Frontpage, March 27, 2022

Spring, March 27, 2022

Fourth Sunday in Lent

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March 27 – 11:00am, Holy Eucharist, Lent 4 – Join here at 10:45am for gathering – service starts at 11am Meeting ID: 869 9926 3545
Passcode: 889278

• Lectionary, March 27, 2022
• Bulletin March 27, 2022
• Commentary March 27, 2022

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March 30 – Bible Study 10am-12pm

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It’s tulip season and the earlier part of the week was just right for taking them in. In late 2021, Bloomia, a King George wholesale florist donated 65,000 bulbs to be be planted in Fredericksburg. I took in Hanover Street and the residents were extremely proud of the results as they should be .

The beauty would be something I would expect to find in the Bible. However, the Bible does not mention tulips specifically. Biblical scholars now tell us that the phrase “lilies of the field” refers to many different kinds of flowers, including the tulip. The more than 6,000 varieties of tulips are a testament of the creativity of gardeners to breed special varieties and the earth to make them prosper.

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Easter Gifts – Lily and donation to the Endowment Fund

 

Here’s the form. Easter Lilies are due April 3, $10 a lily.

Please send the form and the funds to St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, P. O. Box 399, Port Royal, VA 22535.

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Lent 4, March 27, "Mothering Sunday"

The fourth Sunday in Lent is traditionally known as “Mothering Sunday” or Refreshment Sunday. In some parts of Great Britain, the custom was to return to the “mother church” or the cathedral for a special service on this day, and it also became customary to celebrate or pay special respect to one’s own mother on this day, a sort of Anglican “Mother’s Day.”

Another custom is the relaxation of austere Lenten observances on this day, the baking of simnel cakes (light fruit cakes covered in marzipan), and in some places the replacement of purple robes and liturgical hangings with rose-colored ones. Simnel cakes are called such because of the fine flour (Latin "simila") they were made of.  
 

Children of all ages were expected to pay a formal visit to their mothers and to bring a Simnel cake as a gift. In return, the mothers gave their children a special blessing. This custom was so well-established that masters were required to give servants enough time off to visit out-of-town mothers – provided the trip did not exceed 5 days! This holiday became Mother’s Day in America.

A recipe for Simnel cake is here. 

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Lent at St. Peter’s 2022

Information about Lent, 7 Lenten Practices, Events, Christian Ed in 2022 and 2021 during Lent, Special topic including web resources, family activities in Lent, Lenten Prayers and music as well as giving to the Endowment Fund during Lent.

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Focusing in on Luke’s Prodigal Son parable (Lent 4)

Luke 15 , the Gospel reading for March 27, starts out with 3 parables, the Prodigal son the third.

First, he imagines a shepherd who leaves his flock in order to find one errant sheep ("Lost Sheep"). Second, he describes a woman who loses a coin ("Lost Coin"). These parables are about being lost and now found. The first two have three common threads running through each. 1) Something or someone is lost. 2) The lost is sought for. 3) Great joy is shared at the recovery of the thing (person) found. The third parable, the Prodigal son, is slightly different. In it, the one who is lost returns to where he came from.

The prodigal son is Luke’s best known parable and also the longest.  It is one with an ending that seems not fair. The word "prodigal"  basic meaning is "wasteful"–particularly with regard to money.

There are many levels of the story. It is a story of the consequences of sin both in terms of what happens to us but also the promise of the return from separation from God. It is a story of welcome and reconciliation. This story is found only in the Gospel of Luke

We see a progression through the three parables from the relationship of one in a hundred (Luke 15:1-7), to one in ten (Luke 15:8-10), to one in one (Luke 15:11-32), demonstrating God’s love for each individual and his personal attentiveness towards all humanity.

The parable is Jesus response to the Pharisees and Scribes since they believe his behavior is an affront to the community. Jesus is associating with the’ wrong people." He is welcoming those who have been cast out; and honoring those who have been shamed by sharing a meal . To invite a person to a meal was an honor that implied acceptance, trust and peace. Jesus response is not to rebuke the Pharisees and scribes but to teach through parables.

The parable has 3 scenes with the first part focusing on the younger son and the last two parts on the father

(1) the negotiations of the younger son with his father and his subsequent departure to a foreign country where he is wasteful and becomes impoverished (15:11-19);

(2) the homecoming of that son and the welcome by his father (15:20-24); and

(3) the interchange between the father and his older son (15:25-32).

Read more…

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The Prodigal Son in Art- Rembrandt

One of the most famous depictions of the Prodigal son was by Rembrandt toward the end of his life.

Rembrandt’s painting was done in 1669 and features his characteristic dark with light shining on the main characters of the father and prodical son. It is a striking painting that brings the emotional return of the son’s return to life

From a site on Rembrandt’s painting- 

Read more…

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Lectionary, April 3, 2022, Lent 5

I. Theme –  The celebration of new life on the road.

 “Christ in the House of Mary and Martha" – Jan Vermeer (1654-55)

"But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, "Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?" (He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.) Jesus said, "Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me."

