Last Sunday (Pentecost 18, Year A, October 12, 2014)
October 17 – 3:30pm, "Feeding the Team"
October 19 – 10:00am, Godly Play
October 19 – 11:00am, Holy Eucharist, Rite II, Pentecost 19 (Bring a can of soup for the Village Harvest food ministry)
This Sunday at St. Peter’s – Servers, Readings
Feeding the Caroline HS Football Team, Friday, Oct 17, 3:30pm
Keep Eunice and her volunteers in your prayers on Friday as they once again feed the Caroline Football team as an outreach project and one to extend fellowship in the community.
Here is a photo gallery and article from last year’s successful effort. Several commented on our gracious hospitality (and of course excellent food!).
2013 (full size gallery of 10 pictures)
The cooking team of St. Peter’s and Shiloh Baptist fed that other team – the Caroline Football team on Monday, Oct. 14, 2013. (Catherine also was there as photographer)
Got a Can of soup ? Bring it on Sundays in October
Well, you might not have one of the Andy Warhol-inspired cans but we could use any can of soup to support our new food ministry when we distribute in November. Please bring them in during Sundays in October and place it in the box in the back pew. Thanks!
"Now Ebola is at war against humanity.." – The Crisis in Africa
On Oct. 7 clergy in West Africa have challenged Anglicans worldwide to “live as their brothers’ keepers” and act to address the Ebola crisis. Priests have issue this challenge after they attended a worship entitled Church and Community Response to Ebola in which they learned more about the disease and how to prevent its spread.
In a statement issued after the workshop “We challenge the international community to live as their brothers’ keepers. We encourage Anglican Churches or Christian Churches the world over to express their solidarity by observing one Sunday as Ebola Sunday to pray and mobilise resources for the affected areas in the sub-region or West Africa.”
The Ebola crisis in West Africa is the largest of its kind since the 1976 outbreak. More than 6,200 people have been infected with the virus in severely affected countries such as Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, according to World Health Organization (WHO) reports. It estimates that numbers of infected persons could top 1 million by January 2015.
So what can we do ?
1. Learn – World Health Organization FAQ
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Infection occurs from direct contact through broken skin or mucous membranes with the blood, or other bodily fluids or secretions (stool, urine, saliva, semen) of infected people. Infection can also occur if broken skin or mucous membranes of a healthy person come into contact with environments that have become contaminated with an Ebola patient’s infectious fluids such as soiled clothing, bed linen, or used needles.
You can’t get it through air, water or food in the USA or casual contact with someone who has no symptoms of the disease.
Symptoms may appear anywhere from 2 to 21 days after exposure to Ebola, but the average is 8 to 10 days. They include fever (>101.5 degrees), severe headache, muscle pain, weakness, diarrhea, vomiting, stomach pain, unexplained bleeding or bruising.Recovery from Ebola depends on good supportive clinical care and the patient’s immune response. People who recover from Ebola infection develop antibodies that last for at least 10 years.
2. Pray – for the work of the Episocopal Relief Foundatipn
The Disaster Response & Recovery Approach
Phase I: Immediate Response
The initial response focuses on providing resources, community sensitization, and key messaging. This includes providing food assistance, sanitation supplies and hygiene materials to affected communities.
Phase II (Currently in Progress): Continuation, scaling up and intensifying
emergency response
In this phase, partners are replenishing supplies as necessary and delivering essentials to health centers such as sanitation supplies, hygiene materials and food assistance.
Phase III: Preparing for post-Ebola recovery
The plans for post-Ebola recovery will include rehabilitating survivors and other affected individuals and families by strengthening livelihoods, providing agricultural support and reintegrating survivors to their home communities.
3. Empathize
On the Episcopal Relief & Development blog, Senior Program Officer Abiy Seifu writes about how the Church’s long-term presence and dedicated work in communities now impacted by Ebola enables it to mobilize existing networks and program teams to handle the current crisis, and positions it to assist during the post-Ebola recovery phases.
