That We All May Be One

ADVENT ANSWERS THE QUESTION, WHY?

Had to scrap the sermon I prepared for Advent 3. I’m just so aware that we are all in grief and mourning the loss of all the young life in the horrific shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. We’ll be offering our Eucharist today with special intention for the souls of the victims and for comfort and healing for the families…and for all of us. It’s the most important thing we will do today.

So many people are asking “Why did this happen?” And “what can we do to make sure it never happens again?” Advent gives a stark answer to the “Why” question. This is a very serious season, Advent. It’s not just a four-Sunday countdown to Christmas. Advent reminds us that this world is broken. The kingdom of God has not yet come in its fullness. Violence and evil and sickness and danger are realities we have to face every day in some way. And it does no good to deny that.

Christians believe that Jesus was born into this world to inaugurate the kingdom of God, to usher in a time when tragedies and violence like this will be no more. But we’re not there yet. And until that kingdom comes in its fullness, Advent teaches us that we must wait for it – with patience and hope and expectation.

But that’s not all we can do. We can also cooperate with God in the building of that kingdom. We can work to make this world a better place, a place which There will be many discussions, and there already are in the media and in coffee shops, about what we can do to keep this kind of thing from every happening again – from gun violence to mental health services to school safety. And Christians should be part of those conversations. We have a contribution to make there.

But the most important thing we can do, dear friends, is to recommit ourselves to the mission of the Church, to what we’re doing here today. Our diocese has a simple mission statement: we are “to grow the Church…form the faithful…and change the world.” A pretty lofty goal, but it begins simply. “Growing the church” means more than just getting more people in the pews. It means reaching out with the message of God’s love.

What if Adam Lanza had been part of a community like this one, what if his mother had? Could it have made a difference? We don’t know, but it might have. We need to reach all people with the Gospel.

“Form the faithful.” We are to teach our children, and ourselves, that violence is never the answer to any problem! And that’s God’s will is for peace and forgiveness and healing for all. That’s “forming the faithful.”

And it’s only when we have done those things – growing the Church and forming the faithful – that we will be able to make our contribution to “changing the world.”

Let’s rededicate ourselves to that on this sad Sunday, my friends. It’s the least we can do…and the most.

When I was Bishop of Iowa, one of the visions we held before us was a little poem stitched together by Charles Wilson from the sermons and teachings of one of my episcopal heroes – Wesley Frensdorff, the late Bishop of Nevada. It’s called “The Dream” and, if you’ll permit me, I’d like to cite a few of my favorite verses: Wes said,

“Let us dream of a church…in which all members know surely and simply God’s great love, and each is certain that in the divine heart, we are all known by name…

A church in which…worship is lively and fun as well as reverent and holy; and we might be moved to dance and laugh; to be solemn, cry, or beat the breast…

(A church in which) The Eucharist is the centre of life and servanthood the centre of mission: the servant Lord truly known in the breaking of the bread. With service flowing from worship, and everyone understanding why a worship is called a service.

A church…without the answers, but asking the right questions; holding law and grace, freedom and authority, faith and works together in mission…So deeply rooted in gospel and tradition that, like a living tree, it can swing in the wind and continually surprise us with new blossoms.”

Well, I find myself thinking of that poem almost every Sunday I am privileged to visit among you in this fine diocese! Worship is lively and fun in most places, large and small, that I have visited. It’s clear that the Eucharist is the center of your life together, but that the old reminder at the end of the liturgy that “the worship is over…the service begins” is being made manifest in your lives. I don’t think I’ve been to any congregation not involved seriously in some kind of outreach and service in the wider community.

But it’s the last line I cited from “the Dream” I’m most impressed with: that we can be “a church so deeply rooted in gospel and tradition that, like a living tree, it can swing in the wind and continually surprise us with new blossoms.” The Diocese of Chicago has a long and venerable tradition of catholic faith and order, but a tradition open to reformation and renewal. And, whatever church is emerging as we move deeper into the 21^st century will only survive and thrive if it can live in the midst of that creative tension.

