Easter Sunday: The Joy of the Resurrection

April 18, 2022 Andrea Schmid

by Fr. Bill Garrison

Please note that the following sermon text was provided prior to the audio recording. The two versions may differ substantially.

John 20:1-18

Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him." Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples returned to their homes.

But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him." When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?" Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away." Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned and said to him in Hebrew, "Rabbouni!" (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, "Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, `I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'" Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord"; and she told them that he had said these things to her.

There was a boy who worked in the produce section of a super market. A man came in and asked to buy half a head of lettuce. The boy told him that they only sold whole heads of lettuce, but the man replied that he did not need a whole head, only half.

The boy explained that he would have to ask the manager and so he walked into the back room and said, “There is some jerk out there who wants to buy only a half a head of lettuce.” As he finished saying this, he turned around to find the man standing right behind him, so he quickly added, “And this gentleman wants to buy the other half.”

The manager Okayed the request and the man went on his way. Later on, the manager said to the boy, “You almost got yourself in a lot of trouble earlier, but I must say I was impressed with the way you got out of it. You think on your feet and we like that around here. Where are you from, son?”

The boy replied, “Minnesota, sir.” “Oh, really, why did you leave Minnesota?” inquired the manager. The boy replied, “They're all just loose women and hockey players up there.”

“My wife is from Minnesota”, exclaimed the manager. The boy instantly replied, “Really! What team did she play for?”

That young man will go far.

I think celebrating Easter every year is so very important because it gives us a chance to get back to the basics of our faith. We ask ourselves important questions which help us gauge how we are doing in our walk with Jesus. How much of our lives are we spending in partnership with Him? Is God truly receiving the majority of our attention or are we only peripherally aware of the grace we receive every day? Are we, like the man trying to purchase a half a head of lettuce, half in or are we all in? Has God truly got our attention?

It seems to me that we struggle between Easter and Good Friday. We struggle with which is the reality of life. And as we arrive here this morning, we have to admit that Good Friday is everywhere we look, every news story we hear.

The pandemic isn’t over yet in this country. We live with the awareness that more people are going to die before it leaves us.

The horrors in Ukraine are constantly before us and we can’t help but wonder how many more must die before the killing stops.

The media is having a field day with the reality of inflation as they predict doom for the economy.

Gun violence has reached epidemic proportions and there is so much of it that only the most heinous examples make the front page of the paper.

And it has become almost impossible to discern whom we can trust with power.

I could go on but it isn’t necessary. This is what Good Friday looks like in the world within which we live and frankly it gets a lot more play than Easter does.

Mary Magdalene went to the tomb on Easter morning before dawn with no expectations other than to tend to the body of Jesus with spices. She was still suffering from the loss of her teacher. She was still in a Good Friday frame of mind. What she found was an open tomb. She was instantly afraid Jesus’ body had been stolen. Here Good Friday feelings instantly grew even darker in that fear.

As the story continued Peter and another disciple raced to the tomb and found the wrappings lying in the tomb but no Jesus. Hmmm, what could that mean? They returned home wondering about it.

Mary remained at the tomb and encountered a man she mistakenly assumed was the gardener. But when she heard his voice, she instantly knew it was Jesus, risen from the dead. Resurrection. In that moment her Good Friday feelings evaporated and her Easter joy began. Resurrection had changed everything. She and her followers were soon shouting the good news for everyone to hear.

Now please understand. Nothing had changed in the world around them. The Romans were still in charge. Life was still incredibly hard. But how one encounters the world, the Good Friday world if you will, had changed. Where joy had made no sense before the resurrection, now joy was the only feeling that did.

Resurrection has no meaning unless others talk about it. Resurrection has no purpose unless others talk about it. Resurrection only has meaning if we share the good news of Easter with a world living Good Friday. Resurrection only can have meaning for those living as Easter people. Our job, as Easter people, is to tell others about resurrection and to keep reminding ourselves about it too.

So go and tell the world human beings no longer need fear death.

Go and tell the story about the life of Jesus Christ.

Go and tell the story about Jesus’ blueprint for living.

Go and tell the story about the Kingdom of God, right here, and right now.

Go and tell others about the joy found in doing the loving thing.

Go and tell the world that Good Friday is never the end. Resurrection is on the way.

This Easter my we open our whole selves to the meaning of resurrection. May we feel the love of God every day in our lives. May we commit ourselves to God’s work, following Jesus into our futures, knowing the joy, hope, and power found in his resurrection.

Hallelujah, Christ is Risen!

The Third Sunday of Easter: Being Changed

April 18, 2021 Andrea Schmid

by Fr. Bill Garrison

Please note that the following sermon text was provided prior to the audio recording. The two versions may differ substantially.

Luke 24:36b-48 (NRSV)

Appearance While the Apostles are at Table - Duccio di Buoninsegna, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Jesus himself stood among the disciples and said to them, “Peace be with you.” They were startled and terrified, and thought that they were seeing a ghost. He said to them, “Why are you frightened, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? Look at my hands and my feet; see that it is I myself. Touch me and see; for a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. While in their joy they were disbelieving and still wondering, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate in their presence.

Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.

This morning we are talking about life changing events. To get started here is a quick story.

A woman who lived next door to an Episcopal Priest was puzzled by his personality changing at church. At home he was shy, quiet and retiring, but in church he was a real fire orator, rousing the parishioners in the name of God. It was as if he were two different people.

One day she asked him about the dramatic transformation that came over him when he preached.

“Ah,” he said, “That’s my Altar ego.”

There truly are events in our lives that change us. There are events from which people will instinctively know that something is different about us but may not know what it is. Hopefully these events are positive. Some of course are not. Either way they change us. When they are positive, we hear things like this. Wow, what’s up with you? Did you lose weight? You look so happy. There is something different about you, I know there is, what is it? They know something is up, but what? Then they start to guess in earnest what it is. When changes are not positive people recognize that too and want to know if something is wrong. The expression on their faces shows concern.

I can think of many lifetime events that change us in a positive way. Remember what it was like to get a driver’s license? You went from someone who could not legally drive to someone who could. The world of travel opened up to you and the world of dating did too. This was especially true for the boys. Maybe the shoulders became a little squarer. Maybe the smile showed a little more self-confidence. Whatever it was that changed people could see it and as soon as they learned you had gotten your license they understood. You looked mostly the same but you were different in an important way.

How about the first time you fell in love? Perhaps it was the stupid grin you couldn’t wipe off your face. Maybe it was the way no one could seem to get your attention without touching you or raising their voice. Maybe it was the fact you had lost your appetite. But people knew something was different and when they figured out what it was, they understood.

For me getting my first computer was one of those events. Before that I didn’t even know how to type. I quickly learned how to do so because I instantly understood how amazing computers were and how they could change my life. As a result of that meeting between Bill and Computer I became a different human being, much more capable than I had been before. Without that meeting I never would have finished my degree, started my own business, gone to seminary, or become a priest. I stand here today because of the dominoes that started falling because of that event.

And yes, we must also recognize that there are events that impact us in negative ways too. I don’t need to list what they might be. We all have experienced them. We all have our own to remember.

Now none of these events changed who we fundamentally are. How we are changed is subtle, but recognizable in subliminal but important ways. People encountering us sort of held a mirror up in front of us by their reactions, helping us to see the changes within ourselves that have occurred.

In the gospel story we see the disciples encountering the risen Jesus for the second time. They had been standing around talking with each other and Jesus was suddenly there in the midst of them. He spoke a greeting to them. “Peace be with you.”

They were taken aback. Was this a ghost? They had seen Jesus risen from the dead, but had they wrapped their arms around the fact of it? Well, I guess the answer is no, not really, because they having a hard time accepting the idea that this figure in front of them is really Jesus.

Jesus obviously understood this. And so, he asked them to take a look at the holes from the nails in his hands and feet. But that only partially convinced them. The scripture says the were filled with joy, I guess for the possibility that this was really Jesus, but that they were still not completely convinced.

So, Jesus asked them for something to eat and they gave him a piece of broiled fish. He ate it in front of them and that finally turned the tide of their doubt. He indeed was their beloved Jesus. “A spirit does not have flesh and bones.”

