Death and the Budget

A recent NY Times article brings to light the recent budget crisis and our inability to face our own mortality. I don't know if I agree with all of the authors conclusions but he makes some interesting points from a theological and pastoral perspective...

The fiscal crisis is driven largely by health care costs. We have the illusion that in spending so much on health care we are radically improving the quality of our lives. We have the illusion that through advances in medical research we are in the process of eradicating deadly diseases. We have the barely suppressed hope that someday all this spending and innovation will produce something close to immortality.

Take time to read the article here. Let me know what you think...

God and Technology

Kevin Kelly is the founder of Wired magazine and the last person in the world I would have expected not to have a smart phone.

Here is a really interesting interview with him done through Christianity Today. It's worth the read...here's a little taste for you...

All human artifacts, from words to wheels to Wikipedia, together act like a living, breathing organism that reflects something of the Divine. Technology has its roots in God's work through the universe...

Read the entire article here.

Thanks to Kendall Harmon for bringing it to my attention.

Shared Sacrifice

I’ve been reflecting recently on the word “viability.” I hear it used a lot these days in a wide variety of circles. I hear church administrators talking about the viability of small churches. I hear politicians talk about the viability of continuing to do business as usual where budgets are concerned. And I hear diplomats in the news talk about the viability of countries with significant social programs. All this talk made me wonder what is was all about...the word itself. After searching some online dictionaries here is what I found…

The ability to work as intended or to succeed.
The ability to continue to exist or develop as a living being…

Or how about this definition…

Capable of living, developing, or germinating under favorable conditions. Capable of living outside the uterus. Capable of success or continuing effectiveness; practicable...

Whether or not we agree on a definition, I think it goes without saying that we all want viability in our lives, in our communities, in our churches and in our schools. The second and harder aspect of viability is how to obtain and sustain it in our lives and in our institutions.

When I think about my own experiences with viability and vitality, they all seemed to share a few things in common.

Clarity of identity...Commitment to the common good…Shared sacrifice

People and institutions function at their bests when they are clear about whom they are and whom they are not. Shakespeare might have been clever when he said, “to thine own self be true,” but the wise person follows the ancient Greek aphorism “know thyself.”

Commitment to the common good is also found in the characteristics of things viable and vital. From the everyday citizen to the President, from the small church to the Fortune 500 company, if you are not committed to the welfare of all people there is no health within you…(hat tip to the connfession in the daily office of the 1928 Prayerbook).

And whether we want to talk about it or not, shared sacrifice is absolutely necessary if we are to live and work together as church and community. There has been so much talk about the mess we are in and so little or no shared sacrifice. It really is a shame we have come to this moment when state and national politicians keep cutting valuable programs, and at the same time walking away from discussion about raising taxes to help share the sacrifice. We can all take a lesson from the staff of one of our local school districts which recently agreed to take an across the board pay cut so no one would loose their jobs.

Although in recent times we have convinced ourselves otherwise, you cannot claim the name of Jesus Christ if you are unwilling to participate in shared sacrifice for the needs of others. The Rt. Rev'd. Frank Weston said it best in his closing address to the 1923 Anglo-Catholic Congress...

"You cannot claim to worship Jesus in the Tabernacle, if you do not pity Jesus in the slums. . . It is folly -- it is madness -- to suppose that you can worship Jesus in the Sacraments and Jesus on the throne of glory, when you are sweating him in the souls and bodies of his children."

Bishop Weston was as right then as his is today. This is not about economics or politics, this is about the Gospel and the church better start treating it as such.

On Seminary Education

I serve as a trustee for an Episcopal seminary. We recently concluded our spring meeting, and among other items on our agenda elected a new Dean. I'm excited about the future for this school, but I also know that we are in the midst of drastic changes in the life and culture of the institution. So it was with interest that I read this recent article from a Forbes blogger. It is obvious from a surface reading that the author last little experience with seminary education but he does provoke some good discussion....

...the prospects are worse clergy than for other forms of professional education, because there is no legal seminary requirement which stifles professional competition. If you go to medical school, you know you’ll have challenges in the job market, but at least you know you won’t be competing with non-medical school graduate physicians. Ditto for law school; it’s illegal to practice law or medicine without the requisite graduate schooling. Other professions, such as CPA and engineer, require at least the four-year diploma.

