Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, NY
Br. David Bryan Hoopes OHC
RCL - Proper 3 A - Sunday 25 May 2008
Isaiah 44:8-16
I Corinthians 4:1-5
Matthew 6:24-34
“But strive first for the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:33
“In a time of favor I have answered you, on a day of salvation I have helped you;
I have kept you and given you as a covenant to the people.” Isaiah 49:8
“Think of us in this way, as servants of Christ and stewards of God’s mysteries.” I Cor. 6:1
During the first week of May I had the privilege of participating in an ecumenical gathering of leaders of religious communities: the conference was held in the Orthodox Monastery of the Holy Transfiguration of our Saviour Jesus Christ in Nafpatkos, Greece. The monastery buildings were most beautiful and complemented the stunning site on top of a mountain overlooking the Bay of Patra and the port of Lepanto.
The monastery was founded in 1972 by Fr. Spyridon Logothetis (now abbot). Fr. Spyridon was a parish priest in Nafpatkos. He ministered to a congregation made up of people of modest means as well as many very poor. There was a need for an orphanage in the town and the priest and his people built one and staffed it. But Fr. Spyridon also felt called to build a monastery. Five young men also felt the call and the 6 of them set out to build a monastery. Skeptics reminded the men that they had no money, and no land. Fr. Spyridon’s response was (and is) “God has money.”
The city of Nafpatkos gave the land. They were given the choice of two sites. At first the brothers chose the alternative site, but Fr. Spyridon did not feel easy about it. He recounted that as the men were about to make the decision it felt as if he were being pushed very hard in his back. He in fact, fell down a hill, broke his leg and had to be hospitalized. While in hospital he had the conviction that the brothers should choose the other site for the monastery. They did. As they were building they discovered that the site had been the venue of a small 12th century monastery. The foundation of the first monastery church was discovered as were the graves of the monks who had lived at the
monastery. Only one very old man of Nafpatkos remembered hearing of the monastery.
As the men began to build, contributions came from people in the area, the larger Greek community and the Greek “diaspora” abroad. Today, there are 30 monks - all university educated who run the monastery, a conference center, a 24-hour radio station, a printery for devotional
and instructional materials; they raise their food with a state-of-art fishery, and make their own wine. There are 3 churches on the property - an oratory open at all times for pilgrims; a monastic church, and a Cathedral which is in the process of being built (the original Cathedral was destroyed in 1572 and never rebuilt). The monks also run a summer camp for children of the area. Abbot Spyridon calmly maintains “God has money. We are doing God’s work. All will be well.” The monks work hard, look to be very healthy and seem happy.
As the Order of the Holy Cross prepares for our annual chapter in June, the superior, each house and each brother-not-in-residence prepares a budget for the coming year. The approach of each of us is telling of our faith, our understanding of God’s involvement in our monastic life and our personality. The national economy is volatile - the value of the dollar is down and the cost of living steadily rising.
In all reality, contributions may be less. Perhaps fewer people will be able to visit. Undoubtedly we will try to curb expenses and discern what is unnecessary or even extravagant. What is our attitude - is it confidence, panic, anger, helplessness - or even escapism? Jesus tells us not to worry but to strive first for the Kingdom of God and God’s righteousness and all these things will be given. “All these things” - referring to life’s necessities, tools for wholeness of life. In chapter 7 of Matthew's gospel account Jesus says. “Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you.” One of the companions of our Order is very savvy about financial matters and some years ago we asked her to serve on the financial committee of the Order. She continues to remind us that the good ordering of our financial resources is a theological exercise. God gives us life, our talents, our resources. “God has money.” Money is power. God has power. In Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians he reminds the church and us that we are both servants of Christ and stewards of God’s mysteries (I Cor. 6:1).
How do we use those resources? How do we manage if we have plenty? How do we manage if we have little? How do we exercise generosity and hospitality?
Do we believe in our mission, our work, our lives? Will we ask God’s help; will we seek out resources which are there; will we knock (explore) the various possibilities?
Do we believe that God has made and keeps covenant with us - a covenant based on love, righteousness, hope?
I have shared one story of a religious community in Greece. There are countless stories of God’s generosity to those who want to live godly lives and who also want to enable others to know the riches of God’s grace.
We receive life from God - it is God’s gift, a gift made marvelous by the grace given through Jesus Christ and the abiding presence of God’s Holy Spirit. When God, and the gift of God, is our chiefest joy, needs are met and there will be abundant sufficiency for others as well.
Amen.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
RCL - Proper 3 A - 25 May 2008
Monday, May 26, 2008
RCL - Proper 3 A - 25 May 2008
From Baptist to Benedictine
St Paul's Episcopal church, Tustin, CA
Mr. Charles Mizelle, Aspirant to OHC
RCL - Proper 3 A - Sunday 25 May 2008
Isa 49:8-16a
I Cor 4:1-5
Matt 6:24-34
Opening Prayer: Come Holy Spirit and fill your people with love, joy, peace and wisdom. Amen”
Good Morning.