Jesus was the same as he had ever been, but he was different too. Remember the Road to Emmaus story that occurs in the Gospel of Luke just before today’s gospel? The two disciples in the story spent the day with Jesus without knowing who he was. It wasn’t until late in the day that they recognized him. I can only imagine their reaction when they did figure it out.

How about when Mary Magdalene went to the tomb on Easter morning? She mistook Jesus for a gardener. It wasn’t until he spoke with her that she realized it was him.

Jesus stood on the shore while the disciples were out in the boat fishing. They saw there was someone on the shore cooking over a fire but didn’t realize it was Jesus until they came ashore and he spoke to them and fed them. Then they recognized him.

The gospel writers have clearly told us two things. Number one, Jesus was the same as he had ever been, but number two he was also changed in some way. I guess resurrection will do that to you. Twenty centuries later we don’t understand exactly what they meant, but we do know that in some way he was different while at the same time he was the same Jesus they had always known.

And for each of us we have been changed as the results of living our lives too; sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse, probably for most of us some of each. Living and the events we encounter will do that to you.

We, like Jesus, are changed and yet are still the same basic individuals others have always known. When others see us, they aren’t confused about who we are. They might say, “It seems like I don’t know you anymore.” But the fact they say that tells us that they do know and recognize us.

We retain our individuality because we are the creations of God. We exist inside just the same as we were when we were created. The you that exists and the me that exists is the same as it was the day we were born. We look out of ourselves into the world exactly as we did then. We may be smarter. We may be beaten down or raised up. But whatever shape we find ourselves in we remain the same at our core.

The story of Jesus is our story too. He died and was resurrected. Yes, he was changed in ways that others recognized, but he was still fundamentally the same. Our life changes us, yet we remain fundamentally the same. It’s the strong, loving, and creative hand of God at work in both. God is the force that orders creation. We can rest easy in God’s hand because we know that fact.

The Second Sunday of Easter: Doubting Thomas

April 12, 2021 Andrea Schmid

by Rev. Carole Horton-Howe

Please note that the following sermon text was provided prior to the audio recording. The two versions may differ substantially.

John 20:19-31 (NRSV)

When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you." After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you." When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."

Doubting Thomas - Giovanni Serodine, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord." But he said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe."

A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you." Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe." Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said to him, "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe."

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.

“I’ve always been a reluctant believer.” This is what a hospice patient told me during one of our visits. He said it softly and slowly, as though to give it oxygen would be to give it a life of its own that he couldn’t take back. He didn’t make eye contact. I was very surprised to hear this. This man was a retired priest, with a long life of compassionate service to others. He was a passionate advocate for the poor and homeless populations where he lived. He regularly received cards from former parishioners thanking him for the impact he’d had on their lives. I couldn’t imagine anyone ne less likely to have doubts than him. Now as he was suffering from a disease for which there would be no cure. And he was wondering – not for the first time - whether he could truly believe the resurrection promise.

He’s like Thomas in the room with the disciples hearing that Jesus has been there, has given them the Holy Spirit but still asking himself whether the good news is too good to be true. Is the resurrection of Jesus something we can be certain of and rely on for our own eternal life journey?

What Thomas is really after is an experience of truth. We don’t know where he was or why he wasn’t there when Jesus appeared to the disciples. But when he did return to them he wasn’t willing to accept as truth what they told him. He needed the same experience of Jesus that they had – and more.

If we think about it, the desire for truth winds all throughout the gospels. And the stories of Holy Week and Good Friday put an especially fine point on it. Friday morning Jesus’ trial before Pilate is a mockery of justice. Pilate questions Jesus and he seems disdainful of the whole situation. “YOU are the King of the Jews?” he asks Jesus. The Jewish authorities are hostile to Jesus more concerned with their own survival and with no legitimate charge against him. Pilate would prefer not to be bothered by this Jewish disturbance. He can’t figure out who Jesus is or why he’s even there.

Pilate’s parting question to Jesus, “what is truth?” hangs in the air. The irony was that Truth was standing right before him but he could not see it. What blocks our seeing truth can be our agendas based in fear, powerful narratives and anecdotes that we can’t overcome on our own. Many of us grew up with a narrative that doubt is sinful, that questioning shows an absence of belief and that belief alone that God wants from us. If we think of belief as what God wants from us then doubt and disbelief are experienced as sinful. So if we have doubt like Thomas’ did it is seen as an absence of faith.

But let’s look at what Jesus did for Thomas in his moment of disbelief. He came to him and offered him what he needed. He offered Thomas something denied to Mary and others. He asked Thomas to touch him so he could have his truth. And in this moment a sweet promise is made: God who knows our needs will meet us precisely at the point of our need. God who knows our hearts and minds and the condition of our need will be there for us as we continue to seek and continue to demonstrate a need for God’s presence.

The gospel tells us that a week later his disciples were again in the house and Thomas was with them. Despite his unbelief Thomas still gathers with them, still wants to be part of this group. And in the other disciples we see a second beautiful lesson of Christian friendship. It always has room for everyone, especially the doubters. They clearly welcome him. We hear nothing about their shunning him, or gossiping him. The disciples embody this sort of friendship. Jesus had done exactly the same for them. They loved Thomas as Jesus loved them.

Please know this: if you have doubts you’re in the right place. We get it. In this church you are welcome. We are together to support and lift each other up. That’s what true faith communities do and that’s what we do. You will never be minimized and told that your faith isn’t strong enough. You will never be excluded for having questions. You will be welcomed. We will sit with you, struggle with you.

Can we put our fingers in Jesus’ side and touch him? No. But can the stories of the resurrection experience make us feel as if we can? Yes, if we open our hearts to them. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe. The story is alive because even a modest beginning of belief is all the Holy Spirit needs to make Jesus come alive for us, in us and through us to others. These stories we feel breathe on us the same way Jesus breathed on the disciples. They have the power to make us weep, rejoice, hope and act.

We believe not because we have seen his wounds or placed our hands within his side, but because we have seen Christ in the face of another, who has also not seen or touched Christ, but lives their life in such a way that Christ has been made present in our midst. It is in gathering together in loving relationships that Christ is made known and the experience of truth is ours. We are made to make a difference to be part of Jesus risen life on earth so that we may proclaim to all we encounter “we have seen the Lord” and have life in his name.

Alleluia! Christ is risen. The Lord is risen indeed! And so are we. Alleluia and Amen.

Easter Sunday: The Resurrection

April 5, 2021 Andrea Schmid

by Fr. Bill Garrison

Please note that the following sermon text was provided prior to the audio recording. The two versions may differ substantially.

Mark 16:1-8 (NRSV)

When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint Jesus. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. They had been saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?” When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed. But he said to them, “Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you.” So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

Good morning. Hallelujah, Christ has risen!

This morning I have a couple of things I would like to chat about. The first is, do we think folks were surprised when Jesus rose from the dead? And the second is do we see clearly what is right there in front of us? Here is a little humor to start things off on those topics.

A police captain was interrogating three guys who were training to become detectives. To test their skills in recognizing a suspect, he showed the first guys a picture for 5 seconds and then hid it. "This is your suspect. How would you recognize him of you see him?"

The first guy answered, "That's easy, we'll catch him fast because he only has one eye!"

The captain said, "Well...uh...that's because the picture I showed is his side profile."

Slightly flustered by this ridiculous response, he flashed the picture for 5 seconds at the second guy and asked him, "This is your suspect, how would you recognize him?"

The second guy smiled and then gave an equally ridiculous answer. "Ha! He'd be easy to catch because he only has one ear!"

The captain angrily responded, "What's the matter with you two?!!? Of course, only one eye and one ear are showing because it's a picture of his side profile! Is that the best answer you can come up with?"

Extremely frustrated at this point, he showed the picture to the third guy and in a very testy voice asked, "This is your suspect, how would you recognize him?

The third guy looked at the picture intently for a moment and said, "The suspect wears contact lenses."

