Benedicite Missouri: Speaking to the Soul, November 10, 2022

All praise and blessing to our Creator,
   who tenderly shapes and sustains us:
O praise and glorify our God
   whose love tenderly nourishes us forever!

You constellations, meteor showers, and galaxies; sun and moon and clouds,
Sparkling Milky Way dancing overhead in velvet night:
give to your Creator your thanks and praise.

Father of Waters, rivers and streams, prairie, glade, and grassland,
Wetlands and forest, karst and cavern, limestone and chert:
give to your Creator your thanks and praise.

Shortleaf pine, pawpaw and hickory, canoe birch and cypress,
Redbud and dogwood blazing pink and white in spring joy:
give to your Creator your thanks and praise.

Sweet flag and cranesbill; brittle and crested shield ferns,
Dogtooth and birdsfoot violets carpeting the ground in beauty:
give to your Creator your thanks and praise.

Big Bluestem, foxglove and bluebells nodding in wind-kissed woods,
Little star moss, chantarelles and morels hidden like treasure underfoot:
give to your Creator your thanks and praise.

Sapsuckers and screech owls, kestrels and turkey vultures tracing the sky,
Waxwings in cedars, indigo buntings flashing electric blue:
give to your Creator your thanks and praise.

Swallowtails and monarchs, tiger moths and sulphurs warming your wings in sunlight,
Commas and fritillaries nectaring in coneflower fields, bats wheeling at dusk:
give to your Creator your thanks and praise.

Crayfish and mussel; painted mudbug, hellbender and harlequin darter shyly hiding,
Bluegill and bowfin; mudpuppy and milksnake; spring peeper and bullfrog dueting:
give to your Creator your thanks and praise.

Bobcat and coyote; mink, muskrat, and red-eared slider in sheltering riverbank,
Red fox and opossum, white-tailed deer leaping ravines:
give to your Creator your thanks and praise.

Children of the Middle Waters, Illiniwek, O-Gah-Pah, Jiwere, and Nutachi,
Farmers and businesspeople; parents and children; kindred united in this beautiful land
give to your Creator your thanks and praise.

Let all who breathe and live and turn their faces to the sun bless our Creator,
   Whose wisdom weaves us together as one family,
Joined together in mutual gratitude and sustenance:
   O praise and glorify our God
   whose love tenderly nourishes us forever!

This was first published at Episcopal Journal and Cafe's Speaking to the Soul, November 10, 2022.

Of Justice and Joy: Speaking to the Soul, December 9, 2021

Zephaniah 3:14-20

The season of Advent could be subtitled, “the season of the prophets.” On Advent 1 in year C, we read the selection from Jeremiah 33 predicting that a sprig will sprout from the stump of Jesse. A new king will be born from David’s line, given that Jesse was David’s father. On Advent 2, we read from either Baruch or Malachi. This third Sunday, we read the Song of Joy from the prophet Zephaniah. Then there is John the Baptist, with his “voice [as] one crying out in the wilderness,” pointing to the coming Messiah.

As we hear new warnings about the omicron variant and tension in the Ukraine, it feels as though this time of fear and anxiety may never end. Fear can be so debilitating, asa both God and the prophets know. Think of that oft-repeated admonition in scripture, “Do not fear,” spoken 55 times (NRSV), and, “Do not be afraid,” spoken 67 times. Note v. 16: “Do not fear,” spoken to Jerusalem. This passage was written during a time of oppression, death, destruction, and corruption. This is not simply talking about adding to our comfort, but calling its listeners from a very real valley of the shadow of death into life in God’s kingdom.

The book of Zephaniah, which provides the first reading this coming Sunday, was believed to have been written sometime before 640 BC, when King Josiah, who was the last great king of Israel, and the “finder” of the book of Deuteronomy, ascended to the throne. However, Zephaniah makes clear that in the years before Josiah, the people of Jerusalem are awash in corruption and oppression. The Book of Zephaniah focuses on a future day of judgment, although for us in the throes of Advent, the orientation is toward future salvation.