I’m honored to have this opportunity to share a small slice of my faith journey with you. In many ways it is a story that has been repeated all too frequently.
Child grows up in a religious home.
Child loves the Lord and has a deep spiritual life.
Child comes to an age of realization and struggles with being gay.
Child prays, hopes and even submits to an exorcism to not be gay anymore.
Child actually believes if he gets married his problem will go away.
This WAS my story. And standing here today reflecting back to the struggles I went through in my teens and 20’s seems all so unnecessary. Yet, some 30 years later, this is a story that is repeating itself in the lives of thousands of young people right now.
I consider myself one of the lucky ones. I truly had a loving home. And the faith I had was real and deep. And I hear the call of God from our reading this morning from Isaiah. God delivers a fourfold declaration of hope to the Israelites who have been exiled in Babylon: “I have answered you...I have helped you...I have kept you...I have given you”.
Let me tell you how...
Well getting married was not the magic pill to change me. Now I know that it was God’s pressure cooker to bring to the surface all of the issues He wanted me to face. But living those 6 years was hell on earth for us both. Feeling like I was falling off a cliff and on the verge of a mental breakdown I finally mustered the courage to get a divorce. And this proved to be the defining moment between me and the Baptist church.
Divorce was anathema to God’s Word. And at the time of my greatest spiritual need, a time when I desperately needed pastoral care, my church decided it was time to exercise church discipline. It began with a visit from my pastor and a deacon asking me to leave the church unless I changed my ways. But that was just the beginning.
My landlord was a member of the church and they told her they could not keep me as a tenant because I was living outside of God’s will. They threatened to contact my employer to tell them they should not keep a person like me employed. The small circle of friends I had for support were told to banish me from their lives. Here is the surprising part. All of this church discipline was not about me coming out of the closet as a gay man. I had not come out. That struggle was still buried deep within me in a very fearful place. No, I was being disciplined for getting a divorce. Imagine my shock when several months later I am sitting in a court room to finalize our divorce and 20 + people show up to contest the divorce and testify against me. This was without a doubt the most difficult time of my life. What had meant everything to me growing up as a child: my faith, God, the church, had all been ripped away from me. And I knew what it meant to look into the eyes of hate and be on the receiving end it.
It took a good 6 months for the dust to settle from all of this. And it was then that I had my second born again experience. Yes, I had had the Baptist born again experience as a young child. But this second born again experience was just between me, God and my bathroom mirror. I was home alone in a small studio apartment. I got up and went into my bathroom and looked at myself in the mirror. And in front of that mirror I began a verbal conversation with God. I told God I was tired of the struggle, I was tired of living in denial, and I wasn’t willing to do it anymore. I said God I love you but I can’t go on living this way. I said I know you love me God but more importantly I love myself. I accept myself and it is okay that I am gay.
Well let me tell you I busted out of that proverbial closet so hard there was no closet left. The door shattered, the hinges blew off, there was no closet for me to ever return to, and I never looked back. I also never looked back at the Baptist church. I was done with it. The damage was too deep.
It took years but I finally found a new spiritual home in an eastern meditation society called Self Realization Fellowship. There I grew in many new ways. There I learned that God is too big for just one faith tradition. There I learned what Jesus meant when he said “In my Fathers house are many mansions...and I go there to prepare a place for you.” There is a place for all God’s children: Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist. And even a place for a gay man like me.
As much of a healing place as the Self Realization Fellowship was for me I still missed my Christian tradition. And I had a growing hunger for it. I prayed to ask God if there really could be a Christian church out there that would truly accept me, as the traditional hymn says “Just As I Am”. It was about this time I began hearing in the national news about the stir being caused by the Episcopal church ordaining a gay bishop. I knew absolutely nothing about the Episcopal church but I truly felt joy in hearing this news. For me and hundreds like me it was not just national news--it was Good News.
Then something quite amazing happened. I had moved back into the West Hollywood area and it was June. Time for the annual gay parade. Now this is an event that I personally run from. I found it pedantic. But when you live just one block from Santa Monica Blvd you have to give in to the tens of thousands of people who show up for a visit. Having secured my parking space for the weekend I wasn’t going to give it up under any circumstances. So on that June Sunday I walked the 2 blocks from my home to Santa Monica Blvd to be a casual observer of the day's celebration.
The Gay Pride Parade offered every group and organization you would expect. But there was one group that took my breath away. In this wild and party atmosphere I looked down the boulevard to see literally hundreds of smiling, peaceful Episcopalians carrying signs saying "God loves you and we welcome you". It was a very powerful moment for me. And one that gave me courage to tiptoe back into a Christian church.