The captain was surprised and speechless because he really didn’t know himself if the suspect wore contacts or not. "Well, that's an interesting answer. Wait here for a few minutes while I check his file and I'll get back to you on that."

He left the room and went to his office, checked the suspect's file on his computer and came back with a beaming smile on his face. "Wow! I can't believe it. It's TRUE! The suspect does, in fact, wear contact lenses. Good work! How were you able to make such an astute observation?"

"That's easy..." the third guy replied. "He can't wear regular glasses because he only has one eye and one ear."

Ok, let’s look at the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the vantage point of the first century and then from our vantage point a couple of millennium later.

To see through the eyes of those in the First Century we look, not to the gospels, but to the Apostle Paul. You see we are privy to letters he wrote that he never meant for us to see. But we do get to see them and it’s as if we are looking through a window into the history of the first century.

Today I am speaking specifically about our second lesson from the first letter to the Corinthians. As an attestation to an historical event this passage is incredibly important. Let me quote a portion of it for you. I remove one word, “that”, in order to make it clearer for us.

“Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, and ----- he was buried, and ----- he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, and ----- he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.”

Ok let’s think about what we just heard. How do you think those folks felt seeing Jesus alive again? Can you get your head around it? Can you stand in their sandals? Take a minute. How does it feel to you?

It’s mind blowing isn’t it? If he has risen from the dead then his life takes on new meaning doesn’t it? We think back over everything he said and did in a different light. Now here is the big one. It changes our lives immeasurably too. If he conquered death, then so can we. He said it was going to be so, that we will have eternal life after he rose from the dead. He would make a way for us. Now I believe it. I have seen him with my own eyes.

Now, let’s fast forward to today, twenty centuries later. Life is certainly different. Society is loud, and in many ways, can be pretty obnoxious. We human beings think we have all the answers. The idea that someone can be resurrected from the dead is probably even stranger sounding now than it was then. And, to top it off, we don’t have anybody around that personally witnessed Jesus in the flesh after his death and resurrection. I wonder if anyone would believe them if we did.

If from time to time you wonder about the resurrection, whether it really happened or not, don’t be disappointed in yourself. We all have doubts occasionally. I know I do. Wanting to know more about Jesus Christ and the resurrection is a major reason I went to seminary. We all struggle from time to time.

And another thing, we aren’t all alike. One size doesn’t fit all. I suppose we could say that all of us are somewhere on a faith line between entirely head centered to entirely heart centered. For me I tend more towards the head. I envy those that are more heart oriented. They don’t seem to need to follow the same intellectual pursuits I do in order to keep their faith solid.

Sometimes in this modern world, especially for people like me, we have to go back to basics to assure ourselves of our faith. Thankfully we have Paul’s letters which in my view are the most important writings in the Christian scriptures. As I said a bit ago, they were never meant to be read by anyone other than the addressee. They had agendas for having been written. All letters do. But those agendas have nothing to do with the history they provide for us twenty centuries later.

Then we have the balance of the New Testament. We have secular writings about Jesus. We have Biblical and scientific scholarship. We have the history of Christianity. We have each other and our prayer lives, personal and corporate. And our church is based on the three-legged stool of scripture, reason, and tradition.

But, happily in the end, it really doesn’t matter. No matter where we are on the line between head and heart we wind up in the same place. What we believe is true. Jesus Christ rose from the dead. He left behind a blueprint for living. He left behind an understanding of God. And the Holy Spirit, the advocate and comforter, is still with us helping us live our lives too. It’s all good news.

Hallelujah! Christ is risen. Have a great brunch, enjoy your loved ones and have a great rest of the day.

The Seventh Sunday in Easter: Looking forward to the Coming of the Holy Spirit

May 28, 2020 Andrea Schmid

by Fr. Bill Garrison

Please note that the following sermon text was provided prior to the audio recording. The two versions may differ substantially.

One of the things I do each week, early in the week, is send a little something about the scriptures for the coming Sunday to the Sunday school teachers to help them in their lesson planning. I looked at the scriptures for today and honestly none of them appealed to me as the subject for today’s sermon or the subject of Sunday school. And then I began to think about next Sunday, Pentecost, and the celebration of the coming of the Holy Spirit. And I thought, what if we thought about the nature of the Holy Spirit?

We are familiar with the theological concept of God we call the Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We think a lot about God and Jesus Christ, but not so much about the Holy Spirit. I think many of us do not have terribly well-developed notions about the Spirit. So, I want to share some of my personal thoughts with you today on the subject.

But first here is a funny, one I don’t believe I have told in this forum for a few years. It’s about being an “advocate,” one of the names Jesus used to describe the Holy Spirit. And this little story is about a terrific advocate.

During a game of little league baseball, Coach Rogers called aside little Jimmy and asked him this question. “Tell me Jimmy, do you understand the words co-operation and teamwork?” Jimmy nodded in the affirmative.

The coach asked again. “Do you agree that what matters is whether we win or lose together as a team?” Jimmy nodded in agreement.

Coach Rogers continued, “Then I am sure you would agree that when a batter is called out on strikes, we shouldn't shout at or argue with the umpire, or call him names. Do you agree to that?” Little Jimmy nodded in the affirmative again.

Coach Rogers went on, “And when I take you out of the game so another player gets a chance to play too, it's not good sportsmanship to call your coach a moron or lunatic is it?” Jimmy shook his head “No.”

“Good”, said coach Rogers, “Now could you go over there and explain all that to your grandmother?”

Now one thing we don’t need to worry about is whose side the grandmother is on do we? I imagine Jimmy knew full well how much his grandmother loved and supported him.

As we begin our study of the Holy Spirit, it would be wise to recognize a couple of things. The Holy Spirit is just that, spirit. We cannot see the Holy Spirit. Just like the wind we can only see the impact of her actions. The wind moves the branches in the tree and blows away your hat invisibly. The Holy Spirit involves herself in our lives the same way.

And let me also explain to you my own most basic way of understanding the Holy Spirit. I see the Spirit as feminine. I am not alone in this viewpoint, but I respect your own viewpoint if you cannot see the Holy Spirit in this way. I do this because Wisdom in the Old Testament is presented as feminine and I see Wisdom and the Spirit as the same. I also see her in this way because it balances the books of the Trinity. Father, Son, and Spirit. But please, if this raises your hackles, I respect that. Think of her as you will. When I say she, referring to the Spirit, during the rest of our time on the subject today insert your own preferred word if you like.

So, let’s use some metaphors to describe and understand her. Jesus said “advocate.” We might think of attorney, but I think even more than that. The Holy Spirit is in our corner. Perhaps not like the young man we discussed a bit ago, but she is on our side. In fact, think about Jesus and how he had compassion for people and prayed to God on the behalf of people. He said the Holy Spirit was coming. He wasn’t going to leave the people as orphans. To me this means the Holy Spirit represents us to God, converses with God about us, just like Jesus did. The Holy Spirit cares about us and advocates on our behalf.

Photo by Daria Obymaha from Pexels — Photo by **Daria Obymaha** from **Pexels**

I think of the Holy Spirit as “Comforter,” a term Jesus also used. When things are hard, when we find ourselves in physical or psychic pain, the Holy Spirit is right there with us. That feeling of warmth that suddenly comes on us out of nowhere is her seeking to comfort us. Think back over your lifetime and I am sure you will find times when during the worst of times suddenly you unexpectedly felt better, comforted.

I also think of the Holy Spirit as friend, a companion if you will. We are never alone. This is one of the things I tell folks before a baptism. We receive the Holy Spirit and no matter what happens in our lives, no matter how alone we might feel, we are never by ourselves. Being aware of our companion, the Holy Spirit, makes all the difference, every day, but especially when we need a friend.

Another way I experience the Holy Spirit is as a playmate. When times are great the Holy Spirit celebrates with us. When we are happy the Holy Spirit shares in our happiness. When we are experiencing joy in our lives the Holy Spirit is joyful with and for us. It’s like being out having a great time with your best friend, which in essence you are.

