A Crash Landing

A Crash Landing!

Forty six years ago today I was ordained a priest of the Church at St. Luke's, Malden, alas a congregation no longer with us. It was snowing to beat the band that day. My buddy Graham drove in safely from Detroit, but the Bishop got stuck in a snow bank in Newton. Bob Legon ran out of music to play on the pipe organ so he was playing "Moonlight and Roses" by the time Bishop Burgess arrived. He was the first Black Bishop in the Episcopal Church, and I asked Kitty Rippy to sing "Precious Lord". Tony Garratt Reed was there and he and later his family were to become life long friends. And so I greet this Gaudete Sunday with Rejoicing.

No sooner do I say that but we coming crash landing into the ferocious words of John the Baptist with his “in your face” confrontational style; “You brood of vipers!” His way of calling us a bunch of snakes in the grass. Now, that’s a fine how do you do!

Compare and contrast that with the tone we hear in today’s other Scriptures. We hear of Joy as we light the Rose Candle on our Advent Wreath. This is why we call the day Gaudete Sunday…the word “Gaudete” means “Rejoice”.

The prophet Zephaniah writes of Joy;

“Rejoice and exult with all your heart,

O daughter Jerusalem!

The Lord has taken away the judgments against you”

In the Canticle we sing of Joy;

“Cry aloud, inhabitants of Zion, ring out your joy, *

for the great one in the midst of you is the Holy One.”

Similarly Paul in his letter to the Christian folk in Philippi writes; 

“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.” 

But then the collect of the day says; “Stir up your power, and with great might come among us, and because we are sorely hindered by our sins, come speedily to deliver us.”

The Joy of Advent, the Rejoicing with which we greet this day, is in stark contrast to the reality of our sin. 

There is much suffering and sorrow still. God knows violence, injustice, and oppression are always and everywhere. So it was when John came to announce the Advent of Jesus. 

And he rightly confronted the powers of darkness within us; he knew we are sorely hindered by our sins; “You brood of vipers”; he called us. Ouch!

John uses harsh language and dire warnings to catch the attention of his listeners. We may need to be shaken up a bit out of our complacency. Then, just a jarringly, what he asks of us is really quite reasonable; all he asks of us is “be generous and honest”

If you have more clothing or food than you need, share.

Tax collectors, be fair.

Soldiers, no threats or extortion, be happy with a fair wage. 

Mind you, we are indeed sorely hindered by our sins, and we often find ourselves spinning our wheels while the world spins on in its own sinful circles. 

How do we indeed allow God’s Grace to speedily come to our aid so that we may become agents of God’s loving justice and compassion?

The first thing John reminds us of is that we cannot leave it up to God to do it all alone. We are God’s ambassadors. If there is to be peace with justice we will have to be the ones to make it so. If there is to be a cessation of violence, it will be up to us. There are still many hearts to be changed before Peace can reign supreme and secure in the human heart.

Yesterday was the sixth anniversary of the Sandy Hook shootings. That day 26 innocent children lost their lives. Many of us vowed, never again. But since that day there have been 1919 more mass shootings. (By way of reference, here is a listing of the deadliest mass shootings in modern US history. 

https://www.cnn.com/2013/09/16/us/20-deadliest-mass-shootings-in-u-s-history-fast-facts/index.html)

Like the kids in Parkland, Florida I don’t want prayer any more. What I want is to protect our children, our young people, ourselves. I want action. Congress has taken none. Many states have begun a patchwork of laws to help curb gun violence. But we alone among western democracies have yet to develop a robust regulatory regimen to stem the tide of gun violence. 

I suppose if I say too much on the subject, I may have my head handed me on a platter, much like John the Baptist did when he raised his voice at the Advent of Jesus.

In the meantime all I would ask for is the application of the Second Amendment themselves which begins with the words; “A well regulated militia…” There, that’s all I’m asking for…”a well regulated militia”. 

Alas, in our public discourse, we are not likely to engage in conversation about all this without tempers flaring. We are not a skilled people when it comes to the art of conversation. We are more adept at confrontation, much like John himself. We tend to engage in name calling. 

What makes me rejoice is the Advent of Jesus. Jesus is the One who will sit down with us first and spend hours listening. His teaching comes later. He listens first to his own inner demons in the wilderness forty days and forty nights. Then he listens to the heartache of the sick, and the poor, the bereaved, the mentally ill, and the outcast. It is with these that his love and healing touch begins. 