Collective effort of the Episcopal Relief organization
4. Donate one Sunday – "We encourage Anglican Churches or Christian Churches the world over to express their solidarity by observing one Sunday as Ebola Sunday to pray and mobilise resources for the affected areas in the sub-region or West Africa.”
5. Give
Donate to the Ebola Crisis Response Fund
"When Ebola Came to Our Church" – Huffington Post
– George Mason, Senor Pastor Wilshire Baptist Church
Summary
"Eric Duncan — the man who days before boarding that plane had selflessly aided a pregnant woman in medical distress, much like the Good Samaritan of the Gospels — came to Dallas to marry a member of the congregation where I serve as senior pastor. He came to reunite with Louise Troh, who was baptized in our church earlier this year and is a regular participant in the life of the church.
"Ebola came to our church, even though no one was exposed to the virus inside our building. We encountered Ebola because one of our members came face-to-face with it. And to echo the words of the Apostle Paul, when one member of the body hurts, the entire body feels pain.
"What we’ve learned in recent weeks is that there’s a flip side to this truth as well: When we’re carefully taught to love rather than hate, when we’re carefully taught to care rather than shun, it shows up in our actions. And in times of crisis — like when Ebola comes to church — what we’ve been taught pops into full view.
"We’ve seen this lived out in Dallas by our mayor, Mike Rawlings, and our top county official, Clay Jenkins. Both these elected officials spontaneously acted in ways that not only offered compassion but inspired others to be compassionate. They knew you’ve got to be carefully taught.
"The lesson we all need to learn now is another biblical teaching: We are, in fact, our brother’s keeper. Because Eric Duncan got on that plane and came to Dallas, we put a face and a name and a life story and hopes and dreams with the tragedy of Ebola. Because he came to Dallas, Ebola was no longer someone else’s problem; it became our problem.
"We need to be carefully taught, once again, the old African proverb: "I am because we are."
Lectionary, October 19, Pentecost 19
I.Theme – Grow in trust and generosity as followers of Christ and discover new ways of living our stewardship. God rules over all creation.
"The Tribute Money" – Jacek Malczewski (1908)
The lectionary readings are here or individually:
Old Testament – Isaiah 45:1-7
Psalm – Psalm 96:1-9, (10-13) Page 725, BCP
Epistle –1 Thessalonians 1:1-10
Gospel – Matthew 22:15-22
In the Isaiah reading God directs affairs of Israel’s adversaries. Isaiah 45:1-7 speaks of God’s anointing of Cyrus to help bring the deliverance of Israel out of exile.
While the Jews were exiled in Babylon, the Persian emperor Cyrus began defeating neighboring kingdoms and letting the defeated peoples practice their own religions. Isaiah foresaw Cyrus defeating Babylon and liberating the captives there. The Jews would be free to return to Jerusalem. So in this passage, the prophet declares that Cyrus, even though a pagan, is God’s instrument, even God’s "Anointed," that is, "Messiah."
This is the only occurrence in the Old Testament of the term "messiah" referring to someone outside of the covenant community. Of Cyrus it is said that God calls him by name, language applied previously to Abraham and Israel, indicating a close relationship between God and his anointed ‘agent’. God’s sovereignty is, however, absolute: I am the Lord; there is no other
This was a daring thing to say by Isaiah so may have cost the prophet dearly.
Isaiah, while speaking to the Hebrews in exile about to return, gives us a glimpse of the kind of Messiah God would bring in Jesus–someone who would be an unlikely leader but one who would break through the gates and chains that kept the people separated from God–sin, the oppression by the religious elite, prejudice, poverty, racism, and all other barriers to freedom in God–Jesus would break these wide open.
What was going on among the Christians in Thessalonia that led Saint Paul to write? That unfolds slowly in the selections we’ll see over the five Sundays. From today’s text, it’s clear that these people worked hard at being Christians, and that Saint Paul thought that praiseworthy. Paul greets them with the assurance that God has chosen them for great works of faith
Thessalonia was a new Chrstian community less than a year old. Despite this newness the Thessalonians are held up as examples for all across the young church. The word example is one that speaks volumes for the Thessalonians were folk who did not shout about what they had done, but acted out that they had turned from idols and all that that lead to and in that living proclaimed the Good News.
