The First Sunday after Pentecost: Trinity Sunday, June 15, 2025

Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, NY

Br. Bernard Delcourt

The First Sunday after Pentecost/Trinity Sunday, June 15, 2025

• Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31
• Romans 5:1-5
• John 16:12-15

 Click here for an audio of the sermon

In the name of the Lover, the Beloved and the Love ever flowing.

The Trinity is the Christian doctrine concerning the nature of God, which defines one God existing in three, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit, three distinct persons sharing one essence/substance/nature. 

While the biblical text doesn’t name the Trinity per se, Jesus talked about his connection with the One he called Abba, and then he promised us the Holy Spirit, who would guide us into all truth. The Trinity is evoked in scripture.

So, now that we have the theological definition of Trinity and a scriptural basis for it, what does it mean for our life in God and our love of God?

Evagrius of Pontus, a Greek monk of the 4th century who came from what is now Turkey in Asia and later lived out his vocation in Egypt, said: "God cannot be grasped by the mind. If God could be grasped, God would not be God." So don’t expect to fully grasp the mystery of the Trinity after my sermon is over.

Our faith teaches that God is One God, in Trinity of Persons in Unity of Being: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It is not easy to grapple with the concept of the Trinity. God is full, rich, abundant, multiple, yet one. God is not alone. God is a collective; a community of three.

The Creator, the Redeemer and the Sanctifier pour themselves out in love. Each receives the love and the love overflows in all of Creation. And we are not so much called to struggle with the concept of the Trinity as we are to relate to the persons of the Trinity.

If you are like me, you can relate to only one person from the Trinity at a time. And depending on circumstances, I call upon one rather than the other. Sure, some of my prayers address the Trinity as the Sacred Three, the ever One, the Trinity. But most often I call on Jesus. Next in my popularity chart is God the Creator. And apologies to the Holy Spirit but she comes in third spot nowadays.

We’re tempted to analyze and explain the Trinity by our intellect, but mystery can only be encountered by the heart. Mystery is that which cannot be apprehended by reason, but once apprehended, is not contrary to reason.

The mystery of the Trinity is a paradigm of what it means to be human and to relate humanely to others. God is always relating, within God’s self, and beyond God’s self, a love and joy so unimaginable that it cannot be contained.

Henri Nouwen called the Trinity a “House of Love”. He wrote that in that household “there is no fear, no greed, no anger, no violence, no anxieties, no pain, even no words, only enduring love and deepening trust.”

Jesus’ teaching to “Love your neighbor as yourself” is an admonition to love the other as a continuation of our very own being. It’s seeing that your neighbor is you. There are not two individuals, one seeking to better oneself at the expense of the other, or to extend charity to the other. Each is equally precious and necessary.

That is the kind of Love that goes around among the Trinity. The triune God is showing us how to empty oneself in self-giving love and at the same time being constantly replenished by God’s love.

When we open ourselves up, we move away from any need to protect our own power, we mirror the Trinity where all power is shared, where there is no domination, threat, or coercion.

To say that God is Triune is to mean that God is social in nature. It is also to say that those made in God’s image are likewise intrinsically social. If we believe in a Trinitarian God, then we must hold fast to the truth that God is community—a completely loving, mutually self-giving, endlessly generative relationship between equal partners.

True union does not absorb distinctions but actually intensifies them. The more one gives one’s self in creative union with another, the more one becomes one’s self. This is reflected in the Trinity, perfect giving and perfect receiving.

We mirror the Trinity where all power is shared, where there is no domination, threat, or coercion.

Br Christian Swayne, OHC, of blessed memory once noted that he was not much of a theologian, so he didn’t claim to know much about the doctrine of the Trinity. He described his view as just a simple view of the Trinity.  

This is how he described that view: “I can love God, but I can't say I really understand God. God is simply too big and too vast. And I can say I love the Holy Spirit, but the Spirit is so mysterious that I can't say I even understand who or what the Spirit is – so I'm not really sure what I mean when I say I love the Spirit. But I can understand Jesus – Jesus the human being... I could stand next to Jesus, eat with Jesus, put my arms around Jesus, laugh and cry with Jesus. I can relate to Jesus.” 

But Br Christian didn’t stop there. He said that the things he could understand, think, feel, or attribute to Jesus, he should also be able to understand, think, feel, and attribute to God and the Holy Spirit. The qualities of Jesus are, after all, the qualities of the One God in three persons. 

And, more importantly, Br Christian noted, the things he could not think about Jesus, he supposed he should not think about God or the Holy Spirit either. 

So, here we are, spiritual beings relating with a Triune God and one another. Living as related beings means that we seek out the voices in our midst that are not heard. It means we work through all of the barriers that seem to divide us, dismantling power systems based on hatred and domination. It means we treat the Earth, not as a reservoir of food and fuel, but as a dynamic and living organism to treasure and nurture. It means we learn to love the complexity within ourselves, having patience with the parts of ourselves that still need conversion. It means we give thanks for having been created as a part of a web of life and love that pours out of God’s own inner web of connectivity and relatedness. That’s how we live out the mystery of the Trinity in our very being.

As Br. Scott Borden said, 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.

Or as Saint Paul put it, “… the foolishness of god is wiser than men.” Thanks be to God. 

Glory to the Creator, and to the Redeemer, and to the Sanctifier, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

The Third Sunday in Lent C, March 23, 2025

Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, NY

Br. Bernard Delcourt

The Third Sunday in Lent, March 23, 2025

• Exodus 3:1-15
• 1 Corinthians 10:1-13
• Luke 13:1-9

 Click here for an audio of the sermon

If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

It was not unusual in Jesus’ time for people to think that ordeals happened to people for a reason. Either they, or their progenitors had sinned and the accident or illness that happened to them was a punishment from God.

Even in our own days, we still hear of people who proclaim that an epidemic is hitting a particular group because of their alleged sins. 

In my youth, religious leaders of various convictions proclaimed that AIDS was an expression of God’s wrath on the gay community. 