If you graduate from seminary and become an Episcopal priest, the church almost certainly required that you get the degree, but there’s no guarantee that increasingly indifferent churchgoers won’t, at the drop of a hat, leave your church and move a few blocks down the street to attend a Pentecostal, charismatic or fundamentalist church led by a high school dropout with generous dollops of the gift of gab, no school loans and probably less overhead...

Click here for the entire article...

Ebor's Lenten Reflection on Poverty

The Archbishop of York offers an interesting reflection for the Third Sunday in Lent. His website is located here... D.T. Niles said that the Good News of God is Christ makes all his followers to be like "one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread". In Lent we are reminded that we should share in the life of Jesus, who called himself the Bread of Life, and our wealth, our material daily bread if you like. If only we did this more effectively, how different the world would be. Research shows that Britain is more divided than ever between the rich and the poor. We need to 'mind the gap' which has opened up between the haves and the have-nots – otherwise there is a danger that many people will fall into the hole between! Wherever I go, at home or abroad, I have often noticed that those who live in the poorest communities are the most welcoming and generous in their hospitality. There is a dignity about giving, about contributing to the common good, which the poor seem to appreciate more than the well-off, because they see what a privilege it is. Jesus pointed out a poor widow putting her last mite into the offering – her action put the wealthier worshippers to shame because she gave her all. It is those who have the most resources who bear greatest responsibility for bridging the gap. We all need to rediscover the wellsprings of solidarity – the unstoppable grace which hold us together as a human family. What would this look like in the community where you live? What could you do to help make it happen? Jesus, you rested at a well once and you gave the woman of Samaria the honour of drawing you water when you were thirsty. She quenched your thirst, then you offered her the living water, a new life to replace the shame and broken relationships of the past. Help me to see where I am needy, and where I have something to offer. Help me to play my part in making things better, with your Spirit in me to give me strength. Amen. +Sentamu Ebor

Beginning Lent

Lent Video Series: #1 Ashes from Dan Puchalla on Vimeo.

I found the link to this at Episcopal Cafe. I'm looking forward to the remainder of the series. Take a look.

Nothing New Under the Sun

I came across an interesting review of the condition of The Episcopal Church. It reads as follows...

A sense of weariness and resignation prevailed as the…General Convention of the Episcopal Church convened. Loyal church people were anxious and fearful. Distrust of church leaders was pervasive. Revenues for the previous three years had fallen far short of projections, resulting in the curtailing of ministries and large-scale borrowing.

Prospects…were bleak. Many saw a looming decline facing their church. Even with an increase in diocesan giving of 25 percent (by no means a certainty) and adding money from the United Thank Offering and investment income, revenues….against anticipated expenditures….show a nearly 17 percent shortfall. The Joint Committee on Program and Budget had been meeting all summer to attempt the apparently impossible—the gap seemed unbridgeable and the decline in giving seemed to signal a spiritual exhaustion throughout the church…

Now take a guess at when it was written, then follow this link and read the rest of the article and what followed.

A great reminder that we can overcome all things with God on our side.

Third Advent

I'm quickly coming to the realization that Christmas will soon be upon us whether I'm ready for it or not. I seem to be ahead of the game this year on a personal level, but I'm not sure I'm ready on a professional level. Normally this is reversed. But I guess in a way this is the lesson for advent....We are never ready for Jesus Christ, whether he comes to us in great humility in a manger, or in the face of a stranger in need on a street corner, or in great triumph to judge us all. All I know is I'm not always ready. Lord help me to be ready.

In the mean time, here is something that will help...

Kenyon Ranked #1 Most Beautiful Campus

Kenyon College, the Episcopal Liberal Arts College in Gambier, Ohio, founded by the Rt. Rev'd Philander Chase has been named the most beautiful college campus in the US.

See the story here.

Hurrah for Kenyon!

REV. on TV.

For going on 5 years now, I have been unable to get BBC America on the TV. It has been a sore spot for me seeing as it was a favorite of mine before moving from Cincinnati to Portsmouth.

One of the reasons I like the BBC and British TV in general is for the interesting array of clergy depicted in its shows. Whether it was Gerry from the "Vicar of Dibley," or Fr. Peter from "Ballykissangel," or Channel 4's "Fr. Ted," from Craggy Island or any one of the many others, I appreciated the fact that each of the characters had depth.