Only then does Jesus teach. And his sermons are filled with Blessings and Beatitudes. He proclaims a message of Peace that strikes to the heart of our deepest yearnings.

A yearning for forgiveness, love, and reconciliation. These are the most powerful words in the human heart, but they are also the most difficult to achieve. Forgiveness, love and reconciliation are experiences that only Jesus seems to master. If only we could do as Jesus does. 

All across the world, in our families, our communities, our politics, there are so many divisions, Jesus asks us; “love one another”. Race, class, nationality, gender, orientation and so on, “forgive one another”. When God sees the world there are no borders, no walls. We are all one. You’ve seen the satellite images of this fragile earth, our island home; “Be reconciled to one another”.

John may see us as a brood of vipers. But Jesus sees us as a much more lovable lot than that. He delights in us. There are no outcasts for Jesus. No poor. No sick. No Republicans or Democrats. No distinctions whatsoever.

That’s how Jesus is different. There are simply no exceptions. He is not happy until all our sins are forgiven. That’s the mystery of the cross to me. 

Today marks the 46th Anniversary of my ordination as a Parish Priest. I got to thinking about all this not so long ago. All the congregations I’ve served, all the people I’ve known and loved. All the Baptisms, Marriages, Burial; Hospital Visits, Office Visits and the way folks pour out their hearts and souls to me and to God.

And then I wrote these words:

“St. Peter,

Let me make this plain and simple.

"If there's a heaven and somehow I feel sure there's bound to be",

I'm not going into the place until you're all in there first.

Period.

All of you.

You are witnesses, today; I’m saying it right out loud in front of God and everybody.
So please...
Love one another.
Forgive one another.
Be reconciled to one another.
That's our work.
I'm not going into heaven until the work is done.

So, please don’t keep me waiting too, too long.
I love you all too much to leave anyone out.
So get busy with the work that has to be done!
There.
I said it.
In black and white.
Hold me back until everyone else is in...
Got that Peter!”

ll I’m saying to you is what Jesus said to us before me. 

“Love one another.” 

This above all else will Rejoice God’s heart.

In the Name of God; the Most Holy, Undivided and Everlasting Trinity. Amen.

Fr Paul.

Honest to God

Honest To God

When was the last time an Episcopalian actually "invited" you to church? As Advent approaches this year, that's exactly what I'd like to do. Last Sunday was my first down day in a while. I just plain slept in, read the paper, drank coffee and enjoyed a leisurely breakfast. After 46 years of priesthood I thought I deserved a break. Being an Honest to God Pagan from time to time has much to commend itself. 

But then Cindy and I started thinking about Advent. What shall we do? Obviously it makes sense for us to visit churches we've served since retirement. It has been quite a journey. And we're both curious. 

But that begs the question. Why would I invite you to church?

You could be a perfect stranger to me.

You may be reluctant given what passes for "christian" out there. 

I agree with you there. I feel no connection whatsoever with the evangelical conservative movement which feels contrary to much of what I value in the Gospel.

For me, Jesus searched out and loved the outcast. 

In those days it may have been the leper. In our day it feels like the LGBTQ community. 

Jesus searched out the poor, the meek. the brokenhearted and the persecuted.

These were among those Jesus described as blessed. ~Matthew 5

The Episcopal Church and other "mainstream" churches have struggled to be inclusive communities that search for justice for the poor. 

Jesus is compassion, reconciliation and above all, Jesus is the Love of God made flesh and blood.

This is Who I seek.

When I want to focus on the Love of God made flesh and blood I look to Jesus. There are four magnificent snapshots we have of him in The Sacred Writings: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. The reading of them takes center stage in our Liturgy. The Gospel Book is brought into the midst of our congregations as Jesus came into our midst in the town squares to long ago.

I invite you to come and meet this Jesus along with the rest of us.

May I suggest that if you wish to take me up on this invitation you do so "Honest to God". This is the only place to begin, in the center of your Heart of Hearts where God lives. 

I invite you to go to the very center of your Heart of Hearts this Advent and come to rediscover who God is for you. This is how I seek to approach the Sacred. And to tell you the truth after 46 years of life in the church, that is pretty much where we all begin; "Honest to God". 

