Cling to Jesus

This Sunday's Gospel reading is from Mark 13:1-8 in which Jesus predicts the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem.

As he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, ‘Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!’ Then Jesus asked him, ‘Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.’
When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him privately, ‘Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?’ Then Jesus began to say to them, ‘Beware that no one leads you astray. Many will come in my name and say, “I am he!” and they will lead many astray. When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. This is but the beginning of the birth pangs. 

If we read the rest of Mark 13 we realize that the future has even more in store than the destruction of the Temple. In verses 26-27  Jesus says, 

"Then they will see 'the Son of Man coming in clouds' with great power and glory. Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven."

Through all of the trials and tribulations that the future holds, the message is to beware of false Messiahs, to cling to Jesus, and to not bother asking about when the end will come.

We can cling to Jesus by studying the primary source through which we came to know him, and that is the Bible. When we reject the Bible, when we follow false prophets, and when we accept false teachings, we reject He who promised to save us, to gather us from the ends of the earth.  

"Conservative" Episcopal Bishops Are Failing Too

While I won't get sucked into a discussion of how to define a conservative Episcopal bishop, I will use the term here to describe those bishops who are at least somewhat opposed to having same-sex marriage rites used in their jurisdictions. These men desire to remain Episcopalian despite the terrible drag the national organization has on membership.

The recent strongly worded pastoral letter from the Bishop of Albany on same-sex marriage in which he lays out the orthodox position regarding same-sex relationships was applauded by some in his diocese but burned near the church steps by others after it was released this week. It is too lengthy to quote in its entirety, so I encourage you to follow the links provided.

There are only a handful of bishops left in the Episcopal organization willing to oppose the progressive agenda like Bishop Love, but the actions of the most recent Episcopal General Convention have painted them all into a corner, and they "shall" have to permit trial rites for same-sex marriages by providing alternative oversight from a progressive bishop.

Bishop Love's line in the sand may land him in hot water, but how healthy is his diocese anyway, and how healthy are the dioceses of the other "conservative" bishops?

A look at the statistics from the last 10 years shows that their dioceses are all losing members. The following numbers are estimates derived from graphic charts provided by the Episcopal organization of average Sunday attendance (ASA) in each diocese over the time period of 2007-2017.

Diocese of Albany (Bishop William Love) ASA dropped from 7000-5000
Diocese of Central Florida (Bishop Greg Brewer) ASA dropped from 15,000-13000
Diocese of Dallas (Bishop George Sumner) ASA dropped from 12,000-11,000
Diocese of Florida (Samuel Howard) ASA dropped from 9000-8000
Diocese of North Dakota (Bishop Michael Smith)  ASA dropped from 750-550
Diocese of Springfield (Bishop Daniel Martins) ASA dropped from 2200-1500
Diocese of Tennessee (Bishop John Bauerschmidt) ASA dropped from 6000-5500
Diocese of West Texas (Bishop David Reed) ASA dropped from 10,000-8500
Diocese of Virgin Islands (Bishop Ambrose Gumbs)  ASA dropped from 2200-1300

These kinds of losses are just as bad as the losses seen by the Episcopal organization as a whole.

Many of us used to believe that if we just elected a conservative bishop, then we could defend our little islands and even grow the Church. That theory is either wrong, or the bishops we elected are not conservative enough, or the Holy Spirit has rightfully abandoned the Episcopal sect. One could argue that a truly orthodox bishop would have pulled his people out of the Episcopal mud swamp long ago, and that the current lot, by hanging with the lunatics on the left, are actually harming their dioceses. I am sure there are other issues as well (such as one of the bishops mentioned above not even residing within his diocese).

Rather than travelling on junkets, wasting time with the rest of the House of Bishops, or arguing over whether or not intinction shall be permitted, these men need to be out in the streets dragging the unchurched back and bringing unbelievers to Christ. They need to be visiting their parishes and encouraging their priests and congregants to be doing the same, and if their priests are not capable, then they need to replace them with ones who will be their boots on the ground.

I suppose it is hard to evangelize when you are yoked to the rest of the Episcopal sect. Their false gospel will be rejected by most unbelievers, as well as "conservative" seekers. Who wants to see part of their pledge dollars going to fund an organization that endorses horrors such as infanticide?

Bishop Love and his "conservative" buddies are not holding their own, and they need to recognize the problem and deal with it once and for all. Bishop Love's pastoral letter is something that each and every one of them need to adopt for their diocese, and then face the consequences. Excommunication from a heretical sect would be a blessing. 