That church was All Saints Beverly Hills. I will never forget that first Sunday. I scanned the entire congregation to see how many big black Scofield Bibles I could spot. I didn’t see a one. But I just knew someone was there to tell me I was an abomination to God and hit me over the head with “God’s Word” in an old fashioned Bible thumping and then show me the door. When I understood that it was really okay for me to go to the altar to receive communion I thought they simply do not know who I really am and I am not going to tell them. I tiptoed around that parish for a literal 6 months waiting for the other shoe to drop. Waiting to be told I really wasn’t welcome there. And it never happened. What did happen is that they just kept pulling me in deeper and deeper. I was asked to actually participate in the workings of the parish. Alpha, Beta, Covenant classes, small group Bible studies, the homeless ministry, and retreats. I kept meeting more people like me. And God was healing the deep wounds in my soul.
A retreat for the gay and lesbian ministry was announced and I instantly signed up to go. But a short time later I learned my company was downsizing and I was looking at a layoff. Time to circle the horses, pull in the wagons, spend no money, and go into an intense job search. Gay retreat canceled. Several weeks later a miracle happened. A lady approached me and said that an anonymous donor had provided my way to attend the retreat. To say I was stunned would be an enormous understatement. It was a moment of receiving pure love for me. Church discipline had turned into Love in Action.
The retreat was an amazing experience. Forty plus people, all with similar experiences to mine, all on an amazing faith journey. And the Holy Spirit was at work in my life. During my free afternoon someone said “Do you know that up the hill is an Episcopal monastery?” Once again I was stunned. To me monastery meant Catholic. I was intrigued and wanted to go. I had had a long fascination with Monastic communities and in my late 30’s actually inquired about the monastic life at Self Realization Fellowship. My visit there had a profound impact on me. It was frustrating to only be there a couple of hours. I knew I had to return. It would be a while before I fully understood why.
God blessed me with a new dream job. But it meant a move to Orange County. I was devastated to move away from All Saints Beverly Hills. Why would God take me away from the place I had been looking for all of my life. Having lived in Los Angeles for 20+ years my impression of Orange County was not too great. My friends teased me that I would be living behind the “Orange Curtain”. My total experience of Orange County was it was simply the place you drove through on your way to San Diego.
After settling in to a new job and home I started my search for a new church. I visited many and did a lot of looking on the web. When I came to St. Paul’s there was something different. It began with a phone conversation with Wayne reassuring me this is a welcoming parish to everyone. When I arrived here my first Sunday I was never before made to feel so welcomed in all my life. I would later know that I was simply the recipient of the incredible gift of Susan Dean. Then I got to hear Kay preach. It touched my heart and my mind and I was hooked.
The Good News that initially attracted me to the Episcopal church was turning into not-so-good-news. Schisms, ultimatums from the global south, parishes and whole dioceses leaving the Episcopal Church. Was this that “other shoe dropping” I was initially afraid of? Early in my time here at St. Paul’s I heard a sermon from Reese saying whatever happens in the Episcopal Church this will always be a parish that welcomes EVERYONE! I knew I had found the right home.
The next stop on my journey became EFM. Being a wannabe armchair theologian such an intentional study of scripture was a natural for me. EFM, Education for Ministry, has been the highlight of my time at St. Paul’s. It is a Bible study like no other. Quite honestly it is the toughest Bible study that you will ever love. The first thing I learned in EFM is the name Israel means one who struggles with God. I certainly identified with that. And I have certainly struggled at times with the EFM material. But something truly wonderful happens every Tuesday night when about 8 people come together to share their own struggle. We always have an extra guest...the Holy Spirit. And that EFM classroom becomes the upper room at St. Paul’s.
Profound conversations occur. And you witness first hand God’s amazing work in each and every life. EFM will enliven and enrich your faith. It will give you the tools to bring God into the mundane and the profound of daily life.
New faith was reborn in me at All Saints Beverly Hills. EFM at St. Paul’s became the place where that faith matured. A part of my EFM commitment was to return to that Episcopal monastery in Santa Barbara and explore how being there just a few hours could effect me so profoundly. Returning there felt like going home. And my head was full of “if only”, “if things had been different”, “another time, another life” type of statements. Upon meeting with the Prior, to discuss another subject entirely, I casually said I wished I was younger and circumstances were different for me to consider a monastic vocation. His response took me completely by surprise. He said “You are not too old for us to consider you. We would consider you.” My head exploded. To this day I cannot tell you what was said for the rest of the conversation. I stepped out of time and was transfigured to another place. I ran back to my guest room and fell on my knees in tears. Just the thought that this was a viable possibility coupled with the realization that my circumstances in life actually do allow me to consider this was more than I could process.
It has now been 1 year since I formerly entered a discernment process for a monastic vocation. It has been a year of miracles, uncanny coincidences, doors opening and circumstances falling into place. I am overjoyed to tell you this September I will enter the Order of Holy Cross monastic community, in West Park NY, as a postulant. There, I will go through a 3 year formation process to live the rest of my life as a Monk. But on a sad note, this is my last Sunday with you. This week I depart on a 3 month sabbatical to begin a time of study and reflection to transition from my corporate life to a monastic vocation.
