on earth, good will to men."

Till ringing, singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime, a chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good will to men.

Homily for 3 Advent A, December 12, 2010

John and Jesus, James and the prophets all did their parts for the union of heaven and earth, we must continue doing our part as well.

Our first reading today is part of a hymn of praise to God for Zion’s restoration. The Lord will lead the people in a new exodus out of captivity in Babylon, through the wilderness. This time, the desert will not be a place of trial and suffering but a paradise. The Lord’s coming will bring salvation and wholeness, especially to those who suffer in body or spirit. They will all be restored to Zion and worship there as the culminating act of God’s redemptive work.

Unfortunately, the return from Babylon had many disappointments; subsequently they viewed this passage as a description of the Messiah’s coming.

In our lesson from James, we see a glimpse of the early Christian’s attempts to deal with disappointment and confusion of their own. They expected that Jesus would return to judge the earth during their lifetime. As it became obvious this was not going to happen some began to loose heart and give up on Christ. In our lesson today, James is trying to encourage people to stick it out and keep the faith. Despite how long it takes, or of the hardships we must endure, the promise of God is faithful and worthy of trust.

In the Gospel lesson we just heard, John requests confirmation from Jesus, if he is the one. His response to John’s disciples is to report what they saw for themselves. Jesus is fulfilling Isaiah’s prophecy of healing the infirmed. Jesus then testifies to John’s authenticity. He is the greatest of prophets, but the coming Kingdom is even greater! Matthew is trying to convey his conviction that Jesus is the authentic Messiah and that the events of his life fulfill the prophecies about the Messiah’s coming. For the reader, the point is simple: do you believe Jesus is the one? Or are you still waiting?

Jesus and John, his herald, each had their part in fulfilling the messianic prophecies. Jesus the Christ did establish the Kingdom of God in a new and vibrant way. James and his generation of Christian’s had their role to play in the growth of that Kingdom. You and I, in our turn, have an important role. As we reflect together during Advent looking at the milestones, we see in today’s readings is valuable.

The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the deaf hear, and the poor have good news brought to them. We of St. Stephen’s have been involved in supporting many healing and emergency aid ministries: Salvation Army, St. Andrew’s Clinic, Forgash House, the Chaplain’s Foot Locker, etc. We are doing our part to keep these visible signs of God’s work vibrant and noticeable. Surly we must continue this good work. We have even embraced the call to further the Kingdom by launching new ministries with Young Adults and the Military. Let us put our efforts into these new ministries and share God’s grace with the people we touch through all our efforts.

Homily for the Second Sunday of Advent A, December 5, 2010

A Scots man, and atheist, was spending a quiet day fishing when suddenly the Loch Ness monster attacked his boat. In one easy flip, the beast tossed him and his boat at least a hundred feet into the air. It then opened its mouth, waiting below to swallow them both. As the man sailed head over heels and started to fall toward the open jaws of the ferocious beast, he cried out, "Oh, my God! Help me!"

Suddenly, the scene froze in place and as the atheist hung in midair, a booming voice came out of the clouds and said, "I thought you didn't believe in Me!"

"God, come on, give me a break!" the man pleaded, "two seconds ago I didn’t even believe in the Loch Ness Monster!"

"Well," said God, "now that you are a believer you must understand that I won't work miracles to snatch you from certain death in the jaws of the monster, but I can change hearts. What would you have me do?"

The atheist thinks for a minute, then says, "God, please have the Loch Ness Monster believe in You, also."

God replies, "So be it."

The scene starts in motion again, with the atheist (now believer) falling toward the ravenous jaws of the monster. The Loch Ness Monster folds his claws together and says, "Lord, I am truly grateful for the meal I am about to receive . . . "

Well, the fisherman and the monster were both introduced to faith in sudden and unexpected ways. You and I are not necessarily in the position of being asked to believe but we are in the position of being asked to take the next step.

In our lesson from Isaiah we have the classic proclamation of the coming of the Messiah/Divine peace. It is an idyllic and poetic image of a new world in which there is no more violence or destruction. Even the predatory and poisonous creatures have a new way of making their living. The point being that the fullness of the Kingdom of God will be radically different from the world we live in now and will be a place free of fear and suffering.

In the lesson we heard from Romans, Paul urges the community to be united and to remain focused on the mission of spreading the Good News. Rather, than focusing on the things that divide them. This is a lesson we need to take to heart as a national church.

Finally in our Gospel lesson we have the debut of John the Baptist, the true Wild Man of God. This guy who has been scrounging a living out in the howling desert, suddenly stumbles his way into town and what comes out of his mouth? “Repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand!”

Frankly, his message for the religious leaders of his day is rather harsh. Yet many see the hand of God upon him and respond. John warns the Pharisees and Sadducees that being ethnically Jewish will not save them from God’s judgement. Their lives must demonstrate their commitment to God’s ways of justice. We Christians can fall into a similar trap. We often hear Christian people talking in a self righteous way, being arrogantly boastful of their goodness and hatful toward people whom they see as inferior. All of us need to remember that just clamming Christ does not guarantee us salvation. We must live the life of a Christian in as authentically a manner as we can.

This calling is not so much about repenting from our sinfulness as it is about letting the Holy Spirit draw us onto the next step; allowing ourselves to be moved into a further or deeper conversion. It about recognizing that, though we do good things in God’s name - and try to avoid doing evil as we should - there is always room to grow.

Today, let us ask God to help us see where we can improve our selves and trustingly take the next step God has prepared for us.