And this is going to sound a little weird, but I experience the Holy Spirit as the first search engine. Think Google. There is nothing in all the cosmos that God does not know. The creator knows everything. I mean literally everything. So, when we have decisions to make, or are trying to understand an issue, the Holy Spirit, if allowed, will lead us to the truth. It may not be the truth we expected, but we almost immediately get a glimmering of the reality of a situation the moment we ask for help for help from her.

I am sure we could come up with many more metaphors for the Holy Spirit if we sat down and began to list them. A couple of times I have led groups who were attempting to describe the attributes of Jesus. We came up with over one hundred key terms on each occasion. I have no doubt the Holy Spirit would lead us down the same path if we went there and we would list just as many. She is after all the third part of the Trinity, that impossibly difficult concept of God. Martin Luther said that attempting to understand the Trinity could make a person insane. So, I think it is enough just to say that She is God, is one third of the Godhead, and leave it at that.

So here is our invitation today as we get ready for Pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit. Think about her. What does she mean to you? Do you know her as your advocate, your companion, and your friend? Do you feel that your relationship with her could be enlarged? Would that be a good thing? Would you like to know her better? Some things to ponder – relax and enjoy the possibilities.

The Sixth Sunday in Easter: Loving God, Loving Others

May 18, 2020 Andrea Schmid

by Fr. Bill Garrison

Please note that the following sermon text was provided prior to the audio recording. The two versions may differ substantially.

Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you.

“I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.”

—John 14:15-21

We just heard a relatively short but meaningful gospel. It takes place towards the end of Jesus’ last evening with his friends. Judas has gone out to betray him. Jesus has told Peter that he will deny his friend three times before the cock crows. The Passover candles are burning low. Jesus is reaching out to them for one last time. He talks about the Holy Spirit, the advocate, who will be coming to comfort and be with them in his absence. But more than that he talks about love, love for each other. This is the direction we will be heading this morning. But first a couple of funnies about love. First up here is a letter to a lady’s husband.

Dear Herbie, I know it was our joint decision for you to go off to the army for the year, but it’s so hard not having you here. We are married. Doesn’t it make sense that we should be together? I’m so miserable without you. It’s almost like you are still here. Love, Anne

Now a story about what not to do when the love of your life is mad at you.

Bob was in trouble. He had forgotten his wedding anniversary. His wife was angry. She warned him. “Tomorrow morning, I expect to find a gift in the driveway that goes from 0 to 200 in 6 seconds AND IT BETTER BE THERE!"

The next morning, he got up early and left for work. When his wife woke up, she looked out the window and sure enough there was a box gift-wrapped in the middle of the driveway. Confused, the wife put on her robe and ran out to the driveway and brought the box back in the house. She opened it and found a brand-new bathroom scale. Bob has been missing since Friday.

Ok, time to get serious.

Love is a central theme in the New Testament. It is a central theme in the theology of Christianity. It often is thought of as the primary answer to every question.

I, along with a great many members of the Episcopal Church, listened to our Presiding Bishop speak about love a week or so ago. This is a man I have the highest respect and regard for. He has appeared on the national news many times and is one of the leaders sought out on matters of national interest. In fact, I relatively recently saw him interviewed regarding churches that were choosing not to follow distancing and rules relative to the size of groups meeting. He handled himself well as he always does. I am quite proud of him as a spokesperson for the church.

Anyway, those of us in attendance recently listened to him talk about the importance of love. He said that every decision to be made in life would best be made if run through the lens of love first. And I think he is right. I just don’t know how to do it with any kind of consistency. Do you?

One of the things in life I am convinced of is that God loves us. In fact, God is crazy about each one of us. We are after all God’s creation and God has proven over and over again the incredible love God has for us. It abounds in the pages of the Hebrew Scriptures, and it is the primary point in the Christian Scriptures. Just two weeks ago we talked about the 23rd Psalm as a metaphor for God’s love for us. And the words of John say it all. “For God so loved the world that He gave his only son so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but have eternal life.” That’s a pretty awesome gift, even more so than something that goes from zero to two hundred in six seconds.

And God did even more than that in the person of Jesus Christ. He gave us a blueprint for living. He taught us about the importance of compassion, of common sense, of relationship with God and one’s neighbors, about servant leadership, and most of all about love. “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” And Jesus even left us a commandment about love. We are to love each other as he has loved us. In this way others would know we are his disciples he said.

Now I will confess to you I often feel a great burden of guilt over all of this. I know my life and the life of those around me would be greatly enhanced if I could follow his commandment as he did. But so far in my life here on earth I have come up short on a continuing basis. I guess that’s one of the reasons we have saints. They don’t seem to fail at loving others as much as the rest of us seem to do.

What saves me is my recognition that I am not Jesus Christ. I am not fully human and fully divine. Jesus is and I am not. I cannot do this alone with any kind of consistency. I need help. And that is where the Holy Spirit, the advocate, comes into play. Jesus promised the Holy Spirit would be here to help us and if we are willing to acknowledge the spirit’s presence, we can begin to make some progress in the “loving others” area. Note please I said progress, not completion. We must reconcile ourselves to a lifelong struggle in this area.

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So here is my suggestion. Loving is easier with people we like or already love. But even with them loving can become an impossible chore at times. People we don’t love, like, or know is just that much more difficult. The Holy Spirit can help us. For me I try to make a triangle out of this loving issue. Me on one side, them on another, and the Holy Spirit on the other. Things change when God is truly involved. God is crazy about this person and crazy about me. With that in mind all things become possible. God can intervene and help us.

And this brings me to the most important issue of the day. Do we love ourselves? I don’t know that loving others is even possible very often unless we do.

Now I am not a psychologist. But I am going to posit that self-regard is incredibly important to the formation of a well-integrated person. So many of us, in fact I imagine most of us, struggle with our own self-image to one degree or another. Dealing with that is just as important as learning to love others as Jesus loved us.

In 2008 during the economic debacle of that time I was involved with a group of folks attempting to find a new job after having lost their last one due to the economy. We talked a lot about the interview process. I used a metaphor that seemed to hit home with them. We talked about asking another person if they would like to go out on a date with you. I gave two examples. In the first the asker said something like this. “If you have nothing to do Friday night, and you probably do, but if you don’t what would you think about going to dinner or something with me? I mean I hope I am not offending you in any way so please feel free to say no if you don’t want to but I thought I would ask.”

Now here is the second example. “Hi. I have to tell you that I am completely taken with you and find you one of the most intriguing people I have ever met. I really would like to get to know you better. Would you like to get together Friday night? I think we would have a great time together.

I think the answer to which is the better approach is pretty obvious don’t you? Today we have a different context we are dealing with but the metaphor still applies. Today I want to tell you that second example is God contacting each of us. God is constantly in contact with each of us asking us for a date.

Let me continue. See if you can wrap your head around this truth, one you have heard several times before but probably could use a booster shot about. God loves us, each of us, in ways we can’t even imagine. Think of how you feel about a brand-new baby, an important baby to you, one that makes your heart feel like it might burst. The love you feel is a drop in the ocean compared to how much God loves you. And if God is that crazy about you doesn’t that mean something? Doesn’t that mean something important?

God is the creator of the cosmos and the creator of each of us. We are the apple of God’s eye. Can’t we understand God sees something we don’t? Perhaps it’s just that we are, that we exist, that God thought it worthwhile to create us and thinks we are pretty cool. If God feels that way about us perhaps it would be a good idea to reconsider our self-image. And if we do that, then working with the Holy Spirit we might have a chance to fulfill the commandment of Jesus, loving others as he loved us. Hmmmm. What do you think?

The Fifth Sunday in Easter: Jesus Reassures His Followers

May 12, 2020 Andrea Schmid

by the Rev. Carole Horton-Howe

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Jesus said, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way to the place where I am going.” Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”

Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works themselves. Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.”

—John 14:1-14 (NRSV)

Our gospel today is a flashback. It takes us back to Holy Week and the night before Jesus’ arrest when he is at table with his closest friends. He getting ready to leave them. He doesn’t have much time. And he chooses to spend it by reassuring them of his continued presence with them.

