Not Quite But From a Similar Cloth

We’re In It Together

Delivered Sunday April 12, 2015

 Ephesians 4:1-6 -   

¹ I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, ² with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, ³ eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. ⁴ There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— ⁵ one Lord, one faith, one baptism, ⁶ one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. 

When I was a teenager my Dad had a small commercial subcontracting business where he installed, among other things, rolling steel doors. You may be familiar with these doors. They are steel slats interlaced together to form a curtain. The curtain fits between two channels on either side of the opening and rolls up on a large spool at the top. Well, I helped him install a bunch of these doors, everything from 2 foot by 2 foot counter shutters to 40 foot by 30 foot monsters that two railroad boxcars could pass through side by side. As he got older he got away from it and retired but a few years later, not long after Joanne and I married I decided to restart the business.

After being in business for a couple of years I got a contract to install one of these rolling steel doors on a union job site. This meant I had to go to the local steel workers union hall and ask the union president for a temporary permit to do the job. It was either that or join the union which had no real benefit for me. Now, let me give a little background here. When Pop was still running the business he also, on occasion would have to do the same. You see, installing one of these steel doors was a bit technical and not everyone was qualified to tackle the job which left the union president with no one in his organization able to do it. Knowing this, and decidedly not a union man, Pop would go round and round with the president. I was never privy to conversations but, according to the stories I heard, the president would tell Pop he had to join the union and Pop would tell him what he could do with his union. The president would threaten to not give him a permit so Pop would tell him to have one of his own members do it which would irritate the president no end and would lead to prolonged arguments with the eventual and final result being Pop would leave - with his permit.

Now it was my turn. Like I said, I had heard the stories but never really knew how accurate they were. We can all tend to embellish now and then and Pop was certainly no exception. As I went in to the president’s office, and this was a pretty stereotypical union boss – not quite Tony Soprano but of a similar cloth. There were photos of him shaking hands with high ranking politicians on the walls and other trophies attesting to his connections on his desk.

I really didn’t know what to expect. It had been quite a while since Pop had visited and fought his battles. I went to his office but before I could say anything, he began a tirade about the treatment he got from my Dad and how Pop should have joined the union but had refused, what a hard time he had given him about not having qualified members and how I was probably just like him. Within

20 seconds I realized that nothing had changed. The union still had no members qualified to do what Pop had qualified me to do and the president had no choice but to give me the permit.

I also realized that all the stories Pop had told about his encounters with this man were true. Although it had been a little while since Pop had passed away, I don’t know that was ever more proud of my old man than at that moment. It was true. He had stood toe to toe with this powerful union boss and put him in his place.

 And I was reaping the benefits from it. I didn’t have to fight or argue. Pop had already defeated this foe. He had fought and won the battle and I was benefiting from it. While the president continued to rail I held my peace and thanked my Dad for who he was, for giving me a skill that not everyone could do and also for the path he had cut for me in that union president’s office. I was smiling on the inside and trying hard not to smile on the outside. All I had to do was hold my ground, hold my peace, be patient and wait for the inevitable work permit to come my way. The hard work had already been done for me.

Even though Pop had passed on, he was still there with me, not only in spirit but in what he had accomplished beforehand. He and I were in it together - and you and I are also in it together - this thing known as the Church.

When I think about the Church, I tend to think about this fellowship, the unity and the love we share and enjoy here at Good Shepherd but Paul is reminding the Ephesians, and us, that the Church is much larger than our local body. He says there is one body, one Spirit, one baptism, one Lord and Father, one faith.

When we look around at the Church today we don’t necessarily see one Body but seemingly a divided body. There are currently approximately 43,000 Christian denominations in the world – and growing.

So, how can Paul say that there is one body when there appears to be thousands of different expressions of that body?? I’m not going to talk about that today. Instead, I’m going to talk about our Anglican expression of the Body.

Joanne and I came to the Anglican Church from the independent Charismatic Church where we met and married. As a result, we didn’t really see the need for or the purpose of Church traditions – though in reality, every church I’ve ever attended created its own traditions.

Over all, the Independent/Charismatic movement is a wonderful expression of the Church. We learned a lot, grew a lot and made lots of good friends. At the same time, through the years we also experienced a few interesting challenges and interesting personalities. After returning from the mission field we visited several churches in the area but none of them seemed to scratch our itch. We had some friends that had supported us on the mission field that had become members of a local Episcopal Church. They invited us to join them so we decided to give organized religion a try and see if it offered something more than the disorganized religion we were accustomed to.

