Although this blog has tended to avoid dipping into the political arena, I just could not overlook the comments by one of our Presidential candidates at the 63rd Annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner held on October 16, 2008, at the Waldorf Astoria. Sure, the event was delightful in that both candidates took time away from their busy campaigning to roast themselves and their opposing candidate but more especially to support the outreach of the Catholic Archdiocese of New York and to honor Alfred E. Smith. Al Smith, as he was known in private and public life, was the first Roman Catholic and Irish-American to run for President as a major party nominee. He lost the election to Herbert Hoover. He then became president of the Empire State, Inc. and was instrumental in getting the Empire State Building built during the Great Depression.

While watching and listening to the speeches I was brought to tears when one candidate closed his remarks with one of the finest statements defining what we as a country are all about and the responsibility we all share as citizens of these United States of America. I share those comments with you.

“You know, the fact that each October, in the closing weeks of a hard-fought campaign, people of all political persuasions can come to this dinner and share a meal and honor the work of this foundation underscores the reality that no matter what differences or divisions or arguments we’re having right now, we ultimately belong to something bigger and more lasting than a political party.

We belong to a community. We share a country. We are all children of God.

And in this country, there are millions of fellow citizens, our brothers and sisters, who need us very much, especially now. We are being battered by a very serious economic storm, and for many Americans it’s only deepened the quiet storms they’ve been struggling through for years.

Beyond the walls of this hotel, on the streets of one of the greatest cities in the wealthiest nation on earth, there are men and women and children who have fallen on hard times and hard luck, who can’t find work, or even a job that pays enough to keep a roof over their heads. Some are hanging on just by a thread.

Scripture says God creates us for works of service. We are blessed to have so many organizations like this one and the Catholic Diocese that perform these acts of God every day.

But each of us also has that responsibility. Each of us has that obligation, especially now. No matter who we are or what we do, what I believe each of us in this room asks for and hopes for and prays for is enough strength and wisdom to do good and to seek justice and play our small part in building a more hopeful and compassionate world for the generations that will follow.

Before Al Smith was a candidate who made history, he was a man who made a difference, a man who fought for many years to give Americans nothing more than a fair shake and a chance to succeed. And he touched the lives of hundreds of thousands — of millions as a result. Simply put, he helped people.

That’s a distinction we can all aspire to, that we can all achieve, young or old, rich or poor, Democrat or Republican or independent. And I have no doubt that if we come together at this moment of crisis with this goal in mind, America will meet this challenge and weather this storm, and, in the words of Al Smith, ‘walk once more in eternal sunshine.’

Thank you so much, everybody. God bless you.”

Barack Obama

Recently I have had the privilege to perform several baptisms, two of these were adult men. Maybe my ministry has been exceptional in that almost exclusively I have performed baptisms of young children. But, I feel that my life in ministry is probably common in this matter. With these baptisms several thoughts have come to mind and therefore this piece of ‘manna’ is one of four regarding various aspects of baptism. The second ‘manna’ will deal with some of the history and theology of the Sacrament of Baptism as contained in our 1979 Book of Common Prayer. [See: New Baptismal Theology? Adult Baptism] The final three address pastoral aspects of baptisms drawn from my 35 years in the ordained ministry. The first is  Holy Baptism: An Adult Respected, the second We Receive You, and the final post is The Tears of Baptism: A Pastoral Response.

One custom I have incorporated into the celebration of the baptismal rite has been the utilization of baptismal salt.  Read the rest of this entry » » » »

As I sit here behind my desk on this day following the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ trying to finish bulletins, end of the year reports, work on another sermon, and general administrative burdens, I have been reflecting on this the feast day of St. Stephen, Christianity’s first martyr and deacon about all the activities of the past few days. It has been a time for friends and families to gather, some having traveled many miles over many hours often with significant delays and layovers. The Christmas season is a time for families and friends to get together. Martha, Matt and I had the privilege to host a parishioner who lost his wife this past year and did not have the ability to be with family, most of whom live across the country in California and Texas.

All this has gotten me thinking. Stephen, probably a Hellenistic Jew, was one of the “seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom” (Acts 6:3), who were chosen by the apostles to relieve them of the administrative burden of “serving tables and caring for the widows.” By this appointment Stephen became the first to do what the Church traditionally considers to be the work and ministry of a deacon.

It’s apparent that Stephen’s activities involved more than simply “serving tables,” for the Acts of the Apostles speaks of his preaching and performing many miracles. His powerful sermon before the Sanhedrin is recorded in the seventh chapter of Acts. His denunciation of the Sanhedrin so enraged its members that, without a trial, they dragged him out of the city and stoned him to death thus becoming the first martyr of the Church. And, although I would love to have someone like Stephen to serve as my deacon and relieve me of some of these administrative duties, if nothing else Stephen was a friend of Jesus.