We cannot remain ossified in traditional-ism, but neither can we yield to the temptation of trying to invent a new church. It’s not necessary to have all the answers. In fact, a church claiming to have all the answers will become less and less appealing as the years and decades roll on. But we must be a church asking the right questions. I see those questions being asked in this diocese in how we structure ourselves, in how we incarnate ourselves into the wider community, and how honest we are in conversation with one another, “fierce” conversation…honest conversation.

I am so very grateful to Jeff Lee and to his fine staff for welcoming us so warmly into the diocese over these last ten months. And to all of you who have made us feel so very at home as we move among you Sunday by Sunday. The best part of being a bishop is what happens on Sunday mornings and I get to do that (without all the stresses and strains that come with the office Monday through Friday!). I’ve also appreciated very much the opportunity to continue my involvement with ecumenical and inter-religious relations by representing the diocese on the Council of Religious Leaders of Metropolitan Chicago and, occasionally, the Illinois Council of Churches.

I’ve told Jeff that I am open to whatever would be helpful over the next few years as we live into our new staffing structure, complete the amazing project around St. James Commons, and take the next steps in our exciting possibilities with the Diocese of Quincy. One of the good things about being retired is the freedom and flexibility that provides. Whether the future holds the election of a full-time Assistant Bishop or some combination of newly retired bishops working with the diocesan, it has been privilege to be part of your life in these exciting times.

And I look forward to the new church year and to whatever 2013 brings! Thank you for being so deeply rooted…that you can swing freely in the breeze…and continually surprise us with new blossoms!

C. Christopher Epting

Assisting Bishop

I think one of the strangest phrases you hear from time to time is, “Back to the Bible.” We’ve got to get “back to the Bible.” I say it’s strange because there is probably no more forward looking book in the world than the Bible! From cover to cover, this ancient set of documents is always looking forward to what God is just about to do in the future.

Abraham looks forward to having children. Moses looks forward to freedom from slavery in Egypt and to leading his people into the Promised Land. Many of the prophets (like Jeremiah this morning) look forward to God leading them back from Exile in Babylon to once again claim that Holy Land. Jesus looks forward to the establishment of the Kingdom of God. Paul looks forward to Jesus’s Second Coming. And the Book of Revelation looks forward to an end to persecution and struggle and the creation of “a new heaven and a new earth” in which God is king, and the empires of this world are not!

The biblical writers are not afraid of the future. They look forward to it! Listen to what one commentator has to say about our First Lesson today from Jeremiah, “Surely there is no more powerful or extravagant depiction of the Lord’s future provision for the good of his people than (this passage). It is an invitation to a party the likes of which this people have never known. It is a homecoming party, with all the good things parties are meant to have: the best food and wine, music and singing and dancing. It is intergenerational and full of fun and merriment. And it goes on forever.”

“The picture of a marvelous party, where all are gathered before the Lord to enjoy all the benefits of God’s goodness and celebrate in joy and singing and dancing, is a way of connecting the vision of the future with the reality of the present. There is not literal way of telling us about what God plans out there beyond our (knowledge). But the language by which Israel spoke of and entrusted its future is …(a kind of appropriate imagining)…of the way it will be. It’s going to be party time!” (The New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary on Jeremiah 31:10-14, page 815)

Today’s Psalm picks up on the same theme. It was probably written a little later than Jeremiah and the future Jeremiah hoped for had been fulfilled. They HAD come home from Exile! “When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, then were we like those who dream/ Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy/ Then they said among the nations/ The Lord has done great things for them/ The Lord HAS done great things for us, and we are glad indeed.” (Psalm 126:1-4)

Yet, things aren’t all hunky dory for Israel, even now that they have returned to their own land. They still have to rebuild the Temple. They still have to set up a government, and send for their scattered families once again. So they continue to look for God’s action in the immediate future:

“Restore our fortunes, O Lord, like the watercourses of the Negev/ Those who sowed with tears/ will reap with songs of joy/ Those who go out weeping, carrying the seed/ will come again with joy, shouldering their sheaves.” (Psalm 126:5-7)

The biblical writers are not afraid of the future. They look forward to it! What a contrast to the nay-sayers and doomsday predictors we hear so much from today. Oh, our moral values are under assault!  Church attendance is in decline and all the denominations are struggling. The world is going to hell in a hand basket!