Remember the Sacrifice for Peace

This Sunday we remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice as we commemorate the 100th anniversary of the end of World War One. Armistice Day or Veterans' Day is also a day upon which we reflect on Jesus' words about giving your all.

"As he taught, he said, ‘Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and to be greeted with respect in the market-places, and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honour at banquets! They devour widows’ houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.’He sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny. Then he called his disciples and said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.’"  Mark 12:38-44

The poor widow voluntarily gave all that she had to live on. In War, people are the sacrifice, and all sides typically consider that those lives are given for a cause, be it a just cause or not. The survivors, the veterans, owe their lives to those who died so that war might end. Few go into war with the express idea of being counted among the dead unless they are jihadis or kamikaze pilots, but every soldier and civilian in modern warfare must understand that they may be killed. In the United States we say that our men and women in uniform are "in the Service", and the military as a whole are called the "Armed Services". Jesus taught us about servant leadership a few weeks ago in another Gospel lesson. We are the beneficiaries of their service, and unlike the scribes described by Jesus, we need to accept that sacrifice with humility. I myself understand that I might lose a nephew currently serving in the military, and it humbles me to think that my lowly life might be worthy of such a gift as his sacrifice.

Last week when considering God's love for us, I mentioned the fact that He is willing to die for me as factor in understanding love.

Jesus said,

"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." John 15:13 King James Version (KJV)

War is always fought with the goal of peace of some kind, as a means to an end, or as

"the continuation of policy by other means." Carl Philipp Gottfried (or Gottlieb) von Clausewitz

We celebrate the peace, and not the war that promised to bring peace.

From "COME UNTO ME A SHELL-HOLE MEDITATION" by Geoffrey Anketell Studdert Kennedy,

Come unto Me
It sounds like mockery,
A voice that calls a wounded man
Across a weary space
He cannot travel o'er;
For we would come to Thee,
We long to see Thy face,
But we are wounded sore,And evermore
Our weakness binds us,
Darkness blinds us,
We stretch our hands out vainly toward the shore,
Where Thou art waiting for Thine own.
We groan, and try, and fail again,
We cannot come--we are but men,
Come Thou to us, O Lord.
Come Thou and find us.

Shepherd of the sheep,
We cannot come to Thee.
It is so dark.
But hark,
I hear a voice that sounds across the sea.
"I come."

Denominoes: Methodists Struggle to Find "A Way Forward"

I once said that the old mainline protestant denominations were going to fall like dominoes. I called the game, "Denominoes", and it looks like another one is falling.

My brother in law is a Methodist, and the other day he asked me about how issues around human sexuality were handled by Episcopalians. In particular he was thinking locally, on the parish level. All of this because the United Methodist Church (UMC) has been grappling with the problem of openly homosexual ministers who continue to defy their book of discipline. The UMC recently published "A Way Forward" which sought to maximize,

"the presence of a United Methodist witness in as many places in the world as possible, that allows for as much contextual differentiation as possible, and that balances an approach to different theological understandings of human sexuality with a desire for as much unity as possible. This unity will not be grounded in our conceptions of human sexuality, but in our affirmation of the Triune God who calls us to be a grace-filled and holy people in the Wesleyan tradition."

Methodibabble.

I explained that Episcopalians, while mostly well educated, are for the most part functionally illiterate when it comes to theology and scripture due to their reliance on once a week (at best) worship, a the three year lectionary which binds them to hearing the same small bits of scripture year after year, and priests and bishops who want to keep their sheep illiterate. Therefore congregants help elect revisionist priests and bishops in large part because, except for the progressive pewsitters, they have no idea what they are doing. On the local level this results in most Episcopalians not caring about what goes on at the national level because they are happy with their church friends, most of whom are "nice people". Ignorance of the the consequences of hanging out with "nice people" on Sunday mornings who are functionally illiterate of theology and scripture results in one hearing the oft repeated, "I am not worried about", "It will never happen here", or "It doesn't matter to me".

Conservative Episcopalians fought the progressive agenda for a while but eventually had to depart, or if they stayed, they stopped giving money to their parish church because part of that money went to fund the madness that was happening on the national level. Oh, there was talk of a "Third way" or of Sarah's "Little Stone Bridge" approach, but in the absence of a viable alternative and a paucity of little stone bridges, Episcopalians drifted away by the millions, and a once great denomination fell.

