We have a king: Christ the King

This Sunday is also known as Christ the King Sunday and we have a reading from Luke 23:35-43 as an reminder, 

And the people stood by, watching; but the leaders scoffed at him, saying, ‘He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Messiah of God, his chosen one!’ The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine, and saying, ‘If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!’ There was also an inscription over him, ‘This is the King of the Jews.’

 One of the criminals who were hanged there kept deriding him and saying, ‘Are you not the Messiah? Save yourself and us!’ But the other rebuked him, saying, ‘Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed have been condemned justly, for we are getting what we deserve for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong.’ Then he said, ‘Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.’ He replied, ‘Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.

I watched with disappointment as people recently engaged in "no kings" rallies because they did not appear to recognize that we do have a king and his name is Jesus. 

And he shall reign where'er the sun!

 

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When a polyamorous same-sex 4-some showed up for a "Pop-up Wedding Fair"

I said it was just a matter of time before same-sex marriage led to the acceptance of polygamy by society. It looks like one church in Germany is leading the way.

From Premier Christian News,

The Evangelical Church of Berlin-Brandenburg has defended Lena Müller, a pro-LGBT minister, after she shared a picture of the blessing on Instagram, saying: “We are appalled by the hate directed at her. We stand with her and condemn these attacks in the strongest terms. We stand with those who are experiencing hostility.”

The four men had attended a “pop-up” wedding fair hosted by the church, where couples could receive a blessing without registering for marriage in advance.

The now-deleted post read: “Four young men said ‘yes’ to each other, celebrated love with us, and placed themselves under G*d’s colorful blessing.”

Lena Müller told NOZ: “You could see straight away that there was a lot of love between them.

“That’s why the team quickly agreed: What could God have against there now being four instead of two?”

The Protestant Church in Germany said the incident had not been a legitimate church ceremony, as the four men were not married under civil law.

In Germany, bigamy is illegal—but some exceptions have been made for Muslim immigrants who already have multiple wives.

What could God have against there being four instead of two she asked?  

Jesus answered that one,

“But at the beginning of creation God ‘made them male and female.’  ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two, but one flesh.  Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” Mark 10:6-9

I guess they don't study that in seminary anymore.

 

Come labor on

In this week's reading from 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13, the Apostle commands his readers to not be freeloaders.

Now we command you, beloved, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to keep away from believers who are living in idleness and not according to the tradition that they received from us. For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us; we were not idle when we were with you, and we did not eat anyone’s bread without paying for it; but with toil and labour we worked night and day, so that we might not burden any of you. This was not because we do not have that right, but in order to give you an example to imitate. For even when we were with you, we gave you this command: Anyone unwilling to work should not eat. For we hear that some of you are living in idleness, mere busybodies, not doing any work. Now such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living. Brothers and sisters, do not be weary in doing what is right.

 When people come to our church during the week asking for a handout they are given food and clothing, but if it money that they want, they are offered work and a lesson from scripture. 

The passage 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13 should be hung on the door. 

Can the demented consent to medical assisted suicide?

From The Bridgehead, 

 A string of recent stories highlights the aggressive expansion of Canada’s culture of death, from a frail woman with dementia being euthanized in Ontario, a “secret euthanasia house” being set up in British Columbia, and Quebec proposing a “law of all laws” that would enshrine the right to both abortion and euthanasia...

... the elderly woman who was euthanized had a family member request the lethal injection on her behalf; the report noted that she needed assistance for all basic tasks, including eating. “At one point during her admission, Mrs. 6F reportedly expressed a ‘wish to die’ to a family member,” the report stated. “This was communicated to her care team, who initiated a referral for MAID. Mrs. 6F’s expression of a wish to die was interpreted by a family member as a potential request for MAID.”

Despite that initial statement—which was not necessarily a request, but “interpreted as one”—the woman decided not to be euthanized and was moved into long-term care. Four months later, “a family member initiated a re-referral for MAID.” The report noted that her suffering was exacerbated by her “dependency and cognitive decline.” As the Post summarized it: “The MAID provider assessed her eligibility over a single interaction, and with a family member present.” The provider stated that it was “clear she did not want to continue to live as she (was).”

The woman, however, could not even communicate clearly. She could not sign the consent form, despite an attempt; it is unclear if she knew what she was signing. The report noted that her repetition of a question from the provider and squeezing a hand “is not an indication of understanding or appreciating a healthcare decision,” especially considering her cognitive capabilities, and that the dependence on a family member illustrated “potential opportunity for undue influence.” The report emphasized that her consent was in question for multiple reasons. She was euthanized, nonetheless.

This was a case of murder, not "euthanasia." 

The BC Catholic, meanwhile, reported that the Toronto nonprofit “MAIDHouse” has opened a secret euthanasia facility in BC’s capital of Victoria (a similar facility was opened in Toronto in 2021). People come to MAID Houses on the day of their death to be killed; these facilities receive government funding and are recommended resources for the suffering. Victoria is already considered the “euthanasia capital of the world.” As the BC Catholic noted: “The furtive establishment of a standalone, private euthanasia house in Victoria has sparked criticism from pro-lifers and exposed yet another way in which medical assistance in dying is spreading throughout the country.” 

 Caring for a demented person is a very difficult thing. My mother had a long downhill course due to dementia being bedridden for several years before she died. She had good care at a Catholic facility after my father could no longer do the job. He moved into a adjacent assisted living apartment and was able to visit her every day. The love that we observed  and learned from him and from my mother's caregivers is so different from what the report above reveals about the family of the Canadian woman who was treated as a disposable object by them and the State. 