The life and faith of the Thessalonians, in the face of persecution, is a sign that God has chosen them: they are imitators of the Lord and an example to others.
Psalm 96 sings praises to God who is the judge of the world, the judge of all nations, and reminds us that God is the one due our praise and worship, and that the whole earth is judged by God. Psalm 99 similarly sings of God as judge over the peoples, and that God hears the prayers of the prophets and priests who call on God’s name. Both psalms call upon the people to worship God and to remember that God is the one who is the judge of the world.
Matthew 22:15-22 is the story of how Jesus was questioned about paying taxes. He redirects Pharisees thought to God’s sovereignty.
The Pharisees were trying to trap Jesus, so they had the Herodians accompany them, members of the ruling family who were Hellenistic Jews–they had taken on the practices and culture of the Greeks and were mainly Jewish in name only, as they were privileged in living off of the wealth of the people and kept in power by Rome.
The question of whether or not it was lawful to pay taxes to the emperor was loaded. The tax in question was an annual tax, administered by Jewish authorities, but levied by Rome. This tax put such a burden on impoverished Jews in Palestine that, at least on one occasion, it provoked rebellion against Rome that ended the way Rome tended to end things – decisively and with much bloodshed.
When Jesus is asked about paying taxes, they are questioning his authority–is the Messiah really going to rise up against Rome, which means rising up against these Herodians, or is this Messiah a coward, going to bow to the pressure of Herod’s family under Rome?
So, if Jesus answers his opponents simply by saying yes, it is lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, then he risks alienating the poor and the oppressed who bore the greatest burden. And if he says, no, it is not lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, he risks facing charges of sedition. Jesus’ answer, therefore, is brilliant, as he allows for the possibility of paying these taxes but makes it clear to any person of faith that he or she must consider what belongs to God.
Jesus, in reminding them that the coin shows the Emperor’s face, saying the famous “Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s,” shows that the Messiah is neither an earthly leader going to overthrow the Roman government nor is he a coward bowing to the pressures of the ruling class.
God is concerned about Godly things–which is everything. Since God has given everyone all that they have, everything belongs to God. Caesar may think he is God or may be called a god, but he is not. If one knows the one true God, then one knows that all things come from God. God is interested in how we use our resources, how we live on this earth, how we do what God has called us to do, and is less concerned about whether or not we pay taxes. It is how we use what we have been given to further God’s kingdom and remembering that God has given us everything that is important.
Read more about the Lectionary…
"A Man for All Seasons" – Saying ‘no’ to a King
by Ed McNulty
"A Man For All Seasons, the Best Picture Oscar winner for 1966, tells the story of a man who said “No” to a king who demanded what he in good conscience believed belonged only to God and the church. Fred Zinnemann directed the script adapted by Robert Bolt based on his play about the battle of conscience and wills between the King of England and one of his loyal subjects. Actors Robert Shaw as the King and Paul Schofield as the only man in England who has the courage to say “No” to the king are magnificent in their roles!
"In the 1560s King Henry VIII (Robert Shaw), worried about the failure of his wife Catherine of Aragon to birth a male heir, decides that he will lay aside his wife so that he can marry the young, and hopefully fertile, Anne Bolyn (Vanessa Redgrave). The Pope has denied the king’s request for an annulment, so King Henry breaks with Rome, declaring himself to be the head of the church in England. All of his officials, even Archbishop Cranmer, support him in this venture—all but one, his Lord High Chancellor of England Sir Thomas More (Paul Scofield). A devout believer in the supremacy of the Pope, Sir Thomas would not sign the letter that the King had sent to the Rome
"More (1478–1535) was the author of Utopia, a classic published in 1516. In the book the issue of whether to join the service of the King or remain a philosopher was one that Sir Thomas More constantly struggled with in his life. At the time he wrote Utopia, this question was of particular interest to him, as he was on the cusp of joining the King’s service. The struggle between remaining free to pursue the ideal and pragmatically compromising that purity for the sake of social utility is an important theme in Sir Thomas More’s life, right down to his final decision to abandon pragmatism for the ultimate ideal of martyrdom.