Just for a minute let’s imagine together another flashback, a scenario that might bring up something from your childhood or your more recently your own experience as a mom or dad. Imagine that you’re a little kid sitting in the backseat of your family’s car. Your dad is driving, your mom is there too. You’ve left home not long ago. You know you’re on a long trip – maybe to visit your grandparents or maybe it’s a summer vacation. Whatever it is you don’t have a choice. You’re on this trip whether you want to be or not.

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And it’s not too long before the scenery is pretty much the same. You’ve got books or games or videos but it’s pretty much the same too. You’re bored. You’re tired of it. And there’s a pressing concern, a serious question you really want to know, so you ask your dad, “Is it much further?” “Are we there yet?”

Now dads are experts at things having to do with driving and being on the road. And dad is likely to tell you the number of miles or how many hours there are to go or the next rest stop coming up. Whatever the answer, as a little kid it doesn’t make it better. It doesn’t make sense. It’s certainly not what you’re longing to hear. What you want to hear is, “We’re almost there. Five more minutes. Which for a little kid is about 4 minutes and 50 seconds too long. But dad never says even that.

Now what does your mom do? She senses your restlessness. And offers a distraction. “Take out one of your books,” she says. Or offers to play a game of “I Spy” with you. Even so, the trip goes on. And you might be distracted for a short while. But you’re still confined in the car. And you can’t see the end.

This is the best metaphor I can think of for where we are right now. We’re kind of like kids on a long car trip, powerless to do anything but go along for the ride. We’re wondering, we’re praying, “Are we there yet?” and “How much further?” We are so longing to return to the lives we had. We are eager to get back to January 2020. What I’m hearing from people that I talk with and that I’m feeling myself it that we’re all just over it. For those who are in despair about their health, about lost income and mounting expenses it’s serious business.

For a child, the offer of that distraction that minimizes the discomfort is a reasonable way to go. But for those of us who are a all grown up on this journey of isolation and deprivation, in a place of anxiety about the future and longing for what has been, praying for a return to our normal lives, distractions that try to minimize our discomfort won’t benefit us any more than they would have helped Thomas or Philip. Jesus provided them and us with a way to cope with and navigate through the transitions in our lives. Jesus invited them to follow and believe in entirely new and uncomfortable ways.

So instead of searching for and retreating into places of familiar safety, what can we do in this time to help us grow closer to the heart of God?

I wonder if we do so by taking purposeful steps into our discomfort. This is counterintuitive for most of us. Why in the world would we embrace discomfort? Because I believe that if we do, we will meet Jesus there and know the fullness of his care for us just as he describes it to the apostles. Resurrection only came after Jesus died on the cross. Life came out of death. New life – what you may have heard called “a new normal.”

The practice of Ignatian Spirituality has something to offer us. It allows us to see the sacred in the ordinary. Our daily lives become the text and context for our prayers revealing what is life-giving. You don’t have to be an expert. Its beauty is in its simplicity.

In the prayers called the Examen, we are asked to spend quiet time focused on God’s presence, to review our day with gratitude and pay attention to our emotional responses to the events of the day. Where did we experience joy? Where was our faith bolstered? What happened that drew us closer to God? These are the evidences of Jesus continued love and concern for us and of God creating opportunities for us. This is what we keep. These are the things that give us life.

The opposite also reveals truth. We are asked to pay attention to times we felt self-pity, despondency and other negative emotions. We are asked to discern what happened in our day that pushed us away from God. And this is what we let go of, what we let die.

I think this type of discernment will guide us along this journey and help us recognize what we can do to come out of this energized and prepared to move into the future in closer relationship to God and one another.

Ironically, this gospel is the one we frequently hear in our funeral liturgies. In this 14th chapter of John, Jesus provides assurance that the disciples will have an on-going relationship with him not severed by death even though they cannot follow him now. Jesus encourages them to believe in God and in him not just after our death but right now. And its effect now is the same as it is in those difficult times: Jesus loves us, advocates for us, champions our cause no matter what.

When our body dies, we say that life has changed not ended. In times of transition such as the days that stretch out before us, the same is true. Life is changed. Not ended. Visions of who we are and who we are becoming will emerge if we allow them to even as a previous sense of ourself changes and disappears.

Jesus tells them and us: Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in me.

Believe in all we have seen as followers of Jesus – God’s compassion, healing, mercy and love;

Believe in the power of resurrection in which God continues to create new life in us and around us;

Believe that our relationship with God through Jesus Christ will continue to thrive even as it changes;

Believe that we are not forgotten and never alone.

Amen.

The Fourth Sunday in Easter: The Good Shepherd

May 4, 2020 Andrea Schmid

by Fr. Bill Garrison

Please note that the following sermon text was provided prior to the audio recording. The two versions may differ substantially.

Stained glass: Alfred Handel, d. 1946[2], photo:Toby Hudson / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)

Jesus said, “Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.” Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.

So again Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”

—John 10:1-10

It’s Good Shepherd Sunday. Today we are going to talk about the relationship between a shepherd and the sheep under his care in order to better understand the 23rd Psalm and the Gospel just read. Part of that understanding is that the sheep recognize the shepherd’s voice. And in that light I thought I would tell a quick funny about hearing voices.

The time is right after this pandemic and a popular donut store is reopening. On each table is a nice table cloth and some donut holes as a special gesture to the customers. Towards the end of the day a fellow came in and sat down after getting a cup of coffee. Mulling over his day, he heard a high-pitched voice say, “That shirt looks great on you!”

The man looked around, doesn’t see anything, and returns to his coffee thinking nothing more of it. But then, a moment later, the voice returns, this time offering, “You seem like a really cool guy!”

Again, the man looks around, sees nothing, and returns to his cup of coffee, meanwhile wondering if he should get checked out by a professional. Finally, when his nerves have settled and he believes the voice is gone, he hears, “I bet your parents are really proud of you!”

He slams down his cup and looks around wildly. Frustrated and finding no possible source of the voice, he calls over to the clerk saying, “Hey lady! What’s that voice I keep hearing?”

“Oh, those are the donut holes,” she replied, “They’re complimentary.”

It occurs to me that perhaps it was time to think again about what a good shepherd is all about. It is knowledge that would have been common place in ancient times, but today most of us our removed from tending sheep.

Let’s take a look at a couple of the lines in the Twenty Third Psalm you may find interesting. As we think about this psalm it is also important to remember that Jesus would have read it often too and he was undoubtedly completely familiar to him with its cadence and meanings. It might even have inspired him to use the metaphor of the shepherd as often as he did. The thought of that fascinates me.

“He makes me lie down in green pastures.” The good shepherd takes his flock out early and begins their day feeding on forage that is the most difficult for them to eat, knowing that in time the sheep will need to rest as the day progresses. As it gets warmer and later in the day, the shepherd will guide his flock to the best grass, the green grass, and rest his flock in the shade as they contently lie down and chew on the most nutritious of meal for them.

“He leads me beside still waters.” The good shepherd knows that his sheep will not eat from water that is bubbling, or running too swiftly. They will become afraid. So he finds quiet waters where his sheep are comfortable and will drink. He cares about their welfare.

“You have anointed my head with oil and my cup is running over.” The good shepherd is attentive to each sheep. At the end of the day as they enter the sheepfold, which we will talk about in a minute, they are closely inspected by the shepherd. He will lay his crook over the top of the gate and if he sees a sheep with a cut he will pull him to the side. He will take some oil and put it on the cut. Then from a stone jar containing water to keep it cold the shepherd will fill a cup to overflowing and allow the sheep to drink from it till she is satisfied.

I just love this metaphor of sheep and shepherd. It tells us so much about God and God’s love for us. And so Jesus continues with it in his metaphor of the sheepfold we find in today’s gospel.

As many of you know the sheepfold is an enclosure made of stone or wood in which the sheep are kept at night to keep them safe from harm. More than one herd may be placed inside the sheepfold. There is only one way in and one way out. Usually the shepherd sleeps in the opening to safeguard the sheep during the night.

There are no identifying marks on the sheep to tell one herd from another. None are needed. The sheep know the shepherds voice. The shepherd knows each sheep as an individual. The sheep will follow only their shepherd, no one else.

