Category: General Interest

Items of General Interest about liturgy, the liturgical calendar, church customs and culture, our unique “Episcopal vocabulary,” the intersection of faith and culture, and all other items not fitting into the other categories (or fitting into multiple categories).

Another voice for renewal

From the first moment on the balcony overlooking Piazza San Pietro Pope Francis initiated a renewal in the Roman Catholic church. This renewal will (because we are all connected) influence the lives of all Christians, no matter their denominational affiliation.
In celebrating the 50th year of the Vatican II document on the Liturgy (titled Sacrosanctum Concilium) one of the speakers, Archbishop Piero Marini indicated that “The reforms launched by the Second Vatican Council are not behind us but ahead of us.”

An image of Vatican II posted by http://calnewman.org/vatican-ii/

Given all that has happened so far in the pontificate of Francis, I agree with the Archbishop. I believe (and I hope) that the reforms envisioned by the Second Vatican Council may begin to see the light of day—to the glory of God and for the welfare of all God’s people, and indeed, of all creation.

The full report of the Archbishop’s remarks (and others, too) is made by The Catholic Herald.co.uk: Vatican II’s reforms are still ahead of us, says Archbishop Marini.

Here are some other points to consider from this report:

  • The ongoing reform of the liturgy and sacraments will continue to impact all areas of ministry done by the church, inspiring hope
  • There is (apparently) a growing voice within Roman Catholicism to restore the ‘Sacraments of Initiation’ to a more ancient order: baptism-confirmation-eucharist (in contrast to the current order of baptism-eucharist-confirmation)
  • A hope was expressed (in so many words) that the church follow the lead of the Pope and understand that there are no “outsiders.”

As we listen to the Spirit and share with each other, this will certainly become a theme to explore. What do you think?

Goats and Chickens

A boy with a goat in Kenya, thanks to ERD

Early in October the folks at Episcopal Relief and Development invited those who would listen to make a Gift for Life as a good way to remember and honor “The Poor Man” of Assisi (St. Francis):

Today [October 4th] a very peculiar saint will be honored throughout the Christian world. Although he was from a wealthy family, he chose to live in poverty. He preached to a Sultan in Egypt, a flock of birds in the trees, and a ferocious wolf. He founded orders for men and women, and in 2013 a Pope took his name for the first time. Each year, he is honored far and wide with blessings of animals. He is St. Francis, the gentle man from 13th century Assisi, Italy. We invite you to honor him by increasing opportunities for others with the gift of a cow, a chicken, a pig, or my favorite, a goat!
—Sean McConnell, Engagement Director for ERD in a Facebook Post

On two Sundays our Sunday Morning Forum group gathered up just under $100 and with a little help beyond the Forum we made a donation to purchase and send a goat and some chickens to help feed brothers and sisters far from the Coachella Valley and St. Margaret’s.

2013-1015 ERD Donation

To make this gift go even further, generous donors to ERD have pledged to match gifts made to ERD between now and December 6th. So, we’re able to send out 2 goats and twice as many chickens as our small part of the global efforts of ERD.

To all who have this possible: Thank you. Keep it going: make your own gift to ERD as a way of doing good today, and tomorrow!

Photo: Episcopal Relief & Development

Look again/anew at Paul

2013-1014-paul-amongWhat’s the connection between St. Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians and the second-century Roman novelist Apuleius’s comedy The Golden Ass? More than you might think, says classicist Sarah Ruden in her book Paul Among the People (Image). Ruden, who specializes in ancient Greek and Roman literature, became interested in the preconceptions modern readers bring to Paul’s writing when she began studying the apostle herself. –

Read the interview in US Catholic

We shared the link to the interview on our Facebook Page. Now we share it here. Read the article. Share what you think. Keep the conversation going.

South African Anglicans respond to Archbishop Deng’s Challenge

On October 5th we shared the ACNS reporting of Archbishop Deng’s challenge to the Church. He was speaking to Anglicans in South Africa (and to all women and men of goodwill). The Church in South Africa has responded.

The Primate of the Episcopal Church of Sudan, the Most Revd Daniel Deng Bul YakThe Anglican Church in Southern Africa has committed itself to form a partnership with the Episcopal Church in Sudan, with which it shares membership of the Anglican Communion.

The commitment to pursue a ‘partners in mission’ relationship was made by the church’s Provincial Synod, meeting this week in Benoni, South Africa. I

t came in response to the address given by the Archbishop of Sudan, the Most Revd Dr Daniel Deng Bul, who has been a guest of the Provincial Synod, and of the Synod of Bishops which preceded it.

Read the report shared by AllAfrica.com on 10/7/13

A challenge from Sudan

On Sunday (10/6) we will take a closer look at 2 Timothy 1:1-14 (the lesson appointed for worship). Among other things we’ll hear, anew, the Apostle’s exhortation: “rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands; for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline. (vv. 6-7 NRSV). Overall this letter exhorts Timothy (and us) to continue to trust the God who has called us and blessed us and sent us into the world to share God’s love.
In the midst of this study comes this challenge from the Primate of the Episcopal Church of Sudan (ministries exist in both Sudan and South Sudan). It is a reminder that being Christian is not always easy and that trusting God is not always easy and that prayer needs to be concurrent with action.

The Primate of the Episcopal Church of Sudan, the Most Revd Daniel Deng Bul YakThe Primate of the Episcopal Church of Sudan, the Most Revd Daniel Deng Bul Yak has challenged the worldwide Anglican Communion to actively help the war-affected people of South Sudan.

He was speaking in an exclusive interview with ACNS in Johannesburg, South Africa, where he is attending the Anglican Church of Southern Africa’s Provincial Synod as special guest.