This Episcopal/Anglican church was Spirit filled and had been very instrumental in the local charismatic renewal in Jacksonville so the transition was a little easier. The rector loved God and loved the Anglican Church and its traditions.

I have to admit that for the first several months I was suspicious of what was going on in the service and particularly the Eucharist or Lord’s Supper. Why this procession, these silly dresses, these same refrains we sing every Sunday (Praise God from whom all blessings flow, etc)?

 Now, I was, and am a saved by grace through faith Christian so I didn’t really see the purpose or the value in the pageant, but, at the same time there was something about it that attracted me.

 I listened carefully to the creeds and to the prayers of the priest, especially as he blessed the elements, analyzing in my mind all that I saw and heard to be sure it agreed with what I understood to be Biblical – and it did.

 But, it was in the new comers’ class taught by the rector that I got my first glimpse of understanding of the Eucharistic pageant and its significance.

 In one of the classes, Father Charles began talking about the Apostles’ Creed, or Baptism Creed as it is often referred to. I had listened to it enough to know that I agreed with it but I did not know anything about it or its source. When I learned that the Apostles’ Creed, or some form of it had been in use by the Church since almost the very beginning 2000 years ago, something clicked for me. I was suddenly connected, not only to Christ but also to the saints throughout the ages. I began to get a revelation of the Church beyond the local body, beyond my region and even beyond the current world.

 I began to think about the apostles and their disciples 2000 years ago, the thousands and millions and even billions of Christians in every corner of the globe through every age and event of history that had passed during those 2000 years. I began to think of all the Christian heroes and missionaries, the martyrs and saints, the Popes and the reformers, the mystics and theologians and how the Church has been attacked in every age by detractors and heretics, despots, politicians and outright haters and how She has overcome every single one and still stands strong. And, by God’s grace She will continue to stand strong long after the current challenges She faces have become forgotten bylines of history.

 I wasn’t alone. They were there with me, as I confessed the creed with my fellow church members and especially at the rail where we receive the bread and wine of the Eucharist. I was connected

 I didn’t know, and still don’t know every detail of the traditions behind every aspect of the pageant. I know that some are ancient, like the creeds, and that some are more modern like the surplices worn by the choir and others. But, the creeds, the Eucharist, the pageant, the surplices and the refrains all played a part in connecting me, here and now to the Church Universal, the Church Eternal. We are one body, united by one Lord, Jesus Christ.    

 As Anglicans we take the Eucharist pretty seriously but, in reality, it is not something we have to do. Instead, it is something we get to do. It is central to the pageant and worship service and illustrates the centrality of Christ and His sacrifice in our lives.

 There is no rule that the Eucharist has to look a certain way or that the players in the passion play must dress a certain way. But, you will notice that Fr Shay is leading us through all of the essentials of the pageant with nothing left out – praise, Word, confession of sin, prayer, proclamation, affirmation of faith and the Eucharist just as it has been practiced for 2000 years by billions of believers like you and me.

 At the same time, let’s be clear about this. Participating in the Eucharist, in and of itself is not going to save you or keep you saved. There is no magic in it. Although, if understood for what it is and practiced in faith it is a huge encouragement and help in bringing us to Christ and keeping us there. It is a pageant, a passion play if you will, to be a profound reminder, a mysterious touch point of faith that is deeply representative of the completed work of Christ in our lives through faith. It connects us, not only to Christ but also to our fellow travelers in the local body where we attend, to the billions of Christians around the world today, the billions of Christians that have gone before us and the billions of Christians that, God willing are yet to come.

 Just as I was standing on my Father’s shoulders when I went before that union president, benefiting from his work, so also we stand on the shoulders of the apostles, prophets, saints, missionaries, theologians and martyrs that have gone before us. They have given us a rich heritage to follow. They have laid a solid foundation for us. They have defeated more enemies than we know. They have cut a path for us. And, the Eucharist pageant is a powerful reminder of what they have done on our behalf and points us to the source of our salvation upon which we stand.  It connects us with our Savior. It is life and encouragement and food for our very soul. It also connects us to those around us, to those who have gone before us and to those who come behind us.

We are not alone. We are a vast army. We are in this together.

⁴ There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— ⁵ one Lord, one faith, one baptism, ⁶ one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. 

Hallelujah! 