St Paul's Episcopal church, Tustin, CA
Mr. Charles Mizelle, Aspirant to OHC
RCL - Proper 3 A - Sunday 25 May 2008
Isa 49:8-16a
I Cor 4:1-5
Matt 6:24-34
Opening Prayer: Come Holy Spirit and fill your people with love, joy, peace and wisdom. Amen”
Good Morning.
I’m honored to have this opportunity to share a small slice of my faith journey with you. In many ways it is a story that has been repeated all too frequently.
Child grows up in a religious home.
Child loves the Lord and has a deep spiritual life.
Child comes to an age of realization and struggles with being gay.
Child prays, hopes and even submits to an exorcism to not be gay anymore.
Child actually believes if he gets married his problem will go away.
This WAS my story. And standing here today reflecting back to the struggles I went through in my teens and 20’s seems all so unnecessary. Yet, some 30 years later, this is a story that is repeating itself in the lives of thousands of young people right now.
I consider myself one of the lucky ones. I truly had a loving home. And the faith I had was real and deep. And I hear the call of God from our reading this morning from Isaiah. God delivers a fourfold declaration of hope to the Israelites who have been exiled in Babylon: “I have answered you...I have helped you...I have kept you...I have given you”.
Let me tell you how...
Well getting married was not the magic pill to change me. Now I know that it was God’s pressure cooker to bring to the surface all of the issues He wanted me to face. But living those 6 years was hell on earth for us both. Feeling like I was falling off a cliff and on the verge of a mental breakdown I finally mustered the courage to get a divorce. And this proved to be the defining moment between me and the Baptist church.
Divorce was anathema to God’s Word. And at the time of my greatest spiritual need, a time when I desperately needed pastoral care, my church decided it was time to exercise church discipline. It began with a visit from my pastor and a deacon asking me to leave the church unless I changed my ways. But that was just the beginning.
My landlord was a member of the church and they told her they could not keep me as a tenant because I was living outside of God’s will. They threatened to contact my employer to tell them they should not keep a person like me employed. The small circle of friends I had for support were told to banish me from their lives. Here is the surprising part. All of this church discipline was not about me coming out of the closet as a gay man. I had not come out. That struggle was still buried deep within me in a very fearful place. No, I was being disciplined for getting a divorce. Imagine my shock when several months later I am sitting in a court room to finalize our divorce and 20 + people show up to contest the divorce and testify against me. This was without a doubt the most difficult time of my life. What had meant everything to me growing up as a child: my faith, God, the church, had all been ripped away from me. And I knew what it meant to look into the eyes of hate and be on the receiving end it.
It took a good 6 months for the dust to settle from all of this. And it was then that I had my second born again experience. Yes, I had had the Baptist born again experience as a young child. But this second born again experience was just between me, God and my bathroom mirror. I was home alone in a small studio apartment. I got up and went into my bathroom and looked at myself in the mirror. And in front of that mirror I began a verbal conversation with God. I told God I was tired of the struggle, I was tired of living in denial, and I wasn’t willing to do it anymore. I said God I love you but I can’t go on living this way. I said I know you love me God but more importantly I love myself. I accept myself and it is okay that I am gay.
Well let me tell you I busted out of that proverbial closet so hard there was no closet left. The door shattered, the hinges blew off, there was no closet for me to ever return to, and I never looked back. I also never looked back at the Baptist church. I was done with it. The damage was too deep.
It took years but I finally found a new spiritual home in an eastern meditation society called Self Realization Fellowship. There I grew in many new ways. There I learned that God is too big for just one faith tradition. There I learned what Jesus meant when he said “In my Fathers house are many mansions...and I go there to prepare a place for you.” There is a place for all God’s children: Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist. And even a place for a gay man like me.
As much of a healing place as the Self Realization Fellowship was for me I still missed my Christian tradition. And I had a growing hunger for it. I prayed to ask God if there really could be a Christian church out there that would truly accept me, as the traditional hymn says “Just As I Am”. It was about this time I began hearing in the national news about the stir being caused by the Episcopal church ordaining a gay bishop. I knew absolutely nothing about the Episcopal church but I truly felt joy in hearing this news. For me and hundreds like me it was not just national news--it was Good News.
Then something quite amazing happened. I had moved back into the West Hollywood area and it was June. Time for the annual gay parade. Now this is an event that I personally run from. I found it pedantic. But when you live just one block from Santa Monica Blvd you have to give in to the tens of thousands of people who show up for a visit. Having secured my parking space for the weekend I wasn’t going to give it up under any circumstances. So on that June Sunday I walked the 2 blocks from my home to Santa Monica Blvd to be a casual observer of the day's celebration.
The Gay Pride Parade offered every group and organization you would expect. But there was one group that took my breath away. In this wild and party atmosphere I looked down the boulevard to see literally hundreds of smiling, peaceful Episcopalians carrying signs saying "God loves you and we welcome you". It was a very powerful moment for me. And one that gave me courage to tiptoe back into a Christian church.