No, says Jeremiah:  “See (the Lord says)  I am going to bring them from the land of the north, and gather them from the farthest parts of the earth, among them the blind and the lame, those with child and those in labor, together; a great company…I will let them walk by brooks of water, in a straight path in which they shall not stumble…”

No, says the author of Hebrews: Instead he proclaims that “the former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office; but (Jesus) holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever. Consequently he is able for all time to save those who approach God though him since he always lives to make intercession for them…” (Hebrews 7:23-24)

No, says Jesus to the blind man in today’s Gospel: “…your faith has made you well.” (Mark 10:28). The biblical writers are not afraid of the future. They look forward to it!

We are blessed here at Grace Church this morning to confirm and receive people into The Episcopal Church. That is a sign to us, if anything is, that God is not through with us yet! People are still seeking and finding a relationship with God through Jesus Christ and through the rich liturgical and sacramental life of The Episcopal Church. We are going through challenging times as Christian people in these United States today. It does no good to deny that. Pollyanna optimism is not what the Bible preaches. What the Bible preaches is hope!

God’s people have been through tough times before, and we will go through them again. But what these new confirmands and receiptees and all of us need to know is that the end of the story is not in doubt! The end of the story is that God is king and that the principalities and powers of this world are not! We may not know exactly what the final kingdom of God will look like or exactly what eternal life may entail.

But what we do know is this: God is in charge of the future and God’s future provision for us is going to be something like a party the likes of which we have never seen! The future – even if we have to experience suffering and tough times in the meantime – is not something to be afraid of. The ultimate future will be filled with joy, and all the benefits of God’s goodness.

In short…it’s going to be – party time!

With the Revised Common Lectionary we are using these days in The Episcopal Church, there are some choices as to the First Reading from the Hebrew Bible each Sunday. I allowed this one from Proverbs today with some fear and trembling!  In a day when we are all so conscious to try and use inclusive language and concepts and to avoid stereotyping people, especially women, into filling certain “roles,” how dare we begin our Readings from Scripture this morning with this question, “A capable wife who can find?” (Proverbs 31:10)
But I ran across a reflection in The Christian Century magazine this week by a Presbyterian pastor in Florida which I thought was worthy of our consideration. He was worried about using this passage just like I was. But he writes, “Those of us who follow the lectionary have encountered the industrious woman of Proverbs 31 many times. Every three years she appears with her wool and flax, her distaff and spindle, her keen eye for both fashion and a good deal, her open hand to the poor, and her penchant for providing her husband bragging rights at the city gates.”
“But [in our concern for unhealthy gender stereotypes] we haven’t always welcomed her…[Yet perhaps today] enough water has passed under the bridge to allow us to take a second look at this virtuous woman. She is indeed a marvel of enterprise and hard-nosed stewardship. She makes the ant in Aesop’s fable seem like a slacker. If you translated her duties into a modern job description, it would jibe with that of the most successful of CEOs. Today she would be running a corporation, selling a line of handmade clothing on the Home Shopping Network and chairing the local United Way. Her husband could brag about her if he wanted, but she would be far beyond the need for that kind of attention. She would be a self-made woman…”
“That’s why I welcome the arrival of the wise woman from Proverbs 31. If she can find the time, I’d love to have her as an elder on my session (a member of the Vestry). I don’t think she’d ask for her husband’s permission to serve. If she did, he’d be a fool to stand in her way.” (Brant Copeland, September 19 edition of The Christian Century, page 20)
Well, I thought that was a delightful piece. But it also says volumes about how we are to read and understand Scripture. Too often, Christians feel that they have only two ways to understand the Bible in the modern, or post-modern, world. One way is to consider it “literally” and, by that, I mean what the fundamentalists call the “verbal inerrancy” of Scripture. That is, that it was dictated by God, word for word, to the writers of this sacred text, and that it is as reliable on issues of science and sociology as it is on issues of faith and morals.
The other way, according to people like Richard Dawkins and Steven Hawking, is to reject the Bible completely as an ancient, out-dated, superstitious series of documents produced by primitive people who had no other way of making sense of the universe.
But, there is a third way – a way suggested by this Q and A from The Episcopal Church’s Catechism: “Why do we call the Holy Scriptures the Word of God?” the seeker asks. And the Church – speaking through her official catechism — answers “We call them the Word of God because God inspired their human authors and because God still speaks to us through the Bible.” (BCP page 853) Look carefully at what that says.
It affirms that we believe the Bible is inspired. You cannot spend as much time as I have with the Bible, reading it every day for over 40 years, sometimes cover-to-cover, without acknowledging that this is no ordinary book…this is a special kind of literature, and a combination of history and myth, poetry and law. It was written by human beings, human beings inspired by One much greater than themselves, but human beings – like us – shaped and formed by the times in which they lived and the cultures of which they were a part.
So, it’s not enough just to read the Bible. You have to study the Bible. You have to find out how it came to be written. You have to understand something about the historical contexts in which the various books were formed. And that takes, at the very least, owning a good, modern translation of the Bible with introductions to the various books, and footnotes which help explain some of the more difficult and obscure passages.
That means reading the Bible in community! In church, yes, surrounded by liturgy and song. But also reading it in small groups where you can really discuss it, really ask the hard questions, even do what the rabbis have done for centuries — argue with the Bible, wrestle with the Word of God like Jacob wrestled with the angel…until finally, it blesses you.
That’s what our Presbyterian friend did with the wise woman from Proverbs 31. He wrestled with that text until he discovered that it revealed a woman he’d like to have on his session. In our case, on the Vestry…or, as rector of our parish… or as Presiding Bishop of our church!