This is not to say you will not find pettiness and hypocrisy in the church. God knows I've fought many a petty battle with what I considered "small minded" folk for many years. Truth be told I can also get a bit petty and small minded too. 

To tell you the truth, there is plenty of pettiness and hypocrisy to go around. But there is also a far higher truth to live into also. To find a place where we can come to terms with the lesser within us as well as with the noblest within us is exactly what the church is designed to be: Honest to God!

Yes. I invite you to church. Pick one. They're all pretty much the same. Wonderful people who will be a blessing to you and a bane as well, I assure you. This is true of us all. The church is a wonderful place to come to terms with the truth about us all "Honest to God".

In the silence before sleep, this is Who I discover "Honest to God". As I converse with the hallowed emptiness of a sleepless night, there You are, the same now as ever. What seems empty to me, Honest to God, is full of your Love for me. Eventually, this is how I fall asleep; In Your love.

This is what keeps me coming back to church, to learn and learn and learn again that You are there in our midst; "Honest to God".

And so I invite you to church, not so much to "go to church" as to "be the church".
Having folks who can be "Honest to God" with one another is such an inviting prospect!

In the Name of God; the Most Holy, Undivided and Everlasting Trinity.

Fr Paul

We're not in Boston anymore!

The Feast Day of the Transfiguration 2017

St. Peter’s Cathedral, Helena, Montana

“Toto, I’ve a feeling we’re not in Boston anymore”

~Dorothy (a minor variation)

Last night Cindy and I were out shopping. We stopped to grab a bite at Shellie's Country Cafe. When we observed cowboy hats, boots and belt buckles, we looked at each other and said; “Toto, I’ve a feeling we’re not in Boston anymore”

Good morning folks and thank you for your wonderful welcome to Helena, Montana. Cindy and I owe a deep debt of gratitude to Bishop Brookhart, Sara Medley and the Cathedral Chapter, and to your wonderful Parish Administrator, Donna Gleaves. You have provided us with a very comfortable place to live in and a basket full of goodies to enjoy. Donna has prepared pages of agenda items for the interim dean to pay attention to as we begin this journey together. It sets my head to spinning as I contemplate; “Good Lord, where have I landed now!”

When we left Boston it was hazy, hot and humid. When we arrived in Helena, it was smokey, hot and dry. This folks, is a mighty Transfiguration! How appropriate that we begin our time together on the very day that Jesus was transfigured right before their very eyes, high up upon the holy mountain. We have what we call mountains in the Berkshires in my home state, but the Native Americans named the place Massachusetts: “Place of little hills”. Those hills are nothing like what we have around us here. How beautiful! I can hardly wait for the smoke to clear to see them in all their magnificent majesty. And as I say that, let us remember those who fight these wildfires. Several have lost their lives in the ongoing battle. We owe them a debt of gratitude for their courage and sacrifice, we owe them our prayers as they face the dangers of the work they do day in and day out. 

It was hot and dry in the desert places where Jesus and his disciples ministered. They focused their work around the sick, the poor and the outcast. They brought them the Good News of God’s love and their love. With courage and resolve they mightily ministered to their needs. 

Then the day came for them to climb the holy mountain. It was cold and windy up there if it was anything like the holy mountains we visited when we took a bus load of high school kids to the Holy Land. 

There was an encounter with the Holy, as so often happens when we are with Jesus. As they prayed there, suddenly Jesus was transfigured and his face shone like the sun, his clothing became a dazzling white. They spoke of his departure, interestingly enough, and as they did, Moses and Elijah appeared and the Glory of God radiated through them. 

Peter, dear Peter, our very own Peter didn’t know what to say. So he said the only thing he could come up with; “Lets make a couple of lean to’s of the sort you make in a mountain when you’re going to spend the night and lets stay a while. Let us dwell in this moment.” Imagine here is Jesus, the One with power over sin and death. Moses the one who brought us up out of slavery in Egypt and into freedom in the Promised Land and then gave us the Law. And Elijah the Prophet who did not shrink from confronting the Powers and Principalities of his time with the Word of God. Neither did Moses shrink from Pharaoh nor Jesus fall away from facing Pilate or the Temple authorities. 

Then as suddenly as they all appeared together, Moses and Elijah were gone and only Jesus remained before their eyes. They heard it plain as day; “This is my Beloved Son, listen to him now!”  

