Our Hearts Are Restless . . . .

Let's face it,  if you have not had anything to eat for a while, your mind starts to dwell on your hunger and nothing else.  We focus on everything that we might want to eat:  pizza . . .  Chinese food . . .  spaghetti . . . Mexican  . . .  . fast food . . . fried chicken . . . a sandwich . . . Then we finally decide what exactly we want and we fixate on our food of choice until we get it.  And then finally we eat and we are satisfied.     But what if you just finished eating an hour ago, and your mind still thinks about various foods.  Of course, it might be the fact that we are simply being greedy and causing us to think this way.  But the fact remains that as human beings we get hungry,  . . . we get cravings, . . . we focus on fulfilling our desires or what we are hungry for.  And it is not simply limited to food, quite frankly.  Human beings get fixated on a number of desires that they would like to fill.  Whether it be food, or drink, or drugs, or power, or money . . . . the list goes on and on.  Our Blessed Lord sums it up perfectly when He says:  "Be not anxious for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than the food, and the body than the raiment? "  (St. Matthew 6:25)

As human beings we need to be fed and we also have to be clothed.  But as Christians, we also have to be spiritually fed on a daily basis.    People are hungry for the Word of God.  They want to hear what God is saying to them. They are searching for God and may not even know it.  As St. Augustine pointed out:   "You have made us for Yourself and our hearts are restless until they rest in You."  St. Augustine knew full well the desires of the human heart.  He was restless himself as a young man but he tried to "calm" this restlessness by focusing on fulfilling many desires of his heart and mind.  St. Augustine sought to fulfill his hunger with sex.  He sought to fulfill his hunger with wine.  He even sought to satisfy this restlessness with learning and education.  In essence, St. Augustine found that he went down many avenues to satisfy his restlessness and search for happiness.  And he found that each and every time he was indeed "satisfied" for a while but then his heart became "restless" again.  And St. Augustine discovered a pattern each of these points in his life:  he was satisfied for a time, yes, but then he wanted something else.  It was not until St. Augustine gave his heart to God that he discovered his heart was "restless" no longer.    Our human hearts are indeed restless.  Our human minds are restless.  We human beings are constantly searching for things that make us happy, for things that satisfy us.  And again we find inspiration from St. Augustine when he gives us the answer to satisfying our true hunger as human beings:  "So I set about to find God and found that I could not find Him until I embraced the mediator between God and man, Christ Jesus, Who is over all these things, Who was calling me and saying:  'I am the Way, the Truth and the Life . . . ."
As St. Augustine discovered in his own life, the human heart desires many things to be "satisfied."  But above all these "desires" is the desire to be with God and this can only be satisfied by a relationship with Our Blessed Saviour.  "Therefore take no thought, saying What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?   . . . . for your Heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.  But seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."  (St. Matthew 6:31-33)  As human beings we will desire many things but we need to first seek and desire God.  Until we discover that purpose, we will forever be restless and unsatisfied in life.

Thus, it is understandable that people who are searching for God turn to the clergy in their search for the Almighty.  They want to hear inspiration.  They want to learn more about God.  They want to have these spiritual desires met.  But in all fairness pastors, priests, ministers, bishops, etc. can only do so much in a given week.  What I mean by this statement 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 dedicated to preaching by 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 or twenty-five minutes of preaching in on a given Sunday morning.  In comparison, that is not very much time out of a given week.  Think about it.  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-five, maybe thirty minutes of preaching out of all those hours in a week.  That's not much time in comparison to the rest of the week.  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 read where "(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)

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 as we pointed out earlier:  pizza . . . Chinese food  . .  . Mexican food . . . fast-food . . . chicken . . . seafood . . . . etc.  Likewise, many people choose to get "fed" from different interests or desires:  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.

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 listen to Him, to come and receive Him when we come to church.

Seventh Sunday after Trinity, July 15th, 2018

Seventh Sunday after Trinity, Sunday, July 15th, 2018

We read in the Eighth Chapter of St. Mark's Gospel his account of the "Feeding of the Four-Thousand."  In this first verse we read that Our Blessed Saviour called the disciples close to Him and told them:  "I have compassion on the multitude" (St. Mark 8:1)    He had compassion because He saw that the people had been with Him for three days and had nothing to eat.   He saw that they were hungry.  He saw that they were exhausted.  He saw that they needed nourishment.  Two things I would like for us to consider briefly.

Number one,  Our God is concerned with us and for us.  Our Saviour notices things like this because He was here on earth.  In other words, He is not some distant, far-removed god who could care less about the people.  No, God cares so much for His people that He sent His Son into the world to be with His people.  Christ spent time with the people.  He ate with the people.  He worked alongside the people.  Our Blessed Lord not only spoke with the people, He listened to what they had to say.  Our Lord is not distant; He is near.  He is near to us because He wants to be.  He listens to us.  All we have to do is to reach out to Him.  He is waiting.