Lectionary Edits Strike Again

This Sunday's reading from the Revised Common Lectionary  cut out part of the Epistle: 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5,13-17. I have highlighted the missing verses in red.

As to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we beg you, brothers and sisters, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as though from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord is already here. Let no one deceive you in any way; for that day will not come unless the rebellion comes first and the lawless one is revealed, the one destined for destruction. He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, declaring himself to be God. Do you not remember that I told you these things when I was still with you?

  And you know what is now restraining him, so that he may be revealed when his time comes. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work, but only until the one who now restrains it is removed. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will destroy with the breath of his mouth, annihilating him by the manifestation of his coming. The coming of the lawless one is apparent in the working of Satan, who uses all power, signs, lying wonders, and every kind of wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion, leading them to believe what is false, so that all who have not believed the truth but took pleasure in unrighteousness will be condemned.

 But we must always give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the first fruits for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and through belief in the truth. For this purpose he called you through our proclamation of the good news, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by our letter.

 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and through grace gave us eternal comfort and good hope, comfort your hearts and strengthen them in every good work and word.

I guess the editors thought those verses in red would be too difficult for the average pewsitter to understand or too difficult for the average preacher to explain and too deprecatory.

Still the part where it reads, "God sends them a powerful delusion" needs commentary.

Matthew Henry put it this way, 

6. We have the sin and ruin of the subjects of antichrist’s kingdom declared, 2 Thess. 2:11, 12. (1.) Their sin is this: They believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness: they did not love the truth, and therefore they did not believe it; and, because they did not believe the truth, therefore they had pleasure in unrighteousness, or in wicked actions, and were pleased with false notions. Note, An erroneous mind and vicious life often go together and help forward one another. (2.) Their ruin is thus expressed: God shall send them strong delusions, to believe a lie. Thus he will punish men for their unbelief, and for their dislike of the truth and love to sin and wickedness; not that God is the author of sin, but in righteousness he sometimes withdraws his grace from such sinners as are here mentioned; he gives them over to Satan, or leaves them to be deluded by his instruments; he gives them up to their own hearts’ lusts, and leaves them to themselves, and then sin will follow of course, yea, the worst of wickedness, that shall end at last in eternal damnation. God is just when he inflicts spiritual judgments here, and eternal punishments hereafter, upon those who have no love to the truths of the gospel, who will not believe them, nor live suitably to them, but indulge false doctrines in their minds, and wicked practices in their lives and conversations.

Too much for the Sunday pewsitters? 

A Funeral For a Friend

 We have reached the stage of life in which we attend more funerals than weddings, and the past month has provided a bumper crop of friends' souls to be processed through the Pearly Gates. This has given us the opportunity to visit many different churches and denominations. Unfortunately for me, I had to attend a funeral for a friend at my former Episcopal church which is now run by a "married" same-sex priest.

Does anyone really wonder why the Episcopal organization (TEO) is dying?

You can't deny the numbers which continue a decades long trend in Episcopalians' funerals (24,165) outnumbering baptisms (16,984) in 2024. Read a summary at Anglican Watch.

The futurists predict a slow death for TEO. I suspect that the larger urban parishes will hold on the longest while the smaller parishes' funerals will go largely unnoticed and unattended by their city dwelling counterparts much like these statistics will be unrealized by the average pewsitter.

May the souls of those who remained blind to the cause of death of their once faithful denomination rest in peace.

 Peace is easy when your head is buried in the sand.

[Verse 1] 

The roses in the window box have tilted to one side

Everything about this house was born to grow and die

Oh, it doesn't seem a year ago to this very day

You said, "I'm sorry, honey, if I don't change the pace

I can't face another day"

[Chorus]

And love lies bleedin' in my hands

Oh, it kills me to think of you with another man

I was playin' rock and roll, and you were just a fan

But my guitar couldn't hold you, so I split the band

Love lies bleedin' in my hands

[Verse 2]

I wonder if those changes have left a scar on you

Like all the burnin' hoops of fire that you and I passed through

You're a bluebird on a telegraph line, I hope you're happy now

Well, if the wind of change comes down your way, girl

You'll make it back somehow

 

[Chorus]

And love lies bleedin' in my hands

Oh, it kills me to think of you with another man

I was playin' rock and roll, and you were just a fan

But my guitar couldn't hold you, so I split the band

Love lies bleedin' in my hands

 

Beatitudes, Beatitudes...

This Sunday we decided to celebrate All Saints Day even though it was yesterday. There is nothing wrong with hearing the Beatitudes from Luke 6:20-31 on any day,

 Then he looked up at his disciples and said:

‘Blessed are you who are poor,

   for yours is the kingdom of God.

 ‘Blessed are you who are hungry now,

   for you will be filled.

‘Blessed are you who weep now,

   for you will laugh.

 ‘Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice on that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets.

 ‘But woe to you who are rich,

   for you have received your consolation.

 ‘Woe to you who are full now,

   for you will be hungry.

‘Woe to you who are laughing now,

   for you will mourn and weep.

 ‘Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets.

 ‘But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again. Do to others as you would have them do to you.

I am struggling with that part about not asking for the goods that were taken from me as I have been cheated by a contractor, but I don't want others to be victimized. 

I know the Sheriff won't struggle with it if I turn it over to him. 

Still... I wonder.