Hi all,
Sorry I've not been posting for a little while. Hopefully that will change soon. In the mean time here's a small gallery of my photos to let you know that I still love you.
Blessings

Quetzacoatl

That old time religion:

I John 4:1-5

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. ² By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, ³ and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. ⁴ Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.⁵ They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them.

The ancient Aztecs were a well ordered, prosperous and successful people. By the time Cortez arrived they had conquered most of what we now know as Mexico (Mexica – pronounced Me-shí-ka – in the original Aztec language). When Cortez and his men were at the top of the pass between the mountains Popcatepetl and Iztaccíhuatl on the way to the capital of the Mexica Empire, Tenochtitlan (Mexico City), they looked down into the valley and in the middle of Lake Texcoco they saw the city for the first time. They were utterly amazed at its grandeur and beauty. Cortez said that it looked like a jewel shining brightly in the middle of the lake and, after he had entered the city and saw its well-ordered canals, its glorious temples and palaces and its industrious people he claimed that there was not another city in all of Europe that could compare to it.

Cortez and his men also found a highly organized religion being practiced by the Aztecs, one that revolved around a variety of gods, the main ones being Tlaloc the rain god, Huitzilpochtli the war god, Quetzalcoatl the god of wisdom and Coatlicue the Earth mother god. You might call the Aztecs pantheistic New Agers. Of course, they weren’t New Agers in their day since all the surrounding tribes held the same or similar beliefs. But, as there is nothing new under the sun, if we happened upon them in today’s world we would be inclined to think of them in that way mainly because the word “Pagan” is out of style.

They were very close to the earth and their deities reflected that. They depended on the fertility of the earth for sustenance so they would sacrifice and pay homage to Tlaloc and Coatlicue, that he would bless her with rain and she would bless the crops with fertility. They would do the same for Quetzalcoatl to guide them in the planting and harvesting and Huitzilpochtli to stir up the passions of the young men and give them victory in battle.

Like the New Agers, the Aztecs were very ego-centric. They believed it necessary to appease their gods in order to attain the material blessings they needed and wanted from them. There was neither salvation nor justice, only capricious gods to entertain in the hope of attracting their attention and impressing them with sacrifice. And the sacrifices were grand.

It was common practice for the Aztecs and other tribes to capture prisoners of war in their battles. In fact, capturing the enemy was more important than killing him for captured enemies were the primary source of their sacrifices, and the more the better. It was reported by the priests who traveled with the conquistadores that the sacrificial celebrations would sometimes go on for days and the sacrifices would number in the hundreds and sometimes even the thousands. The victim would be drugged, led up the steps of the temple, stretched out on a stone and have his living heart pulled from his chest.

I don’t think the Aztecs started out with human sacrifice but devolved to that depraved state by worshiping the creature instead of the Creator. I wonder where New Age beliefs will lead people as they worship Gaya, Nature and the same gods by different names that the Aztecs worshipped. 

Early Road Map

"I remember once when I had been giving a talk to the R.A.F., an old, hard-bitten officer got up and said, ‘I’ve no use for all that stuff. But, mind you, I’m a religious man too. I know there’s a God. I’ve felt Him: out alone in the desert at night: the tremendous mystery. And that’s just why I don’t believe all your neat little dogmas and formulas about Him. To anyone who’s met the real thing they all seem so petty and pedantic and unreal!’
Now in a sense I quite agreed with that man. I think he had probably had a real experience of God in the desert. And when he turned from that experience to the Christian creeds, I think he really was turning from something real to something less real. In the same way, if a man has once looked at the Atlantic from the beach, and then goes and looks at a map of the Atlantic, he also will be turning from something real to something less real: turning from real waves to a bit of coloured paper. But here comes the point. The map is admittedly only coloured paper, but there are two things you have to remember about it. In the first place, it is based on what hundreds and thousands of people have found out by sailing the real Atlantic. In that way it has behind it masses of experience just as real as the one you could have from the beach; only, while yours would be a single glimpse, the map fits all those different experiences together. In the second place, if you want to go anywhere, the map is absolutely necessary. As long as you are content with walks on the beach, your own glimpses are far more fun than looking at a map. But the map is going to be more use than walks on the beach if you want to get to America."

C.S. Lewis - Mere Christianity

Continuing with the theme of Beauty
and related topics:

Today I'm thinking about love in the context of beauty.