This section is subtitled, “A Song of Joy.” It follows a long series of warnings and threats of judgment and proclaims that now is time for a word of hope. The prophet has just expressed the expectation of God drawing all nations together and unifying them. Now, God will save a holy remnant. Echoing language in Psalm 23, the last part of v. 13, “Then they will pasture and lie down, and no one shall make them afraid.” All of this is to say promise that God is in the midst of us through the Incarnation of God’s Son, whose birth we await, that justice and peace may reign on the earth. A reminder we all need, especially now as the shadows lengthen both literally and figuratively—and a reminder that is reinforced and expanded in the First Song of Isaiah which is our canticle.

Even though most of us stand in a position of privilege and power relative not only to the people to whom Zephaniah was speaking, but relative to the vast majority of the world population, we can rejoice that God’s promise is for all of us—for all nations and all peoples. Combined with John’s proclamation that we hear in today’s Gospel, it is also a reminder to us to never stand on the side of the oppressor, even passively; do not just pray for those who are the victims of fear, terror, and depression, but to work alongside them and stand with them through our actions, not just our words or our prayers. We hear again, as we do repeatedly throughout scripture, that we never stand alone, and that at times of crisis our part is to not stand aside but stand for justice. Then truly the dawn from on high may break upon us.

This was first published at Episcopal Cafe's Speaking to the Soul on December 9, 2021. 

Dancing in the Streets: Sermon for Proper 10B (Seventh Sunday after Pentecost)

It is interesting to note that we rarely see readings that discuss dancing in scripture, and yet, this week, we get two readings that mentioned dance as a central figure in a story. And there's a great deal of contrast between the two dances depicted in our readings this week.

David’s dance is before God. It is not meant to please anyone but God, and is a sign of pure joy and triumph --and, dare we say it, worship? Most of us staid Episcopalians do not consider dance to be a normal part of our worship lives --and for many of us, dance is something that we do not consider to be a normal part of any of our lives. And there's a very simple reason for that. Dancing makes us self-conscious, mostly because dancing puts our bodies, and our sense of rhythm, on display.

It wasn’t always like that for most of us. As children, we delighted in the things we could do through movement: crawling, walking, and running led to twirling, bouncing, and leaping. This was allowed when you were at home, but not allowed when you were in public—and it is that prohibition, I think that led many of us to lose our joy in rhythmical movement.

For some of us this talk about dancing can bring to mind either humiliating, awkward mixers in our school days or parqueted floors at weddings —or worse, elementary school gym class, where we were forced to learn square dancing or the Virginia reel while our gym teacher snuck off for a smoke outside, we suspected. Then there are those songs that have formulaic dances or songs attached to them. But too many of us don’t join in. We worry that we are out of rhythm or out of step. We worry that we look silly. We worry that we don't know the latest moves.

And this extends into worship. Most Episcopal parishes do not incorporate dance into liturgy. We Episcopalians are generally very stodgy about body movement during worship. Sure, there’s standing, sitting, kneeling, genuflecting—what the late great Episcopalian Robin Williams famously called “pew aerobics.” But we don’t tend to make a lot of gestures—heck some of us can’t bring ourselves to genuflect, and that’s okay.

But it can be a hard habit to shake, this regulating every movement in worship. One of the things we had to be taught as we prepared for our ordination was the manual motions priests are called to make during the Eucharist. The first several times we practiced, I felt incredibly self-conscious. Was I flinging my hands out too wide? Was I moving too fast or too slowly? 

Bless you, my people.

How exactly do you hold your fingers when blessing the people? How do you avoid looking like Carol Burnett channeling the Queen of England waving from her carriage?

But when I first became an Episcopalian, I loved the predictability of it all, having grown up in some churches where people would be “seized by the spirit” and randomly speak in tongues. In the first parish in which I was a member, there was a young boy we’ll call Joey. Joey was not neuro-typical and largely non-verbal, but he watched everything. And when it came time for communion, he was often the first to run to the altar rail, hands outstretched. After receiving the host, Joey would pop it into his mouth with a shout, and then spin and twirl his way back to his family’s pew. Of course, there were people who disapproved. But luckily, we had a priest who knew that Joey was demonstrating for all of us the joy that communion is possible to elicit. He was being authentically himself—but himself joyfully grateful to a God he knew but couldn’t describe.