You will remember what Jesus said.  He spoke on the basis of what he did. After all in the Sermon on the Mount Jesus does say; "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord', will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only one who does the will of my Father in heaven." ~Matthew 7:21. You will remember the Sermon on the Mount. You will remember how he cured the sick, and those suffering from every form of mental illness, and how he went out of his way to visit the outcast and the lepers of his day. Not everyone was thrilled with this approach to human need. And Jesus paid dearly for his love for us all but he rose again from the dead and here he is now in our very midst this day in the power of his resurrection. 

Our church has undergone quite a transfiguration in recent years. We are seeking to understand anew what Paul meant when he said; “As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.” ~Galatians 3. The Gospel is not about Jew or Greek alone but about any race or ethnicity. It is not about slave or free alone but all economic classifications. Not even gender identity can factor into consideration about the love of Jesus when you think about it.  We are all one in Jesus. We have all put on Christ as a garment. 

Our own blessed Peter, the Rock upon which Jesus continues to build God’s Church, when speaking to the Gentiles, namely the “outsiders” the “foreigners” of his time, said in his glorious Easter Sermon; ‘I truly understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.” ~Acts 10

Every one of you gathered here this morning shines with the same kind of Glory with which Jesus shines. I can see it in your faces. And I see no exceptions, even after these first 45 years in parish ministry 45, thanks be to God. 

Mind you there are characters in our midst. There are varieties of gifts, opinion, conviction, temperament, and every Dickensian peculiarity. After all, we are Episcopalians. But when we gather in this holy place and at this altar rail we bring who we are to God and to one another and somehow we gather rubbing shoulder to shoulder in the very midst of God’s Glory. The collect of the day proclaims that as Jesus is wonderfully transfigured so may we be “delivered from the disquietude of this world” and behold God in Glory. It is this very Glory which you show forth in your lives, it is your joy that will bring people to Jesus. Be radiant! Be joyful!

There is another Sunday in the church year when we observe the Transfiguration. I love the way the Collect for the Last Sunday after the Epiphany puts it; “O God, who before the passion of your only-begotten Son revealed his glory upon the holy mountain: Grant to us that we, beholding by faith the light of his countenance, may be strengthened to bear our cross, and be changed into his likeness from glory to glory.”

We gather week by week delivered from the disquietude of the world we live in so that we may be transfigured from glory to glory. Bring yourselves and others to the Glory of God and the Joy of Jesus!

I hope you allow yourselves to live in this glory. From the moment I first entered this building, I could sense it; you know what I mean; that breathtaking sense of the holy. When Donna first showed me this place I was especially taken with the stained glass windows. Then come to find out, they were made by Charles J Connick in his studios in Boston. Aha! No wonder I feel so much at home here. As we bask in the beauty of this place may I invite you to allow yourselves to be transfigured from glory to glory especially in the inward places of your very souls.

Connick wrote of the beauty of our encounter with God in these words; “If churches are made radiant and beautiful places of worship, we can have a spiritual regeneration without anyone knowing what is going on. Beauty can preach as very few with bundles of words can preach. I want to make beautiful interiors for both churches and souls. I want folks to hear my windows singing.” 

What does God want of us and of this Cathedral as we seek a transfiguration of the human soul? My wife Cindy has a way of bringing me back to earth. Seems there are always bills to pay and stuff to do. You and I know that no matter how glorious the mountaintop moment may be, we always have to come back to reality. The fact of sin and wickedness and death is all around us. How shall we organize ourselves as a Cathedral to confront that sin and wickedness and death? It has been said of Mother Teresa that she was “something beautiful for God”. Her mission was anything but beautiful. She faced into the ugliness of death and loved them to the Gate of Heaven. Jesus came down from the mountain to face his crucifixion, followed then by his resurrection.

You are something beautiful for God especially when you organize your lives around the suffering of the people around you and when you have the courage to become agents of God’s Justice. No Toto, we’re not in Boston anymore. We're right here in Helena. May God grant that we may shine with the radiance of Christ’s Glory. And what is it that God requires of us but “to do Justice, to love Mercy, and to walk humbly with our God”. ~Micah 6:8. Stay tuned folks, next week we celebrate 150 years of mission and ministry in and from this place. God grant that what we do in our time together may guide us toward the next 150 years of worship and service.

In the Name of God, the most holy undivided and everlasting Trinity. Amen.

Fr Paul

A Devout Episcopalian?