Unfortunately for TV viewers in the US, clergy are portrayed in only 2 ways; licentious abusers of power, or desperately soft, good hearted fools whose sole purpose in the plot line is to get taken for a ride.

So here is yet another BBC example of a real live priest, who is neither a child abuser nor a simpleton, but a normal human being trying to do the best he can with what God has tossed in his lap...

Here is a review of REV by Bishop Alan Wilson.

Below is a taste of the article by Bishop Alan....

For all its tendency to self-parody and caricature, I like Rev. It’s a noble enterprise. Those who wrote it know whereof they speak. Adam sits in his Church trying to pray the office, wishing God would bloody do something, but secretly suspecting he won’t until his unworthy servant has made it through the next funeral. It’s a ministry that resents all the distractions, until it realises that the ministry is the distractions.

There’s holiness in the unglamorous, haphazard, but profoundly kind and patient way C of E vicars do urban ministry, even in some of the crazier characters vicars encounter. It’s highly implicit, always understated, rarely obvious. Light very occasionally streams in serendipitously, but the grind is always there. You just have to pray for people, and try to help them make the best of themselves, and never give up.

I hope you will take the time to read the article and the web reviews. Sadly, Americans will be unable to see the REV even with BBC America. Who knows why, but it is not playing on this side of the pond right now. Maybe we're not ready for it yet? But here's hoping the DVD's will some day be released.

Members/Non-members

I came across this post from Fr. Steve this morning. Good content and commentary on giving and the Church...here is a taste with the link to the full article following...

I read everything I can from the Alban Institute. Alban is the congregational development research organization par excellence. The following article (I know it’s long, but a very interesting read) came in my inbox this morning. It speaks somewhat to the theology that as church members (those who participate in the work of the Church) we are not owners. The Church is not ‘ours’ as if we could possess the Body of Christ. The paradox of church membership, as Archbishop of Canterbury William Temple once said/wrote, is that: The Church is the only society on earth that exists for the benefit of non-members....

Check out the entire article here...

Church ads and marketing

Check this out...

http://www.churchmarketingsucks.com/audio/Monster_Truck_FULL_60.mp3

I wonder if this would work?

Easter Thursday

I'm preparing a devotional study during Eastertide using the New Church Teaching Series' "Ethics After Easter." Issues for consideration focus on how the events of the Resurrection of Christ change and impact the life of the christian as well as the world around them. It looks to be a good study.

As I was preparing this morning, I stumbled across this online travel article about the top 12 destinations to see while they were still around. Of course some the the obvious ones included Barrow, Alaska, and its vanishing tundra environment. Venice and the melting snows of Kilimanjaro were but two others. But the real surprise was literally my backyard, Appalachia. With mountain-top removal becoming more and more the norm, some say Appalachia is becoming endangered.

Take a look here.

It made me think. And then it made me sad. I don't know if I should feel that way during Easter Week?

Holy Week Reflection

The Archbishop gives his thoughts on Holy Week in a special video message. Holy Week is 'a week when we discover in a way we don't at any other time just we are and just who God is'.

Life

There is a phrase from the burial office in the Book of Common Prayer that states, "In the midst of life, we are in death." I understand why it is there. I even understand the theological grounding for it being there. But I also think the reverse is true as well, "In the midst of death, we are in life."

Here is a picture of the youngest member of my parish. Born just a few hours ago. What joy and love he is bringing into the world. Joy for his family, joy for his church, joy for his community. How precious is new life...it is an in-your-face reminder of God's life in the world. A Life that brings light to us all, even when our own lives can be overwhelming.

The tenth anniversary of my grandfather's death was yesterday...It is hard to believe he has been gone that long, partly because the day he died, my cousin gave birth to a baby girl and she turned 10 yesterday. Yep, I think it true, in the midst of death, we are in life. And oh, what a wonderful life it is...Thank you Lord!

Rite I please...

I'm using Rite I and the Decalogue in Lent. If you are an Episcopalian, you know exactly what this means...Victorian language, heavy emphasis on human sinfulness and need for repentance. If you are not an Episcopalian, you probably don't care and can stop reading here!

