Fifth Sunday after Easter, or Rogation Sunday, May 26th, 2019

Fifth Sunday after Easter, or Rogation Sunday, May 26th, 2019

"Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only . . . " St James tells us in the first chapter of his Epistle.   It is so easy to talk about how we plan to do that or speak about "if we only had our way."   A lot of people talk about doing "this, that or the other" but we never seem to see the actual results.  "Actions speak louder than words," as the old saying goes.  It is even more appropriate that we reflect on these words coming to us from St. James on Memorial Day weekend.  What a great debt we owe to our fallen heroes.  What can we say about those who paid the ultimate sacrifice?   Without a doubt, these fallen heroes were "doers of the word, and not hearers only."  They spoke.   Oh yes, they spoke.  They spoke with their actions.  They spoke by the choices they made.  They spoke with the sacrifice they made.  The American Revolution . . . The Civil War . . . . World War I . . . World War II . . . Vietnam  . . . . and other conflicts recorded in our history as a nation.   It was in the battles of these wars where young men marched into battle . . .  prepared for the unknown.  St. James tells us that we are called to actually do the work of God and not just talk about it.  Our veterans who paid the ultimate sacrifice did not just talk about serving our country . . . . they proved it by paying the ultimate sacrifice.  A sacrifice means something.  A sacrifice means that a price is paid.  Our fallen heroes paid a price so that our freedom could be ensured.  Our fallen heroes stood up and were counted.  Each and every one proved that their word meant something.  They talked the talked and walked the walk.  Each and every one of them.  "Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only . . ."

St. Margaret Church gathers every Sunday morning to hear the Word of God and to worship Our Heavenly Father.  We are a traditional church.  We use the King James Version of the Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  Mass begins at 9:30 AM.  We celebrate at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.  Please join us and dedicate an hour of your week to God.  Return home to Him, the God Who waits patiently for your return.

Fourth Sunday after Easter, May 19th, 2019

Fourth Sunday after Easter, May 19th, 2019

When I was growing up my mother used to make a point that we have two ears but only one mouth.  The implication meaning that we should make a point to listen twice as much than we do speaking.   This advice is especially profound today in the age of "Social Media," in my humble opinion.   We hear from St. James in the First Chapter of his epistle:  ". . .  let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; for the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God."  (St. James 1:19)   Again, in the day and age in which we live we have instant access to voice our opinion.  If you don't like something, post an opinion on Facebook.  If you are put out by some business write a review on social media or send an email via the corporate website.  Sometimes we are correct in being offended but most times I would dare say we are just feeling offended.  Nothing more and nothing less.  I recently went to a fast-food restaurant and it seemed to take a long time to get my food.  As I was waiting there for my food I took note of all the other patrons waiting for their food as well.  I tried to divert my attention away from the food but it seems like I would keep returning to the game of counting the folks ahead of me waiting for their food.   Now one piece of the puzzle that I need to tell you is that there were only two employees working at the time.  So these two employees were trying to work the front counter . ..  take care of the drive-through . .. prepare the food . . . serve the food . . .  . I am just making the point that I could have sat there and gotten madder and madder that it took so long to get my food . . .  or I could have considered the circumstances of the situation and tried to understand why it was taking so long.  I decided to take the latter course.  It wasn't the employees fault.  They were working as hard as they could under the circumstances.  But again getting back to the subject at hand, I could have complained . . .  I could have told my friends: "Oh, I had a horrible experience at that place, never eat there.'  I could have written a scathing review on social media or Facebook telling the whole world not to eat there.  But would telling the whole world of my seeming inconvenience have told the whole story of that experience?  No.  Very often it is best to show down and take things slowly.  In this day and age in which we live. We want everything done "five minutes ago."  We're in a rush for everything and we want to tell the whole world how we feel about everything.   It would also seem from looking at social media and watching the news that as a society we are in a rush to be offended also today.  

Sometimes it is best to just sit and listen to all of the facts before we make a judgment.  How many times have we already made a judgment before we have even heard all of the facts . . .  or any of the facts, for that matter.  We need to get in the habit of listening more and talking less.  This is certainly true in the spiritual sense.  How often do we take time to pray . .  . . . when we make the time to pray, that is . . .  and 99 percent of the prayer seems to be based solely on TELLING God what to do.  We tell God what we want.  We tell God what needs to be done.  We tell God how we want things  . . .  when we want them . . . and how He should do them.  Wouldn't it be better if we got in the habit of listening to God when we speak to Him instead of telling Him how to do His job?  It seems to me that God loves us very much.  Why else would He have sent His Son into the world to save us if this was not the case.  It seems also that the Good Lord knows us.  He knows our faults.  He knows our habits.  He knows our sins.  And despite this knowledge, He still waits for us to come to Him.  He still waits for us to approach Him.  We should make a point to try and listen to Him.  Maybe then we will hear Him and hear what He is trying to say to us.

Mass is celebrated every Sunday morning at 9:30 AM.  St. Margaret Anglican Church worships in the Chapel at Marquette Manor, which is located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.  Join St. Margaret so that you can spend part of your Sunday morning worshiping God, hearing the Word of God in the King James Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer, receive Him in His Precious Body and Blood.

