First Sunday after Trinity

 First Sunday after Trinity, June 2nd, 2024

In the Sixteenth Chapter of St. Luke's Gospel, we hear the story of Lazarus and the Rich man.  And as Our Lord tells the story He portrays how different life was for the rich man in comparison to the life that Lazarus had.  The rich man dressed in the finest clothing and enjoyed the finest food and did not have a care in the world.  While on the other hand Our Lord describes the life which Lazarus lived as one of misery and hunger.  As Our Lord tells the story we hear this description of Lazarus:  "and there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, and desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table"  As Our Lord describes Lazarus He tells us that he is "full of sores," unable to walk and hungry.  In fact, Our Lord tells us that Lazarus was so hungry that he was content to be fed with crumbs which fell from the rich man's table.  Very often we are satisfied with "crumbs" as well.  We chase after what the world has to offer with its' so-called riches and luxuries and we think we have it all, don't we?  But for those who have a relationship with God, we know we have something better than the world can ever offer.  Riches come and go, don't they?  We get paid and we spend the money and it's gone.  We enjoy a nice meal and it's gone and we're hungry again after that.  We go after the latest fashion in clothing and shoes and before too long the styles have changed and we start our "style quest" all over again. These are nothing more than "crumbs" that the world offers.  God offers so much more when we have a relationship with Him.  We do what we can to hang on to this physical life which we have but in comparison to eternity our years on earth are over just like that.  But Our Lord offers us an eternal life spent with Him if we so choose.  Don't spend your life chasing after "crumbs."  Spend your life preparing for eternity in the presence of Our Heavenly Father.

Please make a point to join us for Mass on Sunday.  St. Margaret Church gathers together each and every Sunday at 10:30 am.  We worship at the beautiful Chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.  Join us as we listen to the Word of God found in the King James Version of the Bible.  We use the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  And receive the Most Precious Body and Blood of Our Saviour at Communion time.   We are all busy.  We all lead busy lives.  Take an hour out of your busy week and dedicate it to God.  Give that hour to God and spend it with Him.

Trinity Sunday, May 26, 2024

 Trinity Sunday, May 26th, 2024

The Gospel for Trinity Sunday 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 . . .

Please make a point to join us for Mass on Sunday.  St. Margaret Church gathers together each and every Sunday at 10:30 am.  We worship at the beautiful Chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.  Join us as we listen to the Word of God found in the King James Version of the Bible.  We use the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  And receive the Most Precious Body and Blood of Our Saviour at Communion time.   We are all busy.  We all lead busy lives.  Take an hour out of your busy week and dedicate it to God.  Give that hour to God and spend it with Him.

Fifth Sunday after Easter, Rogation Sunday, May 5th, 2024

 Fifth Sunday after Easter, Commonly Called Rogation Sunday, 

May 5th, 2024

St. James tells us:  ".BE ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves." (St. James 1:22)   For a Christian, this sounds like pretty good advice:  " . . . . be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only . . . ."  But this Epistle of St. James has caused some controversy over the years for some Christian thinkers such as Martin Luther, for example, because they contended that St. James was proposing that we can earn our way into Heaven by what we do.   Now, without a doubt, there have been various individuals over the centuries who have tried to "buy their way" into Heaven.   But I contend what we hear from this verse ".  . . . be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only . .  ."  is just good old  fashioned common sense, if you ask me.  I say this because, sadly, each one of us can think of a person who is "nothing but mouth."  In other words, we probably each know someone who talks about being a Christian but they  do not particularly live as a Christian.  There are a lot of people who could explain the Christian faith and they could go on and on and on about it, but the really important question is:  Can they live the Christian faith and not just talk about it?  "Be ye doers of the word . . . ."  I think his is probably one of the biggest reasons why Our Blessed Lord came to earth as a human being, so that we could see Him in action.  Sure, God could have just simply spoken to us about being a Christian and left it at that.  But Our Lord chose to become a human being so that He could show us how it is to actually live as a Christian.  While Our Lord was with us here on earth He worked; He ate;  He traveled; He conversed and spoke and preached;  . . .  etc.  Our Blessed Saviour not only taught about God by His words but He lived His life for His Heavenly Father.  Our Lord was a wonderful teacher and taught the faith wonderfully . . . . but He backed up His teaching by the way in which He lived His life.  This is what we are called to do:  Live our life for God.  Do what God wants us to do.   None of us are perfect and we will make mistakes.  God already realizes this.  This is why He sent His Son into the world.  We are called to live our life for God and the evidence is shown in the way in which we life our life; in the ways in which we treat others;  in what we do for one another:    " . . . .  be ye doers of the word  . . . . ."