My choice for using Rite I and the Decalogue during Lent has nothing to do with whether I prefer one to another, or whether I believe one to be more or less holy than another. My choice for using them is far more pragmatic and has a lot to do relationships.

Now I can already hear some of you say, “what does Rite I or Rite II have to do relationships?” Since I started supplying for a church in January, they have one combined Sunday service rather than two, and the format has been mainly that of the former 10:30am service. Some of the 8 o’clock folks have felt a tad disengaged with this. As a result, some have chosen to stay home rather than attend Mass. As a way to reach out to them, I chose to use a simpler service during Lent…a few less hymns, traditional language and more moments of reflection in the service.

Over the years, I can easily say that the two of the most important lessons I have learned are these; (1) Knowing that I can’t always have it my way; (2) Knowing that successfully working with others often requires compromise. These are lessons that come when you commit to being in relationship with others, and these lessons can only be appreciated when those relationships are allowed to mature.

They are good lessons, and fantastic ones to practice during a time like Lent when we are encourage to allow God to take us out of our comfort zones and into a deeper fellowship with Him through self-examination, prayer and fasting.

So I hope people appreciate a little change in the Sunday morning worship. Because even though change can be scary, it can often bring us into a closer relationship with God, our neighbors and ourselves.

Culture, culture, culture....

Here are some interesting ideas from Peggy Nonnan's recent column in The Wall Street Journal...

America is good at making practical compromises, and one of the compromises we've made in the area of arts and entertainment is captured in the words, "We don't care what you do in New York." That was said to me years ago by a social conservative who was explaining that he and his friends don't wish to impose their cultural sensibilities on a city that is uninterested in them, and that the city, in turn, shouldn't impose its cultural sensibilities on them. He was speaking metaphorically; "New York" meant "wherever the cultural left happily lives."

....This was behind the resentment at the Adam Lambert incident on ABC in November. The compromise was breached. It was a broadcast network, it was prime time, it was the American Music Awards featuring singers your 11-year-old wants to see, and your 8-year-old. And Mr. Lambert came on and—again, in front of your children, in the living room, in the middle of your peaceful evening—uncorked an act in which he, in the words of various news reports the next day, performed "faux oral sex" featuring "S&M play," "bondage gear," "same-sex makeouts" and "walking a man and woman around the stage on a leash."

....I don't mean to make too much of it. In the great scheme of things a creepy musical act doesn't matter much. But increasingly people feel at the mercy of the Adam Lamberts, who of course view themselves, when criticized, as victims of prudery and closed-mindedness. America is not prudish or closed-minded, it is exhausted. It cannot be exaggerated, how much Americans feel besieged by the culture of their own country, and to what lengths they have to go to protect their children from it....

Read the entire article here...

A favorite of the Season

Just enjoy it. Take a moment, close your eyes and imagine the press of life to disappear.

Must Read Alert...

Here is a recent column in the Anglican Journal, the national newspaper for the Anglican Church in Canada.

Read this...its worth the time. Here is a just a piece...

If the makers of Coca-Cola can sell a billion cans of sugar water every 48 hours, surely the Anglican Church of Canada can add value to people’s lives, insists Nicolosi. After all, he says, index finger stabbing the air above his head, “We’ve got Jesus!”

Read it here.

A good read of the holidays...

Here's a review of a new book about church music...just in time for the Christmas.

When Samuel Sebastian Wesley was appointed organist of Hereford cathedral in 1832, he found that the eight adult members of the choir were all clergymen aged between 49 and 78. Five were in poor health, two were deemed to be sub-standard and the 78‑year-old was exempt from attending services.

This was the crisis in which cathedral music found itself, at a time of clamour to take away revenues from the Established Church. That music survived at all in the Church of England at the Reformation had been touch and go.

Cathedrals had precentors, responsible for choral services. But at St Paul's in the 1830s, the Precentor (a canon, on a fat £2,000 a year) appeared so infrequently that when he did once turn up for a service, the dean's verger did not recognise him, and refused him entry to his stall. The wit Sydney Smith, a fellow canon, referred to this precentor as the "Absenter".

How this sorry state of affairs was transformed by the end of the 19th century, when cathedrals enjoyed a weekly round of well-attended choral services, is a theme of "In Tuneful Accord," (Canterbury Press, £19.99), a study of church musicians of the past two centuries by Trevor Beeson.

You can read the entire review here...