SEEING RED AND OTHER ITEMS OF BUSINESS

God invented time so that everything doesn’t have to happen all at once. But when Easter falls as early as it did this year, it seems like this adage is being abrogated. To wit…Pentecost is really early this year, and it almost caught up with us. Everything is happening really quickly this year.

What does that mean?

• May 11 is fixed in the secular calendar as Mother’s Day. Pentecost does not usually fall on May 11. But it does this year: Mother’s Day and Pentecost Sunday fall on the same Sunday.
• So, which is going to trump which? Well, in typical Anglican fashion, we are going to muddle through and celebrate Mother’s Day on Pentecost Sunday. This makes sense to me: my mom was the first person to ever talk to me about the Holy Spirit - seems to me that the Spirit uses moms a lot to communicate His presence to us slow learners.
• We’re going to do something for Moms - and I’m not telling, and we’re going to celebrate Pentecost.
• THEREFORE - you are strongly encouraged to wear Red or something Red, so that we can all SEE RED on Pentecost Sunday.
• This is a good thing. Red is the color of fire and blood - the fire of His love and the blood shed for our redemption. It is because of the coming of the Holy Spirit that we know these things (John 14:26). Therefore, we wear red to remind us of the gift and the coming of the Holy Spirit.
• You could purchase red flowers for your mom. In other matters, please remember that Bishop Mathes is coming to visit at the end of this month. If you are thinking about re-affirming your faith by re-affirming your baptismal vows, please see me. The Bishop’s visitation is May 25.

Finally, I also would like to remind you that Wednesday, May 7 is the beginning of the new session of Centerpoint. The subject is THE BLESSING OF HOLY RELATIONSHIPS. The course will be team taught by Father David and me and others who at this time are remaining anonymous. The four sessions are divided into these categories: WEEK ONE: (May 7): The Church’s historic teaching; TWO 9 (MAY 14)- Who wants to change and Why? THREE (May 21)- How do we decide? WEEK FOUR (May 28) - What does this mean for St. Dunstan's?

Centerpoint begins at 5:30 with Evening Prayer in the chapel and supper at 5:45 in the parish hall. The Teaching Sessions begin at 6:30 and run for an hour. You are cordially invited and strongly encouraged to put these classes on your calendar. Fr. Tom

--The Second Sunday of Advent, 1928 Prayerbook

Everybody knows that Anglicans in general and Episcopalians in particular have more Bible read to them than any other Christian denomination. This is because the Prayerbook emphasizes a reading from the Old Testament, the New Testament, the Psalms and the Gospels every Sunday. We also have a daily lectionary for reading through the Bible in Two years. Maybe not everybody knows this, but if you don’t, you must be new. Or maybe you forgot. But its true. It's one of the things that attracted me to the Episcopal Church.

About four years ago, at the urging of several people, I challenged the congregation to a year of Bible reading. “Read through the Bible in one year” I exhorted. I could do this with integrity because I have read it through…more than a couple of times. But of course, you say, a minister or a priest should do this. Yes, we should. But I first read it through in high school, a long time before I ever even thought of becoming a clergyman, so it's not just for the clergy. And, inasmuch as the collect above is meant for all people, all people should read Holy Scripture.

Most people would agree that reading through the Bible is a good thing - especially when you take seriously that the three major monotheistic global faiths are all focused on a book of holy writ. All three have this notion that not only is there a God, but also that He is not silent. "God has spoken to his people, alleluia.”

Howsoever, as one pundit observed, it’s a misnomer to say that monotheists are "people of the book." It's more accurate to say that they are people who wish they had read their book…or would like to read the book, or think it’s a good idea to read the book if we can ever get around to it, or who read it once and felt they got the gist of it (like the outlaw in the movie 3:10 TO YUMA, which didn’t stop him from becoming an outlaw).

But now comes a book by a New York City writer entitled, The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible by A.J. Jacobs. Here is a person who took the task of reading the Bible very seriously--by not just reading it, but doing it. In doing so it seems that he gained his soul and, also, never loses his sense of humor. Its very funny in places. The beard he grows, to make his point, is truly one of biblical proportions. Actually, just reading the endorsements at the front of the book is almost worth the price. He comes from New York City, and calls himself a "secular Jew." He admits that he is Jewish in the sense that the Olive Garden is Italian. It's that sort of humor, and it keeps you on your toes, even when you’re sitting.

And I recommend it…it should be on your list of books to read now, and would be great as a Christmas gift. Here is a man who took seriously the collect for the Second Sunday of Advent. You probably won’t agree with all of the author’s conclusions, but it will certainly get you reflecting on what it means to be "a person of the book."

Father Tom

WHAT IS GOD’S CALL FOR YOU?

What is God calling you to do with your life? Could it be ordained ministry in the church? Or a dedicated lay person serving the Lord in some career? What about marriage? Or does God want you to remain single for the sake of ministry to others? These questions, and many others like them, are part of the Vocare weekend that young adults from our Episcopal Diocese and the local Lutheran churches put on twice a year. Since I served as a spiritual advisor on the last one, November 9 to 11 at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in La Mesa, I’d like to report on that weekend to you.