In the early eighties, in Belgium, I was what was then called and AIDS buddy. I accompanied dying AIDS patients who had been abandoned by so-called friends and relatives. The idea was that they had had it come to them and were not worthy of compassion.

Nowadays, there are still people who accuse rape victims of having provoked the violence that happened to them. Can we keep ourselves from assigning blame to victims? 

Does anyone ever deserve illness or trauma? Jesus’ response to that is a radical “No.” Jesus does not deny that victims of accidents, illnesses and disasters are also sinners. But they are not worse sinners than those who have escaped such evils. We are all sinners, you and I.

Instead of dwelling on assigning blame or guilt, Jesus is quick to turn to those who might do just that.

“No, I tell you, unless you repent, you will all perish as they did.”

Unless we repent, we will suffer ruin or destruction.

So, whether we suffer catastrophe or not, we are all subject to God’s judgment. No matter how blessed we are (or not) in our life circumstances, we are all subject to God’s weighing how well we are abiding by God’s commandments of Love.

None of us are dispensed from repentance. We all need to change our minds and hearts and turn again towards God. And not only in Lent.

The Greek word translated as repentance in our text is “metanoia.” Its literal meanings are “repentance, a change of mind, a change in the inner self.” The Hebrew equivalent often associated with "metanoia" is “shub.” It means "to turn back" or "to return," indicating a return to God and God’s ways.

In Lent particularly, the church encourages us to return to God’s ways. That requires a good bit of introspection to assess where we have strayed. Have we failed to love God or neighbor by our actions, thoughts or omissions? Have we been complicit of evil done in our name or thanks to our lack of opposition to it?

There are sins that are personal and there are sins that are systemic. We are often quick to identify our personal sins. I lied to a family member. I took was not mine to take. But it is trickier to identify how our actions contribute to oppressive systems.

For instance, how does my lifestyle contribute to greenhouse gas emissions? How does my abstaining from calling out sexist or racist comments contribute to those systems continuing to have strength in our society? 

So it takes thinking time to identify how I am enmeshed in sinful systems. But identifying how we are involved helps to figure out ways to reduce or eliminate harm-giving in our life.

And prayer is required to ask how we can return to God who says “I am the way the truth and the life” (John 14:6). You can ask God’s help in figuring out how sin is active in your life.

Then, we can decide to turn back to God’s ways rather than our self-centered ways.

But fear not. God’s judgment won’t result in retaliation on either side of death. God’s judgment will result in deeper self-knowledge and God-knowledge on our behalf. We will see how immense God’s Love is. And we will see more clearly how we had fallen short from embodying and enacting that Love in our lives.

Now, should we wait until the final judgment to find out how we are doing? Can we undertake to gain some of that clarity in self-knowledge and God-knowledge this side of death? That is an enterprise fit for Lent and beyond. You know that procrastination is not our friend.

Our gospel passage today ends with a parable about repentance and how God holds back from final judgement and helps in our returning to God’s ways.

In our parable, the fig tree is not yet bearing fruit after three annual visits from the owner of the garden. I see God represented in both the owner and the gardener in this story. I see the owner as God the creator, the judge of all. And I see the gardener as God the advocate, the redeemer of all.

The owner of the garden is keenly aware of the fig tree’s failings to date. The gardener is aware that with help, the fig tree has potential. The owner lets himself be convinced to show leniency and holds back from sentencing the fig tree to harsher treatment. But we are left with a cliffhanger. Will the tree, with the loving care of the gardener, rise to the challenge of being fruitful in a year? No time for procrastination here either.

With this parable, Jesus leaves us warned of the urgency of repentance. The place and time for repentance is our life, here and now. There is no time to waste in returning to God and God’s ways.

Today, we need to humbly, honestly and realistically look at our own ways such as they are. We need to ask in prayer for God’s insight on how our ways differ from God’s ways. And we need to ask in prayer how we can reform our ways to concur with God’s ways. Ask God for fortitude and perseverance in that endeavor. God will come forth and help you.

And remember God’s nature is to pour grace upon grace on God’s creatures. God’s judgment cuts like a two-edged sword but God is helpful, and God is forgiving. God’s nature is love and mercy, which makes God’s judgment all the stronger. God knows that following God’s ways is often hard. But God is rooting for us.

As Isaiah wrote (Is 55:7b), 

let them return to the Lord, that he may have mercy on them,

 and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

And I leave you with a pro tip on following God’s ways. As Jesus says in the gospel according to Matthew: … if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. (Matthew 6:14).

Give us loving hearts, o God, and help us to keep returning to your ways.

Amen.

The Seventh Sunday after the Epiphany C, February 23, 2025

Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, NY

Br. Bernard Delcourt

The Seventh Sunday after the Epiphany, February 23, 2025

• Genesis 45:3-11, 15
• 1 Corinthians 15:35-38,42-50
• Luke 6:27-38

 Click here for an audio of the sermon

In the name of the Lover, the Beloved and Love ever flowing. Amen.

Love your enemy. Is today’s gospel good news? Let’s explore.

 

Last week and this week, we are hearing the two parts of the short but powerful “Sermon on the plain” in the gospel according to Luke. Jesus is teaching a multitude of his disciples. Last week, we heard Luke’s version of the Beatitudes: 4 blessings and 4 woes.

 

The fourth blessing might have talked about some of our enemies. It goes like this:

“Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets."

 

This blessing seems to say that having enemies is par for the course in the Kingdom of God.

 

But enemies might do worse than revile us. Are there people who harm you, hurt you or make your life painful and difficult? Today, Jesus is asking us to have mercy even on malevolent and on violent people. “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” (Luke 6:36) Show compassion even on those who have none for you.

 

Jesus is asking us to go beyond what comes easily in human relations. We often resort to reciprocity in our relationships. We are used to the ways of the world. We usually reciprocate love to those who love us. That comes easily to us.