Love = spiritual desire: in this framework, desire is that which draws us spiritually upward toward something or someone. Imagine standing in the Sistine Chapel viewing the amazing works of Michelangelo. Something about his work draws us, causes us to admire and appreciate it. The astounding beauty of it pulls us higher and we open ourselves to the magnificence of it all. The beauty of it attracts us. We love and admire what we see. That is love/desire in this framework.

Love of Beauty

Appetite =  carnal desire: every impulse of the animal flesh to pursue, hunt and kill, dominate, to consume, to devour and fill the belly, to own, to take, to control, manipulate and copulate, to satiate the flesh. It goes without saying that in our consumerism driven world, advertisers and the media as a whole know well how to appeal to the appetite. 

Love of Appetite

As humans we have both impulses and the capacity to experience both. We also have the habit of confusing the two, mistaking one for the other. Actually, what we do is lie to ourselves by justifying our appetites, telling ourselves we’re “in love”(filthy rich, soulless marketers do a great job encouraging us in this direction). We also have the ability to choose between the two, to encourage the one and devalue the other or to exalt the one and dominate the other. We can either be an intelligent beast or we can be a god and ride the beastly part of us to unforeseen victories. Without love there is only appetite.

“Lust is a poor, weak, whimpering, whispering thing compared with that richness and energy of desire (love) which will arise when lust has been killed.
 – C.S. Lewis, The Great Divorce

More to come:

Have you not known? Have you not heard?

The Lord is the everlasting God,

    the Creator of the ends of the earth.

He does not faint or grow weary;

    his understanding is unsearchable.

He gives power to the faint,

    and to him who has no might he increases strength.

Even youths shall faint and be weary,

    and young men shall fall exhausted;

but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;

    they shall mount up with wings like eagles;

they shall run and not be weary;

    they shall walk and not faint.

Isaiah 40:28-31

'Do you want to be made well?'

I was struck by today's reading in John 5:1-15 where Jesus heals the man at the pool of Beth-zatha. I've said this before but, did you ever notice how Jesus sometimes sneaks up on people? The sick man had been there for 38 years hoping for a chance to get in the pool. Jesus comes to him. He is a complete stranger to the sick man and asks him if he wants to be healed. Well, of course he does. He's been focused on it for 38 years. In this Jesus is challenging his assumptions. He tells him to get up. The man obeys (how could he not) and is healed - not knowing till later who it is who healed him.

Jesus, sneak up on me today. Challenge my assumptions and heal me, that I may know you and serve you better.

In Search of Beauty

A few weeks ago we were talking about sexual identity. and this interesting essay. 

You will recall that the writer postulated that the concept of sex-based identity for humans is a modern construct and that the terms, heterosexual and homosexual, which have multiplied and produced a plethora of sex-based identities for post-moderns to choose from, did not exist before the mid-1800s and were popularized by Freud in the early 1900s (the behaviors were, of course labeled and discussed before that time but those behaviors were not considered to have to do with a person’s core identity but rather the result of being a sinful, fallen human being whether male or female).

I’ve lately become more and more interested in Church and Medieval history, well, not history per say but interested in early and medieval thought, especial in the life of the Church. That’s because I like C.S. Lewis. Lewis, for me is one of the marker stones that I always come back to for understanding of theology, philosophy and practical Christian life. Whether it’s Meditations on the Taro, Hermeticism, or Plato, Lewis’ profound understanding of medieval literature coming from a life devoted to its study is a sure pathway.

Anyway, one thing led to another which led to this interesting essay by Anthony Esolen about friendship and how it has been defiled by arbitrary and convenient redefinition

His fine essay takes me back to my experiences as a boy and young man. Mine was, I’m sure fairly typical for men my age – distant parents who were working hard to make a materially better life for themselves and their children while at the same time leaving the yeoman’s work of discipline, direction and affirmation to the schools and the Church and mostly for the kids to figure out on their own. Our parents came from an age where that was possible. Boys and young men could possibly have relationships with extended family and others in the community without much fear of the dangers that plague families and communities today.

In Captains Courageous, Kipling paints a beautiful picture of healthy relationships between men and boys, “Tis beautiful to see how he takes to ut,’ said Long Jack, when Harvey (a 14 year old) was looking out by the windlass one thick noon. ‘I’ll lay my wage an’ share ‘tis mor’n half play-actin’ to him, an’ he constates himself he’s a bowld mariner. Watch his little bit av a back now!’