There is no question but that the “glue” which holds The Episcopal Church together is The Holy Eucharist. Well, Jesus holds us together but it is the experience of him in the broken bread and the cup of blessing which are the outward and visible signs of this inward and spiritual grace. No where is this more clearly seen than at General Convention.

We can argue and even fight, we can be short sighted and petty, we can become so self absorbed as to almost disappear within ourselves, but when we gather for Eucharist we are truly one Body in the one Spirit. This is not some superficial, can’t-we-just-all-get-along-for-an-hour-or-so, but a genuine ministry of reconciliation among us. It is why I believe we will get through these trying times (not only in Convention, but in the days and years to come) in better shape than some of our ecumenical partners who do not have this same commonality of sacramental communion celebrated together in “the beauty of holiness.”

Over the weekend, we have seen two amazing expressions of this. On Saturday the Eucharist was celebrated with steel drums, gospel singing and a rousing sermon on “those crazy Christians” by arguably our finest preacher, Michael Currey, Bishop of North Carolina. It is not only the energy of his proclamation, borne of the African American church experience, but his artful handling of the biblical texts and the masterful construction of his message. A comparison with Dr. Martin Luther King would not be over-reaching.

The Sunday Liturgy was simply splendid. Much more traditional in character (but with some blended elements of both classical and contemporary songs and chant) it featured an amazing choir, great congregational singing, and a fine sermon by Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori. Watching thousands of people receive the Sacrament with such devotion and joy was more than inspiring.

My thanks go out to all the lay persons, bishops, priests, and deacons who have worked so hard to prepare the liturgies, lead us in experiencing them, and “cleaning up after us” long after we have departed for our legislative work.

Including my hard-working wife — Deacon Susanne Watson Epting — who has coordinated the scheduling and coaching of deacon-participants, worked with other “floor managers” to facilitate the flow of worship, and composed or edited the Prayers of the People written fresh each day to bring the concerns of our minds and hearts into the Presence of God in intercession and thanksgiving.

Thank God for the gift of Eucharist!

Dan chose a great set of Lessons from the Bible for this service! Each one has something unique to say to us about the occasion we’re celebrating here today – Dan’s ordination to the priesthood and the ministry he shares here with all of you atSt. Pauland the Redeemer. We usually start with the Gospel for the day because Christians read the whole Bible through the lens of Jesus and his life and ministry and teaching.

 Today, Matthew tells us that “Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and curing every disease and every sickness.” (Mt. 9:35). Clearly, priests are to follow that pattern, set out for us by our High Priest, Jesus. Priests (primarily because we have the benefit of a theological education and, hopefully, time to read and reflect on the Bible and theology and what God may be up to in our world today) priests have a rabbinical, or teaching, role in the congregation. One teacher among many, hopefully.