That church was All Saints Beverly Hills. I will never forget that first Sunday. I scanned the entire congregation to see how many big black Scofield Bibles I could spot. I didn’t see a one. But I just knew someone was there to tell me I was an abomination to God and hit me over the head with “God’s Word” in an old fashioned Bible thumping and then show me the door. When I understood that it was really okay for me to go to the altar to receive communion I thought they simply do not know who I really am and I am not going to tell them. I tiptoed around that parish for a literal 6 months waiting for the other shoe to drop. Waiting to be told I really wasn’t welcome there. And it never happened. What did happen is that they just kept pulling me in deeper and deeper. I was asked to actually participate in the workings of the parish. Alpha, Beta, Covenant classes, small group Bible studies, the homeless ministry, and retreats. I kept meeting more people like me. And God was healing the deep wounds in my soul.
A retreat for the gay and lesbian ministry was announced and I instantly signed up to go. But a short time later I learned my company was downsizing and I was looking at a layoff. Time to circle the horses, pull in the wagons, spend no money, and go into an intense job search. Gay retreat canceled. Several weeks later a miracle happened. A lady approached me and said that an anonymous donor had provided my way to attend the retreat. To say I was stunned would be an enormous understatement. It was a moment of receiving pure love for me. Church discipline had turned into Love in Action.
The retreat was an amazing experience. Forty plus people, all with similar experiences to mine, all on an amazing faith journey. And the Holy Spirit was at work in my life. During my free afternoon someone said “Do you know that up the hill is an Episcopal monastery?” Once again I was stunned. To me monastery meant Catholic. I was intrigued and wanted to go. I had had a long fascination with Monastic communities and in my late 30’s actually inquired about the monastic life at Self Realization Fellowship. My visit there had a profound impact on me. It was frustrating to only be there a couple of hours. I knew I had to return. It would be a while before I fully understood why.
God blessed me with a new dream job. But it meant a move to Orange County. I was devastated to move away from All Saints Beverly Hills. Why would God take me away from the place I had been looking for all of my life. Having lived in Los Angeles for 20+ years my impression of Orange County was not too great. My friends teased me that I would be living behind the “Orange Curtain”. My total experience of Orange County was it was simply the place you drove through on your way to San Diego.
After settling in to a new job and home I started my search for a new church. I visited many and did a lot of looking on the web. When I came to St. Paul’s there was something different. It began with a phone conversation with Wayne reassuring me this is a welcoming parish to everyone. When I arrived here my first Sunday I was never before made to feel so welcomed in all my life. I would later know that I was simply the recipient of the incredible gift of Susan Dean. Then I got to hear Kay preach. It touched my heart and my mind and I was hooked.
The Good News that initially attracted me to the Episcopal church was turning into not-so-good-news. Schisms, ultimatums from the global south, parishes and whole dioceses leaving the Episcopal Church. Was this that “other shoe dropping” I was initially afraid of? Early in my time here at St. Paul’s I heard a sermon from Reese saying whatever happens in the Episcopal Church this will always be a parish that welcomes EVERYONE! I knew I had found the right home.
The next stop on my journey became EFM. Being a wannabe armchair theologian such an intentional study of scripture was a natural for me. EFM, Education for Ministry, has been the highlight of my time at St. Paul’s. It is a Bible study like no other. Quite honestly it is the toughest Bible study that you will ever love. The first thing I learned in EFM is the name Israel means one who struggles with God. I certainly identified with that. And I have certainly struggled at times with the EFM material. But something truly wonderful happens every Tuesday night when about 8 people come together to share their own struggle. We always have an extra guest...the Holy Spirit. And that EFM classroom becomes the upper room at St. Paul’s.
Profound conversations occur. And you witness first hand God’s amazing work in each and every life. EFM will enliven and enrich your faith. It will give you the tools to bring God into the mundane and the profound of daily life.
New faith was reborn in me at All Saints Beverly Hills. EFM at St. Paul’s became the place where that faith matured. A part of my EFM commitment was to return to that Episcopal monastery in Santa Barbara and explore how being there just a few hours could effect me so profoundly. Returning there felt like going home. And my head was full of “if only”, “if things had been different”, “another time, another life” type of statements. Upon meeting with the Prior, to discuss another subject entirely, I casually said I wished I was younger and circumstances were different for me to consider a monastic vocation. His response took me completely by surprise. He said “You are not too old for us to consider you. We would consider you.” My head exploded. To this day I cannot tell you what was said for the rest of the conversation. I stepped out of time and was transfigured to another place. I ran back to my guest room and fell on my knees in tears. Just the thought that this was a viable possibility coupled with the realization that my circumstances in life actually do allow me to consider this was more than I could process.
It has now been 1 year since I formerly entered a discernment process for a monastic vocation. It has been a year of miracles, uncanny coincidences, doors opening and circumstances falling into place. I am overjoyed to tell you this September I will enter the Order of Holy Cross monastic community, in West Park NY, as a postulant. There, I will go through a 3 year formation process to live the rest of my life as a Monk. But on a sad note, this is my last Sunday with you. This week I depart on a 3 month sabbatical to begin a time of study and reflection to transition from my corporate life to a monastic vocation.