David, it is told, wrote many of the psalms, which meant he spent a lifetime trying to describe God and trying to define his relationship with God. Yet in our first reading today, David puts aside his pen, and instead puts on the garments of a priest, and dances before the ark of the covenant with all of the joy and wonder he felt, unashamedly, joyfully. He is dancing to express the joy of God’s throne being back among God’s people at long last, a moment of dramatic importance.

Contrast David’s dance with that of Herod’s stepdaughter, who is actually named Salome. David’s dance is understood as more acceptable because it is not for bedazzling a creepy despot, but for expressing his joyful worship—and no one loses their lives because of it, either. We can admire his bravery at putting aside his air of dignity to give full expression to what God means in his life, as imperfect as we all know he is. But how many of us are glad we are not being asked to dance with all our might in front of a gathered multitude?

What does this story mean for us? How often do we feel self-conscious about parts of our calling as Christian witnesses and disciples?

First, perhaps we should consider the false division between body and spirit that has taken root in much of our thinking about human life today. Bodies and souls are both dependent upon each other in this life. Bodies are not some shameful disposable container for our immortal souls but are instead a reminder that we share our embodied life with Christ himself. Just as bodies and souls depend upon each other, so too our faith and our life are intertwined, and depend upon each other. Listen carefully to what we pray in worship. It tells us important things about how to live—how to get out there and dance the dance of God for the world to see.

Then there’s the spiritual dance of discipleship, and how we can embody that in our lives. How many of us hesitate when the Spirit calls us into the dance of love and true worship that might make us forget ourselves and possibly open ourselves up to scorn and mockery in the eyes of this cynical divided world? Oh, it probably wouldn’t take actual dancing to do a number on us.

It wouldn’t take actual dancing in the streets-- or, in a way, does it? What if it required us to be better evangelists? Oooh, just as scary. But as we learned with the revival of line dancing after the disco and Urban Cowboy eras, anything is less embarrassing if done in groups rather than individually. And that’s key: we do this together, supporting each other. Inviting each other into the dance of faith, the dance of the Trinity of God that makes us all one.

Let us dance in the freedom of religion as a guide for our own behavior rather than a bludgeon we could use on OTHER people’s behavior, especially if our religious beliefs cost us nothing and cost them their identity or dignity.

Let us dance in a new understanding of how our public opinions and actions —both as individuals and as a group-- toward the poor, the marginalized, and the outcast fare next to Christ’s gospel actions toward the poor, the marginalized and the outcast.

Let us dance together in using our power to alleviate the potential suffering of those around us instead of idolizing our own rights at the expense of others.

Let us dance in a new understanding of how powerful our words are to build up those around us in unity and grace, rather than tear others down.

Let us dance into speaking honestly about what God’s love has meant for us in our lives when someone asks us if we go to church.

Could it be that, for all the fear of looking foolish, there would also be indescribable joy that we might open ourselves up to receive?

Each of these things would put us as much on display as actually joining David in dancing in the streets before the Ark. Yet God is inviting Christians, especially now in this time of hatred, division, and contempt, to literally embody Christ’s loving values against the forces of inhumanity, dishonesty, and exploitation.

That may sound scary. But God is also calling us to embrace joy, and generosity, and gratitude, and be blessed as these gifts take root in our lives, softening the hard soil that can seize up our hearts so that we could be truly happy and fruitful.

Come, join in the dance, and see where it leads.

Readings:

2 Samuel 6:1-5, 12b-19
Psalm 24
Ephesians 1:3-14
Mark 6:14-29

Preached at the 10:30 online Eucharist at St. Martin's Episcopal Church, Ellisville, MO on July 11, 2021.

Prayer, day 2021: Prayer for an Ordination (or two)

From the ordination today of Shug, Nancy, and David to the transitional diaconate in Missouri.

Breathe upon us, Breath of God,

and consecrate us to your use, O Merciful One:
make us instruments of your love
transformed by your grace.
All that we have and are
we offer to you, O God:
make us worthy to stand before You, we pray.

Help us to minister to all we encounter,
be fully present to those we meet,
and honor your light in every face, O Savior.
Open our hearts to answer your call,
O Emmanuel,
to sow love and justice
even in the rockiest soils in our spirits
and throughout our journey today.
Give us voices to sing your praise, Lord Christ,
and the courage to witness to your gospel,
and set our feet surely
within the path of holiness and peace.