 Priests are also preachers, proclaimers. And what we are to proclaim, according to Matthew, is “the good news of the kingdom.” That means the incredible message that God is in charge of this world…and that we are not! And that our task is to work and pray and give so that this world may begin to look a little more like God’s Kingdom, God’s Realm until, one day, it will be established in its fullness – in God’s time, not ours.

And, priests are healers. Not just when they pray for the sick or anoint us with the oil of unction, but as they gather the community, as they seek to reconcile differences (within the church and within the wider community), as they preside at the Sacraments of the New Covenant which mark and celebrate major turning points in our lives. Priests are to be healers.

 Matthew goes on to tell us that, when Jesus saw the crowds he had compassion on them “because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” (Mt. 9:36). Now, there are surely problems with the sheep and shepherd image. You are not sheep, blindly following your shepherd to find good pasturage. You are young people and adult human beings who have your own responsibilities and leadership in this church of ours. But, to the extent that a shepherd keeps his or her eyes out for the lost sheep, cares deeply for them, and is willing to take risks to make sure the sheep are fed, then clergy have a “shepherding” function. And clearly, a priest without “a shepherd’s compassion” will not serve the church….or the world…very well.

 Finally, Matthew quotes Jesus as saying that “the harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” (Mt. 9:37-38). That’s sort of what we’re doing here this afternoon. We’re asking the Lord of the harvest to bless and empower Dan and to strengthen him in his work of “bringing in the harvest.” (Pause) But I need to remind you (and him) that one of the dangers of using our High Priest, Jesus, as a model for our own priesthood, is that – the last time I checked – none of us are Jesus Christ!

 More clergy than I like to think about have burned themselves out by not getting that fact straight from the get-go! Priests are not Jesus. The Body of Christ, the Church, is Jesus. Or, at least his hands and feet in the world today. And that’s what the author of the Letter to the Ephesians was reminding us of. He writes, “But EACH of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift.” (Ephesians 4:7)

 And then, he goes on to list examples of the kind of gifts and ministries that he found in that little church in Ephesus and which I bet you can find right here at St. Paul and the Redeemer – “apostles (those who are sent); prophets (those who “tell forth” God’s challenging word); evangelists (people full of good news); pastors (those who care for and tend others); and teachers (those who pass on the faith to this generation and to the next). The priest’s role is not to DO all those ministries, but to identify them and encourage them and bless them in the lives of others so that – as Ephesians says – “…the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.” (Ephesians 4:16)

 At our best, we have always known that “ministry” is not a lone ranger’s occupation. Ministry is done by a community of God’s people. That insight stretches all the way back to the Hebrew Scriptures and the book of Numbers which tells us that God instructed Moses to identify seventy “elders of the people” and to have them take their place alongside Moses in the Tent of Meeting. “I will come down,” God says, “and talk with you there; and I will take some of the spirit that is on you and put it on them; and they shall bear the burden of the people along with you…” (Numbers 11:15-17).

 So, Moses learns something about shared ministry and he even learns that others in the community beside himself can be “prophetic.”  The compilers of our lectionary, however, left out what I think is the best part of this story. Right after the 70 “chosen ones” begin to prophesy, we are told (in verses 26-29) that two others remained in the camp. For some reason, Eldad and Medad did not go out to the Tent of Meeting. Yet, somehow God’s Spirit fell on these two as well…and they also began speaking prophetic words.

 Moses’ right hand man, Joshua, finds out about that and says “Moses, stop them.” But Moses replies “Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit on them (all).” (Numbers11:29) I love Eldad and Medad! They were non-conformists who stood outside the “holy place,” outside the tent of meeting – and yet God spoke through them as surely as through Moses and his “in group.”

 So, Dan, welcome to your role as teacher, preacher, healer, and, yes, even shepherd to this congregation. But remember, it is not up to you and your ordained colleagues alone. In fact, it will not be healthy for you or the community if you make that mistake. Remember that you are surrounded by other apostles and prophets and evangelists and pastors and teachers in this congregation. Rejoice in that fact and see yourself as one minister among many in this place. Work to makeSt. Pauland the Redeemer, not a community gathered around a minister, but a ministering community.

Welcome the fact that God’s prophetic work is carried out by all members of this community. But in doing that, don’t forget Eldad and Medad. Don’t forget that there are voices outside this beautiful “tent of meeting” who are speaking God’s word as powerfully to the church and to the world as you are. Remember that Moses’ prayer has now been fulfilled: “All God’s people ARE prophets…and the LordHASput his spirit on them all!”