Dogwood at Holy Cross Monastery - by Randy OHC
I am not leaving the world. I will not be cloistered behind walls, I will not be a hermit in silence. I will still have my computer, the internet and e-mail, I will even have my iPod. Today’s monastic communities are about learning to be fully alive in God, living an intentional life in community to serve the needs of others. It is first and foremost a life of prayer. We are a Benedictine Order which means hospitality is at our core. Finally I get to live the rest of my life welcoming everyone back to God: all races, all genders, all sexual orientations, all of those who have been excluded and marginalized. We even welcome Baptists.
Amen!
Amen!
Monday, May 19, 2008
RCL - Proper 2 A - 18 May 2008
Mount Calvary Monastery, Santa Barbara, CA
Brother James Michael Dowd, n/OHC
RCL - Trinity Sunday - Yr A - Sunday 18 May 2008
Genesis 1:1-2:4a
2 Corinthians 13:11-13
Matthew 28:16-20
It Just Doesn’t Add Up
In the name of the Triune God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
When I observed that I was on the rota to preach for Trinity Sunday, I could not help but think of the first priest who had a real impact on my life: Father Ron Sequin. Back in the later part of my high school years and the beginning of my college years, Ron was my parish priest and then, campus minister. I consider him the best preacher I have ever heard on a consistent basis. Ron had a way of making the Scripture readings actually come alive in a way that had genuine impact on my life.
So, it was surprising to me, one Trinity Sunday, having just complimented him on his sermon, that he said to me: “you know, every year around Ash Wednesday, I begin praying that I don’t have to preach on Trinity Sunday - it’s the one day of the year I never know what to say. But every year I seem to get stuck with it.” I’ll never forget his chuckle, when I responded that the other priests in the parish must have begun praying somewhere around Epiphany, and that he might want to consider taking up the discipline somewhere around the beginning of Advent. Well, Ron has crossed over to the other side now, and I am quite confident that he has been chuckling as he watched me struggle with this sermon all week.
It has not been lost on me that nowhere in the New Testament does anyone attempt to explain the nature of the Trinity. To be sure, as we just heard, there are Trinitarian formulas, but neither St. Paul, nor any of the Evangelists actually attempt to explain the nature of the Trinity. They write about characteristics of the Trinity, but never the actual nature of the Trinity. So, neither will I. Because when I add 1+1+1, I get three, I don’t get one. And yet, three is one. How can that be? It just doesn’t add up. And for that, I say, thanks be to God!
I thank God because one of the most important theological concepts in Christianity is steeped in mystery. A mystery that we simply cannot easily explain away. And that makes our minds, formed by modernity, just a little bit crazy. We twenty-first century folks have been conditioned to want facts and figures, we want to be able to prove something as verifiable, and, in the event we cannot prove it thus, it stands as untrue for lack of proof.
But I think a fact-based approach to faith is missing the point by a mile. We need a Truth-based approach to faith. And for that, we need mystery, we need wonder, we need imagination. This is not to denigrate science, or mathematics or even theological studies. Not at all. Each of those disciplines has taught us about some aspect of God’s awesome and wondrous creation, and therefore has taught us something about God, about the Trinity. But it seems to me that to be on this journey with God is to begin to get to know God. And to begin to get to know God, is to begin to fall in love with God. And when it comes to loving God, a little mystery can go a long way.
So, what I’d like to do today is to focus on our relationship with the Trinity. A good place to start is with our first reading - the very beginning of the book of Genesis. In this first account of Creation, we are told that “God created humankind in his image; in the image of God he created them.”(1) So, if getting to know the Trinity is to begin to fall in love with the Trinity – and I mean this in the broadest sense of that expression – then love relationships between two people might give us an indication of what our relationship with the Trinity looks like.
Think about anyone you have ever loved. Maybe a spouse or partner, maybe a best friend, a sibling – anyone. I am quite sure that you would be able to list all kinds of qualities that this particular person has. They might be very caring, they might have a big heart, a great sense of humor, a particularly good intellect, real character, the best eyes on earth, whatever. But no matter how many of these great qualities your loved one has, it doesn’t add up to the amount of love that you feel for him or her. Love so far exceeds any particular set of qualities as to be rather, well, mysterious. You can’t actually explain in a factual way why you love a particular person. You just do. You can explain facts that are important in how you came to love this person, but not the Truth of your great love for them. And that is the glory of love.
A Christian lives the life of faith steeped in the mysterious. For to love is to accept that we live in a constant relationship with the other, that is beyond all characteristics, all shared history, all the facts. But the most important thing to remember about the mysterious is that it is an invitation. The mysterious is an invitation to love in a holy way, to explore more deeply, to enter more fully, into the wonder of God, the completeness of the Trinity.