By the power of the Holy Spirit,
place your hand over us and guard us, O God,
and all whose needs we remember before You as we pray.

Amen.

From the ordination of Meg to the transitional diaconate today in DC.

Prayer, day 2879: Third Sunday in Advent (Gaudete Sunday)

Rest upon us, Spirit of God,

that we may proclaim your Truth
by lifting up the lowly
and caring for the hungry
as our Messiah taught us.

Make us mighty oaks of righteousness,
that we may sink our roots deep
into the soil of lovingkindness and charity
you have prepared for us to walk in with joy.

Let our souls proclaim
the beauty of our God and Savior
who is creating the heavens and the Earth,
that true justice and hope
will draw the world to redemption and peace.

Help us to point not to ourselves,
but to You, O God,
as the Source and Ground of our being
to embody your light of faith into the world.

Unite us to each other
as we hold fast to your promises of mercy, O God,
and make us worthy
to be filled with your compassion, grace, and mercy.

Blessed Jesus, we rest in your embrace;
set the seal of your redemption and love
upon those who call upon You in hope.

Amen.

Prayer 2795

God of Creation,
we praise you with our whole hearts
knowing your eye is upon us
and your love inspires us to discipleship.

Blessed Jesus,
may we take up your yoke with steadfast faith,
revealing your healing presence in each moment.
May we walk in your ways with reverence, O Redeemer,
and draw closer to you in devotion,
for you are the source of life.

Holy One, Blessed Trinity,
may the power of the Holy Spirit wrap around us
like a late-summer breeze
to renew us in zeal as your children.
Give us joy
in taking up our work in your kingdom,
of reflecting your light and truth in the world.

Extend the cooling shade of your blessing,
O Eternal Wisdom,
and let the comfort of your enduring peace
rest upon all for whom we pray.

Amen.

Prayer 2582

Blessed be the Name of the Lord,
who lifts us up and places us upon the solid rock:
let us give thanks to God!

Enter into the inmost center of our being, O Holy One,
and anoint us with your Spirit,
that we may cling to your love.
Let us make our home in the embrace of God,
who abides with us and guards all our ways.

May we be filled with the light of Christ:
may it pour forth from our hearts
to illumine our path, and guide us home.

May we be transformed
and radiate the love of Christ
into a world famished for hope and peace.
Beloved Savior, envelop us within your care,
and place your blessing upon those we now name.

Amen.

Prayer, day 2382

The first bird of the morning
lifts up her song of joy:
let us join her in raising praise to You,
O Lord Most High.
We thank You
for this beautiful Earth beneath our feet:
let us waken the dawn with our songs of joy.
Our trust and hope rests in the Lord,
the Ground and Source of All That Is:
Come, Holy Spirit, and fill our hearts with wisdom.
Our fingers may forget their skill,
but let our tongues praise You
and our actions testify to your transforming grace.
Forgive, Lord, and restore us to paths of peace:
let our fight be for those who are oppressed,
seeking justice with loving hearts.
Blessed Jesus, receive our prayers and praises,
and bless us and those for whom we pray this day.

Amen.

Prayer 2255: Prayer for April 1

Almighty God,
who is making the heavens and the earth,
we glorify and rejoice in your wisdom and truth:
hear our prayer.

You part the curtain of stars with the blessing of dawn;
You kindle the celestial fire of a billion suns
and also the bright eye of the robin
industriously breaking her fast:
accept our wonder and praise, O Creator.

May we listen to the rasp of the rising buds in the red bud trees,
and hear the surging prayer of the dogwood
as it unfurls its cruciform blooms
that testify to Christ's salvation.

May we rejoice at the song of life that thrums in our veins,
that also calls the slumbering earth
to awaken under April's bright-eyed gaze:
You, O Holy One, have made them all,
singing all that is into being,
imbuing life by the Holy Spirit,
sustaining it by your Word, our Savior.

Send now your blessing upon us, Lord Christ,
as we raise our hearts and hopes to You,
and pour out the comfort of your healing
upon all those for whom we pray.

Amen.

Prayer 2149: The Third Sunday in Advent

The heavens cry out,
"Arise, shine, for the light of God aproaches!"
and we bow before our Creator in joy and wonder--
in gratitude for all the Almighty has done for us.