            “That’s the way we all begin,” said Tom Platt. “The boys they make believe all the time till they’ve cheated ‘emselves into bein’ men, an’ so till they die – pretendin’ an’ pretendin’”

I think I can state pretty confidently that I’m not the only man my age that would have benefited greatly from more influence in my young life from unconfused, honest, older men. I am, at the same time very thankful for the men that did have an influence on my life like my father and grandfather. When I was a little older there was a burly German mechanic who worked for a Porsche racing shop where I hung out every chance I had. A little later another German Porsche mechanic taught me how to tear down and rebuild 6-cylender Porsche engines and to drink St Pauli Girl and Courvoisier. And, a little later yet, and most influential was a Pastor who was willing to put up with this brash, confused and insecure young man. He and I spent many an hour drinking coffee till my eyes couldn’t focus for the jitters. For his patience and kindness I will forever be grateful.

This essay and others are pointing to something. Esolen does a fine job of stating the problem but, as a Christian, what can I do to make it better instead of wringing my hands, restating the problem and lobbing condemnation on the media, the politicians and the schools? What is the missing ingredient? What am I not understanding?

Lately I’m beginning to think that the missing ingredient has to do with beauty and our response to it.

But more on this later

Abram has visitors

Separation

Funny dream last night. In it I had the opportunity to confront someone who had deeply offended me many years ago. I was not angry. I had prayed through and talked out the situation several times before and had long since made my peace. I did not speak in malice or with any desire to hurt but I spoke so that person would understand. They understood. You’re thinking that maybe they asked for forgiveness and we had a happy ending, but they didn’t. It wasn’t necessary. What was necessary was for me to articulate my hurt and anger to someone whom I will likely never have the opportunity to speak to in this life and feel that they understood my hurt.

It was such a stark and realistic dream that it woke me up immediately after I had said my piece. As I lay in bed pondering it I realized that I still had a sliver of a thorn in my heart that I was not aware of. Job chapter 33 says, “For God speaks in one way, and in two, though man does not perceive it. In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls on men, while they slumber on their beds. . .”  God spoke to me in my dream.

B.G. over at O.C. has been talking about separation lately, or how God pulls back to create space for us to discover our need and search for Him. It’s always amazing to me how God can accomplish more in a 30 second dream than I can in a lifetime. As I pondered, it was revealed to me how I had not really been angry at the offending party of my dream but that I had been angry at God. Now, I confess that I have had times when I’ve been angry with my Maker and there was no doubt between Him and me of that fact. I was angry and I let Him know it. He wasn’t impressed, by the way. But this was deeper.

I was taken back to the story of a small child who had been offended when his mother abandoned him in kindergarten and then later when that child grew to adolescence and was abandoned once again by divorcing parents and older siblings moving away from home. In both situations that child was forced to make decisions that he was not prepared to make and he chose to be angry about it. He thought he was angry at Mom and Dad and the rest of the world. In reality, by extension, he was angry with God, but he didn’t know it.

That is the story of my personal separation from God. I’m sure you have one too. You see, I had gone through those times thinking God was nowhere, that I was alone, that I had been forsaken and abandoned and, if it was to be, it was up to me. And I was angry.

The good news is that God was always there, I just didn’t know it. And, in a moment of time, in a dream, God gently pulled the sliver of a thorn out of the child/man’s heart, and that space between Him and me, in that moment became much smaller. As I continued to ponder on my bed I suddenly realized that my anger was gone. What I didn’t know was there but always knew was there was gone. Now it was my turn. I did the only thing I could do. In a moment I realized my fault and my sin and asked His forgiveness.

“ Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.” – I Thessalonians 5:23-24

Heretical Schismatic 

Why I'm not Roman Catholic or Orthodox

Since this seems to be a theme for me lately . . . .
I have no bone to pick with the Romans or the Eastern Church. As I've said before, I have a great respect for the R/Os. I don't know if Western civilization would have survived without them, especially the Roman Church. Emperor Constantine was both a blessing and a curse to the Church and his influence is still felt in the Church today, even in the far edges of the Protestant Church.
I have been called a heretical schismatic by a Roman and though I took it as a badge of honor I do not consider myself to be protesting anything, only disagreeing on a few points that marked, and still mark the Reformed Church (aka - the Protestant Church by the R/Os).
Anyway, as I've been giving thought to the issue lately, I came across a great quote by C.S. Lewis who is, in my opinion, one of the defining voices for understanding reformed Christianity.