 

And we usually wish to reciprocate harm to those who harm us. With any luck, most of the time, we refrain from acting on our wish for revenge.

 

But isn’t revenge condoned in the Bible? Ater all, it’s in the book of Leviticus, right? We find there the saying “fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth.” (Leviticus 24:20) At the time, that it was written, it was considered progressive. It was known throughout the Near East as the law of retaliation.

 

Often in the time of Leviticus, retribution was greater than the initial offense. For example, a killing to avenge an injury. The law of retaliation emphasized justice and fairness (as understood at the time). It ensured that the punishment matched the crime instead of escalating the violence one or more levels up.

 

Jesus is turning this form of reciprocity upside down. He is rejecting the law of retaliation. Not only are you not to avenge yourself on your enemies, but you are to do good to them, to not judge them, to pray for them and to forgive them.

 

Think of Jesus on the cross saying ‘Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.’

 

By the way, our criminal justice system still focuses on the law of retaliation. Think of our use of capital punishment. Jesus’ teaching points to the need for his followers to support restorative justice instead.

 

In his teaching, Jesus goes one step further; you are to offer no resistance to the evildoer. You are even to meekly endure more of the evildoer’s violence. This is the hardest statement for me.

 

“If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt.” (Luke 6:29)

 

I believe this statement is Jesus’ hyperbole to insist that we stick to non-violence and find it in our heart to forgive and to love. A violent response to violence justifies the offender in their own violence and sets the stage for an escalation of violence. We are to refrain from participating in the spiraling of mutual violence.

 

I don’t read that verse as encouraging victims to contribute to their own oppression. We are not called to facilitate our oppressor’s violence. But Jesus uses hyperbole to insist on our sticking to utter non-violence.

 

I believe the love of our enemies does not preclude non-violent resistance.

 

So, if you can walk away from violence, do so. If you need to resort to self-defense, that is your last resort.

 

If those who have dominion over you are abusive or violent, choose non-violence resistance.

 

And in all cases, remember that Jesus wants you to love your opponent and pray for them. This is challenging good news. But breaking the escalating spiral of self-righteous violence is good news indeed.

 

But before we get to love for our enemies, isn’t there an intermediary step? What about forgiveness? Or should we bypass forgiveness and go to love regardless?

 

True forgiveness (rather than the performative kind) and reconciliation are slow and lengthy processes. Jesus wants us to be non-violent and loving even before we have had a chance to digest the violence and the emotional response it elicits in us. This is tough.

 

But isn’t this the kind of Love that God offers; immediate, relentless, unconditional, all-encompassing Love. We are called to love as God loves. We are called to “be merciful just as your Father is merciful.” (Luke 6:36)

 

Rain and sunshine fall on the wicked as well as the holy. We are called to put no one beyond the boundaries of our love, not even those who harm or wish to harm us. Our love is to be boundless just as God’s love is.

 

This is relatively easy as long as we are among our well-meaning peers. But what about those who differ from us? Is there a level of alterity, of difference, beyond which we feel entitled to withhold love, to not love, to be indifferent or spiteful?

 

In order to follow Jesus, we do well to question where that boundary of otherness sits for ourselves. We are called to find that boundary, to broach that boundary and to meet and truly know those who live there.

 

With God’s help, we will find our common humanity and with God’s grace, we will learn to extend our love to all those whom God calls her children. In God, there are no alien, no “other.”

 

The golden rule sets an immeasurably high standard. “Do to others as you would have them do to you.” (Luke 6:31). Stop the tooth for a tooth, an eye for an eye reciprocation. Seek to enable others to have the same rights and privileges that you claim your own.

 

May it be that our country, and we ourselves, remember the golden rule when we deal with those whom we deem other and whom we are quick to judge.

 

May we pray for a decrease of our judgmentalism and an increase of our compassion even for those we deem our enemies.  

Amen.

The Third Sunday of Advent C - December 15, 2024

Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, NY

Br. Bernard Delcourt

The Third Sunday of Advent, December 15, 2024

• Zephaniah 3:14-20
• Philippians 4:4-7
• Luke 3:7-18

 Click here for an audio of the sermon

In the name of the Lover, the Beloved and Love ever flowing. Amen.

John the Baptist is proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. He has three messages for the crowds. First, the final judgement is at hand and sanctions will be meted out. Second, you need to turn to God by leading ethical lives. And third, one who is more powerful than I is coming.

John the Baptist was a powerful preacher. He attracted crowds even amid the wilderness. Those crowds were varied. He attracted peasants and merchants, as well as religious elites. 

Incredibly, even Roman soldiers came to hear what this wild preacher had to say. His reputation moved crowds to him even though his message could fall harshly on unprepared ears.

In today’s gospel, John emphatically urges the crowd to repent. His exhortation is to turn away from evil ways and turn to God while there is still time. Exhortation is rarely a subtle rhetorical style. And John also isn’t shy to use hyperbole and irony. 

For instance, he calls his audience a “brood of vipers.” This amounts to shaming both his listeners and their forebears. He destabilizes their honor status. He even denies them the status they would accrue from being descendants of Abraham. He says God is able to raise up children to Abraham from the surrounding wilderness stones.

No one should feel immune to the need for repentance, no matter their status. It’s as if we would retort: “we are good church-going Episcopalians, what is this talk about repentance?” 

To insist on repentance, John makes statements both about the ultimate things and about how to live in the meantime. This dynamic between eschatology and ethics keeps his listeners on their toes. The status quo is threatened by John’s preaching. The judgement is at hand he says and you folks better shape up.

The Baptist uses vivid images to summon the coming judgement. The axe is lying at the bottom of the tree. Will the tree bear the good fruit of repentance or manifest the sterility of corrupt ways?

Failure to repent will lead to being reduced to ashes in the fire.

John knows fear is a powerful motivator. The fear of punishment for not repenting is making the crowds ask what they should do. And here, rather than focusing on religious practices or beliefs, John turns the crowds to the very stuff of their daily life. This must have seemed odd, if not scandalous to those Pharisees who came to listen to him. The Pharisees insisted on specious adherence to the precepts of the law and religious practice.