In fact Jesus was never short of friends.   Read the rest of this entry » » » »

In my last post I mentioned the various places in the celebration of the Eucharist where two or more elevations occurred in the service. (See: Elevation Is Not Adoration). But, I missed one very important elevation. Yesterday during our Sunday morning service I noticed, for the first time after all my years in the Episcopal Church and in ministry, one additional elevation that has, to my knowledge, been overlooked and therefore ignored by liturgical scholars and church goers alike. So much time and energy has been focused on the actions of the sacred ministers that we have overlooked some of the actions of the worshipers.  Read the rest of this entry » » » »

When the Eucharist is celebrated, many ceremonial actions take place which may or may not be noticed by those gathered together for worship. This is especially true in parishes that use missalettes that are constantly in flux or congregations that vary the Eucharistic Prayers from Sunday to Sunday. In these situations the worshiper’s attention is focused on the bulletin and the various books necessary to follow along in the service rather than on what is occurring at the Altar. Long gone are the days when it was possible for a worshiper to know the Eucharist by heart and never have to use a Book of Common Prayer. Therefore, many of the ceremonial actions carried out by the celebrant are unobserved but each ceremonial action carries with it a specific implication, meaning and emphasis in the hope of drawing the worshiper into a greater and deeper faith journey in and through the sacraments. One of these ceremonial actions is known as the elevation. In Eucharistic services, observed across the spectrum of liturgical practice, there are at least two times when the priest as celebrant elevates something: at the reading of the Gospel and at the consecration of the Bread and Wine.  Read the rest of this entry » » » »

I have attached below a letter written over twelve years ago in response to the issues then facing the Episcopal Church and the extraordinary hostile response of our laity to the embezzling of funds at 815.  At the time I voiced the opinion that the laity’s anger was really a ‘red herring’ and that the real frustration within our Episcopal Church was a reaction by our membership to a lack of theological leadership on behalf of our Bishops. Now, some twelve years later, I return to a task that I have been remiss in personally addressing. I intend to post several articles addressing A Theology of the Body and seek input for discussion, clarification and a better theological understanding of this vital and redemptive issue.

October 30, 1995

The Most Rev Edmond L. Browning
Office of the Presiding Bishop
815 Second Avenue
New York, NY 10017

Dear Bishop Browning,  Read the rest of this entry » » » »

These two terms, ‘ritual’ and ‘ceremonial,’ are very often confused and misused by many persons within and without the Church. When the term ritual is properly used, the speaker or writer is referring to those things that are said or sung in a religious service, i.e., the various prayers, readings, versicles (a short sentence, often taken from the Psalms, which is said or sung antiphonally, i.e. alternately, in Christian worship) and responses and are formally referred to as rites. Strictly speaking, ritual is the prescribed form of words of a liturgical function. A book of ritual, like our Book of Common Prayer, is a work containing forms of liturgical service issued by a proper authority and are known as rites. In our Book of Common Prayer we have rites of Morning and Evening Prayer, A Penitential Order, The Holy Eucharist, Confirmation, the Celebration and Blessing of a Marriage, and the Burial of the Dead to name just a few. A book of ritual may contain rubrics, i.e., ceremonial directions [the word originated from the fact that in medieval books they were written in red (Lat. ruber), to distinguish them from the text of the services], as to what shall or may be done or used during the worship service. Examples of ceremonies, on the other hand, include such things as the collection of alms, the wearing of special clothing like vestments and the offering of bread and wine. Because there is a relationship of form, function and action of these two, ritual and ceremonial are frequently interwoven.  Read the rest of this entry » » » »

While teaching a recent Adult Inquirer’s Class, one of its members made the statement, “There, but for the grace of God, goes I.” Using the Socratic method, I asked the speaker to explain what she meant by grace and we entered into a fairly detailed discussion of what is meant by grace. This discussion provided an opportunity to use the Catechism found in our Book of Common Prayer which states: “Grace is God’s favor towards us, unearned and undeserved; by grace God forgives our sins, enlightens our minds, stirs our hearts, and strengthens our wills.” Which all sounds nice, but another member was dissatisfied and asked how grace might be applied to her life in her day to day living.  Read the rest of this entry » » » »

Just over a year ago (May, 2007), I was watching and listening intently as the accounts of Andrew Speaker, the Georgia lawyer with a rare form of tuberculosis known as extensively drug resistant (XDR) tuberculosis, who on two transatlantic flights flew from Atlanta to Paris and then, after entering the Czech Republic, flew out of Prague to Montreal and then drove to the United States. As the reports began to filter in, Speaker claimed that his personal commitments were more important than the risk of infection to others. The more I thought about it, the more and more angry I became. Just the idea of someone with a communicable disease being so self-centered, selfish is probably a more accurate term, that he would put others at risk and that nothing else mattered than his own small world.

This got me to thinking about our society and the tremendous stress we all place on individual rights and freedoms.   Read the rest of this entry » » » »

In an earlier post, I referred to the religious DNA of clergy (see Clergy - The DNA of Congregations), i.e. the religious heritage of the clergy person’s family of origin; the religious background of the person as he or she was growing up and/or the religious practice when he or she became interested in the church.

Although I was baptized a Methodist at the age of three, my religious DNA is built around the Episcopal Church where we, as a family, worshiped after we moved to Beckley, West Virginia. Like so many others, I am the product of a blended religious family; mother a Methodist and father a Presbyterian. The Episcopal Church was their compromise for the family.  Read the rest of this entry » » » »