Image and Likeness
"Creation of Adam Mosaic" (1182-92)
"In Genesis we read that we are made in the image and likeness of God: "God created man in his image, in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them" (Genesis 1:27). Each person is created singularly, uniquely, reflecting something of God in their person. But when minting coins a ruler makes all the images exactly the same; they are flat representations of himself. When Jesus asks for the coin and poses the question, "Whose image and inscription is this?" they respond with Caesar’s name and image. … The coin belongs to Caesar, but the person, the human being, belongs solely to God. "
– Megan McKenna On Your Mark: Reading Mark in the Shadow of the Cross
Whose Image is Stamped on Your Heart? (Matthew 22:15-22)
Odyssey Network
Entire Article
Summary
“But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, ‘You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? Show me the coin used for paying the tax.’
“They brought him a denarius, and he asked them, ‘Whose image is this? And whose inscription?’
“ ‘Caesar’s,’ they replied.
“Then he said to them, ‘So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.’
“When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away.”
Yes, at a simple level this answer probably means that a follower of Jesus should pay the tax required by today’s equivalent of Caesar, even if Caesar is corrupt – even if the money isn’t going to make it to Caesar because the corruption is multi-layered.
"Most of us would reasonably interpret the equivalent of Caesar to mean our federal, state and local governments. And while American currency is inscribed “In God We Trust,” that fine print on the backside pales compared to the big portrait of a famous political leader on the front.
"Hmm. There appears to be no way out of paying up.
"To take the comparison an absurd step farther, remember that in America today, Caesar’s Palace is actually in Las Vegas. Maybe we could hypothesize that the equivalent of paying off Caesar Augustus is to turn over a percentage of your denarii to the extravagant, risky, flashy, sexist, silly lifestyle represented by what happens in Vegas. I’m not recommending this, but you can see how even paying taxes to Vegas might be parallel with what some devout Jews thought of turning over their coins to Rome. And still Jesus told them to do so.
"Even if that’s how harshly you view the government in Washington and how much you cringe at the idea of turning over dollars to the IRS, you still should do it, too. The alternative is not worth it: No need to start an insurrection over it; no need to get yourself locked up.
"Unless, of course, being able to hang on to a few more of those U.S. dollars is the most important issue of your life.
"If that’s the case, then not only is the image of Caesar on your money, it’s impinged on your heart as well. You are showing that you belong to a world in which dollars and denarii drive your decisions.
"And that’s why, beyond the simple question of whether Christians should pay taxes, people with pure hearts struggling to live rightly in today’s world need the second, more demanding half of Jesus’ instructions: “Give back to God what is God’s.”
"Beyond a doubt, as surely as Caesar’s image was stamped on the denarius, an image has been stamped on your life. It is the image of God, to whom you belong. Your species has borne that image since the first chapter of Genesis, when God spoke: “Let us make human beings in our image, make them reflecting our nature.”
"If you do agree with that, though, you see why “Give back to God what is God’s” is a much more powerful instruction from his Son than any nodding acceptance of the financial system that pays for roads, soldiers and bureaucrats in Rome or Washington. And you see how it can provide Christians with powerful motivation for what they say and do about issues of contemporary governance ranging from immigration to the environment.
"So, sure, pay a few denarii to keep Caesar happy, but remember whose image is stamped on your heart. Give Caesar those few denarii, but give God all the important stuff."
Whose image ? The 2014 Caravan Art Exhibit – "AMEN: A Prayer for the World"
Article in Episcopal News Service
The Rev. Paul-Gordon Chandler is the founder of CARAVAN. CARAVAN is an interfaith arts organization which in its six year holds an international art exhibition. Chandler grew up in Africa, is an author and served in Egypt as an Episcopal priest, most recently Rector of St. John’s Episcopal Church/Maadi in Cairo with an international congregation of 25 nationalities.