John tells us that we should use whatever wealth, privilege or power we have not to our sole benefit but also to the benefit of others. 

He tells those who are rich to dispose of their superfluous wealth to the benefit of the poor. He tells professionals not to exploit their position to extort what is not theirs to have. He tells those with a political position not to abuse those whose interests you are supposed to protect.

The crowd is mesmerized by John’s preaching and many come forward for a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of their sins. In the spirit of the Jewish people’s messianic hopes, the people ask John if he might be the Messiah they are expecting.

And John prophetically evokes the coming of Jesus. "I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire."

In all humility, John knows he is only preparing the way for the anointed One. Does he even know at that moment exactly who that is? Or is it only revealed to him at Jesus’ baptism? John’s vision of the Messiah contains elements of judgement. The chaff will be burned in an unquenchable fire. More fear is sowed into the crowd.

But it is worthwhile to remember that the post-resurrection Jesus, the Christ will assuage that fear. Most of his post Easter encounters start with him saying “Do not be afraid.” The baptism of fire and the Holy Spirit is fiery indeed, but it is a fire of cleansing and purification not of punishment.

Of course, Jesus in his ministry also made predictions of the judgement to come. But is this judgement really between the good guys and the bad guys? 

Or is it rather a deep discernment aided by God in what is good and what is short of good, or even evil in our life? Is it a look back on all our life and a scalpel-sharp distinction of what was good and what was not? And is it not our not-so-good parts that will be thrown in the unquenchable fire? 

Will the good parts of us be redeemed from the judgement and enjoy the limitless mercifulness of a loving God?

Psalm 136 begins with word on God’s unrelenting mercy:

O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,

   for his steadfast love endures for ever.

Maybe it was early days for John the Baptist to divine in the coming Messiah an unrelenting love and mercy. That’s what he was preparing the way for without knowing exactly where it led.

But let’s not forget the ethical lesson of the Baptist.

We are like rich people - who never have enough for ourselves and ours. We are as the tax collectors – dependent upon unjust structures for our livelihood. We are as the occupying army – caught in a culture of exploitation and violence.

“What should we do?”

Share, keep no more than you need.

Be fair, treat others with care, and be honest. 

Bear fruit. 

Make unselfish choices. 

Live within your means. 

Do what is just. 

Turn around and return to God. 

Bear the fruit worthy of repentance.

Make is so that anyone observing our lives, can discern that we bear the mark of Christ and are living as his faithful disciples.

Come, Lord Jesus and be our Advocate in the judgement to come.

Amen.

The Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost B - October 20, 2024

Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, NY

Br. Bernard Delcourt

The Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost, October 20, 2024

Job 38:1-7, (34-41)

• Hebrews 5:1-10
• 
  
• Mark 10:35-45

 Click here for an audio of the sermon

In the name of God, the Creator, the Liberator and the Comforter.

In the gospel according to Mark, we find a three-part cycle repeated three times. 

Three times, Jesus predicts his rejection and his resurrection (8:31; 9:31; 10:33-34). The third time is in the two verses just before today’s gospel passage.

Three times, the Twelve promptly misunderstand or reject Jesus’ self-understanding (8:32-33; 9:32-34; 10:41). In today’s passage, James and John, the sons of Zebedee whom Jesus affectionately nicknamed Boanerges, the sons of thunder, ignore Jesus’ prophecy and proceed to try to get a heavenly kingdom promotion. Talk about narcissism and insensitivity! And that comes from two of Jesus’ closest friends.

Three times, Jesus immediately corrects these mistakes with teaching about genuine discipleship (8:34-9:1; 9:35-40; 10:42-45). In today’s gospel, Jesus insists on the vocation of servant leadership amongst his followers.

The cycle of prophecy, misunderstanding and teaching is repeated three times through the gospel. Mark wants us to know what kind of Messiah Jesus is and to know what following Jesus requires. Humility and serving our neighbors are a good start.

James and John, together with Peter, were Jesus’ closest disciples. Lots of gospel scenes are between the four of them. Did James and John think it earned them special status in the kingdom of heaven?

The Boanerges are falling prey to very human biases here. 

James and John have compared themselves to their fellow disciples and decided that they are above them. They want rank and honor when Jesus will come into his glory. Their focus on self-promotion enables them to conveniently bypass and deny Jesus’ prediction of his passion.

And Jesus alludes to the disciples future suffering by referring to their drinking his cup and undergoing his baptism. He is not directly referring to the future sacraments of the Christian church here. But still that resonance works on us too. He is referring to withstanding resistance, confrontation and aggression unto death from their current domination systems: the Roman empire and the Temple religion.

As a matter of fact, the other disciples instead of reacting to Jesus’ prediction of his suffering and resurrection, react forcefully to James and John’s upmanship. They too, want privilege, or at least to rank ahead of someone else.

Now, do we sometimes compare ourselves with others and decide that we are ahead of them in whatever ranking matters to us? Am I more beautiful, rich, intelligent, able or spiritually developed than those ones over there? Am I not more worthy than those I have made “other” so I may ignore or offend them?

It might be subtle and implicit in our words and actions, but it happens to most of us.

Come to think of it, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, not to mention Moses, might have a claim to sitting on both sides of Jesus in his glory.

As it is, the gospel of Mark will mirror the Boanerges’ request in the account of the crucifixion. Verse 27 of the penultimate chapter of the gospel reads:

“And with him they crucified two bandits, one on his right and one on his left.”

I have a suspicion that no one has precedence over anyone else in the Kingdom of heaven. And that comes to light in Jesus’ patient teaching to the disciples today.

He teaches them for the third time about the importance of humility and service in the life of his followers. He teaches them about servant leadership. And to do that, he contrasts who they need to be to who the Roman overlords are in their domination system.