A Devout Episcopalian?

Obviously, I have a blog and a website. I don't "Tweet" very much and occasionally folks contact me on Linked In. My middle son uses Instagram; he has an amazing eye for photography. But Facebook; ah, now that's my preferred social medium by a long shot. I have over 1000 "friends" there, many from congregations past and present, those who follow my sermons, social commentary, and poetry and so on. I've developed quite a following, many of whom happen to be Episcopalians.

One of my friends on Facebook refers to himself as a "devout" Episcopalian. I confess, that the first time I saw those two words placed together I was a bit taken aback especially after all we've been throuogh as a denomination. Devout Episcopalian? It almost sounds like a contradiction in terms.

Look what we've been through

1. Civil Rights struggles. I remember when John Burgess was elected black bishop in the Episcopal Church right here in the Diocese of Massachusetts. Some of my white colleagues were somewhat uncharitable in their comments at the time even here in "liberal" Massachusetts.
2. Vietnam and war and peace. Every time we go to war, and there have been many, we divide ourselves between those who favor military intervention and those who oppose it.
3. Litugical renewal. The revision of the Book of Common Prayer took a considerable toll on us. And as we continue around the Anglican world to innovate and create liturgical life to reflect local customs and settings. Such revisions always play to mixed reviews. 
4. The ordination of women was a controversy for many and still is. Especially in the United Kingdom and elsewhere. We lost some members and even some congregations over that one. The decision to eliminate gender as an automatic disqualifier to ordination has strained relationships in the throughout the worldwide Anglican Communion.
5. And then of course, the Consecration of Gene Robinson, the ordination of LGBTQ folks, and the question of Marriage Equality continues to raise lots of questions as to who will contine with us or against us. We've lost a few dioceses in the American Church and our place in the Anglican Communion has been called into question. Interestingly enough, the pope welcomed a dozen of our bishops to Rome; some women, some men, some black, some white and even one who happens to be in a life long same sex relationship.
6. Conflict in two of our major seminaries and some rather scandalous behavior in some in our schools, among some bishops, clergy, and laity all strains our community relationships.

None of us have been left unscathed in all this or so it seems, and yet life somehow goes on. As I've often said, the surest proof that there is a God is that there is anything left of the church after all we've done to it.

In the midst of all this controversy and bruhaha over one issue or another it is refreshing to see that there are people who are willing to call themselves "devout Episcopalians".

If ever there were a time when the church needed "devout Episcopalians" it is now. We need to see beyond the issues that divide us and remember that what we've actually done is to forge a bond of deep affection, like feuding brothers and sisters do over a lifetime. We may fight like cats and dogs within the family, but God help you if you attack the family. That's when we stand together as one.

We stand together on the Gospel. "The Son of Man came into this world to serve not to be served". Exactly! We are here to serve those in need. This is how we are to organize our life as a church, around human need. I mean the poor, the homeless, the outcast, the sick, the dying. I mean everyone. There are no exceptions to God's extensive, comprehensive and inclusive love. When Isaiah said "My house shall be a House of Prayer for all people", he meant "ALL PEOPLE". 

What we are putting to the test in all our controversies, I believe is whether we really mean that. After all, this is the verse Jesus used when driving out the money changers from the Temple precincts "My house shall be a house of prayer for all people," weilding a whip of chords, "but you have made it a den of robbers". 

Over the great west doors of the National Cathedral these words are written in stone. This church is dedicated to the universal notion that God made this whole world and all that is in it. It is in short "A House of Prayer for all people".

I cannot help but think of the magnificent words from the Book of Job before us today. Job and his friends have gone on and on throughout the first 37 chapters of this portion of the Biblical Narrative legitimately and sincerely exploring the  universal mystery of suffering. And then comes God's universal answer;

"Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?

Tell me, if you have understanding.

Who determined its measurements-- surely you know!

Who has put wisdom in the inward parts,

or given understanding to the mind?

Who has the wisdom to number the clouds?

Good questions, don't you think?

To me its all of a piece. All of our controversies over a lifetime. In all our inclusion/exclusion exercises that are part of any comunity's dynamic. Who's in? Who's out? Who's included? Who's excluded? By what race, ethnicity, class, gender or sexual orientation do we classify folks loved by God and those not? Thankfully, in this one tiny corner of the world of faith there are no more pidgeon holes. True the growing denominations are those who will exclude some based on a few verses out of Leviticus or a misreading of some Pauline theology. But not no, not here. Not in this church. 