The lectionary readings are here  or individually: 

Old Testament – Isaiah 43:16-21
Psalm – Psalm 126
Epistle – Philippians 3:4b-14
Gospel – John 12:1-8      

Today’s readings celebrate the new life God grants through Christ. Isaiah speaks of the “new thing” God will do—life-giving, restorative, renewing. Paul asserts that all his personal achievements are worthless compared to the new life to be gained in Christ. Jesus reveals that his death and resurrection not only invite judgment but call us to compassion, forgiveness and conversion—that is, to new life!

Over the past weeks we have been looking at the pattern in the readings of the Lectionary during Lent. One aspect of that pattern has been the recurring notion of pilgrimage – an active journey to a holy site, a journey from tyranny into freedom, an interior journey into our own faith, or the journey from spiritual moment to spiritual moment, such as the Stations of the Cross.

What can you do to show your journey in the cause of freedom or betterment ? Give someone a gift of flowers, a home-cooked meal, or an unexpected note of appreciation. Use your hands and heart to their fullest, trusting that God can use even the smallest actions to unbind life and set it free. As you become the change you seek, let your goal be to participate in the many resurrections God unleashes all around, today and tomorrow

In Judaism (as well as in later Christianity) we hear of such journeys.

The Bible sees the journey of Abraham and Sarah from the Ur of the Chaldeans as not a mere relocation, but a journey guided and informed by God. Similarly the journey of Israel from Egypt to the promised land is not only a political reality but is peppered with spiritual moments of learning at various points along the way. With the construction of the Temple in Jerusalem, the people saw an opportunity to make a pilgrimage to a holy place, learn and experience there, and to return home. Even before this Temple, shrines and holy places in ancient Israel drew pilgrims to experience God on the journey. The Psalms of Ascent (Psalm 120-134) literally give voice to the sacred journey of people to the Temple and worship.

Since Luke 9 in the Gospel Jesus has "set his face to Jerusalem", his final pilgrimage. He has been tested after his baptism in Lent 1 by the devil. In Lent 2, Jesus reminds his audience that, as a prophet, his destiny awaits him in Jerusalem after being warned that Herod wants to kill him. During Lent 3, continued his teachings on repentance and confronted his critics with the Prodigal son in Lent 4. The hope of Christ gets connected in the resurrection and the life.

Christians began their own journeys; Paul’s being the most notable as he moved from place to place honoring the Gospel. Early Christians traveled back to the source as we read about the journeys of Origin, Helen, and Jerome. During this season, it might be interesting to read about the pilgrimage of Egeria, a Gallic woman, to Jerusalem during the Holy Week of (ca.) 381. Later Christians would journey to not only Jerusalem but to Santiago de Compostela, Canterbury, Rome, and many other places. The journey is the heightened human experience, often written down for the benefit of others. Let us continue our journey during this Lent.

Read more..

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Tomb, Perfume, Feet, Devil – John 12:1-8 (April 7)

John’s Gospel is a collection of signs and symbols. In particular, John 12, Mary Annoints Jesus at Bethany, in this week before Palm Sunday and Passover concentrates on life and death. Take four seemingly unconnected words – Tomb, Perfume, Feet, and Devil within this scripture and their meanings are intertwined: 

1 Tomb – Passover is near, and so too is Jesus’ "hour" (see 13:1). He spends time with Mary, Martha, and Lazarus soon after the pivotal scene of Lazarus’s revivification (11:1-44). That is the "sign" that brings many to believe in him (11:45; 12:9-11), many to flock to him (12:17-19), and others to plot his death (11:47-53). When Jesus mentions his burial in 12:7, this confirms that his end is coming. Yet Lazarus’s presence at the table confirms that death does not speak the final word.

2 Perfume.  Jesus forges the connection between the anointing and his burial in 12:7 Jesus suggests that Mary’s keeping the perfume in her possession and using it on him now have consequently achieved a greater, more meaningful purpose that she perhaps intended: announcing the nearness of Jesus’ death and preparing for his burial.

3 Feet – Mary’s wiping of Jesus’ feet prefigures the time when he will wipe the feet of his disciples (13:5). This reveals her as a model disciple, for the washing and wiping of feet expresses a unity with Jesus (13:8) and reflects his command (13:14-15).  

4 Devil – Readers know from 6:70-71 that Judas is "a devil," but John chooses this point in the narrative to reveal him as a thief (compare 13:29). 

Back to the words. You can connect the following- 

Tomb and perfume –  The sweet smell of Mary’s perfume counters the stench of Lazarus’s tomb (11:39). Life and death, wholeness and corruption remain contrasted throughout both scenes.

Feet and Devil represent the contrast between Mary and Judas This creates a clear opposition between him and Mary. He is false; she is true. He is greedy and self-serving; she is generous and ebullient in devotion.

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