Most Merciful God,
grant us the grace to see your handiwork
in the smallest grain of sand,
in the mighty vista of Yosemite's Cathedral Rocks,
in the stars swirling to a celestial hymn,
in the star-shaped hand of a newborn babe.

Bring us to cast away the works of darkness,
and seek to turn again in search of wisdom and faith,
that we may prepare ourselves
to welcome the Prince of Peace within our hearts.

Grant us true repentance
to care for those around us,
to welcome in fellowship all who approach,
to comfort all who mourn or flee,
and embody your love into the world--
the same love that made us
and holds us tenderly forever.

Come, Lord Jesus,
grant us your benediction and blessing,
and place your healing hand upon those for whom we pray.

Amen.

Prayer 2134

Joy comes in the morning,
as the Light of Christ illumines the world!
Lead us, O Holy One,
anointing us to your service for your Name's sake.
Make us beacons of hope and trust
in a world too often rent
by division and faithlessness.
Shape us as steadfast servants of your Truth,
that we may give all of our selves--
heart, mind, and soul--
to You.
Draw us into the holy mystery
of your abiding grace and mercy,
that our lives testify to your goodness.
Spread the canopy of your protection and blessing
over the hearts and minds of those who seek You.

Amen.

Prayer, day 2098: the Stars Sing Out God's Praise

I will praise You, O God,

with my first thought
as morning joy bids me to rise.
The stars sing out your praises;
their song resonates
even beyond the blue veil of day.

Your love is the foundation of the earth;
all creation rests within your embrace, O Steadfast One.

Our longing hearts turn to You:
Your Word is a lamp for our feet,
showing us the way home,
the way of peace and justice.

We thirst for your wisdom, O Redeemer:
pour out your Spirit within us,
heal and refresh us by your grace.

Let us answer your harvest call, Lord Christ,
and like workers at the harvest
bear your abundant peace into the hungry world.

May the mantle of your goodness envelop us, O Holy One,
and all those for whom we pray.

Amen.

Prayer, day 2068: Inspired by the Jubilate

You are the source of all goodness, O God,
and our shelter in times of trial.
The lands ring out their joy to God,
whose mercy never fails.
God calls each one by name,
and we answer our shepherd's call.
We know You have made us
and are with us, O Loving One,
and we sing your praise.
Your gates open before us;
let us enter with thanksgiving,
sure in your reception and protection of us.
We call upon You and You answer us,
for your faithfulness endures from age to age.
Strengthen and vouchsafe those who call upon You,
especially these for whom we pray.

Amen.
975

Prayer, day 1822: Abundant Grace

We gather ourselves in silence before the great mystery of God's steadfast compassion for creation. 

Holy, Loving God, may we throw open the gates of our hearts and accept your love today. Help us to remember that You love us in spite of all, and be inspired to be worthy of that gift. May we know that our lives overflow with abundant grace, Lord Christ, and rejoice in the weight of your hand upon us. 

May we rejoice in surrendering our will to You, O Holy One, and free ourselves from the weight of fear and anxiety. May we pass through the gates of your pastures with rejoicing, united in thanksgiving and companionship in the community of saints. May we join the cloud of witnesses who sing out unending praise to our Savior and Redeemer. May we draw strength and healing from each other and from the Holy Spirit, that we be animated by joy, wisdom, and compassion. 

Merciful One, spread the canopy of your healing grace, blessing, and peace over those we now name.

Amen.
752

Prayer 1786: Third Sunday in Advent (Gaudete or Joy Sunday)

Rest upon us, Spirit of God,
that we may proclaim your Truth
by lifting up the lowly
and caring for the hungry
as our Messiah taught us.

Make us mighty oaks of righteousness,
that we may sink our roots deep
into the soil of lovingkindness and charity
you have prepared for us to walk in with joy.

Let our souls proclaim
the beauty of our God and Savior
who is creating the heavens and the Earth,
that true justice and hope
will draw the world to redemption and peace.

Help us to point not to ourselves,
but to You, O God,
as the Source and Ground of our being
to embody your light of faith into the world.

Unite us to each other
as we hold fast to your promises of mercy, O God,
and make us worthy
to be filled with your compassion, grace, and mercy.

Blessed Jesus, we rest in your embrace;
set the seal of your redemption and love
upon those who call upon You in hope.

Amen.