He is basically disavowing any domination system. He never exercises power over anyone, and he urges the disciples to do as he does. If you must use power, make it power with others, not over others.

Even today, it is important for Christians to identify current domination systems. And once we know the power system we are dealing with, we are to be wary of aspiring to a prominent or convenient place in it. 

How do we serve our brothers and sisters rather than participate in their oppression? Is there anything I want to withhold from others that I do not want withheld from me? Who do I consider OK to dominate and in what way?

Jesus wants us to be slave to all. We are not to be enslaved to any single master, whether it be money, fame or power. We are to seek for all others to rise to the glory of the kingdom of God together with us; no one ahead of the other. And we do it best by lovingly serving them.

Jesus knows this is not always easy and that it is sometimes painful but that need not stop us from perseveringly attempting it. But he nonetheless wants us to offer “agape,” the highest form of love, of charity. He wants us to embody sacrificial love that is unconditional, selfless and persists regardless of circumstances. Whether it be convenient or not.

We may close today’s eucharist with the following dismissal: “Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.” The Lord is present to you in every other being on your way. No one is to be beyond the reach of your love. The journey to loving as Christ is loving is ahead of us.

“Buen camino,” as they say on the way to St James’ shrine in Compostela.

Amen.

The Ninth Sunday after Pentecost B - July 21, 2024

 Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, NY

Br. Bernard Delcourt

The Ninth Sunday after Pentecost, July 21, 2024

• Jeremiah 23:1-6
• Ephesians 2:11-22
• Mark 6:30-34, 53-56

 Click here for an audio of the sermon

In the name of God, the Creator, the Liberator and the Comforter.

Today’s gospel lection brings together two segments of Mark chapter 6 that frame more prominent episodes of Jesus’ ministry: the feeding of the 5,000 and the walking on water and calming of the storm. So, you’re missing the exciting bits today.

Today’s segments illustrate Jesus’ relationship to crowds. In the first instance, in the wilderness, he teaches them. In the second instance, back in Gennesaret, he heals their sick.

But before we go there, let me get something out of the way. All of my life, I have felt like I was missing a lot of points whenever the image of sheep and/or shepherds were used. Jesus’ audiences were way more familiar to sheep herding than we are. Pastoralists were everywhere to be seen with their flocks sometimes near and often in-between towns.

So, humor me. Here is “sheep and shepherds 101.”

Sheep or shepherds are mentioned over 1200 times throughout the bible. Obviously, this was a meaningful teaching image to the Israelites of Jesus’ time and centuries before that.

Sheep have been domesticated for over 10,000 years. Their domestication started in the Middle East which is the bible’s geographical context.

Over the time of their domestication, sheep lost the ability to self-regulate their flocking behavior. Small herds of wild sheep still can move about large landscapes in search of fresh grazing on their own. And they shed their coats naturally.

But domesticated sheep do not have natural leaders. They rely on the shepherd for leadership. Sheep recognize face, voice and smell of other sheep and of humans. So it is that a shepherd and his flock develop a symbiotic relationship. The shepherd keeps moving his flock, so it does not over-graze any one area of pasture. The shepherd develops calls that the sheep can interpret. Another human voice does not register in the same way.

Not only will sheep, left to their own device, over-graze an area; but individual sheep will wander away towards danger, possibly gathering a following. The shepherd keeps the flock together. When a sheep wanders regardless, the shepherd can go find it and bring it back.

Sheep can lie down and get stuck in hollows in the terrain with their legs sticking up, unable to reestablish a standing position. Shepherds can give stuck sheep a leg up.

Domesticated sheep do not shed their wool and need to be regularly shorn. 

As you can see, for their own safety and wellness, domesticated sheep can no longer be left to their own devices.

There, now you can go seek employment as shepherdesses and shepherds now.

The first part of today’s gospel lection talks about Jesus’ plan for him and the disciples after they come back from having gone on mission in pairs. They have worked hard and done wonders by the grace of Jesus while they were away. They are tired and would like to get quality time with Jesus to tell each other more about their mission trip.

Jesus, who understands the necessity for time away from the press of ministry to recharge in rest and prayer, makes a great suggestion. Let’s cross the lake and land in a wilderness where we can be on our own and renew our strength.

But by then, the crowds have become like the Swifties who track singer Taylor Swift’s jets online to know where she will be when. The crowds are hungry for Jesus’ teaching and healing. Some keen observers spot Jesus and his disciples getting in a boat and figure out where it is headed. The rumor spreads and enterprising fans of Jesus head that way by land, apparently making faster progress than Jesus’ boat.

“As Jesus went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.”

And there flounders the apostles’ hope for rest and recreation. Another sermon on this lection will need to focus on healthy boundaries in ministry to ensure resilience and durability. But we won’t go there today.

The operative phrase here is “he had compassion for them.” This is the essence of Jesus’ divinity. He sees the human condition. And as the dictionary defines compassion, He has sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings and misfortunes of others.

Jesus will consistently show that compassion throughout his ministry and up to his crucifixion.

The other salient phrase in this first part of our lection is:

“… because they were like sheep without a shepherd …”

Now you know in what jeopardy is a flock of sheep without a shepherd. Jesus sees the crowds and understands he can’t shirk his vocation to lead them by teaching them.

We are not all called to be teachers, but we can be witnesses to gospel values in how we live our lives amidst the other members of the flock. The way we behave in the world speaks volumes about our values. 

Jesus puts compassion before his immediate self-interest (a well-deserved rest with his best friends). How compassionate are we in our everyday lives?

The second part of today’s lection tells the story of Jesus and his disciples returning to an urban spot of the sea of Galilee; the town of Gennesaret and its surroundings.

They are back on the mission trail. There is no avoiding the crowds this time. Even going to a wilderness failed to achieve that.

Here again, people recognize Jesus as soon as they moor the boat. Word of mouth travels like dandelion seeds in the wind. And people rushed about the whole region to bring Him their lame and sick. Jesus does not subtract himself to the pressure of his ministry. Many manage to touch him and that is sufficient for them to be healed.