It seems strange to have the story of Jesus’ Cleansing of theTempleread on this 3rd Sunday of Sunday in Lent. We usually think of it as coming in Holy Week, toward the very end of Jesus’ earthly ministry, right after the Palm Sunday story, the so-called “Triumphal Entry” intoJerusalem. In fact, that is where Matthew, Mark, and Luke place this story – setting up the conflict between Jesus and the authorities which eventually led to his arrest, trial and crucifixion later that week.

 Contemporary NT scholars like Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan even write about “two processions” coming into Jerusalem that Palm Sunday – one from the east and one from the west. From the west, Roman cavalry and foot soldiers followed Pontius Pilate into the city to make sure there were no violent uprisings inJerusalemduring the Jewish celebration of Passover. And, from the east, a rag tag bunch of pilgrims and peasants cheered as Jesus rode down theMount of Oliveson the back of young donkey. What a contrast! And what an obvious set-up for a conflict of world views!

But John, the Gospel writer we are following today, for his own purposes, has this event happen early in Jesus’ ministry. His gospel has Jesus going toJerusalemseveral times during the course of his three year public ministry rather than only once at its conclusion. And John is interested, not so much in the conflict between Jesus and the Roman government as he was between Jesus and his own religion’s leaders!

 A complete outsider to the power structure of the Temple, Jesus issues a challenge to the authority of the Templeitself that quite literally shakes it to its foundations. By throwing the money changers out of the Temple,  and letting loose the sacrificial animals, he throws the mechanics of Templeworship into chaos, disrupting the temple system during one its most significant feasts so that neither tithes nor sacrifices could be offered that day. The implication is that Jesus is claiming authority to challenge the supremacy of the Templebecause his whole life bears testimony to the power of God in the world. The Kingship, the Reign, the Sovereignty not of theTemple, but of God alone!

 Now, none of this should be interpreted as meaning that Jesus was advocating the superiority of some new religion called Christianity over the old religion, Judaism. Jesus was an observant Jewish male who traveled to Jerusalemregularly for the major holy days. Jesus taught and observed the Ten Commandments we had as our First Reading this morning. No, Jesus’ challenge was to the authority of a dominant religious institution in Judaism – the Temple and temple worship – not because he’s anti-Jewish – but because he stands in the long line of Hebrew prophets like Amos and Jeremiah who challenged a religious system so embedded in its own rules and practices that it is no longer open to a fresh revelation from God. (see New Interpreter’s Bible; Volume 9, page 545)

 And that, dear friends, is where all this begins to apply to us!

We hear a lot today about people, and not only younger people, describing themselves as “spiritual but not religious.” For many of them that means that they believe in God, may admire the figure of Jesus, pray from time to time, and believe in some kind of life after death. But they are not terribly interested in what we sometimes call “the institutional church.”

 They perceive us as being hopelessly out of touch with the contemporary world they live in. They shake their heads at our “church wars” over changing liturgies or the ordination of women, or the place of gays and lesbians in the church. And they wonder why we spend so much of our time, money and energy on maintaining church buildings and church governance structures that don’t seem to have very much to do with Jesus or with his primary message to the world!

 Well, there may be a certain simplicity, or even naivete, in that kind of critique. Very few movements can survive, over time, without a certain institutionalization. You need some kind of structure to pass the message on from generation to generation. But, if we are going to take the message of Jesus in this morning’s Gospel seriously, we need to recognize that he is challenging – not only the Temple-centered Judaism of his day – but the “over institutionalization” of the contemporary church…in our day!

 Over the last 65 years or so, we in The Episcopal Church (and most other mainline denominations) have built up some pretty elaborate structures of diocesan and national church bureaucracies and staffs that we can simply no longer afford. We have pretty strict rules and regulations about how worship is to be conducted in an Episcopal Church. And we have an amazingly complicated process through which men and women have to move in order to be ordained. All of these things are being questioned and are, in some sense, up for grabs today.