Those of us who witnessed the Episcopal organization's step by step march from easy divorce to  homosexual bishops, same-sex marriage, transsexual priests, and gender neutral restrooms and prayers learned a number of lessons. Two of those lessons were to beware of the "listening process", and to read between the lines of any "Commission" formed to find a "way forward". This is because only one side is supposed to listen, and there is only one way forward as far as progressives are concerned. In fact, the very notion of "listening" implies that conservatives don't listen, and calling something "a way forward" implies that anything else is "backward". Another lesson we learned was that words are important, and the first one out of the gate with a catch phrase or new label for something usually wins modern day "debates".

Another lesson we learned was that we were going to be called names. I have been called a homophobe, a hater, a misogynist, an idiot, and a neanderthal. I have been told to leave by a number of parishioners, priests, and one bishop. You have to learn to put up with abuse.

The Methodists "listened", and "studied" and came up with three options for a way forward.

• The One Church Plan (one big happy LGBT church)
• The Connectional Conference Plan (separate but equal)
• The Traditionalist Plan (one big traditional church)

Guess which two are going to be in the finals.

Guess which group will be called names.

Guess which group will leave.

The denominoes are falling.

Loving Oneself

This Sunday's Gospel reading is from Mark 12:28-34 in which Jesus defines the two greatest commandments.

One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, ‘Which commandment is the first of all?’ Jesus answered, ‘The first is, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” The second is this, “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these.’ Then the scribe said to him, ‘You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that “he is one, and besides him there is no other”; and “to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength”, and “to love one’s neighbour as oneself”,—this is much more important than all whole burnt-offerings and sacrifices.’ When Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God.’ After that no one dared to ask him any question.

I have previously commented on how hard it is to love God with all of my heart, soul, and mind due to the distractions of the world. Today, I would like to look at the question of how to love one's neighbor as oneself, but from a different angle than the obvious.

Typically we look at this from the point of view of loving the neighbor, and with the "immigrant caravan" being the issue of the day, I do not doubt that many preachers will try to draw conclusions from Jesus' teaching in order to paint the immigration policies of the President of the United States as wrong, evil, or un-Christian.

Instead, I read this Gospel lesson today and remembered the problems I had with loving myself when I was in my teens. I remember being told somewhere how important it was to first love oneself and how that seemed egotistical,  narcissistic, and contrary to Jesus' teachings. "Love God first", I thought was more important, but it was not until I came to grips with the fact that God loved me so much that He would suffer and die for me that I could begin to love God with all of my heart, soul, and mind. In order to love, I first had to know that I was loved.

At the time I do not think that I loved myself very much, and that was reflected in how I loved others. I could be an obnoxious know it all, a person who was quick to tease or to make fun of someone, and not very conscious of God's presence or his concern for them. That all changed once I realized and accepted God's love for me. My life began to change. I treated people better, and while I still didn't love myself very much, I began to love my neighbors more.

I think that loving one's neighbor as one's self  really boils down to sacrifice. That might mean giving up your evil ways, treating everyone well, or it might mean following a career serving others, or being ready to give the ultimate sacrifice for people you love, something our police, firefighters, and military do every day, and something Jesus did for us in spite of our unloving nature.

To be loved is something we all desire.

To know that God loves you makes those two greatest commandments that Jesus defined fall right into place.

That Pesky "Our Father", the CofE, and the Episcopal Diocese of Colorado

The Lord himself Jesus addressed God as "Father" when Jesus taught us to pray, "Our Father, who art in Heaven...", so who are we to try to change the way we pray so that we avoid masculine references when speaking about God? Well, there has been a persistent push to emasculate the Episcopal organization in the USA as well as the Church of England and changing the language of worship is one pernicious method progressives use. 

Two recent stories illustrate the problem.

First we cross the pond for this,

"The Church of England should avoid only calling God 'he', a bishop has said, as a survey found that young Christians think God is male.
Research by YouGov found that almost half of 18-24 year-old Christians believed God to be male, with just one in three over-65s believing the same.
The Rt Revd Rachel Treweek, bishop of Gloucester, the Church of England's first female diocesan bishop, said: 'I don't want young girls or young boys to hear us constantly refer to God as he,' adding that it was important to be 'mindful of our language'".

"Be mindful of our language"? As if to refer to God the way Jesus did would be harmful to children.