Jesus’ compassion led him time and again to meet the needs of his flock whether that be teaching or healing.

We may not be miracle-workers, but we can all have a healing effect on those around us.

Has a sympathetic hand on your shoulder or your forearm ever lightened your concern or pain? Has a loving hug from a friend or a relative ever soothed you? Has a kind smile ever lifted your spirits?

We can all do that, and more, given the right circumstances. Look out for opportunities to be a healer among those you live with and encounter.

We may not all be shepherds, but we can find ways to exercise our compassion for fellow sheep. And whenever we need leadership, look up to the Good Shepherd for guidance. May he lead you to green pastures.

Amen.

Ascension Day - May 9, 2024

 Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, NY

Br. Bernard Delcourt

Ascension Day, May 9, 2024

• Acts 1:1-11
• Ephesians 1:15-23
• Luke 24:44-53

 Click here for an audio of the sermon

In the name of God, the Lover, the Beloved and the Love ever flowing.

The Ascension marks a new era in the history of salvation. Jesus’ ascension into heaven takes the enfleshed, embodied reality of the human experience within the Trinity, within the godhead. 
The Ascension also marks the advent of the universal Christ. The Christ who is present to all times and all place. The Christ who is no longer constrained to the unicity of time and place of an earthbound, human body. 
One can see that advent of the universal Christ as represented by the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles at Pentecost. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
With the Ascension, God now has within godself a lived experience of what it is to be a human creature. And a very complete experience it is, including, but not reduced to, deep suffering.
We, the creatures, have a knowledgeable, empathetic advocate in the person of Jesus who combines his human and his divine natures. Our human experience is intimately understood by the divine.
The empathy that is so central to Christian living – “love your neighbor as yourself” – is now more deeply ingrained in what God is. In God’s empathy, God goes: “yes, I know how that feels.”
That is an amazing God indeed. “What a wonderful God we have,” as a Holy Cross brother of times past used to say.

The ascension of Jesus into heaven is yet another place of intersection between the human and the divine. The incarnation was another one.
It is a place where the horizontality of human experience, its immanence, meets with the transcendence, the verticality of divinity. 
And with the ever-present Holy Spirit (coming up, or is it down, to a church near you in ten days), that intersection expands everywhere, all the time. There is no atom, no quark that is not imbued with the Presence of God.

But back to the singularity of the ascension. In that moment, the apostles realize that the body and soul of Jesus need not be next to them for the Son of God to be very present to them. The text says: “And they worshipped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy.” (Luke 24:52)
However, it takes two angels to bring them back to the now God-infused horizontality of their human experience: “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up toward heaven?” (Acts 1:11)
It can be tempting to be a spectator of God’s transcendence. We are transfixed by God’s awesomeness. We can be awed to the point of forgetting to be a witness to God’s immanence. We can forget to turn to fellow creatures and care for them, care for God in them.
We can and should contemplate God’s awesomeness. But we should be able to get up from our contemplation to “chop wood and carry water” for ourselves and for those in need.

A prayer commonly attribute to Teresa of Avila (1515-1582) points us in the direction of witnessing to God here and now:
God of love, help us to remember
that Christ has no body now on earth but ours,
no hands but ours, no feet but ours.
Ours are the eyes to see the needs of the world.
Ours are the hands with which to bless everyone now.
Ours are the feet with which he is to go about doing good.
And I add, ours are the flesh destined to embody God’s love in the world today and every day.

We are to marvel at our amazing God, in heaven as on earth. And we are to turn to our fellow creatures and attempt to be a blessing of love to God’s creation, in emulation of Jesus, no less.
And we are not meant to fixate on the time and place of the Redeemer’s return. Doing that can end up being an escape from our clear and present responsibility to God’s body as revealed in all creation (human, animal, vegetal, mineral, terrestrial and sidereal).
“This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” (Acts 1:11b) i.e. it’s all a mystery, don’t try to determine what is beyond your ability to figure out.

In the climate-changed, decreasingly bio-diverse, war-torn world of today, I may eagerly want God to provide us all with an immediate escape strategy. Come, Lord Jesus! 
But no matter how much I may desire that; I am still to be God’s hands and feet here in the in-between times.

May the blessings of Jesus’ incarnation, life, passion, resurrection, and ascension strengthen us to be active witnesses to his love here and now.
Amen.

The Feast of Saint Joseph - March 19, 2024

Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, NY

Br. Bernard Delcourt

The Feast of Saint Joseph, March 19, 2024

• 2 Samuel 7:4,8-16
• Romans 4:13-18
• Luke 2:41-52

 Click here for an audio of the sermon

Hail, Joseph, full of grace, the Lord is with you. Blessed
are you among men. Pray for us sinners, now and at the
hour of our death. Amen.
 

I would be remiss if I didn’t wish a blessed name day and
a happy birthday to our Brother Josép, named after
today’s celebrated Saint!

I too have an old fondness for Saint Joseph. His name was that of my maternal grandfather. Grandad Joseph died two days after my birth. I only came to know him through my family’s stories about him. In my childhood, he was a quasi-mythical figure in my conscience. He was deeply beloved by my elders. I had dreams about him.
And Saint Joseph is the patron saint of my native Belgium. Because of these connections, his name always
carried the notion of loving, provident responsibility for
me.

In my imagination, Joseph of Nazareth is a young, warm, caring, and cheerful man with a make do attitude. He is not the stern and ancient man so often portrayed. He is a man with full agency who listens to God in his life. He is a man who diligently complies with God’s wishes. And he wonderfully brings that to fruition in raising God’s Son as his own. We have a lot to be grateful to St Joseph for. Joseph of Nazareth is not unlike his namesake in the Hebrew bible, Joseph, son of Jacob. The Joseph of the
Hebrew scriptures was also a dreamer and a discerner of God’s will. And he too, was an instrument of salvation for God’s people. Joseph of Nazareth listens to God’s will in no less than four dreams. And each time, he doesn’t dawdle wondering about the validity or the meaning of the message. He promptly puts God’s stated will into action. Joseph is obedient to God. He is a good model for us monks, who vow to put
obedience in practice in our lives.