In the gospel today Jesus says he is the gate. Through his death and resurrection he has opened the way into the sheepfold for each of us. It is a place of safety. With our shepherd close we can rest comfortably, and be unafraid of those things that assail us in our daily lives, those other voices that compete for our attention, suggesting to us that our shepherd is not the right leader for each of us.

I think this morning we miss our sheepfold don’t we, our church home? There we are consciously close to God. We can easily hear God’s voice. We have each other. We have the Eucharist. We hear the voice of God in the scriptures and so many other ways. Our paths are made clear as they are not in any other place. We understand our lives there as we can only understand them in the presence of the Good Shepherd.

But then again we do eventually have to leave. We can’t stay there forever. This is one of our longer absences from our place of security for sure. We find ourselves out in the loudly dangerous world outside the gate of our sheepfold, with all the voices that will once again compete with the Good Shepherd for our attention. And the question becomes how can we pick out the voice of the Good Shepherd amidst all the competition?

I remember as a kid waking up in the morning on the farm. The window right beside my head would be open with only a screen between me and the outside. There was a special quiet. I would hear the rooster’s crow. Maybe a dog would jog by. The slightest breeze could be heard as it brushed through the grass and the flowers beside the house. Maybe a flying insect would go by and I could hear that distinctive hum. I could feel the warmth of the sun as it came through the window heating the day. I might hear my grandmother softly walking in the kitchen, already well into her day. And then the stillest, smallest sound of all, the voice of God within me not really saying much at all, just being there with me, agreeing with me that everything was ok, that all was right with the world.

God speaks with us all the time if we will but be aware and listen. We are not alone in the world existing within a cacophony of bad advice. God speaks with us in our prayers for sure, but God also speaks with us in other ways too.

Where did that idle thought come from that gave you an insight into a thorny situation? Why did your friend choose just this moment to say what she did, or choose this moment to give you a hug when you needed it the most? Why did the sign up ahead just take on new meaning when you have seen it for years in another way? Why did that word in scripture or the passage in the book or the character in the movie seem as if they were speaking directly to you? Why, when you were sitting alone did it suddenly feel that you were no longer alone, but that in fact you suddenly just feel great about your world and your life and the loneliness has left?

Every day we encounter God in the everyday. We need only be aware. This is the voice of our shepherd we are hearing. This is the true source of our advice as we attempt to make our daily decisions and live our daily lives.

So my invitation to all of us who miss the sheepfold is this. Enjoy the memories of being there where we knew we were safe and loved and cared for. We have followed our Good Shepherd out through the gate into the world knowing the Good Shepherd is leading and caring for us as only the Good Shepherd can. We are never alone. We will never be alone no matter what. We can hear the voice of God every day in the everyday.

The Third Sunday in Easter: Recognizing Jesus

April 27, 2020 Andrea Schmid

by Fr. Bill Garrison

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Please note that the following sermon text was provided prior to the audio recording. The two versions may differ substantially.

Now on that same day two of Jesus' disciples were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him. And he said to them, “What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?” They stood still, looking sad. Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?” He asked them, “What things?” They replied, “The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place. Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see him.” Then he said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?” Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.

As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. But they urged him strongly, saying, “Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.” So he went in to stay with them. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?” That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. They were saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!” Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.

—Luke 24:13-35 (NRSV)

“The Pilgrims of Emmaus on the Road” - James Tissot (Public Domain)

The gospel today is well known to anybody who has spent any time in church. Please bear with me as I quickly summarize it. A couple guys were walking down the road away from Jerusalem. They met a stranger which turned out to be Jesus walking along who apparently hadn’t heard the big news of the day. They told him it was widely rumored that Jesus of Nazareth had been resurrected from the dead. After telling this stranger the news the stranger who we know to be Jesus used scripture to let them know that this event had been preordained. Then as it came to be late in the day they invited Jesus to have supper with them which he did. During supper he took bread and blessed it before breaking it. It was then they recognized the stranger as Jesus and went back to Jerusalem to tell everyone they had seen him.

The story asks some important questions. Here are a few. Why didn’t these men recognize Jesus since they apparently knew him on some level? Do we find Jesus or does Jesus find us? How important was it that they invited Jesus to have supper with them? What part does Eucharist play in the story?

Let me address the last three first. In scripture Jesus appears to always accept an invitation to someone’s home. On a couple of occasions he invited himself, but generally Jesus is a true gentleman. He usually only goes where he is invited. That’s a key for us. Jesus has “found” these men on the road and they had the good sense or manners to invite him in. We can do the same. These men found Jesus through simple hospitality and friendship. That is where we will find him too.

And then the reference to these men recognizing Jesus the moment he breaks the bread is important too. This is an obvious reference to Eucharist, our breaking of bread during the celebration of communion. This is where we can discover Jesus again and again in the breaking of bread and sharing of the cup.

Then there is the first and most obvious question. Why didn’t these men recognize Jesus, especially since they had known him on some level? Why didn’t they recognize him? I am going to tell you a story I last told six years ago that I think addresses the question. I hope you find some meaning in it.

Belen, New Mexico is a sleepy little town of about seven thousand people just south of Albuquerque, New Mexico. It’s primarily a bedroom community. Most people live in Belen and work in Albuquerque, making the short drive of just a few miles back and forth. The only business in Belen from a quick glance out the window as you pass through at seventy five miles per hour is the church business. You can see several spires from the freeway.

One of those churches is St. Joseph’s Episcopal Church, an easy two blocks off the freeway. St. Joseph’s is a pretty impressive white stone structure with a capacity of about one hundred sixty people in its beautiful old sanctuary. Like most churches, attendance has fallen off from the hay days of the sixties, but for its’ two services at eight and ten the combined Sunday attendance is probably in the neighborhood of one hundred twenty people, not too bad in these days of shrinking churches. For Christmas and Easter they often push two hundred.

St. Joseph’s is famous for its outreach. They have a number of groups that meet there regularly like AA and the Boy Scouts, the sort of worthwhile groups most Episcopal Churches host. In addition, they have a food program providing canned goods during the week and sack lunches every Saturday. There is even a small amount of money available to help the homeless out with funds for bus rides and, once in a while, an overnight stay in a local motel.

St. Joseph’s is known throughout the area as an exemplary House of God, living out its Christian principles. Every place the Bishop goes she brags about St. Joseph’s and often suggests to other churches that they emulate some of the things being done there. And this is where our story begins.

On the third Sunday in September, Homecoming Sunday in fact, there were a couple new faces scattered about in the congregation. As most visitors do, they arrived without a lot of fanfare a few minutes before the beginning of the ten o’clock service and quietly found a place to sit. They even managed not to displace any regular members who, although there was no sign indicating so, seemed to believe that they owned a certain seat in the pews.

After the service the visitors were invited to that famous Episcopal tradition, the coffee hour, and some of them went. One visitor, a Latino fellow with a certain quiet confidence about himself, chatted with several of the longtime members, who later seemed to clearly remember him and the manner in which he spoke and carried himself. The Rector and his associate both chatted with him too and, though they would never admit it to anyone else, found him to be a little intimidating in some way they just couldn’t quite put their fingers on. Maybe it was the fact his name was Jesus, but then why would that have bothered them? Lots of Latino men are named Jesus.

As time passed Jesus kept coming to church and became more and more well known in the congregation. Both men and women were drawn to him and his welcoming personality. He was invited to any number events, many of which he attended. He especially seemed to like the pot lucks and he was a regular at Bible study.

He did have one character flaw though. He almost immediately started bringing unsavory people with him to church. This made everybody a little uncomfortable, especially at coffee hour. Some of them looked like they hadn’t changed clothes in a while. A few others weren’t always as quiet as you might expect a person to be in church. A couple of times he brought known community outcasts with him, people who were known trouble makers or had a bad reputation of one kind or another. Many of the congregants urged the rector to speak with Jesus about this issue but the timing never seemed right. Besides, Jesus was such a great guy and his friends never seemed to be a problem while they were at church with him. So the rector figured no harm no foul and left Jesus alone about this one issue for the most part. Ok he did ask Jesus a couple of times why he was associating with these people but it never went too far beyond that.