 I don’t think we have any idea what the Church will be like 50 years from now, or certainly by the year 2100. I know it will look very different from the Church we live in today. And we can either be fearful of that kind of change, and resist it with all our might. Or, we can be open and flexible to see indeed “what the Spirit is saying to the churches” in our time. We have to be willing ask ourselves where and when the status quo of religious practice has become frozen, and therefore closed to the possibility of reformation, change and renewal. The great danger is that we in the contemporary church, like the leaders of the religious establishment in Jesus’ day, will fall into the trap of confusing the authority of our own institutions with the authority of God.

 During these 40 days of Lent when we journey with Jesus in the wilderness, I invite you to be open to embrace whatever it is that God is up to in our day. I invite you to join us in this season of discernment – for surely not everything that is “new,” or claims to be of God, is of God. But I do believe God is calling us into a kind of new reformation in our day. And if we are to be faithful to that calling, it will require us to be open, to travel light, but to ground ourselves ever more deeply in prayer, study, and mission.

Because, as long as we are grounded in God, we need have no fear of changing times or changing circumstances. For it is God alone that we serve. God is our rock…and our salvation!

This year I’ve decided to participate in the 2012 Ecumenical Lenten Carbon Fast sponsored by the Massachusetts Conference of the United Church of Christ and endorsed by the four Episcopal bishops of Massachusetts.

Beginning on Ash Wednesday, each day I will receive an email with the day’s suggested carbon-reducing activity ranging from the very simple (eliminating “vampire” electrical use, taking “military showers” and reducing driving speed) to the more challenging and long term (buying local produce, consider getting involved in a community garden).

More information can be obtained by going to www.macucc.org/carbonfast

In years gone by, I would have dismissed this as “trendy” and not sufficiently ascetic for a true catholic such as myself, but this year I’ve been paying more attention to the second Old Testament reading assigned for Ash Wednesday. You know, that uncomfortable one from Isaiah 58 where God says:

“Is not this the fast I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke?

Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your homes; when you see the naked to cover them, and not to hide yourself from your own kin?

…then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom like the noonday

…your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in.”

If we are to rebuild the ancient ruins of our cities, raise up a foundation for future generations, repair the breach between Creator and Creation, and restore streets which can sustain life, we had better learn to take better care of “this fragile earth, our island home!

Trendy? “Secular?”

Yeah, just like old Isaiah!

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By now, I’m sure that everyone (Iowans included) are more than glad that this day is finally here and we can stop hearing about the pros and cons of the Iowa caucuses, whether they should be first in the nation, whether the state is representative enough of the country to warrant such attention, etc. etc. etc.

As an “Iowan by choice” I have participated in many of these events and believe they do have a role to play in the overall process. It’s a good “winnowing” strategy — old fashioned, grass roots, face-to-face politics which, as yet, has not been totally ruined by the Supreme Court’s ridiculous decision to deem “corporations as people” and the vast increase of negative advertising to which this has led. Just wait until some of the real primary states!

True, Iowans are nowhere near as diverse ethnically as much of the rest of the nation. On the other hand, we are more diverse than some western states. More importantly, every socio economic strata is represented here from the very rich to the very poor. Every conceivable political position is represented here — from right wing evangelicals to the most liberal perspective possible (and not only in the “Peoples’ Republic of Iowa City!”)

As a “yellow dog Democrat” (one who would vote Democratic if our only candidate was an “old yeller dog”) I will miss the give and take of a “real” caucus this year — with folks making speeches, voting, dividing up into small groups for debate, etc. Yes, Elizabeth, it really does happen that way — in school rooms, church basements, town halls, etc across this amazing state.

We Democrats will gather in larger groups in fewer places, hear from our President over cyberspace, and begin to stategize on how we can assure four more years of an Administration which — despite the economic hole out which we had to climb and a cynical, gridlocked Congress — has made progress, if not totally fulfilled, every promise he made to the American people during his campaign.

Finally, while my doctrine of “original sin” is far too high to believe that Democrats are blameless or above the kind of corruption and petty politics we see all around, the Democratic platform at least seems to reflect much more completely the kind of “Kingdom values” I believe Jesus would have us uphold. And, while Christians can be “political” without being “partisan,” I find that increasingly difficult when faced with an opposition party which seems increasingly to embody the values of the “Empire” rather than the values of the Reign of God. 

And, whenever your state weighs in, don’t forget to vote!