I also love the idea that, as a foster father, Joseph did not need to genetically resemble Jesus and Mary. They could be very different and yet be a family bonded to God and to one another. In the TV series “The Chosen,” Joseph is portrayed as an Eastern African black man who is devoted to Mary and to their son-to-be. He acts as a midwife to Mary and helps her to bring Jesus into the world. I imagine Joseph and Mary as nurturing the intimacy of fellow accomplices in God’s grand design of Incarnation. They have risked so much together. They are witnessing such awesome signs and mysteries together. They probably pondered the many wonders of their son, of God’s Son, with one another. They must have been puzzled more than once. But they raised Jesus as best they could. How much of Jesus’ wisdom, caring and wit was transmitted to Him by his earthly parents? Not a little, is my guess.

Without Joseph’s humility and devotion to his family, how would have God’s desire for his Son unfolded? We need to emulate this great saint in dedicating ourselves entirely to the love and service of God. And just like Joseph, this may come to the price of self- effacement and near-cancellation in the eyes of those who choose to assess our worth. In this too, Saint Joseph is a good model for monks. He is a model of faithful humility. In all of Joseph and Mary’s story, God is present all along. God has been there, from generation to generation. And God is now revealing Godself through the dedication of Joseph and Mary to their growing boy. Mary was given a choice by an angel and said: “be it to me according to your word.”
Joseph was given a choice by an angel in a dream. He woke up and went to work to make it as the angel had instructed; without a question or objection. Joseph was true and just before the Lord. He too was
chosen for an immense duty, and he fulfilled it beautifully. He protected his family and ensured that the
Savior of the world would grow and become who he was destined to be. So, we can be sure that Joseph taught Jesus more than how to smooth a plank with a plane. There was more to his foster parenthood than carpentry, no matter what idyllic images it conjures up.

Saint Joseph, pray for us, that we may love your foster son Yeshua with dedication and humility. Keep us attentive to how God wants us too to be instruments of His Love.

Amen.

Epiphany 3 B - January 21, 2024

Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, NY

Br. Bernard Delcourt

The Third Sunday after the Epiphany, January 21, 2024

• Jonah 3:1-5, 10
• 1 Corinthians 7:29-31
• Mark 1:14-20

 

Click here for an audio of the sermon

 

In the name of God, the Lover, the Beloved and the Love
overflowing.

*****

Today, I will focus on verse 15 of this gospel passage:

and [Jesus says], ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.’

*****

Before we get to this first reported statement of Jesus in
the gospel according to Mark, a few things have recently
happened.

Before today’s passage, Jesus had been baptized by John.

Jesus had gone into the wilderness for forty days. In telegraphic style Mark lets us know it was, at times, a
rocky retreat.

Then John was arrested. It was best for preachers in the John the Baptist movement to leave Judea for a while. Jesus decides to strike out on his own and returns to his native Galilee to proclaim the good news, the gospel, of God.

*****

In the five verses following verse 15, Jesus will call two pairs of brothers as his first disciples. This shows the Jesus movement cannot rely on Jesus alone. Jesus knows he will need helping friends to pursue his ministry. Maybe he even already knows he’ll need these disciples to continue his reform movement after he is no longer there in person to lead it.

Christianity is a team sport. You need to practice together; practice, practice, practice. And it’s no use playing it solo. Jesus himself makes that immediately clear. He assembles followers and starts teaching them. To this day, He and his disciples are still teaching the good news.

*****

Now back to verse 15.
‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.’

The Greek text of verse 15 uses the word Kairos for “time.” The Greek language had two words for time:
“chronos” and “kairos.”

Chronos is more like what we think of time nowadays. It is a chronological sequential time; a quantitative thing we can scientifically measure.

Kairos, on the other hand, is a good and proper time for action. It is a perfect, delicate, crucial moment (or is it an era). It is a time when conditions are right for the accomplishment of a crucial action or decision. It is a qualitative thing we can perceive but not measure.

Some like to call Kairos “God’s time.” It is the right time for the accomplishment of the kingdom of God. As such, it is a time that marries the present instant and the full sweep of eternity; the already and the not yet. God is always present to all of it; the present moment and all of eternity, and beyond.

“Kairos is fulfilled” says Jesus. God’s time is now; in this instant that your heart is beating and your breath sustains you. And God’s time is forever; and you are part of that forever.

*****

The other term I’d like to look at is “the kingdom of God.” I am told that metaphor occurs 66 times in the New Testament; 98 times if you include the Matthean equivalent “the kingdom of heaven.” The expression “the kingdom of Yawheh” only occurs twice in the Hebrew Scriptures.

It clearly was a powerful new metaphor for the early Jesus movement. In the times of Jesus’ it would have contrasted with the Herodian dynasty. They were Roman puppet kings who tried to please both their Roman overlords and the Jewish populace at the same time.

Jesus’ Kingdom of God does not rely on monumental displays of wealth and power like the Herodians and the Romans did. It relies on the beloved community of the people of God turning to God and trusting in God’s ultimate redemption of creation. “Repent, and believe in the good news.” says Jesus.

*****

So the fulfillment of God’s desire for creation is now. God is with us (Emmanuel) here and now. God is calling forth our engagement into the present and eternal breaking in of God’s kingdom. But the moment we can seize to take action is the present moment. Don’t tarry. Don’t delay. We mortals don’t have eternity on this side of death.

We can’t sit back and be spectators. We are part of the team, remember? Practice, practice, practice. And you can’t play it solo. And God is with you every step of the way.

This playing along with God requires that we turn our hearts and minds towards God and that we believe in God’s magnanimous, benevolent and transforming love for all of creation.