Here is where some of the real trouble probably began. You see Jesus knew his scriptures. It was almost eerie how well he did. It was much like he had been there for the actual events the stories were retelling. He pointed out things that were not in the center of the story, little things on the edges of the passage that turned the meaning just slightly and somehow made the scripture more personally meaningful to everyone in the room. If you didn’t know better you could almost sense that the Rector was becoming angry with Jesus, or maybe jealous with what he thought of as Jesus’ know-it-all attitude. He suddenly seemed a little stiff, and sometimes his words became a little sharp and snippy.

But it just couldn’t be true that this wonderful and popular rector was having problems dealing with his feelings about Jesus. He was just too nice a guy and being a Rector is a pretty serious and stressful business and that was probably the root of the issue. After all who could ever get mad at Jesus?

It all seemed to come to a head one Sunday, the third week in November, during the second service. A real pillar of the church was reading the second lesson in his normal, wonderfully schooled, baritone voice when he suddenly looked around wildly, made some strange strangling noises as he grabbed at his chest, and fell backwards from the lectern, to the horror of the entire congregation who looked on the events happening right in front of them in open mouthed wonder.

For a moment the place was frozen and time almost stood still, and then out of that silence, several people came back to reality and rushed to his aid. One of those was Jesus, who appeared to take charge of the situation, put his hands on Tom’s chest closed his own eyes as if praying, and then told Tom he was ok.

I kid you not. That’s what he said. “Tom you are ok.” And then he was. Tom sat up and glanced around with the strangest look on his face. He would swear later to anyone who would listen that he had been dead. He claimed he had died instantly of a heart attack, seemed to be traveling serenely toward the most beautiful light he had ever seen in the distance, and then suddenly found himself jerked back to St. Joseph’s and the lectern where the excitement had begun.

Jesus, for his part, asked people not to talk about what had happened and what they had seen. This, of course, did no good at all and the stories about him began to spread like wildfire throughout Belen and into Albuquerque.

From that moment people began to see Jesus in another way. Just who was this man who did the things he did and acted the way he acted? People were split. Some believed him to be really special, maybe someone sent by God. Others thought of him as perhaps some sort of magician. Others said he was talented, a really nice guy, but come on, he was nothing extra special. Everything would eventually be explained and the world would move on to the next attention grabbing sound bite. And yet his fame continued to grow.

One thing for sure was that folks in the area were lining up on one side in support of Jesus or the other thinking him to be some sort of a menace. The local clergy in Belen became upset as folks left their churches and started going to St. Joseph’s hoping to meet this fellow Jesus. Local businesses, on the other hand, were happy to welcome the new visitors to Belen because it meant new income streams for them. There were even street venders selling little trinkets commemorating all the excitement that was building.

Jesus however seemed pretty unfazed by the whole thing. All the questions he was being asked seemed to amuse him more than anything else. Even when the bishop of the Diocese of the Rio Grande, and some of her cronies, came to see him and grill him on his interpretations of scripture he just kept on keeping on. When the Bishop seemed to get a little miffed with him and stormed back to Albuquerque he took it all in stride.

And then one day he just up and left town. He didn’t say goodbye. His parting words to his closest friends were just asking that they love one another, and remember him once in a while when they sat down to have a meal. Perhaps he would return one day.

And so the story ends. They are still telling it in and around town. Just exactly who was that guy? Isn’t it incredible they never really figured it out?

The Second Sunday in Easter: Doubting Thomas

April 19, 2020 Andrea Schmid

by the Rev. Carole Horton-Howe

Please note that the following sermon text was provided prior to the audio recording. The two versions may differ substantially.

Doubting Thomas, Giovanni Serodine (Public Domain) — *Doubting Thomas*, Giovanni Serodine (Public Domain)

—John 20:19-31 (NRSV)

We are one week after Easter Sunday or Resurrection Sunday. The day we celebrate God’s gift to us of eternal life through the resurrection of God’s son Jesus Christ. It’s the ultimate good news of the gospel. And what do we have today? We have another story of witness to the resurrection. It’s quieter and intimate but startling and it is relate-able. We get to hear the story of Thomas, someone who puts some significant parameters around his acceptance of the resurrection.

This is where our own experience might overlap with Thomas and what makes him so relate-able. As much as we have celebrated the resurrection, we want to accept fully, we want to believe with every bit of our heart and mind, it’s so overwhelming that we too can fall into a place of having doubts. This too is good news. The freedom to doubt and wrestle with ideas about God and our relationship with God are important to our own formation just like it was for Thomas.

We are creatures who crave certainty. We search for order to make sense of things, to understand the world, to organize all the data that comes to our awareness. We want a logical explanation to solve the problems that we encounter.

Faith defies that process. Faith is a mystery of the heart that the mind wants to solve. Still, we want faith to be shored up by certain evidences so that the leap of faith is a manageable one.

In Easter season we celebrate the biggest mystery of faith: that Jesus died for the sins of the world and that he rose from the grave. This last fact is the hardest one for us to grasp even compared with all the other stories we know about Jesus healing miracles, walking on water, evading danger from those out to trap him – the resurrection is the hardest thing for our minds to take in. Nothing in life is more certain than death. Or more permanent. For Jesus to be raised from the dead bogles the mind. It just can’t happen. This is where Thomas is coming from.

History has not treated this disciple kindly. Thomas is routinely thought of as a spiritual ne’er do well because he placed conditions around belief. But that’s not giving him a serious look.

Earlier in the gospel of John, we read of Thomas at his best. In John Chapter 11, Jesus’ desire was to return to Judea to raise Lazarus from the dead. But the apostles were afraid for Him to go back, because that would likely mean His death — and their death. However, it’s not Peter, James or John who rallies the troops. It’s Thomas: “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” Loyal and courageous Thomas would rather risk death with his Teacher than live without him.

And Thomas is the one we most often hear from in our burial liturgies. When Jesus tells the disciples on their last evening together that he is going to prepare a place for them he says “you know where I am going and you know the way.” How many of us have heard those words and thought “what does he mean? What way?” I wonder if the other disciples that night sat by quietly and wondered the same thing. Thomas had the courage to speak up and say “what do you mean? We don’t know the way.” Jesus answers him. I am the way, Jesus says, and the truth and the life. To know me is to know God.

What we see in Thomas are acts of sacrifice and commitment. Is this is the same Thomas we’ve come to know as “doubting Thomas”? It is. He didn’t always have the answers. He wasn’t afraid to voice his doubt. But Thomas was a great servant. A better moniker for him might be Demanding Thomas, Defiant Thomas or Spiritually Ambitious Thomas. What he wants here is a first-hand experience of Jesus’ presence and he describes that experience as both visual and tactile.

If we think of Thomas as a model for a certain way of believing then he is a follower who craves intimacy with Jesus.

And how did Jesus respond? Jesus’ invitation was to touch, not just look and certainly not to belittle Thomas or deny him that intimacy that Thomas craved. Jesus sets for the disciples and for us the example of generosity by his offer of touch. And Jesus’ offer to come and touch made real for Thomas the resurrection of Jesus and the reality of eternal life. This is the resurrection story that we hear today.

Physical touch is often taken for granted, but scientists are finding it plays a vital role in healing. For some, physical touch is a welcomed gift. Hugs are a great way of offering hope and reassurance. It's a way of connecting without saying a word. Physical touch can communicate, "I feel your pain. I see you. I understand what you're going through."

I love Frederick Beuchner’s description of touch: “I hear your words. I see your face. I smell the rain in your hair, the coffee on your breath. I experience you within myself just as you within yourself experience me. But we don’t entirely meet until something else happens. We shake hands perhaps. We pat each other on the back. At parting or greeting, we may even go so far as to give each other a hug. And now it has happened. We discover each other to be flesh and bone, 3-dimensional, solid creatures of reality. Through simply touching, more directly than in any other way, we can transmit to each other something of the power of the life we have inside us. It is no wonder that just the touch of another human being at a dark time can be enough to save the day.”