"And now we begin to see what it is that the New Testament is always talking about. It talks about Christians ‘being born again’; it talks about them ‘putting on Christ’; about Christ ‘being formed in us’; about our coming to ‘have the mind of Christ’.

Put right out of your head the idea that these are only fancy ways of saying that Christians are to read what Christ said and try to carry it out—as a man may read what Plato or Marx said and try to carry it out. They mean something much more than that. They mean that a real Person, Christ, here and now, in that very room where you are saying your prayers, is doing things to you. It is not a question of a good man who died two thousand years ago. It is a living Man, still as much a man as you, and still as much God as He was when He created the world, really coming and interfering with your very self; killing the old natural self in you and replacing it with the kind of self He has. At first, only for moments. Then for longer periods. Finally, if all goes well, turning you permanently into a different sort of thing; into a new little Christ, a being which, in its own small way, has the same kind of life as God; which shares in His power, joy, knowledge and eternity."

- Mere Christianity

I can't claim to have studied R/O doctrine deeply though I know a few R/Os - mostly Rs - but I have never encountered anything in the Roman or Orthodox realm that comes anywhere close to such clear and forthright statements of the Gospel as are found in the Reformed branch of the Church. Whenever I begin to consider the state of the Reformed Church and all the wacky stuff that goes on and all the wacky people on its fringes and I begin to consider the possibility of going Roman I take a breath, read my Bible and some Lewis. 

And, that is why I am not Roman or Orthodox.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone

God's richest blessings to you and yours.

In response to Julie's links:

The writer makes some good points and, to be honest, my brief summary of "Scripture" was incomplete. There is much more that could be said. My primary purpose in the reply to my friend was to point out that what we call the Bible is indeed much more trustworthy a source of inspired writings than any other writing of that time. I personally believe that it continues to be so.

Fr Stephen makes very good points on the issue and his is very much my understanding of the Orthodox/Roman view of scripture. I do have some issues with the O/R view but I don’t claim to have any superior understanding and welcome discussion on the subject.

I lean heavily toward the Anglican tradition when it comes to the authority of scripture and, to a lesser extent, my personal studies and what seems logical to my understanding. Anglican tradition claims that the Church rests on a 3-legged stool, scripture, tradition and reason. Actually it’s a rather lopsided stool in that the leg of scripture is much longer than the other two. In other words, in fully recognizing the importance of Church tradition and reason, Holy Scripture is preeminent. I and many Anglicans would also add a 4^th leg, the Holy Spirit, for just as faith without works is dead, word without Spirit is tenured theology.

Fr Stephens seems to think that “Protestants” have made an idol out of the Bible. Perhaps some have. Most that I have known don’t know enough scripture to make the distinction (and even more O/Rs). For most “Protestants” the Bible is no more an idol than a statue of the Virgin Mary is to O/Rs. He also seems to think that “Protestants” view the Bible in the same way Muslims view the Quran. If they did they would get upset when someone burns or defaces a Bible the same way Muslims do when someone defaces a copy of the Quran. They don’t.

  

In the first essay Fr Stephen talks about the authority of scripture and how scripture was given by the Church and how the Church is preeminent in interpreting scripture.  My first issue is this, did the Church determine what was/is holy writ or did it recognize what is holy writ? The O/R view is the former, the Reform view, which I agree with on this point, is the latter. I respect the O/R view and I recognize that there is more to this view than many Protestants recognize. But, if the Church is equal to or above the Scripture then what is the Church? Is it strictly the priesthood or is it the entire body of Christ. For the Church to be the sole interpreter of scripture would seem to mean, the learned, ordained, apostolic members of the Church. I respect the need for traditional understanding and experience and I think we can all agree that we don’t want a novice interpreting scripture for us, even if there are exceptions but on the down side, without input by the whole body (the Church) the (c)urch is apt to develop interpretations, traditions and theologies that are self-serving which is the situation that provoked Luther’s 99 theses and the reformation movement.

In the second essay Fr Stephen makes a very good point about how the Quran is a false Bible. I whole heartedly agree. Islam is a cult as is Mormonism, and Rastafarianism and many others that twist and rewrite Scripture for their own benefit.

It is important to understand what the Bible is and isn’t. If you study the Bible as a scientist you will find many scientific errors. That is because, although there are many scientifically accurate entries, it is not a science book. If you study the Bible as a historian you will find many errors. That is because, although there are many historically accurate entries, it is not a book of history. What the Bible is is a book of Truth. I would personally say that it is not the only book that contains Truth but it is the most comprehensive, reliable and trustworthy book of Truth that exists and as such I consider it a gift from the living God to mankind.