Jesus is not calling us to new tasks (although there will be those too), but Jesus is calling us to a new identity. And it is a costly identity. We are to be followers of Jesus. We are to be disciples. As you know, this is not always easy. Suffering will be part of the journey and that does not exclude ineffable joy.

This identity of disciple requires a dogged loyalty. If you falter, you can repent, you can turn back to it. This disciple identity demands a trust that, what will be broken in acquiring it, was not worth keeping whole. Discipleship doesn’t come cheap. But rejecting our true identity as a follower of Jesus is the costliest loss of all.

Pray that you will not mistake the sirens’ song for the voice of your destiny. Listen for God. Feel your yearning for participating in God’s kingdom. And, when he calls you, hear yourself saying like Samuel: “Speak, for your servant is listening.” (1 Samuel 3:10)

May you lean into the embrace of the living, loving God. ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.’

Amen.

Proper 27 A - November 12, 2023

Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, NY

Br. Bernard Delcourt OHC

The Twenty-fourth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 27 A, November 12, 2023

 

Joshua 24:1-3a, 14-25
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
Matthew 25:1-13

 

Click here for an audio of the sermon

 

Today’s parable can be read as a metaphor for the end times. The message to God’s people seems to be: “Be prepared to wait. Don’t assume you have enough oil in your lamps. Take some rest if you must. Be prepared, be provident.”

In some religious traditions, Advent still begins on the sixth Sunday before Christmas, the Sunday after St. Martin's Day (November 11, yesterday). Advent was that long between the fifth and eighth centuries. You can still find traces of that in the readings of the few Sundays before our current four-week Advent.

The season of Advent in the Christian calendar anticipates the "coming of Christ" from three different perspectives: the physical nativity in Bethlehem, the reception of Christ in the heart of the believer, and the eschatological Second Coming.

Our parable today focuses on the third perspective, on the coming of Christ; His coming in glory at the end of times. The world today makes you hanker for the Second Coming, doesn’t it? Reading, listening and watching (as little as possible) about the world today, can indeed be more anxiety-producing than the end of time. Can all this be over yet, Jesus? But more on that later.

This parable stresses the importance of constant personal spiritual preparedness. Are we always willing to say yes to God’s grace and face the consequences? If you are like me, there are days that your preparedness is wavering.

But in my understanding of God as manifested to us in Jesus, God’s grace is like the sun and the rain. They fall on everyone, the good and the challenging, regardless of merit.

The evangelist Matthew was very concerned with encouraging his community of believers to endure and persevere in the faith.

Matthew is clearly writing for a Jewish Christian audience living within the immediate proximity of the homeland itself. Matthew's is the most Jewish of all the gospels.

At the time of Matthew’s writing, this community was going through incredibly challenging times for their faith. The temple at Jerusalem had been destroyed by the Romans and the population of Jerusalem scattered to the winds.

Many were hoping for Jesus to return very soon and get everyone home safe and sound in the Kingdom of God.

With the parable of the ten virgins, Matthew is saying “not so fast, folks!” And we still need to hear that message today when it would be so nice to have the Second Coming of Christ take us out of wars and climate change disruptions right about now.

Matthew is suggesting that we will need to wait and that we will have to be prepared for a long wait. Our energy for the wait may be flagging at times. Indeed both the wise and the foolish will fall asleep at times. But in the end, the Bridegroom will be coming in a glorious wedding procession to start times of feasting and revelry in togetherness.

So it seems the point of this parable for the people of God is to live joyfully and expectantly for we are invited to the wedding feast. But we are to live prepared in Christian hope, attempting to discern the will of God and to do it as well as we can.

As Presbyterian pastor John M. Buchanan puts it: “Christian hope rest on trust that the God who created the world will continue to love the world with gentle providence, will continue the process of creation until the project is complete, and will continue to redeem and save the world by coming into it with love and grace, in Jesus Christ.”

In the meantime, there are faithful people genuinely frightened about where human history seems to be headed. Living in hope does not mean immunity to the harsh realities of history. We can’t hide from the realities of the world.

On the contrary, living in hope means living confidently and expectantly, trusting that the Lord of history continues to come into life with compassion and redemption and hope.

So, even in the face of awful trends in the world’s current affairs, we are not to lose hope. We are to trust that God is engaged with it all whether we discern it or not.

In Letters to a Young Poet, the poet being a 19 year-old officer cadet in the Austro-hungarian army, Rainer Maria Rilke writes:
“Why don’t you think of him as the one who is coming, who has been approaching from all eternity? … What keeps you from projecting his birth into the ages that are coming into existence, and living your life as a painful and lovely day in the history of a great pregnancy?”

Are we, humanity, willing to be pregnant with the Savior once more? Can we accept to participate in this stupendous pregnancy?

On the one hand, we ought not to be lulled into thinking that there is no sense of urgency in preparing for the Lord’s coming. It is foolish to put off obtaining the oil of the “deeds of discipleship.”

On the other hand, the prospect of the end should not produce panic and anxiety. Even the wise maidens were able to go to sleep.

So rest assured, God is coming. Or even, wake up and see that He is at hand.

Still, you may wonder this week, do I have enough oil in my lamp to welcome the Beloved, the Bridegroom. How am I doing the will of our Father in heaven?

In case you need a reminder, as Jesus says earlier in the gospel according to Matthew: “love the Lord your God and love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:38-40)
And you may have to do this for quite a while. After all, we may be the early Church, the church of the first two millenaries of many more to come. Only God knows the time.

And finally, I think Matthew ended his parable with retribution for the foolish because that’s how he felt at the time about those who did not see God’s grace and respond to it readily. But I happen to be a universalist. I believe God’s grace and mercy are endless. Only those who will, to the bitter end, deliberately refuse to accept God’s grace and mercy will not enjoy God’s deepest embrace and love, but it will be self-inflicted pain.

I believe in a God whose invitation to love is always open even after the wedding party has started.

The Bridegroom is coming home. Let us rejoice and prepare for the feast! Amen.