Please make a point to join us for Mass on Sunday.  St. Margaret Church gathers together each and every Sunday at 10:30 am.  We worship at the beautiful Chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.  Join us as we listen to the Word of God found in the King James Version of the Bible.  We use the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  And receive the Most Precious Body and Blood of Our Saviour at Communion time.   We are all busy.  We all lead busy lives.  Take an hour out of your busy week and dedicate it to God.  Give that hour to God and spend it with Him.

Fourth Sunday after Easter, April 28th, 2024

 Fourth Sunday after Easter, April 28th, 2024

When I was a child growing up, there used to be a game show on television called "Let's Make A Deal."  Now I realize that this show still might be on television, but I am referring to the version starring Monty Hall as the host.   Anyway, contestants would be chosen from the audience and Monty would make them choose between Curtain Number one . . .  Curtain Number two . . . or Curtain Number three.  And whichever number they chose the contestant would win the prize being that curtain.  But the point of the game is that not every prize behind the curtain turned out to be so great.  Some of the prizes behind the curtain would turn out to be real duds.  Very often in life, things turn out that way as well.  We may work very hard to get something only to find out that the thing we wanted so bad was not so great.  St James tells us that   "EVERY good gift and every perfect gift is from above."  (St. James 1:17)    All the things we work for in this world will never equal the gift of eternal salvation that God offers to each and every one of us.  God sent His Son into the world to show of the love of the Father.  And despite this fact, so many people throughout the world spend their days chasing after the "worthless trinkets" that the world has to offer.  The riches the world has to offer are nothing in comparison with the gift of eternal life Our Lord freely offers us.  This is why St. James needs to remind that world that "EVERY good gift and every perfect gift is from above."  Only God offers good gifts.  Only God offers perfect gifts.  Every other "gift" the world offers is lacking compared to the love that God offers freely to each of us.  Dear friends, keep your eyes focused above and focus on the gifts that God offers us.

Please make a point to join us for Mass on Sunday.  St. Margaret Church gathers together each and every Sunday at 10:30 am.  We worship at the beautiful Chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.  Join us as we listen to the Word of God found in the King James Version of the Bible.  We use the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  And receive the Most Precious Body and Blood of Our Saviour at Communion time.   We are all busy.  We all lead busy lives.  Take an hour out of your busy week and dedicate it to God.  Give that hour to God and spend it with Him.

Third Sunday after Easter, April 21st, 2024

 Third Sunday after Easter, April 21st, 2024

In the Sixteenth chapter of St. John's Gospel, Our Blessed Saviour is preparing the disciples for His eventual departure from their midst.  But this is confusing for the disciples because Our Lord is telling them "A little while, and ye shall not see Me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see Me." (St. John 16:16)  Obviously, He was referring to His coming Death upon the Cross, Burial, and Resurrection.  Later on He says:  " . . . and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy. " (v.20)  As human beings, we have a lot of emotions, we feel happy; we feel sad; we feel joyous; we feel anxious; we feel scared; we feel peaceful; etc.   And typically, these emotions have root causes.  For example, we might feel sad because a beloved family member just passed away.  Or we might feel joyful because it is a beautiful Spring day, and we are off from work, and we are going to the baseball game.  Sometimes we feel a certain way due seemingly to no reason at all but typically our emotions are caused by some factor as described in the examples above.  For Christians, Christ is the reason for our hope.  He is the reason for our joy.  Our Blessed Saviour is the reason for our motivation in life.  We must always remember to acknowledge that God is the Lord and Master of our life.  We must always remember to put God first in everything.  We need to have a personal relationship with God and to speak with Him every day.  When we have God deep in our heart, the world can never take that away, no matter what it throws at you.  This is why Our Blessed Savior said:  "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." (v.22)  No man can take away the joy that God has given us.  The world can not take away the love that we have for Our Heavenly Father.  No amount of heartache can take away the love that God has for each one of us.  Always keep in mind the love that God has for you.  Always remember that God has chosen you as one of His own.  Never forget that Christ died on the Cross to atone for your sins so that you can be forgiven.

Please make a point to join us for Mass on Sunday.  St. Margaret Church gathers together each and every Sunday at 10:30 am.  We worship at the beautiful Chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.  Join us as we listen to the Word of God found in the King James Version of the Bible.  We use the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  And receive the Most Precious Body and Blood of Our Saviour at Communion time.   We are all busy.  We all lead busy lives.  Take an hour out of your busy week and dedicate it to God.  Give that hour to God and spend it with Him.