He also talks about how Christianity is not a submitting to God. I understand what he is saying. It is not a forced submission. Conversion at the point of a sword or gun is not, usually, a true conversion, it is a conquest. I also appreciate what he’s saying about unity with God. Understanding our unity with our Creator leads us on paths of communion and fellowship that many saints have traveled before us. But, Christianity is a submission. It is a submission in the sense of a bride that submits herself to her husband, not legalistically or in fear but because he has won her. We do not submit to Christ because he has conquered our flesh but because He has conquered our heart. We do so willingly. Not out of fear.

I do passionately disagree with Fr Stephen when he attempts to attach Protestantism to Islam. It appears to me that he is taking rather liberal leaps of logic to encourage the Orthodox faithful to stay in the corral while at the same time apply guilt by association to the schismatics and heretical Protestants.  

To put it in modern political terms, one view believes that power and authority should be centralized and the other view is that individuals are generally intelligent enough to make good decisions when they are give the truth unfiltered.

It is not my intention to offend anyone with my views and, hopefully I have not. If I have I blame it on Julie who provoked me to expound ;-). My thoughts are not settled on the subject so please feel free to expound, expand, rebuke or reply. 

A little while back a young friend asked me what I thought about the books and writings about Jesus that didn't make it into the Bible and, by extension, the ideas found in books like The Da Vinci Code.
Here's what I wrote to him:

Dear . . . ,

Before answering your question I think a little background on the Bible may be in order.

1.       The Bible contains 66 books or letters, 39 Old Testament and 27 New Testament.

2.       These 66 books are considered to be the inspired Word of God by the Protestant Church. There are also several books called the Apocrypha that are also accepted as Old Testament Scripture by Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox and a few others. The Apocrypha is respected by most Protestant churches and valuable for wisdom and training but not considered inspired by God. 

3.       Why are these 66 book considered inspired by God and not others?

a.       The Gospels, the book of Acts and the Epistles (letters) were all written between about 45-50 A.D. and 110-120 A.D.

b.      The early Church had only the Old Testament to work from.

c.       The 39 books of the Old Testament were regarded by the Apostles as the Word of God mainly because they were Jewish and had long been accepted by the Jewish leaders as such. (the books of the Apocrypha were respected by the Jews but not considered inspired – which is why most Protestant Churches consider them as they do)

d.      As the Apostles and others began to travel, teach and plant churches they would write letters to those churches for instruction and correction. Also, wherever they went they told the story of Jesus, His life, death and resurrection.

e.      The oral history as told by the original 12 apostles eventually was written down and these histories, along with the letters would be read in the churches, copied and distributed to other churches.

f.        As the Church grew and matured – A.D. 100 – A.D 300 – the early fathers began to realize the serious need to canonize, or standardize and compile these histories and letters. The 27 writings we use now were not the only writings being distributed in the churches. There were many, many others. Some of the writings were genuine but many were fake. Much like today, there were people who either misunderstood or willfully twisted the truth of the Apostles and would write or edit the writings for their own purpose. These were the Arians, Gnostics and outright charlatans.

g.       Over the first 300-400 years  there were several councils consisting of the leaders and theologians of the Church. Their job was to establish what was and what was not true Christianity. It was vitally important for them to address the many heresies that were attacking the Church.

h.      Over the course of many years, through many councils and much prayer and heated debates the 27 writings were recognized and accepted as the inspired Word of God by the Church.

4.       So, to answer your question:

a.       Although extra-biblical writings can be interesting, they are nothing new. The Church Fathers read and considered more of them than archaeologists will ever discover.

b.      Most of them are, either by design or by error, a distraction from the Truth.

c.       We have the very Word of God. Why would we settle for anything less?

Blessings,
R.B.