That idea of completeness is central to the idea of the Trinity. In ancient cultures throughout the world, the symbolism of three often has something to do with completeness or perfection, total, whole, holy. In our own tradition, three certainly means that and can be found not only in references to the Trinity, but in so many other ways in the New Testament. The Holy Family is a threesome of Jesus, Mary and Joseph; there are Three Kings at Epiphany; Jesus public ministry is for three years; there are the three leaders of the Apostles: Peter, James and John; there are the three denials of Peter when Jesus is arrested; and Peter’s three affirmations of love after the Resurrection; Jesus is one of three who are crucified; he hangs on the cross for three hours; and is raised three days later. Well, I could go on and on, but you get the point. It’s not that there aren’t other numbers that have significance – seven, twelve and forty certainly come to mind, but three has a special place in our spirituality.
In Celtic Christianity, the Trinity holds a very prominent place in that expression of the faith. With a particular emphasis on the completeness of God and on our life being folded into that completeness. It has to do with oneness and with an experience of the holy that is both very mysterious and very palpable. The Celtic symbol for the Trinity is an intermeshing weave that has no beginning and no end. Clearly there are three aspects to the symbol, yet it is one. It goes on forever while at the same time inviting the viewer in as he or she looks at it. For me, somewhere in that weave, seems to be the mystery of the Trinity. It is eternal, it is complete, it is whole.
God the Father, and God the Son, and God the Spirit, are three separate beings, yet one. They are the perfect community: separate, yet one. Entering into that mystery is to take the position that I am going to live into this love affair. That I am going to enter into this relationship with the Trinity as part of the Body of Christ. Since I belong to Christ, I therefore belong as a member of that most holy community, the Trinity.
A trinitarian ceramic pavement in the woods of Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, NY
And this is where the palpable nature of the Celtic Trinity is evident and which our Scriptures today support. To live into the mystery of the Trinity, is to live into the love of the Trinity. And living into the love of the Trinity demands certain things. For example, in that very brief passage from the Second Letter to the Corinthians how does St. Paul advise the Christian community to live? Well, among other things: they are to “agree with one another”, in other words, find a way to “live in peace” with one another so that the “grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit will be with all of [them].”(2)
And what does Jesus tell the disciples, and by extension us, just before he ascends to Heaven? Well, we are to “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” And we are to “teach them to obey everything that [Jesus has] commanded.”(3)
To do this, to invite all of God’s people into life with the mysterious, is to offer God’s people the possibilities that can only come when we are willing to embrace that which is mysterious. To do this, is to say to a broken and often terrified world, that we stand on the firm ground of the mysterious. We love, despite everything in the world around us that pleads with us to hate. We forgive, despite everything in the world around us that pleads with us for vengeance. We dare to imagine a Triune God, despite everything in the world around us that encourages us to doubt. We revel in the mysterious for that enables us to love, to forgive, to imagine. We rejoice in the Trinity, precisely because it just doesn’t add up.
AMEN.
[1].Genesis 1:27, NRSV
[2] 2 Corinthians 13:13, NRSV
[3] Matthew 28: 18-20, NRSV
Brother James Michael Dowd, n/OHC
RCL - Trinity Sunday - Yr A - Sunday 18 May 2008
Genesis 1:1-2:4a
2 Corinthians 13:11-13
Matthew 28:16-20
It Just Doesn’t Add Up
In the name of the Triune God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
When I observed that I was on the rota to preach for Trinity Sunday, I could not help but think of the first priest who had a real impact on my life: Father Ron Sequin. Back in the later part of my high school years and the beginning of my college years, Ron was my parish priest and then, campus minister. I consider him the best preacher I have ever heard on a consistent basis. Ron had a way of making the Scripture readings actually come alive in a way that had genuine impact on my life.
So, it was surprising to me, one Trinity Sunday, having just complimented him on his sermon, that he said to me: “you know, every year around Ash Wednesday, I begin praying that I don’t have to preach on Trinity Sunday - it’s the one day of the year I never know what to say. But every year I seem to get stuck with it.” I’ll never forget his chuckle, when I responded that the other priests in the parish must have begun praying somewhere around Epiphany, and that he might want to consider taking up the discipline somewhere around the beginning of Advent. Well, Ron has crossed over to the other side now, and I am quite confident that he has been chuckling as he watched me struggle with this sermon all week.
It has not been lost on me that nowhere in the New Testament does anyone attempt to explain the nature of the Trinity. To be sure, as we just heard, there are Trinitarian formulas, but neither St. Paul, nor any of the Evangelists actually attempt to explain the nature of the Trinity. They write about characteristics of the Trinity, but never the actual nature of the Trinity. So, neither will I. Because when I add 1+1+1, I get three, I don’t get one. And yet, three is one. How can that be? It just doesn’t add up. And for that, I say, thanks be to God!
I thank God because one of the most important theological concepts in Christianity is steeped in mystery. A mystery that we simply cannot easily explain away. And that makes our minds, formed by modernity, just a little bit crazy. We twenty-first century folks have been conditioned to want facts and figures, we want to be able to prove something as verifiable, and, in the event we cannot prove it thus, it stands as untrue for lack of proof.
