St. Peter's, Cheshire

 The service today was good--I only messed up a couple of times.

In every church I've ever served, a lay person leads the Psalm. Not at St. Peter's. I sat for about a minute when one of the chalice bearers came about 40 feet to tell me I was to lead it. (The altar area is huge!)

Then I forgot to ask for announcements so a woman in the congregation stood up to tell me so.

The other things is that after communion the wine gets taken away. I don't know what they do with it.

I tell people from time to time that I became a priest so I could finish the wine after communion.

That might even be true....

The music was great and the group of 50 or so seemed to like the service.

So, that's good.

Tomorow

 Tomorrow I'm preaching and celebrating at the Episcopal church in my town--St. Peter's, Cheshire.

I've done it once before--last month, I believe. There is only one service in the summer at 9 a.m.

Last time there were 90 or so folks. They are my neighbors and I like them.

I didn't write a sermon because the Gospel is so familiar to me I can wing it.

Wish me luck.

Shalom.

I forgot...

 I thought I had this Sunday off, but then I received and email from St. Peter's here in Cheshire reminding me I had agreed to do their Eucharist Sunday.

They are between Rectors and trying to find supply priests wherever they can.

Since I forgot, I didn't bring my alb home with me.

So I went over to try to find one with them.

Every vestment they had was too long except for one that was two small.

Their altar folks must be a basketball team and a midget. 

So, I have an hour drive--up and back--to Milton tomorrow to get my alb.

Some Sunday off....

The worst job

 The worst job in the world, in my opinion, is being a man or woman handling the phones for an group designed to make calls and try to take money from the person on the other end.

It is 5:15 p.m. and I've gotten 13 calls today. None from friends or family--all from scams.

And I'm horrible to them--though most of them are recordings--I yell and curse and hang up after telling the recorded voice to lose my number.

Must be more than me doing that.

So, worst job in the world--worse than trash collectors (trash doesn't yell) and emergency workers (they might hear yelling but are doing a good thing.

So, if you would like to break my record of nothing but bogus calls--call me.

203-525-6846.

"Fart"--I'm not kidding

 I'm a Public Radio Junkie.

I listen all day.

Yesterday, "Audacious" did an hour program on Farting.

I kid you not.

Kyone Wolfe, the host, talked with people about farts.

Some were professional farters--who made money from it.

Then they talked to people about which animals fart.

Fascinating stuff.

But an hour about farting?

But I enjoyed it....!

no sermon this week

 Against my better judgment, we're having an outdoor Eucharist on Sunday.

If it is as hot tomorrow as it is today, I'll be lucky to avoid a heat stroke.

There's a tent but that won't help much.

The service is to celebrate Summer.

I've been asked to preach about Summer and warmth.

Don't know if I can pull it off, but I'm going to 'wing it' and keep it short to save lives....

Jeperody

 Bern and I watch Jeperodey (which I can't spell!) every night.

A woman who had won 15 days in a row lost tonight.

I was upset.

I really liked her.

I'll keep watching. but my interest has lagged....

Paper

 Paper was the greatest invention ever!

So many helpful things are made of paper: tissues, bathroom paper, paper towels, calendars, newspapers, typing paper and my favorite of all--books.

I read at least 5 books a week--mostly mysteries. But there is also the Bible and Episcopal Prayer Books.

I find a lot of comfort, hope and wonder in books.

Thank God for paper....

work

I'm off this Sunday and the Sunday after next Sunday.

By contract, I only work on three Sundays a month and this month has five Sundays.

I like time off, but I don't go to church.

I've told people the reason I still work at 77 is if I didn't I'd never darken a church door.

That's pretty much true.

I don't know why, but I don't go to church as a participant--only as a priest.

Probably bad of me, but the way it is.

 

Wasn't quite as hot

I wore a long sleeve shirt all day.

Not as hot as tomorrow will be.

I don't care.

I love the heat.

It's the cold that gets to me.

I'm getting old.

Cold and 'old' don't do well together.

 

Bible Study

 Today we started on the Book of Acts.

I don't like much about Acts.

I believe even less about it.

But we began with the Holy Spirit descending on the disciples.