In the Episcopal Church we believe that as God is one so all God's people are one. What passes for Christianity in many quarters simply does not square with who I know God or people to be. 

I cannot help but think of the wisecrack Tallulah Bankhead made once about the church. She was considered by many to be an agnostic, and certainly much of her personal life was less than exemplary. As she once quipped; "I'm as pure as the driven slush!" Still she loved to go to the Parish Church of St. Mary the Virgin on Broadway in New York. "Smokey Mary's" it is called becaue of its pageantry, elaborate ritual, and generous use of incense. Some of the theatre you will see there is as good as any as you will see in that part of Manhattan. A reporter spied her coming out of church one day and is reputed to have asked her if she was a "Christian." She fired back as only Tallulah Bankhead could; "Heavens no darling, I'm not a Christian, I'm an Episcopalian."

Eileen Kitteridge and I have been visiting recently as she approaches the throne of heaven. We spoke yesterday of what it means to be a "devout" Episcopalian. She and I both have loved ones who happen to be gay, and neither one of us understands what difference that makes in God's great plan of salvation to tell you the truth. Some of the most loving people we know happen to bee "that way". So what? The only thing that matters to her right now, she says to me with a smile on her face is whether there will be a thrift shop in heaven where she can continue her work pricing items for sale. I assured her that as a mustard seed is all we can see in this life compared to the reality of what is in store for us in the next, the heavenly thrift shop will likewise exceed her wildest expectations. Her face radiated pure joy as she thought of it.

She said to me on one of our visits recently, "Oh I must not forget to tell my son to send my envelopes in to the church. After all, the church expenses go on. We must do what we can do for as long as we can do it." This too is what it means to be a "devout" Episcopalian. 

You see, what matters is the Resurrection of Jesus. What matters is the forgiveness of sins. What matters is whether we will love one another as God loves us, unconditionally and to the end and beyond. These are the things that matter. All of the issues we've fussed about throughout our lives pale in comparison to the Gospel. 

The disciples wanted Jesus to do for them whatever it was they asked him to do. Jesus reminded them that is not for him to grant. It is like many I've known, myself included when staring into the face of life's many mysteries especially our share in  the suffering of Job or the suffering of Jesus. We think that we will be the ones to ask questions of God.

In the 38th Chapter of Job, God settles things in a whole hurruy up. These ringing words set the record straight. 

"Then God answered Job out of the whirlwind; Who is this who darkens counsel without knowledge? Gird up your loins and stand up like a man. I'm the one who asks the questions; and you are the one who will give the answers. (paraphrase)."

Our visits are pleasant ones;; the visits I've had with Eileen and Louise. God blesses you for all your visits. You bring the sacrament of love and joy to those who are in the midst of long and difficult days. Thank God for you all.

As we concluded our visit Friday afternoon, Eileen asked for a prayer and a blessing. Then she lifted her hand and pointed toward me. Remember "devout" Episcopalian. 

The Catechism teaches us now what it has always taught us; "To work, and pray and give for the spread of the Kingdom of Heaven."

The idea of praying for "all sorts and conditions" of human folk is no innovation. It is as old as the Prayer Book itself, in fact the idea, comes down to us in the Prayer Book Heritage from the Great Litany written over 600 years ago in 1535.

In my ministry and my lifetime, let me tell you I've met all sorts and conditions of humankind and sometimes it takes some doing to love them all. But that is the moral mandate we are under. For the One who stands over us continues to stretch out his loving arms on the hard wood of the cross so that all may come within the reach of his saving embrace.

And now may the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Love of God and the Fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all evermore. Amen.

Fr Paul.

"Are You Running With Me Jesus?"

“Are You Running With Me Jesus?

The year was 1965 and I remember picking up a book of prayers by that title, by Malcolm Boyd, an activist Episcopal Priest. He was struggling with issues of faith and ethics. Is there a God? How can we know? And if there is a God how can people who call themselves “Christian” treat black folks the way they do?

I received word from some friends on Facebook yesterday that Malcolm Boyd is not expected to survive the weekend. I pray for the Companionship of Christ and the repose of his soul. 