The Episcopal News Service spoke about Chandler’s mission – " to ease that religious and cultural tension by focusing on commonalities rather than trying to overcome differences." With religious extremism and persecution so prevalent and interwoven so thickly with politics, especially in the Middle East, this mission is needed now more than ever. The ring he wears is a testament to his mission and shows a person bridging the gap between the symbols of the Christian cross and Muslim crescent .
Working with Chandler is the Egyptian artist Reda Abdel Rahman. This year, they selected 48 artists – 30 Egyptian artists with Muslim and Christian backgrounds, and 18 Western artists with Jewish and Christian backgrounds. The exhibit is called “AMEN: A Prayer for the World."
Summary of the Press Release
This exhibit was in Cairo, the National Cathedral and now is at the Cathedral of St. John Divine.
"CARAVAN, an international inter-religious and intercultural arts non-profit, begun in 2009 in Cairo, Egypt, has the objective of building bridges through the arts betweenthe creeds and cultures the Middle East and West. One of the flagship initiatives of CARAVAN is the globally recognized annual interfaith CARAVAN Exhibition of Visual Art.
"This style= unique exhibition brings together many of the Middle East’s premier and emerging artists to enhance understanding, respect,and deepen friendship between those of different faiths and cultures through the arts. The vision for this 2014 CARAVAN exhibition is for the Middle East and the West to embody the spirit of intercultural and inter-religious solidarity that was so beautifully illustrated for the world by Egyptians during the “January 25, 2011 Revolution.”
"The 2014 CARAVAN Exhibition of Visual Art is focusing on Egypt and the United States. Entitled " AMEN–A Prayer for the World ,” 48 premier and emerging artists (30 Egyptian-both Muslim and Christian, and 18 Western- -Christian and Jewish) were invited to participate in this unique visual art ex hibition that was opened first in Cairo, Egypt on June 17 at the Museum of Modern Art.
"Each of the 48 participating artists has been given a life-size fiberglass sculpture in one of four poses of prayer to paint or decorate as they wish. The ‘model’ for the sculptural prayer form is Amun, the deity of ancient Thebes in the 11th dynasty (c. 21st century BC) who is considered the first to develop religion toward monotheism. The four sculptural forms therefore communicate a modern essence of Amun, each depicted with his face. In this exhibition the historic figure of “Amun” is being associated with the word “Amen,” an affirmation commonly used to conclude Christian, Muslim and Jewish prayers or blessings.
Introduction to Thessalonians
Editor’s note – Passages from 1 Thessalonians will be the Epistle reading until Nov. 16. Here is a short introduction –
Thessalonica was a bustling seaport city at the head of the Thermaic Gulf. It was an important communication and trade center, located at the junction of the great Egnatian Way and the road leading north to the Danube.
It was the largest city in Macedonia and was also the capital of its province. Thessalonica was the largest city of Macedonia. It has been estimated that during Paul’s time its population may have been as high as 200,000. The majority of the inhabitants were Greeks, but there was also a mixture of other ethnic groups, including Jews.
In c. 315 BCE Cassander, the son-in-law of Philip of Macedon (who fathered Alexander the Great) gathered and organized the area villages into a new metropolisfont-family: Georgia; font-size: 10pt, Thessalonica. He gave the city its name in honor of his wife, the half-sister of Alexander.
Thessalonica remained in Greek hands until 168 BCE, when the Romans took possession after winning the battle of Pydna.
The Roman proconsul, the governor of Macedonia, had his residence in Thessalonica, but because it was a “free city” he did not control its internal affairs. No Roman garrison was stationed there, and in spirit and atmosphere it was a Greek rather than a Roman city. Enjoying local autonomy, the city was apparently governed by a board of magistrates.
It is most likely that 1 Thessalonians was written shortly after Paul’s arrival in Corinth, for he would be eager to correspond with the new church as soon as possible. This would be spring of 50 CE. It may have been 51 CE based on an inscription discovered at Delphi, Greece. Thus, 1 Thessalonians is the second canonical book penned by the apostle Paul, written within two years after Galatians.