Third Sunday after Easter, May 12th, 2019

Third Sunday after Easter, May 12th, 2019

In the Sixteenth Chapter of the Gospel of St. John, we are hearing Our Blessed Saviour explain to the disciples that their sorrow will be turned into joy.  Of course He is referring to the fact that He will go away from them for a time and they will be sorrowful.  Afterwards, though, they will see Him again and they will be joyful once again. To illustrate the fact that sorrow can indeed turn into joy He uses the example of a woman about to give birth.  Our Lord points out that a woman about to give birth is sorrowing because she is focused on the pain she is going through but then once she gives birth this same woman focuses on the joy of giving birth to her child.  Our Lord said:  "A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world. And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you."  (St. John 16:21)  He went on to tell them that they are now sorrowing at the thought of losing Him but He will see them once more and then they will be joyful again.  

In life we experience many varied emotions, don't we?  Sometimes life is good and we enjoy it and we are happy and joyful.  Other times life is difficult and we are angry or mad or sorrowful . . . .  In my opinion it is appropriate that this particular reading falls on Mother's Day here in the U.S.  I can't help but reflect on my own mother whom I lost a few years back.  I think back to when I was growing up and the different emotions I would cause in that wonderful woman.  Angry when I did something she told me not to do.  Disappointed when she saw that I could have certainly done better but chose not to.  She was sorrowful when she saw that I was hurting.  She was joyful when she saw that I was happy and growing.  She was proud when she saw me achieving great things and moving forward in life.  But through all these emotions, through all these events throughout my life, there was one constant and of course this is love.  The love of a mother, I have said for a long time, most closely resembles any love we can see on earth.  The reason I say that is because a mother gives birth to us, she raises us, she teaches us, she stays with us and loves us no matter what our whole life.  We say the same thing about God:  He gives us life, He watches over us, teaches us, He stays with us our entire life and loves us our entire life.  Was my mother always happy with me?  No.  She was not happy when I disobeyed her.  She was not happy when I did something wrong.  She still loved me, yes, but she was not always happy when I acted up as a child.  The same can be said about God.  He is not happy when we go against Him.  He is not happy when we sin.  And yet He always loves us.  He may be disappointed in our choices.  He may be disappointed in our actions.  But no matter what He loves us.  This is why He sent His Son into the world  to save us from our sins.  

Good, loving parents always want better for their children than they had in life.   A good parent wants to see their children do better than they have in life.  So, too with God.  It was not enough that He created the universe.  It was not enough that he created us human beings.   It was not enough that He gave us life.  He wanted better for His children This is why He sent His only begotten Son into the world to save us from our sins.  Thus, He could save us from sin . . .  save us from death . . .  save us from ourselves!  God loved His children so much that He not only wanted to give them life  . . .  He wanted them to have Eternal Life!  And this was made possible by Our Blessed Saviour!  Let us always remember His efforts on our behalf.  

St. Margaret Church meets each and every Sunday morning 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.  We use the King James Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  Come join us as we listen to God speak to us through His Word.  At Communion time, we receive the Precious Body and Blood of Christ to nourish us and give us strength for our journey called life.

What Are You Hungry For?

What Are You Hungry For?

By Fr. Todd Bragg

I was reading an article recently where the heart of the article focused on the following premise: what people are searching for and what they are getting (or not getting, as the case may be) when searching for churches. The one quotation that caught my attention was "I'm just not getting fed." It's funny to think about the fact that if you have not had anything to eat for a while, your mind starts to dwell on that fact and nothing else. We focus on everything that we might want to eat: pizza . . . Chinese food . . . spaghetti . . . Mexican . . . . fast food . . . fried chicken . . . a sandwich . . . And we finally make the decision as to what exactly we want and once we do . . . that's it. We fixate on the food of choice until we get it. And then finally we eat and we are satisfied.

As Christians, we also have to be fed on a daily basis. The article that I was mentioning at the beginning of this short essay was focused on pastors needing to feed their flock with the Word of God. And this is certainly the truth. People are hungry for the Word of God. They want to hear what God is saying to them. But pastors, priests, ministers, bishops, etc. can only do so much in a given week. What I mean simply is that time is limited in what the priest or pastor can talk about in a given week. If the average church service is, say, an hour . . . an hour and a half . . . how much of that time is strictly the preaching of the priest or minister? Fifteen minutes? Twenty minutes? More? Less? As my congregation will let you know, I don't time my preaching . . . I just start in and see where God is leading me! But even with that, I might get twenty minutes of preaching in on a given Sunday morning. Think about how many hours are in the week. Twenty-four hours in a day. Seven days in a week. By my calculation, that is One-Hundred and Sixty-Eight hours in a given week and the preacher gets fifteen, twenty, maybe thirty minutes of preaching out of all those hours. That's not much time in comparison. So that's why I say, in essence what the preacher is doing is planting the seed and leaving the rest to God.