The Primate complained that the Anglican Church in South Sudan felt it was struggling alone and not receiving adequate support from other Member Churches. “People are just saying we are supporting you in prayers, but prayers must be followed by action.

“We need good education and health and there are a lot of experienced people within the Anglican Communion who can come and help us,” he said. “We need missionaries to come and set up schools and health centres in South Sudan. There is a lot that Anglicans can do to help.” (Anglican Communion News Service, ACNS)

Read the complete report of the Archbishop’s Challenge.

Let us add this to our Sunday discussion. Come and join us on Sunday (10/6/13) if you are able.

Recreated by Christ’s love

The cross in the church of San DamianoWhere did Francis’s journey to Christ begin? It began with the gaze of the crucified Jesus. With letting Jesus look at us at the very moment that he gives his life for us and draws us to himself. Francis experienced this in a special way in the Church of San Damiano, as he prayed before the cross …

Today, October 4th, the Church remembers Francis of Assisi. Pope Francis traveled to Assisi and celebrated the Eucharist with thousands. His homily, at least the prepared text ( we know he often ad libs), is available for our consideration.

The Pope asks, “What does Saint Francis’s witness tell us today? What does he have to say to us, not merely with words – that is easy enough – but by his life?” He sets before us three answers beginning with:

His first and most essential witness is this: that being a Christian means having a living relationship with the person of Jesus; it means putting on Christ, being conformed to him. […]

On that cross, Jesus is depicted not as dead, but alive! Blood is flowing from his wounded hands, feet and side, but that blood speaks of life. Jesus’ eyes are not closed but open, wide open: he looks at us in a way that touches our hearts. The cross does not speak to us about defeat and failure; paradoxically, it speaks to us about a death which is life, a death which gives life, for it speaks to us of love, the love of God incarnate, a love which does not die, but triumphs over evil and death.

He proceeds to offer two other answers:

… the second witness that Francis gives us: that everyone who follows Christ receives true peace, the peace that Christ alone can give, a peace which the world cannot give.

… [third] Saint Francis of Assisi bears witness to the need to respect all that God has created, and that men and women are called to safeguard and protect, but above all he bears witness to respect and love for every human being.

Read the text of his homily. Understand the Pope’s prayers for us. I also encourage you to be attentive to reports of his ad lib comments and find trusted commentators (like Fr. James Martin, SJ, or the writers on Religion News Service or the folks at America Magazine) who have access to even more information and anecdotal material.

St. Theodora

Sadly, I had not paid attention to this story as it developed (1998-2006). Until today (10/3/13) Saint Theodora was unknown to me. What a remarkable woman. Glad that Fr. James Martin, SJ, shared this on Facebook:

The remarkable story of Mother Theodore Guerin, whose bishop demanded that she resign from the congregation that she founded, and leave the state. (He also locked her up for a time in a rectory.) “I have the greatest aversion to this kind of administration,” she said of these kinds of actions. “It seems to me it would keep our sisters in a species of slavery.” Now she’s a saint, whose feast we celebrate today [10/3].

Here is the link to his NYT essay about her: Saints that weren’t 

A matter of emphasis

The perspective of age

A new eCourse is being offered by Spirituality and Practice. The course (which begins October 7) will offer us opportunities to explore ‘the view’ as we pause in our ascent and look out.

About the course:

Aging is a great adventure, an opportunity to deepen and enrich our spirituality. In this e-course in Spirituality & Practice’s Elder Spirituality Project, Joan Chittister discovers blessings behind every aspect of growing older. There is a difference, she notes, between age, aging, aged, ag’ed, and ripened. Through this month-long program, she reframes aging and encourages us to discover through reflection and practice what new perceptions and attitudes about growing older can mean for our own lives.

More information about The Blessings of Aging with Joan Chittister

From Crystal Cathedral to Christ Cathedral

Street view of the new Christ Cathedral in Orange, CA

What are the symbolic, artistic, liturgical, theological, legal and very practical decisions to make in converting a sacred space designed for one faith expression into a sacred space for a different faith expression? You might be surprised.

Recently the LA Times offered some insight into these questions in their report, Changing faiths at the Crystal Cathedral (Rick Rojas, September 13, 2013).

The name has already been changed to the Christ Cathedral. But the work of liturgical consultants, priests and architects to transform a temple so closely identified as a symbol of Schuller’s sunny, uniquely Southern Californian theology into one that conforms to the traditions of the Roman Catholic Church has just begun.

“The exterior will always be the Crystal Cathedral, at least for a while,” said Duncan Stroik, a professor of architecture at Notre Dame and editor of the publication Sacred Architecture Journal. “Catholic on the inside, but kind of Protestant on the outside.”

Those who have taken on the project recognize that their assignment is a intimidating one, but they also have faith:

They can turn the Crystal Cathedral into the Christ Cathedral.

It is a fascinating story. It affirms our quest here (in the blog) and in the Sunday Morning Forum to ‘pay attention’ to our faith expressed in art and our faith shaped by art (in its many forms). What do you think?

Image: Mark Boster in the LA Times. Click the image to view more photographs of this project and of the history of the Crystal Cathedral.

Ask yourself …

… do you pray for that brother or sister
who’s in difficulty for confessing their faith?

That is the question Pope Francis asked of the crowd in St. Peter’s Square on Wednesday, September 25, 2013.

Grieving after a suicide bomb attack in Peshawar, Pakistan

The Pope’s comments came in response to an attack on an Anglican Church in Peshawar, Pakistan that left 78 dead. Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, also spoke of the courage, the willingness to forgive, and the ‘cry for justice’ arising from the ashes of the destruction. Listen to his comments on Radio 4’s World at One.

Well, do you pray for brothers and sisters you may never meet, but who are family to you?