We were in the midst of the Civil Rights Struggle at the time. Malcolm Boyd was one of the “Freedom Riders” of 1961. We were in the midst of the “Honest to God” debates where many of us were struggling with our faith at one level or another. The whole idea of God came under close speculation. Many abandoned the quest for God altogether and we entered what many historians call “The Post Christian Era”.

Malcolm Boyd wrote this book of prayers and it hit the New York Times best seller list. It is still worth reading. In it Boyd traces his long journey from a boyhood faith to a manhood atheism and back then to a place where the emptiness of the modern age seemed to beg for something more.

He put his questions to prayer. I put my questions to God in prayer as well. He entered the wilderness of the quest of God. I did the same. He became a priest. I became a priest. We come now to Lent, a time when we acknowledge that Jesus too was driven into the wilderness.

I must confess that there is part of me that loves the wilderness. As a boy, I loved it when it snowed. I am getting over that particular enthusiasm in my riper years. As a young man, my best friend and I used to travel to the north country in Ontario during the winter. We lived in Toronto at the time. The temperatures were often sub zero and the winds beat against us as we made our way on snowshoes across the lake to the family cabin. I loved the pure adventure of it. Even when I got a bit older, I loved going up to the Pinkham Notch Visitor Center and venturing out to climb parts of Mount Washington under the direction of the guides they had there. That was a long time ago. I’ve grown more cautious in my riper years. Hard experience has also taught me to respect the wilderness and to acknowledge my own mortality and vulnerability. 

The long journey through the wilderness of so many ethical questions was still before us at the time. Race, ethnicity, war and peace, class, gender and sexual orientation all the barriers we had before us to break in 1965. They still are of course. Malcolm Boyd posed the question in his little book of prayers. To him the answer to the question; “Are you Running with me Jesus?” was an a undone “Yes!”

After all, as the Epistle tells us today; “Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, in order to bring you to God.”

This meant that God was there not just for Malcolm Boyd, or for Paul Bresnahan. God was there for all of us without exception.

This is now 50 years ago. At the time we posed the question, at the time I read the book, I thought the answer was obviously; “Yes”.

Of course there is a God. 

Of course God loves everyone without regard to race, ethnicity, class, gender, or orientation. After all, uncle Al and his partner were welcome at our Thanksgiving table in our home. Why wouldn’t he and Jimmy be welcome at God’s table too?

Little did I know.

It all began in Hyde Park, Boston during the days of integration. And let me tell you; the business of race was real then and there right there smack dab in the City of Boston. And it was not a pretty sight.

We moved to Cleveland’s east side to the city of Euclid. And guess what, the business of race was real there too?

And if that didn’t teach me all I needed to know about race in America, I went then to Pawleys Island in South Carolina. It was in the wake of Hurricane Hugo, and much help was needed. The Yankee from Boston did not last long there before he was shown to the door and rather unceremoniously bid farewell. I had the temerity to raise questions of how minorities were treated there.

In West Virginia, I stayed in safer territory, and took on the matters of poverty, hunger and homelessness especially among our veterans. Honest to God, you’d think that was a theological “slam dunk”. But not so fast! It was a battle all the way.

Then there was a cross burning I led the march from St. Mark’s to the Black Baptist Church with Mike Poke the pastor there. And that was not in the 1930’s. It was in West Virginia in 2005. 

Then the Diocese of New Hampshire elected and consecrated Gene Robinson and a hoopla over that cause all kinds of divisiveness in the Episcopal Church and in the Anglican Communion. I spoke openly of my support of Gene Robinson’s election as well as of my children; two of whom happen to be gay, both of whom love this church with all their hearts; all because they love God with all their hearts.

“Are Your Running With me Jesus?”

It is a question that is profoundly spiritual and ethical at the same time.

Not only do we believe that Jesus runs with Malcolm Boyd in these ultimate moments, we believe that Jesus is running with all of us, because it is his belief as well as our own that “Christ’s Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church is increasingly “A House of Prayer for All people” (Isaiah 56:7 & Matthew 21:13). And when I say all, I mean ALL. 

Admittedly we are a tiny corner of of Christianity and even in the rest of the world of faith, to come right out and say so. Our ministry and membership are open to all. There are now no barriers to ordained and lay ministries in this church.

“Are you running with me Jesus?” 

That is such a fruitful question both for our spiritual and ethical lives. Both are inextricably connected.

As for me and my house, the answer is an abundant; “Yes!”

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. AMEN.

Fr Paul