What is Vocare? It is a weekend for college age and young adults to grow in relationship with God and one another. The name comes from the Latin verb to call, and the focus of the time is to seek God’s direction for life in occupation, church, and special relationships. The weekend includes spirited worship, individual prayer, thoughtful talks, group discussions, and unforgettable experiences of God’s love. Vocare has a similar shape to Cursillo, except adapted for young adults in their late teens and twenties. Because the participants are young (except the spiritual advisors), they sleep on the floor in our host church and go without showers!

Who leads Vocare? Although an Episcopal priest and a Lutheran pastor are advisors on the weekend, it is planned and led by young adults who have attended Vocare in the past. This last weekend had seven candidates (first-timers) and twelve staff (previous attenders) on it. St. Dunstan’s supplied much of the leadership: Jason Waller was the rector, Amy Weaver was the head steward, Brian Hughes was the head musician, and Jayson Nicholson was the head cook. In addition, Mandy Weaver, Brian Pepin, Alex Tuttle, and Theresa Cannizzaro gave excellent talks on various aspects of Christian belief and life. John and Kem Deehr captivated the group with their guest talk on marriage, illustrated by their little boy Eli.

Why is Vocare important? College students and young adults are the most unchurched segment of the American population. Yet this is also the time when people make important decisions that affect the rest of their lives. Vocare provides an opportunity for our church to impact these lives, and build leadership for the church in the next few decades. And this does happen on the weekends! Recently, I talked with a retired administrator from UCSD. He used two words to describe college students today: anxious and apathetic. While that may be true for many students and young adults, it is certainly not the case for those who are part of our St. Dunstan’s family. If Vocare is any indication, we have a talented, committed group of young leaders in this church who love the Lord Jesus Christ and are excited about ministry to others in his name.

Fr. David Montzingo

God's Psychology II: The Law of Seeking and Receiving

“The Americans will do the right thing …eventually. After they have tried everything else.”
--Winston Churchill

This is the second part of a series called God’s Psychology. In these little studies, based upon the lectionary readings for Propers 18 and 19 in the PB Lectionary we are stating two powerful psychological tools that God uses in moving us towards spiritual maturity.

In the first part, I reflected on the observation that we easily take even valuable things for granted…until we lose them. This is the Law of Regret, and the theme song is Joni Mitchel’s “We don’t know what we’ve got till it's gone.” The bumper sticker for this was seen in Midland, Texas in the late 80’s, reflecting on the economic depression there brought about by the collapse of the oil industry: "Dear God, let it happen again. This time we promise not to flush it all away!”

The second part is the Law of Seeking and Receiving. What this law says is that God withholds the really important stuff until we feel the need and want it badly. God waits until a deep need is discerned and emptiness experienced before we will receive his provision.

I guess it doesn’t take a nuclear physicist to know this truism. Consider these examples: 1. Food: one doesn’t really want food unless one is hungry. On the other hand, never go food shopping when you are. 2. Air. All you have to do to really want air is to hold your breath for 30 seconds. 3. Water. Water never tastes so good until you’re thirsty. Before that, water is boring, but when you’re thirsty, there is nothing better. Extrapolating, you will see that God sometimes withholds what he has to give until we really seek it. This would include things like love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, godliness and self-control… that sort of thing.

God won’t apply the ointment until we feel the itch: God doesn’t give everything all at once. He loves his children, but he doesn’t spoil them. He does not cast pearls before swine. He withholds what is precious until we can receive it. And we won’t receive it until we really are seeking it. Consider Adam and Eve. When did God give Eve to Adam? It was only after Adam knew he was lonely and only after he knew that there was nothing in the created order that would satisfy this need. Giving names to everything indicates that when Adam could not find a suitable partner it wasn’t for lack of acquaintance with the alternatives. He knew the field, and he knew that what he was looking for wasn’t there. It was only then when he really knew the dimensions of the problem that God presented to him the antidote to his loneliness.

Other examples abound. A son was not born to Abraham until he had given up all human hope of having an heir. The Israelites had to endure 400 years of slavery and 40 years in the wilderness to be prepared for the Promised Land. The messiah did not come until the Spirit had been silent for 400 years - from Malachi to Matthew - and the people were desperately seeking a deliverer.

This principle extends to our time. Many people don’t know their need for sobriety until they know their enslavement to their addiction. Many do not seek a healthy lifestyle until illness knocks them to the ground. Many do not recognize their need for a savior until they have ruined their lives in pursuit of pleasure.

Jesus does tell us to seek first the Kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33). What he doesn’t say is that most of us won’t do this until we have exhausted all the alternatives. This does not detract from what Jesus said about asking, knocking, seeking…it's merely a reflection that we won’t ask, seek or knock until we’ve run out of options. See the quote at the head of this article as an illustration.

Father Tom