One of my favorite Scripture passages is from First Kings. It is the passage where the Prophet Elijah is fleeing from Jezebel and we are told that Elijah "went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die: and said, it is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life: for I am not better than my fathers." (I Kings 19:4) In essence, the prophet was worn out . . . physically worn out . . . mentally worn out . . . even emotionally worn out. He was at the end of his rope, so to speak, and ready to throw in the towel. How many of us feel that way sometimes? How many of us are drained by life? How many of us are drained by the challenges which life throws at us?

Then Elijah laid down and went to sleep and the angel of the Lord touched Elijah and "said unto him, Arise and eat." (Verse 5) And Elijah had seen where the angel of the Lord had placed there by his head water and food for him to eat.

And then Elijah laid down again, . . . "And the angel of the Lord came again the second time, and touched him, and said, Arise and eat: because the journey is too great for thee." (Verse 7)

This is certainly one of my all-time Scripture passages. I think it is profound for a number of reasons:

First, God does indeed feed us. He feeds us through the Word of God. We Christians must be hungry for the Word of God. In our society, there are so many different types of food to choose from: pizza . . . Chinese food . . . Mexican food . . . fast-food . . . chicken . . . seafood . . . . etc. Likewise, many people choose to get fed from different interests, desires, etc: power, riches, money, fame, drugs, alcohol, etc. People make choices where they eat and how they spend their time. We, as Christians, have to make a choice as well: we have to want to be fed by the Word of God. And then make a point of studying the Word of God on a daily basis. Get in the habit of reading the Bible every day. Again, let me be clear. As Christians, our priorities need to be in place. We need to place God first and foremost in our life. We need to stay close to Him and let Him guide our life. We need to focus on praying . . . reading the Word of God . . . . make our Sunday obligation by attending Mass. It is so easy to get things "out of kilter" in regards to our busy schedule. We go to work . . . we take care of our homes . . . our family . . . we run errands that need to be taken care of. The list goes on and on. That is why it is so vital for us to make a point to read the Word of God every day and spend time in prayer so that we can hear what God is speaking to us.

Secondly, God also feeds us through His Church. God does not need our help but He desires us to help Him. And as a result, He founded the Church here on earth. And the Church distributes the Sacraments to the world. And the Chief Sacrament is the Mass. Come to Mass and receive the Precious Body and Blood of Our Blessed Saviour. Our Lord loves us so much that He gives of Himself so that we can be nourished. "Arise and eat: because the journey is too great for thee!" Our Lord wants us to receive of the Sacraments of the Church as a physical and spiritual reminder that He is alive and well in the world. The Sacraments help nourish and sustain us in the long journey we call "life."

God gives us nourishment but we have to go find it. God gives us food but we have to make the effort to get it. God provides spiritual food and drink for our journey but we have to make the effort to obtain it. Get a relationship with God. Make Him the Lord and Master of your life. Get in the habit of reading the Bible on a daily basis. And take advantage of the Sacraments. The same Lord Who said: "This is My Body, This is My Blood" is the same Lord Who is awaiting for us to come and worship Him, to come and spend time with Him in HIs Presence.

Second Sunday after Easter, May 5th, 2019

Second Sunday after Easter, May 5th, 2019

In the Gospel for today's Mass, the Second Sunday after Easter, we hear Our Blessed Lord describe Himself as a "good shepherd:"  "JESUS said, I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.." (St. John 10)  Notice that He does not just describe Himself as a "shepherd" but He specifically describes Himself as a "good shepherd."  He tells us the reason why He says this:  " . .  . the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep."  Our Lord is indeed the Good Shepherd!  He has in fact laid down His life for His sheep . . .  us!!!

In the Book of the Prophet Ezekiel, we hear the following:  "As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day."  (Ezekiel 34:12)

The Good Shepherd has indeed sought for us where we have been scattered.   As sheep are scattered, not paying attention, but are focused solely on eating and filling themselves, not paying attention to anything else.  As human beings, we are similar to the sheep in the regard that  we also have been scattered.  This is because we human beings become focused solely on what we want right then and right now:  wealth; possessions; drink; wine; drugs; power; envy; jealousy; hatred; ourselves and our pleasures . . . .   all these different things have led us down various paths and directions and as a result have been scattered.   But Our Blessed Lord has sought for us.  He has searched for us no matter where our travels have taken us.  And He has laid down His life for us . . .  on the Cross at Calvary!  We just have to respond and give our life to Him!  We  need to give our life to the Good Shepherd.    We were scattered but He sought for us:  "'I will seek out my sheep, and deliver them .  . . ."  Let us also seek for the Good Shepherd!

St. Margaret Anglican Church gathers for Mass every Sunday morning at 9:30 AM.  Mass is said at the Chapel at Marquette Manor on the Northwest side of Indianapolis, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road.

Join us for Mass as we gather to hear God's word.  Join us as we gather as God's family to worship Him.  Join with your brothers and sisters as we all take one hour out of our busy schedules and dedicate that hour to the worship of Our Blessed Saviour!  And then receive the Precious Body and Blood of Christ, the Good Shepherd Who laid down His life for His sheep!