It was a good session.

Lots of thoughts and questions.

And we begin with communion--very short.

A good hour to be at.

Today

 The sermon I gave today (posted earlier) was one of the shortest I've even given.

But I got over a dozen compliments and questions.

Maybe I preach too long.

Huh!

new way in

 You can email me!

I get in through Micrsoft Edge in a way I can do but don't understand.

Frustrating but do-able.

See you on email soon....

This week's sermon

 

June 9, 2024

        From time to time, I have heard people criticize Jesus’ actions in the Gospel you heard this morning.

        Some of the time they say he is disrespecting his family by not recognizing their presence.

        Other times they say “no one can be a brother or sister without sharing DNA.”

         

          Let me tell you a little about myself.

        I am an only child. My father was 40 and my mother was 37. I might have had bothers or sisters had my father not served in World War II until 18 months before I was born.

        Another thing—I was born into the Pilgrim Holiness Church. We left when I was 5 and became Methodists. Let me assure you that “mountain Methodists” in Southern West Virginia made Methodists in New England seem like high church Anglicans!

        Everyone in both those churches were called ‘bother’ or ‘sister’. I was ‘brother Jimmy’ until I went to college and found the Episcopal Church. My introduction was in a ‘house church’—no building to call it’s own.

        In fact, the ‘house church’ was the attic above our apartment in Morgantown after Bern and I were married after I received a Master’s degree from Harvard Divinity School. We moved back there so Bern could finish her degree and I could be a social worker in child protection.

        The first time I was in a brick and mortar church was to be received into the Episcopal Church.

 

        But I assure you of this—the other members of that ‘house church’ WERE my brothers and sisters. It was them that convinced me to go back to seminary and be ordained. And lots of them attended my ordination.

        So, I fully understand what Jesus meant when he called the people in the room were his brothers and sisters and mother.

        The only member of the house church who was over 30 was a woman in her 80’s who was the first to tell me “go back to seminary, Jim. I mean it!”

        The people in all the churches I have served have been my brothers and sisters.

        And now it’s your turn.

        Thank you from the bottom of heart, my brothers and sisters in Christ.

        For an only child, I’ve had a lot of siblings….

        Thank you and Shalom.

Lost and Found

 Lost my email again!

Bern showed me how to get it back--and I did.

Today at Trinity we had a long conversation--after a short communion--about the guy who covers for me one Sunday a month.

He may not come back--surely won't.

We have to come up with a plan.

Don't have one yet.

Time will tell.

 

 

SHE DID IT!!!

 Bern got my internet back--my email, I mean.

I didn't ask how she did it since I wouldn't understand a word she said....

I had 134 messages and it took me half-an-hour to go through them, though most of them I didn't even open--just deleted.

So, email me if you want.

I may open it or delete it....

I still don't have interrnet

Try as I could, I couldn't get it back.

Bern will try tomorrow. She is a internet genius, compared to me--an internet dope.

We'll see.

I have 123 messages I can't see.

Most of them are garbage.

But some might matter.

We'll see tomorrow.

 

Today's sermon

 For the first time since being at Trinity, Milton, I preached without a manuscript.

I used to do it a lot--but as I got older I decided I should 'write it down' so I wouldn't forget something.

But today I knew the lessons so well that I knew what I wanted to say.

It started like this: "Sometimes God says to us: 'Pay attention!'"

Then I told the story from Samuel where God speaks to Samuel four times.

The first three times, the boy runs to his master, Eli, and says, "Here I am for you called me."

The first two times Eli tells him he didn't call him, to go back and go to sleep.

The third time, Eli says, "if he calls you again, you shall say, 'Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.'"

That works.

The rest of the sermon was about God's call to us in the Psalm and in the Epistle.

Finally, in the Gospel from Mark, Jesus says, "The sabbath was made for humankind, not humankind for the sabbath."

He is telling us that religion is to enlighten us to be the hands and voice and ears and energy of God in the world--not to be limited by religion or made a servant to religion.

I also ranted for a while about the Evangelicals who try to shame people into 'obeying' the church rather than 'being' the church.

But I'll leave that out here.