November Has an 'R'

Old School Oyster Harvest

Here's a quikie for today:

John Wesley, the Methodist, found it natural to approach the Gospel with habits of thought formed by a classical education but he was quick to recognize the value of other approaches. The early Methodist meetings were often led by lay preachers with very limited education. On one occasion, such a preacher took as his text Luke 19:21, "Lord, I feared thee, because thou art an austere man." Not knowing the word "austere," he thought that the text spoke of "an oyster man." He spoke about the work of those who retrieve oysters from the sea-bed. The diver plunges down from the surface, cut off from his natural environment, into bone-chilling water. He gropes in the dark, cutting his hands on the sharp edges of the shells. Now he has the oyster, and kicks back up to the surface, up to the warmth and light and air, clutching in his torn and bleeding hands the object of his search. So Christ descended from the glory of heaven into the squalor of earth, into sinful human society, in order to retrieve humans and bring them back up with Him to the glory of heaven, His torn and bleeding hands a sign of the value He has placed on the object of His quest. Twelve men were converted that evening. Afterwards, someone complained to Wesley about the inappropriateness of allowing preachers who were too ignorant to know the meaning of the texts they were preaching on. Wesley, simply said, "Never mind, the Lord got a dozen oysters tonight."

- Source unknown

Daily Office

The readings assigned to today by the Book of Common Prayer are:

Psalms 69 & 73

Revelations 17 

and Luke 13:31-35.

A few excerpts 

Psalm 69:

“Save me, O God!

For the waters have come up to my neck.

2 I sink in deep mire,

where there is no foothold;

I have come into deep waters,

and the flood sweeps over me.”

Verse 30:

“I will praise the name of God with a song;

I will magnify him with thanksgiving.”

Psalm 73:3

“For I was envious of the arrogant

when I saw the prosperity of the wicked”

Verses 16-17

“But when I thought how to understand this,

it seemed to me a wearisome task,

17 until I went into the sanctuary of God;

then I discerned their end.”

Revelation 17:14

“They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.”

Luke 13:35

“Behold, your house is forsaken. And I tell you, you will not see me until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’”

The emphasis seemed to be of pain, suffering, hope and victory.

Then I read this FB post by a new missionary friend:

My Children’s Foreign Mother

He gazed at me through darkened eyes,

This man who fled from war.

“I had to wait until my wife

Had died from all her sores.”

“Her sores?” I asked without a thought

Of how this mem’ry might

Uncover pain too deep – too raw –

Too close to fear and flight.

He blinked and turned his face away

As if to hide inside;

And then with measured words he told

Me how it was she died.

“You see,” he murmured quietly,

“We were from different groups.

When we were joined in matrim’ny

We were not split in troops.

But now the war has pitted us

‘Gainst one, and ‘gainst the other…

My people just could not accept

My children’s foreign mother.

At first there were just angry words

And insults flung her way,

But soon there followed slaps and blows

And threats if she should stay.”

But then things got quite out of hand,

As I was pushed aside.

The mob was now out of control

And she was trapped inside.

I pushed and pulled and sobbed and cried

Until I found her there,

A bloodied mess of flesh and bone

With blind and vacant stare.

She did not die that fateful night,

But fought and fought for life.

How could she leave me all alone

With children, but no wife.

As in the dawn began to creep

Her soul began to leave…

One light come in and one go out…

A family left to grieve.

We buried her under the tree

Where we two once were wed.

And with her in that sandy grave

I lay my heart to bed.

And then we packed up all our things,

The little we still had,

And started out on foot towards

The good or t’wards the bad.”

“And now we live within a camp

Together with those who

Had dealt the blows that killed my wife

And left me with these two…

Little ones too young to know

Such sorrow and such strife;

Too young to know that they will ne’er

See her in this life.

How can I speak to them of heav’n,

When hell is all they know?

How can I speak to them of love,

When hatred brings us low?”

He sighed a sigh and closed his eyes

Perhaps to recollect…

Was that a quiver in his voice

Detected, but soon checked?

He turned his face to me once more

As if with pleading eyes

He sought from me, a mortal man,

An answer to his whys.

“But there are some,” he softly said,

“Who suffer more than us…

You see the ones who dealt the blows

Now live among the just.”

“And they must look into our eyes

Each and every day,

Their conscience pricked when every time

We choose instead to say

That we forgive and we still love,

In spite of all the pain

That by their actions they have caused…

For only one thing will remain…

For faith and hope, the Bible says,

Will all too quickly pass,

But love goes on beyond the grave

And on beyond our past.”

He slowly rose as if to go

But then he turned and said,

“I miss her so, my foreign wife,

And even though she’s dead,

A part of her I always see

Within my children’s eyes.

And when I think I may forget

I find her in their smiles.

And by their lives they testify

To one and to the other,

That bitter hatred could not kill

My children’s foreign mother.

© Johann Vanderbijl 2014

It’s ok, I cried too.