The mission of the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer is to shine the light of the gospel upon our congregation, our community, and our world. To that end, we are a welcoming community that provides to all an opportunity to serve and to be served in the name of Jesus Christ.
worships, proclaims the Gospel, and promotes justice,
peace, and love. (Catechism, BCP, p. 855)
Q. What is corporate worship?
A. In corporate worship, we unite ourselves with others to
acknowledge the holiness of God, to hear God’s Word,
to offer prayer, and to celebrate the sacraments. (Catechism, BCP, P. 857)
You and I come together in ministry, informed by various experiences and learnings. Often, we are drawn to the community faith by our particular needs and desires. We stay because of something that we find - something that touches us. Hopefully, we become a part of community, receiving as we contribute to meet the needs of others.
Often, I am asked, “Why can’t we do this?”. Whereas this is sometimes focused toward parish government, more often than not, it relates to some aspect of worship. These questions tend toward special services such as weddings, funerals, and days of national observance (national holidays). There is nowhere that this gets more frustrating for folks than with music.
For those of us charged with the planning and implementation of corporate worship, we must keep in mind the reason that we gather to worship. This is summarized by the above quotations from the Catechism in the Book of Common Prayer. The reason for gathering is to worship God. This reason defines why we make the choices that we do.
Therefore, we choose music that is sacred. Sure, this may not be very entertaining, but we gather to worship, not to be entertained. It means that we do not use the traditional “Wedding March” but sacred music that fits with the particular service at hand. We do not sing patriotic songs, not because we are not patriotic, but because they are not sacred and do not acknowledge the holiness of God. We do not use pop music for the same reasons, even though it might be easier to sing and more familiar to many. Even though I encourage us to celebrate and enjoy the various secular and national holidays, I do not preach specifically to Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Labor Day, etc. because it is not why we gather as the Church in corporate worship.
I know that this is not an issue for some of you, while it is very important for others. In writing this, I want you to understand that the choices that we make regarding corporate worship are not arbitrary or about individuals. Further, this is a somewhat simple presentation of what can be a complicated decision process. Rather, we make them to maintain the integrity of corporate worship and its goal to “unite ourselves with others to acknowledge the holiness of God, to hear God’s Word, to offer prayer, and to celebrate the sacraments.” In short, I seek your understanding, not necessarily your agreement.
Many folks have commented regarding letters and articles written by our Presiding Bishop, Katharine Jefferts Schori. I am posting the links to relevant sites in this article.
The first is a link to her article on the oil spill. As a PhD oceanographer, she brings a special perspective. It is found at
The second is her response to Archbishop Rowan Williams’ Pentecost letter. Below, I have posted the link for the Archbishop’s letter, Presiding Bishop’s letter, and a fine analysis by Diana Butler Bass.
At the Archbishop’s direction, a few folks from The Episcopal Church were removed from their positions on dialogue groups with other denominations. The Presiding Bishop responded.
One of my concerns in this is that other provinces who have violated the moratoria are not being treated in this manner. I am not one to play the victim but see this as unjust. If you want to slap our wrists for something that we did, fine, but include all provinces or none.
I have always been moved by creativity. It doesn’t really matter what form it takes - art, music or the myriad of other forms – it is very moving.
We all know the stories of how challenges and adversity fuel creativity. There are so many stories of the starving artist that we take them for granted. And, it is not that we do not have challenges in our daily lives! We have oil spills and economic instability, both calling forth the most creative responses that we could ever imagine. Often our frustrations grow as we see authorities and agencies not being creative in their responses, if we feel that they are responding at all.
We do not have to look far for our challenges. All of us who gathered at our parish meeting on Pentecost know that we face serious financial issues at Redeemer. We talked about how it is that we got here and what it means to be Redeemer. We know that we are not alone as other congregations, our diocese, and other agencies face similar situations. But, mostly, we talked about creativity. We looked at creative ways for us to address our situation and as we left, there was a high level of energy and wonderful excitement about facing the future and dealing with our situation. All of this because we have been able to tap into our creativity.
Lest you think that this is about some theory of art or management, let me take this to the next level. It seems to me, that we are the most creative when we allow ourselves to be transparent to the presence of the Creator in our lives (ok…so I am borrowing from Paul Tillich, a theologian, for the transparency thing). When we allow ourselves to remember who we are and “whose we are”, then we are able to tap into God’s energizing and creative presence in our lives. And when we make this connection, we find the courage to face whatever is ahead. Being creative is a spiritual exercise that empowers us to do ministry and mission.
So, as you look at the various options for dealing with our financial situation, developing and growing in love and service of God, and the various challenges that are ahead, pray that we may be transparent to our Creator’s presence so that we may be creative in mission and ministry in the world. As we are, we will find new, creative ways to be in the world that will transform us and those around us.
It is Good Friday. We have made it this far and Easter is near. Once we get through Good Friday.
Beginning inside the Lion’s Gate in Old Jerusalem, the Via Dolorosa follows the route of Jesus’ final walk, concluding in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Developed by the Franciscans in the 1300’s, Christians often walk this route in Lent and Holy Week in observance of Christ’s walk to Golgotha and the resulting Easter celebration.
