Fourth Sunday after Easter 2015

The sermon of Fr. Todd given on the Fourth Sunday after Easter, May 3rd, 2015.

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Sermon for Second Sunday after Easter 2015

The sermon of Fr. Todd Bragg given on the Second Sunday after Easter, Sunday, April 19, 2015.

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Sermon for First Sunday after Easter 2015

The sermon for the First Sunday after Easter given on Sunday, April 12, 2015.

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Sermon for Easter Day 2015

The sermon for Easter Sunday given by Fr. Todd on Sunday, April 5th, 2015.

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Sermon for Palm Sunday 2015

The Sermon of Fr. Todd given on Palm Sunday, March 29th, 2015.

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Sermon for Passion Sunday 2015

The sermon of Fr. Todd Bragg given on Passion Sunday, March 22, 2015.

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Sermon for Laetare Sunday 2015

The sermon of Fr. Todd for Laetare Sunday (4th Sunday of Lent) given on Sunday, March 15th, 2015.

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Sermon for Third Sunday of Lent, 2015

Fr. Todd's sermon for the Third  Sunday of Lent given on March 8th, 2015:

Third Sunday in Lent 2015

Join us for Trinity Sunday on Sunday, May 31, 2015

Trinity Sunday, May 31st, 2015

On Sunday, May 31st, 2015, we celebrate Trinity Sunday.  The Gospel for the day comes to us from the Third Chapter of the Gospel of St. Matthew.  In this chapter we find ourselves witness to the discussion between Nicodemus and Our Blessed Saviour.  In this conversation, Our Lord is telling Nicodemus that he must be born again.  Nicodemus is confused by this expression and asks how can someone be born again.  Our Lord explains:  " That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. "  Of course, Our Lord was differentiating between physical birth and spiritual birth.  One can not be physically born a second time.  It only happens the one time and cannot be repeated.  But in a spiritual sense, yes, we can be born again when we give our lives over to God and dedicate our lives to him.  

Of course, when Our Lord stated that "flesh is flesh" and "Spirit is spirit," He was referring to the example of being born again.  But this does point out something very important for us Christians to consider.  Very often in our lives, we can differentiate between the various sections of our lives.  For example,  we differentiate between the time spent where we work and the time spent at home.  When I am at work, I focus on my job responsibilities but when I am at home I focus on things I do there, such as chores or projects or even relaxation.  We dedicate certain portions of our time to volunteer activities, home activities, family activities, church activities,  etc.  We can divide our time and we can wear "different hats" to signify who we are at the time:  worker; home owner; parent; child; spouse; neighbor; volunteer; etc.  The list goes on and on.  As we live life on a daily basis we play different "roles" based on what we are doing at that particular moment.  

But when it comes to being a Christian, our life can not be "chopped up into sections," so to speak.  In other words, we can not say that we are a Christian when we go to church but not a Christian when we are at home.  It doesn't work that way.  A true, committed Christian needs to be just that . . .   a true, committed Christian 24 hours a day, whether he/she is at church . . . or at home . . .  or at work . . . or at the grocery . . . or even driving in traffic.  You see, there are so many people who actually do act one way while in church and another way when they leave church.  They act very Christian when they go to church.  They dress up.  And they sing loudly when the hymns are sung.  And they say "Amen" even louder when the preacher gives his sermon.  But then as soon as church is over, they take off their "Christian hat" and put it away until next Sunday and they live completely different lives.  Being a Christian means being a Christian 24 hours a day . . . 7 days a week ..  ..  365 days a year.  This proves to be very difficult sometimes.  But when we come to the realization that God walks with us 24 hours a day . . .  7 days a week .. .  365 days a year . . .  when we realize that, it should make it easier for us to join Him in that walk.  As Our Lord said to Nicodemus, you must be born again . . . 

St. Margaret Anglican Church gathers together as God's family every Sunday to hear God's Word, to worship God as a family, and to receive His Precious Body and Blood at Communion time.  Take an hour out of your busy week and dedicate it solely to God.  Join us as we listen to God speaking to us in the King James Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  

We worship at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, which is located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.  Mass begins at 9:30 AM on Sunday morning.

Join us for the Fourth Sunday after Easter, Sunday, May 3rd, 2015

In the Epistle for today's Mass from the Fourth Sunday after Easter, we hear the following:  " . . . . and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls ." (St. James 1:17-21)   Have you ever received a gift . . .  .. or for that matter, perhaps you bought something for yourself . . .  . and as you opened up the package, you discovered that it was something very precious to you.  As a result, you opened the package with great care not wanting to damage your new treasure in the least.  When I read the words of St. James from the quote above it makes me think of that image:  " . . .  receive with meekness the engrafted word . . . ."  Here, St. James is referring, of course, to the Word of God.  And what he is advising is that we take the Word of God and plant what we read and what we hear in our hearts.  Sometimes if you go to the various social media sites such as Facebook, Pinterest, etc.  you will read various sayings that people have posted.  One saying I read recently stated something to the effect of:  "It is good to read the Word, but it is better to know the Author."  Of course, the meaning is clear.  It is clearly one thing to read the words of Scripture but it is better to know God and to have a personal relationship with Him.  I would agree with this and I am sure that you would also.  How many times do we read something, whether it be an email at work, or a news article, or even a handwritten message, and if we are not paying attention we have to read it all over again or go back to it again to get exactly what it means?  When we read Holy Scripture, often times we may read one specific passage .  . .  or one specific verse . . .  or one specific chapter . .  . and then we go back and read the same exact passage some time later, we seemingly get a completely different meaning from our reading.  The passage speaks something brand new to us that we did not "see" in our previous reading.  Has that ever happened to you when you read the Bible?   When that happens, be assured of two things:  God is speaking to you and that the Word of God is alive!  This is what St. James is getting at when we stated " . . . .  receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls."  Engraft the Word of God into your hearts.  Let it become a part of you.  Let it live within you.  To so many people, the Word of God is just a set of words and no more than that.  To others, the Word of God is simply some "book" setting up on a shelf gathering dust.  The Word of God is so much more than this.  The Holy Scriptures are meant to be absorbed into your heart, your soul.  The Word of God is like a seed that is planted in your heart.  And you water that seed by not only reading the Word of God but also opening yourself to God and letting Him into your life.  As St. James reminds us, let the Word of God to be "engrafted" into your hearts.  Let God speak to you through His Word and then put those words into practice on a daily basis.

Two opportunities to join us for Mass on Sunday, May 3rd, 2015:

St. Margaret of Scotland Anglican Church gathers together every Sunday at 9:30 AM.  We worship at the beautiful Chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.

The Anglican Church of the Holy Spirit gathers together every Sunday at 1:00 PM.  We worship at the beautiful, historic First Presbyterian Church located at the corner of South and Pennsylvania Streets in Greenfield, Indiana.

Join us as we gather together to hear the Word of God, found in the 1928 Book of Common Prayer and also the King James Version of the Bible.  Join us as we gather together as God's family to worship Our Heavenly Father, to take time out of our busy week to dedicate to Him alone and to worship Him.  And, finally, come forward to received the Most Precious Body and Blood of Our Blessed Saviour at Communion time so that we can be strengthened and nourished for the journey ahead.