But I think a fact-based approach to faith is missing the point by a mile. We need a Truth-based approach to faith. And for that, we need mystery, we need wonder, we need imagination. This is not to denigrate science, or mathematics or even theological studies. Not at all. Each of those disciplines has taught us about some aspect of God’s awesome and wondrous creation, and therefore has taught us something about God, about the Trinity. But it seems to me that to be on this journey with God is to begin to get to know God. And to begin to get to know God, is to begin to fall in love with God. And when it comes to loving God, a little mystery can go a long way.
So, what I’d like to do today is to focus on our relationship with the Trinity. A good place to start is with our first reading - the very beginning of the book of Genesis. In this first account of Creation, we are told that “God created humankind in his image; in the image of God he created them.”(1) So, if getting to know the Trinity is to begin to fall in love with the Trinity – and I mean this in the broadest sense of that expression – then love relationships between two people might give us an indication of what our relationship with the Trinity looks like.
Think about anyone you have ever loved. Maybe a spouse or partner, maybe a best friend, a sibling – anyone. I am quite sure that you would be able to list all kinds of qualities that this particular person has. They might be very caring, they might have a big heart, a great sense of humor, a particularly good intellect, real character, the best eyes on earth, whatever. But no matter how many of these great qualities your loved one has, it doesn’t add up to the amount of love that you feel for him or her. Love so far exceeds any particular set of qualities as to be rather, well, mysterious. You can’t actually explain in a factual way why you love a particular person. You just do. You can explain facts that are important in how you came to love this person, but not the Truth of your great love for them. And that is the glory of love.
A Christian lives the life of faith steeped in the mysterious. For to love is to accept that we live in a constant relationship with the other, that is beyond all characteristics, all shared history, all the facts. But the most important thing to remember about the mysterious is that it is an invitation. The mysterious is an invitation to love in a holy way, to explore more deeply, to enter more fully, into the wonder of God, the completeness of the Trinity.
That idea of completeness is central to the idea of the Trinity. In ancient cultures throughout the world, the symbolism of three often has something to do with completeness or perfection, total, whole, holy. In our own tradition, three certainly means that and can be found not only in references to the Trinity, but in so many other ways in the New Testament. The Holy Family is a threesome of Jesus, Mary and Joseph; there are Three Kings at Epiphany; Jesus public ministry is for three years; there are the three leaders of the Apostles: Peter, James and John; there are the three denials of Peter when Jesus is arrested; and Peter’s three affirmations of love after the Resurrection; Jesus is one of three who are crucified; he hangs on the cross for three hours; and is raised three days later. Well, I could go on and on, but you get the point. It’s not that there aren’t other numbers that have significance – seven, twelve and forty certainly come to mind, but three has a special place in our spirituality.
In Celtic Christianity, the Trinity holds a very prominent place in that expression of the faith. With a particular emphasis on the completeness of God and on our life being folded into that completeness. It has to do with oneness and with an experience of the holy that is both very mysterious and very palpable. The Celtic symbol for the Trinity is an intermeshing weave that has no beginning and no end. Clearly there are three aspects to the symbol, yet it is one. It goes on forever while at the same time inviting the viewer in as he or she looks at it. For me, somewhere in that weave, seems to be the mystery of the Trinity. It is eternal, it is complete, it is whole.
God the Father, and God the Son, and God the Spirit, are three separate beings, yet one. They are the perfect community: separate, yet one. Entering into that mystery is to take the position that I am going to live into this love affair. That I am going to enter into this relationship with the Trinity as part of the Body of Christ. Since I belong to Christ, I therefore belong as a member of that most holy community, the Trinity.
A trinitarian ceramic pavement in the woods of Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, NYAnd this is where the palpable nature of the Celtic Trinity is evident and which our Scriptures today support. To live into the mystery of the Trinity, is to live into the love of the Trinity. And living into the love of the Trinity demands certain things. For example, in that very brief passage from the Second Letter to the Corinthians how does St. Paul advise the Christian community to live? Well, among other things: they are to “agree with one another”, in other words, find a way to “live in peace” with one another so that the “grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit will be with all of [them].”(2)
And what does Jesus tell the disciples, and by extension us, just before he ascends to Heaven? Well, we are to “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” And we are to “teach them to obey everything that [Jesus has] commanded.”(3)
To do this, to invite all of God’s people into life with the mysterious, is to offer God’s people the possibilities that can only come when we are willing to embrace that which is mysterious. To do this, is to say to a broken and often terrified world, that we stand on the firm ground of the mysterious. We love, despite everything in the world around us that pleads with us to hate. We forgive, despite everything in the world around us that pleads with us for vengeance. We dare to imagine a Triune God, despite everything in the world around us that encourages us to doubt. We revel in the mysterious for that enables us to love, to forgive, to imagine. We rejoice in the Trinity, precisely because it just doesn’t add up.
AMEN.
[1].Genesis 1:27, NRSV
[2] 2 Corinthians 13:13, NRSV
[3] Matthew 28: 18-20, NRSV
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