News reports are detailing the various observances in Jerusalem and other parts of the world. As pilgrims walk the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem, others participate in the Way of the Cross or Stations of the Cross in local congregations.
As with most things, there are extremes in these observances. On one side of the continuum are those who do not observe Good Friday, perhaps because it has little or no meaning for them. I am not talking about non-christians who have no need for it, but Christians of various groups who do not observe it. One of the controversies of today has to do with the Detroit Tigers playing their home opener on Good Friday (http://www.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/al/2009-04-10-474975978_x.htm) and the resulting protests. This seems to be an easy fix. If it bothers you, don’t go. Not everyone believes as you and I do and I have no need to force the issue with them.
The other extreme is more troubling. Historically, there have been (and are) groups that observe this week in self-flagellation. More troubling are the practices of a group in the Philipines. This group practices crucifixion in an effort to emulate the Passion of Christ. This year, a TV comedian participated (http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25318169-2702,00.html) and had himself nailed to a cross for 5 minutes. Somehow, this is to enlighten the participant and those in attendance on Christ’s offering. In other words, they consider it a religious expression.
I do not consider it a religious event. Rather, it seems to me to be the ultimate act of exhibitionistic masochism, played out in front of voyeurs. In other words, I consider it an event based in psychological and spiritual pathology.
Life and my own choices bring more than enough pain. I do not need to seek out other opportunities to hurt myself or others, whether out of meanness or in the name of religion. Rather, I look for ways to understand what is beyond the painful “now”. For me, Easter is the validation that there is hope beyond Good Friday.
The Way of the Cross offers us a way of deeping our understanding of God’s ultimate human presence. It is an “as if” experience in which we walk the walk as if we were Jesus. We never walk it as Jesus, but always as ourselves, fantasizing how it may have been. Imagine, if you will, what it must have been like to be nailed to the cross, but don’t enact it. The pathology lies in the moving from “as if” to “as”.
As for me, I have had enough of the gore. It makes the Passion into a slasher movie and cheapens it. Rather, I find encouragement in knowing that God became one of us to the extent that God went through what others encountered and endured, not as exhibitionist or masochist, but one of us.
So, I will Walk the Way of the Cross. I will hear and participate in each place along the way. I will tear-up when we hear about Mary as mother, touched as a parent. I will walk away and ponder. And I will do all of this, aware that Easter is coming. Beyond the pain of the way, is a new day.
You have met them. You see them everytime that you ask me a question and I offer you responses from various points on a continuum.
You know. Never the extreme. Always somewhere in between.
Twixt and Tween.
Coming from a more fundamentalist faith, I tended to see things in absolutes and extremes. Right OR wrong. Good OR bad. It was a faith without variation. It was a faith that talked of black or white. Colors were optional.
In college, I met a man who would become an early mentor. In his Bible class, he introduced me to critical thinking regarding religious texts. In addition to teaching me to think, understanding that there were contradictions in the scriptures, he taught me that there were various theories regarding the development and understanding of holy texts. I became curious and began to reconsider in a different way, the faith that I had abandoned.
He introduced me to Twixt and Tween.
Later, in seminary, I listened to my New Testament professor as he talked of theories and understandings that differed, sometimes dramatically. When questioned as to his theoretical leanings, he would respond, “I feel strongly both ways.”
Twixt and Tween were his friends, too.
As Episcopalians, we are rooted in the Anglican Tradition which is often identified with the Via Media, the Middle Way. It seems to me that one of the peculiarities of our spiritual journey is that we are accompanied by Twixt and Tween. We read the scriptures, understand tradition, and use our reason while realizing that there are more “better” answers than “right” answers. Usually, we wind up suspended betwixt and between, seeing possibilities in various thoughts and approaches, while acknowledging the supremacy of none. It can be an uncomfortable place, especially in a world that keeps asking for absolutes, answers. But, it is our way.
And, it is the nature of Holy Week. Holy Week is that time between Palm Sunday and Easter, between the triumphal entry into Jerusalem and Resurrection. Many events and things happen betwixt and between those two events. Teaching, prayer, meditation, friendship, comfort, agony, betrayal, dinner, service, and death, just to name a few. Twixt and Tween are not idle, but busy with life, love, death, and ultimately, resurrection.
Twixt and Tween are our friends.
I learned recently of the death of my mentor. He lived his life fully, in anticipation of the life to come. I approach his death with ambivalence, aware of seemingly conflicting feelings. On the one hand, I grieve my loss while on the other hand, I celebrate his life. I live with both of these emotions, cognizant that he gave me much, and that some of him lives in my memories and actions.
Welcome to my blog. Short for “weblog,” a blog is something like a journal. In this case, I am publishing it for you to see. I will update it with announcements, perceptions, links to interesting sites, news, and all kinds of things. Once I am more comfortable with this format, we may engage in some discussion and debate.
This blog is part of the website of Episcopal Church of the Redeemer in Mobile, AL. Whereas your thoughts are important, I will moderate the comments.
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