The background of the Thessalonian church is found in Acts 17:1–9. Since Paul began his ministry there in the Jewish synagogue, it is reasonable to assume that the new church included some Jews. However, 1:9–10; Acts 17:4 seem to indicate that the church was largely Gentile in membership.
Why Paul goes to Thessalonica ?
Paul’s purpose in writing this letter was to encourage the new converts in their trials (3:3–5), to give instruction concerning godly living (4:1–12) and to give assurance concerning the future of believers who die before Christ returns (4:13–18).
On his Second Missionary Journey, Paul had travelled through Asia Minor. Paul wasn’t a "solo missionary," rather he operated with a small team — in this case it consisted of Paul, Silas, and Timothy.
At Troas, Paul has a vision of a Man of Macedonia asking him to come and help them. He takes it as God’s call, travelling to Macedonia and later to Greece (Achaia).
In Philippi he begins a church, but Paul and Silas end up being beaten and thrown in jail. They are released by means of an earthquake, convert their jailer and his family, but are still asked to leave by the city officials in the morning.
Undeterred, Paul and his band continue south to Thessalonica.
"1 When they had passed through[5] Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. 2 As his custom[6] was, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with[7] them from the Scriptures, 3 explaining[8] and proving[9] that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead. ‘This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Christ,’ he said. 4 Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women." (Acts 17:1-4)
Some of the converts are women of high rank, wives of city officials. However, most of the converts seem to have been Gentiles from the working class, and many of these are saved not from the synagogue, but directly from paganism (1:9). The Jews in Thessalonica are upset that Paul is attracting such a large following and seek to stop him.
"5 But the Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace,[10] formed a mob[11] and started a riot[12] in the city. They rushed[13] to Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd. 6 But when they did not find them, they dragged[14] Jason and some other brothers before the city officials, shouting: ‘These men who have caused trouble[15] all over the world have now come here, 7 and Jason has welcomed thfont-family: Georgia; font-size: 10ptem into his house. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.’" (Acts 17:5-7)
Notice that the Jews don’t attack Paul directly. They find "some bad characters from the marketplace" to do their dirty work for them. In this period, a militant messianic movement (different from Christianity) was spreading among Jewish communities. To stop the violence, in 49 AD Emperor Claudius expelled the Jews from Rome — which is why Aquila and Priscilla had recently moved from Rome to Corinth (Acts 18:2).
So when the mob accuses Paul and Silas of having "caused trouble all over the world" and "defying Caesar’s decrees" with regard to a messiah figure, they are connecting Paul and Silas to the recent civil unrest among the Jews in Rome. That’s why the Jews couldn’t bring these charges themselves.[16]
"8 When they heard this, the crowd and the city officials were thrown into turmoil.[17]
9 Then they made Jason and the others post bond and let them go. 10 As soon as it was night, the brothers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea." (Acts 17:8-10a)
Jason is a prominent Jew who has converted to Christ, since elsewhere Paul seems to refer to him as a kinsman (Romans 16:21). The Greek name "Jason" was common among the Hellenistic Jews, who used it for "Jesus" or "Joshua." Jason is apparently forced to put up money and pledge to the city officials that Paul and his band would leave the city and not cause further problems.
But the Thessalonian Jews don’t stop there. They disrupt Paul’s ministry in the next city, too.
"When the Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God at Berea, they went there too, agitating[19] the crowds and stirring them up. The brothers immediately sent Paul to the coast, but Silas and Timothy stayed at Berea." (Acts 17:13-14)
Paul travels to Athens and stays there for a time. Later he goes to the Greek city of Corinth, where he apparently writes the Thessalonian letters.
All Saints Remembrances
The All Saint’s Day Service is Nov 2.
Email Catherine by Monday, Oct. 27 with the names of those who have died in the past year that you would like to have remembered.
Stewardship Narrative Series, Part 3, Oct 19
Stewardship season is here! Over the next month there will be posts from the Episcopal Church Stewardship group, "Tens" on the week’s scripture in relationship to stewardship. This is part 3: 