Meanwhile in the United States, the Episcopal Diocese of Colorado chose for their new bishop a woman who sponsored a resolution supporting gender neutral language when referencing God.

Episcopal Pravda reports "[Episcopal Church in Colorado] The Rev. Kimberly (Kym) Lucas was chosen as the 11th Bishop of the Episcopal Church in Colorado during its 131st Annual Convention held at Saint John’s Cathedral in Denver on Oct. 27."

Who is Kym Lucas? Jeffry Walton reported on her back in January 2018,

"Embracing progressive themes, delegates to The 123rd Diocesan Convention approved legislative proposals “On Becoming a Sanctuary Diocese: Offering Sacred Welcome to Immigrants,” “On Inclusion of Transgender People,” and “On the Gendered Language for God” at the Washington National Cathedral on Saturday, January 27.
Resolutions were passed in under one hour and were introduced by a small number of delegates. The Rev. Kimberly Lucas, Rector of St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C., and a graduate of liberal Union Theological Seminary in New York, sponsored all three resolutions.
According to statistics made available by the Episcopal Church, St. Margaret’s has declined precipitously in the past five years, from approximately 240 attendees in 2006 down to 130 (-46%)."
Gendered Language
Resolution #3, “On the Gendered Language for God,” related to Book of Common Prayer revisions that will potentially be considered by the national church at General Convention this summer:
“…eliminate, when possible, all gendered references to God and to replace them with gender neutral language, and if necessary, to alternate gendered titles when referring to God.”
The resolution was amended to read “…if revision of the Book of Common Prayer is authorized, to utilize expansive language for God from the rich sources of feminine, masculine, and non-binary imagery for God found in Scripture and tradition and, when possible, to avoid the use of gendered pronouns for God.”
“Over the centuries our language and our understanding of God has continued to change and adapt,” the resolution drafters asserted. “Our current gender roles shape and limit our understanding of God. By expanding our language for God, we will expand our image of God and the nature of God. Our new Book of Common Prayer needs to reflect the language of the people and our society … language should not be limited by gendered pronouns when avoidable.”

A crazy priest from a parish in decline becomes a bishop of a diocese in decline. Genius! What were they smoking?

Maybe, just maybe the progressive agenda might have something to do with the decline.

Most assuredly the progressive agenda is to blame for the choices of  Rachel Treweek as bishop of Gloucester and Kym Lucas as bishop of Colorado.

I am afraid the Episcopal Diocese of Colorado will be left singing "Rocky Mountain Low" a decade from now.

Throw Away Your Cloak!

This Sunday's Gospel reading is Mark 10:46-52 in which a blind man is healed,

They came to Jericho. As he and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Jesus stood still and said, ‘Call him here.’ And they called the blind man, saying to him, ‘Take heart; get up, he is calling you.’ So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. Then Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ The blind man said to him, ‘My teacher,  let me see again.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go; your faith has made you well.’ Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way.

One interesting feature of this miracle is that the blind man is named. This means that he was known and therefore could be tracked down to verify the facts of the story if there were any doubts.

Matthew Henry in his 1706 Commentary adds a few extra points, 

This passage of story agrees with that, Matt. 20:29 Only that there were told of two blind men; here, and Luke 18:35; only of one: but if there were two, there was one. This one is named here, being a blind beggar that was much talked of; he was called Bartimeus, that is, the son of Timeus; which, some think, signifies the son of a blind man; he was the blind son of a blind father, which made the case worse, and the cure more wonderful, and the more proper to typify the spiritual cures wrought by the grace of Christ, on those that not only are born blind, but are born of those that are blind.

... The poor man, hereupon, made the best of his way to Christ; He cast away his loose upper garment, and came to Jesus (Mark 10:50); he cast away every thing that might be in danger of throwing him down, or might in any way hinder him in coming to Christ, or retard his motion. Those who would come to Jesus, must cast away the garment of their own sufficiency, must strip themselves of all conceit of that, and must free themselves from every weight, and the sin that, like long garments, doth most easily beset them, Heb. 12:1.

... It is not enough to come to Christ for spiritual healing, but, when we are healed, we must continue to follow him; that we may do honour to him, and receive instruction from him. Those that have spiritual eye-sight, see that beauty in Christ, that will effectually draw them to run after him.

I have not been able to determine if Bartimeus and Timeus were gentiles, Greek. The names would suggest they were, and this would once again demonstrate that Jesus did not restrict his healing miracles to the Jews.