Second Sunday after Easter, April 14th, 2024

 Second Sunday after Easter, April 14th, 2024

In today's Gospel passage coming to us from St. John we hear Our Blessed Saviour refer to Himself as the Good Shepherd:  "I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep"  (St. John 10:11)   Our Lord compares and contrasts the difference between someone who truly cares about the sheep to someone who is merely a "hireling."  Our Lord states that the hireling is someone who does not have true concern for the sheep whereas a good shepherd will defend the sheep with his life.  I see so many examples of "good shepherds" around me on a daily basis.  I see those who are first responders who do not fail to rush head-first into danger.  Policemen, Firemen, Paramedics, Department of Corrections, . . . . These brave men and women think of others first before they think of their own personal safety.  And, quite frankly, they never know what the day will bring.  Look at the case of the New York City policeman who recently went up to a car which was parked illegally in a bus zone and he ended up losing his life in the process.  You hear about brave firefighters who go rushing head-first into burning buildings and think not of their own safety but instead focus on saving those inside the building.  And as a Department of Corrections Chaplain, I see what Correctional works go through on a daily basis:  working long hours in stressful situations; looking after a population who does not care about anyone else, let alone themselves. How about other examples around us such as the dedicated teachers who also work long hours preparing lesson plans, teaching students, grading tests.  And they do what they do because they want to make a difference in their students' life.  The same can be said for those dedicated parents who lay down their lives on a daily basis to give their children a better life.  These dedicated mothers and fathers work day after day to provide for their children a better life.  They want their children to have a better life than they had.  And they do it because they love their children.  "I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep"  In all of these examples mentioned and so many more we see people all over the world doing what they can to make the world a better place.  This is the example Our Lord teaches us that we are called to do what we can for others.   Go out and be God's instrument in the world.  Do what you can to make the world a better place in the Name of God.  Offer up your daily sacrifices and let God take care of the rest.

Please make a point to join us for Mass on Sunday.  St. Margaret Church gathers together each and every Sunday at 10:30 am.  We worship at the beautiful Chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.  Join us as we listen to the Word of God found in the King James Version of the Bible.  We use the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  And receive the Most Precious Body and Blood of Our Saviour at Communion time.   We are all busy.  We all lead busy lives.  Take an hour out of your busy week and dedicate it to God.  Give that hour to God and spend it with Him.

First Sunday after Easter, April 7th, 2024

 First Sunday after Easter, April 7th, 2024

We have life pretty easy compared to, let's say, cavemen.  For example, we sit around and post funny pictures of cats on Facebook while our ancestors ran around trying not to be eaten by Dinosaurs.  Alright, I'm being a wee bit extreme in my comparisons but in so many ways, life is much easier for us than it was for past ages.  Due to technology, life is simpler, that is sure.  Whether it be travel or washing clothes, we have it so much easier than those that lived in past ages due to technology.  And yet, life is so difficult for us at times.  Whether it is dealing with other people that don't particularly like us or dealing with trying to keep up with  the overwhelming bills that are due.  Whether it is trying to find a job or dealing with things that break in your house or on your car.  The daily pressures of life seem to be a burden to so many people, especially those who are dealing with sadness, illness, or daily troubles.  And yet we know as faithful, firm, committed Christians, that are answer is right in front of our eyes.   "WHATSOEVER is born of God overcometh the world" (I St. John 5:4)  God is our answer.  This is because God is our foundation in a changing world.  While on the one hand, we do not know what life will give us from day to day . . .  sometimes, it seems to change hour to hour . . . minute to minute . . . . we do know that God will never leave us.  We know that God is always there in our corner.  We know that God is ever constant.  God truly is our foundation.  While we never know from day to day what life will give us, we know that as long as we have God with us we can overcome anything that life dishes out.

St. Margaret would like to have YOU join us on Sunday.  If you are reading this and you are able to be with us on Sunday, would you consider simply taking one hour out of your busy schedule and join us as we worship Our Heavenly Father. Take an hour out of your busy schedule and dedicate it to God.  Take an hour out of your busy schedule and hear the Word of God and listen to what God is saying to you.  Take an hour out of your busy schedule and join your brothers and sisters to worship as God's family.  Would you please consider joining us on Sunday morning?  We would love to see YOU! 

Please make a point to join us for Mass on Sunday.  St. Margaret Church gathers together each and every Sunday at 10:30 am.  We worship at the beautiful Chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.  Join us as we listen to the Word of God found in the King James Version of the Bible.  We use the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  And receive the Most Precious Body and Blood of Our Saviour at Communion time.   We are all busy.  We all lead busy lives.  Take an hour out of your busy week and dedicate it to God.  Give that hour to God and spend it with Him.