There have been many studies performed on the healing power of touch. Doctors have found, through laboratory tests such as MRIs, that there are evident changes in the patterns of brain activity during touch. Certain types of endorphins are released resulting in a sense of relaxation and peace.

It occurs to me as I was reading this in this time when we are together electronically that we are in a position of imagining touch and connection and connectivity with one another in a new way. And that many of us are grieving that lack of ability to physically touch. There’s no doubt that God made some of us huggers and the huggers are especially grieving right now.

Part of grieving is the process of finding a new normal. Those of you who have been through loss understand this. It’s finding what in you is essential and feeding and supporting that essential part of you.

Bishop Jake Owensby had some interesting thoughts on this. He pointed out that each individual life consists of habits. Habits of thinking, feeling, and acting. It’s our normal. And some of that normal—even good and beloved parts of it—must be left behind to allow something more to emerge. An old self must die so that a truer, more loving self can emerge.

Followers of Jesus are resurrection people. We’ve staked our lives on the promise that, as Paul puts it, those who are in Christ are a New Creation. And to be a new creation means that we not only accept but look for a new normal.

The Apostle Thomas understood that Jesus was talking about a new normal. Thomas saw that the new normal meant that he would have to let go of the comforts of the old normal. Thomas, it seems, wanted reassurance from Jesus himself before he let go of the old normal. Reassurance that letting go is the way to the new normal.

I’ve spent some time the last few weeks talking to people at St. Matthias. And almost everyone is staying in contact with at least one or two others. People are attending worship, Bible study, just simply calling their friends who they miss seeing and talking to. Checking to see if they need anything. You’re doing amazing ministry with each other. You are finding a new normal – new ways to touch one another. You are making resurrection. Resurrection is a daily celebration over fear; our most powerful enemy. Fear of tomorrow, fear of what shall become of us in these unprecedented crazy times. Resurrection replaces fear with touching in new ways of love.

This story is a great witness to us and for us. We couldn’t be there in the room when the risen Jesus appeared to the disciples. But someone much like us was. Thomas with all his questions and conditions and needs to touch found resurrection that he could hold onto. My Lord and My God. May fearless, joyous resurrection today be every bit as real and compelling for each of you. Amen.

Easter Sunday

April 19, 2020 Andrea Schmid

by Fr. Bill Garrison

Please note that the following sermon text was provided prior to the audio recording. The two versions may differ substantially.

After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.’ This is my message for you.” So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

—Matthew 28:1-10 (NRSV)

Alleluia! Christ is Risen!

We proclaim this every year at Easter and then we get together with family and friends and have a celebration. Here is a cute little story about a grandfather and his granddaughter at an Easter get together.

The little girl was sitting on her grandfather’s lap. She loved doing that and he loved having her there. After a bit she began to gently touch his face. She followed the outline of some of the lines on his face and forehead. And then she asked a question.

“Grandpa did God make you?”

“Yes, sweetheart he did”, he replied.

“Did God make me too?”

“Yes God did”, he said.

She thought about it for a minute then said, “God is getting a lot better at it isn’t he?”

I have told that joke before. It’s one of my favorites.

Christ is Risen! Every Easter we make a new commitment to ourselves and God. Each year we decide we will do a better job of keeping our eyes on Jesus. And every year the cares of the world take over don’t they? Our commitment is drowned in daily living. You know what these issues are as well as I do.

This year we are especially challenged. We not only have the usual culprits that assail us, we are dealing with a pandemic. We are confined to home. We are afraid of catching the virus. People are sick and dying. We can’t go to the places we are accustomed and unbelievably we can’t go to church this Easter. What a mess.

And yet we know we will go on. We always do in spite of everything going on around us.

Those in the Holy Land at the time of the life of Jesus have a similar story. They spent time with him. They grew to love him. Their expectations of him were immense. He was their way out from under the thumb of the Roman Empire, or so it was commonly thought.

And then their hopes were dashed. Jesus was crucified. Everything had come to an end. Their sadness was deep and painful. Their sense of loss was overwhelming. For two days the world was dark and meaningless. But then God did something incredible, something unheard of. Jesus was resurrected from the dead. He was with them for several weeks afterwards.

And then he was gone again, returning to eternity.

Those that had known him closely or peripherally had a choice to make. They could choose faith, hope, and love, or turn to disbelief. They chose to believe. They chose faith, hope, and love. Why, we wonder?

They made that choice because it was true. Jesus Christ had risen from the dead. They were certain of that fact. They understood by that event everything had changed in an incredible way.

The foundation of my personal understanding of the resurrection is found in the writings of St. Paul. This is because they are historical documents, never meant to be part of some holy tome. They were letters written to communities he had founded speaking to certain issues that had arisen. We were never meant to see or hear them. And it is this fact that allows us to look through the window of history into the first century with great certainty.

My personal faith cornerstone is the First Letter from Paul to the Corinthians, chapter 15, verses 3 through 8. I quote it now.

“For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to someone untimely born, he appeared also to me.”

Cephas, by the way, was Peter’s nickname and James was Jesus’ brother. This passage is a very clear statement of fact. Jesus had risen from the dead and a lot of people experienced that fact. If you hadn’t seen him yourself you knew someone who had. It’s clear and concise. Jesus rose from the dead. The case is closed and the prosecution rests.

Life today is currently tough. This pandemic is taking a toll in so many ways. People are sick and dying. We are stuck at home and don’t know when we will be able to get out. People are going broke, as are businesses. Life is a mess. I won’t sugarcoat it. We don’t know what the future looks like. We can guess, but we only know a few things for sure.

But here is one of thing we do know. Easter will keep showing up. Babies will be born for us to love. Music will fill the air and we will be touched by it. People will laugh and be relieved for a little. Old love will flourish and new love will blossom. The sun will shine. The stars will come out. Plants will grow and flowers will come forth from them. New life will be evident once again. And all these will be Easter moments, evidence that God is still here, the author of all beauty and life. God will continue to love us, and be there right alongside us no matter what we encounter.

And for each of us worshiping today we will continue to discover Jesus. We will find him in scripture. We will feel his presence in worship. We will see his face in each other’s countenances.

And whatever faith you have will be enough. Don’t beat yourself up over the doubts that all of us carry. No matter if it is only the faith of a mustard seed. God will use it and nourish it. God loves us too much to lose any of us.

And finally today I have a personal Easter story. It began on Good Friday during the seven pm service. Now Good Friday is miserable for me. Experiencing the crucifixion of Jesus Christ is horrible. Nothing could be darker. But at exactly nine minutes after seven I got a text from my daughter. Please forgive me for having looked at it. Had I been in church I would not have.

You see she was texting to tell me about an Easter event that had just happened in the middle of the darkness. The event’s name is Andrew, a seven pound, five ounce baby boy. Our family has a new member. My first great-grandson, had just been born.

God had caused light to shine in the darkness once again. Alleluia! He is Risen!

COVID-19 Update: March 17, 2020

March 17, 2020 Andrea Schmid

NEW INSTRUCTIONS FROM BISHOP TAYLOR

Just after noon today, Bishop Taylor sent out an email with the following guidance for the people of our diocese:

All in-person church services, as well as “meetings, Bible studies, fellowship meals, and other activities” are cancelled through at least Easter Sunday, April 12th.
Online worship via live-streamed services and other resources is strongly recommended.
Weddings and funerals should be postponed if possible, but may be allowed as very small private ceremonies as long as all participants are healthy and maintain appropriate social distance.
Service ministries, especially feeding programs, should continue if at all possible. “Volunteers and staff should be under 65 and healthy, practicing rigorous hygiene and social distancing. Hot meals served inside should be discontinued in favor of outside distribution of foodstuffs and bagged meals.”

You can read Bishop Taylor’s complete statement here.

AT SAINT MATTHIAS

Sunday services will continue to be live-streamed via Facebook at 10:00 a.m.
Weekday services during Holy Week will be live-streamed at their previously scheduled times.
The Soup Hour will continue to distribute sack lunches as scheduled.