The second thing I would like to point out in regards to this "Feeding of the Four-Thousand."  The reason why Our Lord noticed that the people were hungry was because He was taking the time to notice.  This sounds very simple, doesn't it?  Too simple, in fact.  And yet, today,  how many of us do not show compassion because we do not take the time to notice others around us.  And the reason why we do not take notice of those around us is because we are too focused on ourselves.  We look more inwardly than we do outwardly.  We spend our days satisfying our own needs, our own wants, our own desires.  We spend our days only concerned with ourselves and our needs.  If we stand in line behind someone who is having difficulty, are we more concerned that she gets her problem resolved or are we focused on the fact that we are being "inconvenienced" by waiting in line?  Like our Blessed Saviour, do we take the time to notice those around us and if they are hungry . . . or sad  . . . . or worn out . . .  or depressed . . .  Do we take the time to notice things about others?  Do we take the time to be interested in others?  Or are we simply too busy to notice because we are too busy being interested in ourselves? Do we take interest in others or do we only take interest in ourselves?  As Christians, we are called to be "Christ-like."  As such, we should try to do what Our Blessed Saviour would do.  While we may never heal lepers or cure the blind like Jesus did, we can have compassion like He did.  We can have compassion on those around us:  our family members, . . .  our neighbors,  .  . .  . our coworkers, . . . . But first we have to take the time to notice those around us and quit focusing so much on ourselves.  

Join us as we listen to the Word of God found in the King James Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  Join us as we join together as God's family and worship Our Heavenly Father.  Join us as we come to the altar to be fed the Precious Body and Blood at Communion time.  And, finally, please stay after Mass for some fellowship at our coffee hour.

St. Margaret Anglican Church worships 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.

Second Sunday after Trinity, June 10th, 2018

Second Sunday after Trinity, June 10th, 2018

It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon last weekend . . .  a little bit hot, yes . . . . but a beautiful weekend nonetheless.   Because of that reason I was trying to finish up the work I was doing in the back yard at home.  The peacefulness of the afternoon was soon disrupted because the neighbors that live behind us were having a party of sorts with a pool and one of those big, inflatable bounce house's that the kids jump in.  I think there must have been perhaps ten to twelve children at this gathering.  These children were aged eight to ten years old, I guess, although I am not good at guessing ages.  Anyway, these children were very loud as you might expect.  Now, I really didn't have a problem with the yelling and screaming of the children.  That's just what kids do when they are outside at a party with other children.  Here's what caught my attention, though.  One of these children  . . . . at the top of her lungs . . . .  would yell "Oh My God!"   Now, this was happening every minute or so and it was very hard to miss each time she would yell it.  I have discovered that Children are very similar to parrots.  They both mimic what they have heard.  Thus, be careful what you speak in front of both parrots and children.  Thus, it was pretty obvious to figure out that this little girl heard "Oh My God" said quite a bit at home.  I do not fault the little girl in the least.  We hear this phrase . . .  and, sadly, much worse . . . . spoken in conversations;  . . . we hear it on TV and in the movies;  . . .  we hear Our Lord's Name spoken more as a curse word than we do as a source of praise for the wonderful things He does for us.   St John writes in his first epistle:  "That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ" (1 St. John 3:23)   The Name of God  . . .  The Name of His Son . . . . The Names and titles of the Holy Ghost . . . . All of these names are sacred; they are holy; we should speak these names with honor and respect.  And yet people utter the Name of God with utter disregard and do not even realize it.  Call on God in prayer.  Call Him when you need Him.  Utter His Name to describe the wonderful things He has done for you.  "O give thanks unto the Lord; call upon His Name!" (Psalm 105:1)  The Name of God is holy.  The Name of God is sacred.  The Name of God should mean something and stand for something.    " . . .  and we will walk in the Name of the Lord Our God for ever and ever." (Micah 4:5) When we do speak the Lord's Name, let us speak His Name in the proper context.   Let us praise the Name of the Lord.  Let us speak His Name with pride and love.  Let us thank Him by Name for all of the wonderful things He has done for us.   

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.

Love One Another As I Have Loved You

It is certainly understandable when we get irritated with people.  Whether it's that person at work that is always "pushing our buttons" or the complete stranger that cuts us off in traffic.  We are human and getting angry or irritated is a human emotion.  We all do it.  I get mad.  You get mad.  You may even get mad at me or perhaps me at you.  So often we get mad, we try to justify the way we feel.  We come up with excuses.  We do our best to excuse ourselves from being mad, . . .. from being angry.  But the bottom line is that as Christians we are called to be different from the world.  As Christians we are called to emulate, . .  to imitate Our Blessed Saviour.  Even when we are justified in being angry (i.e., the person that cuts us off in traffic and almost runs into us), Our Lord commends us to show forgiveness because that is what He did.

"Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.  But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in Heaven: for He maketh His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.  For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye?  do not even the publicans the same?"  (St. Mathew 5:43-47)

In fact, if you notice what Our Lord stated above, He said not only to love your enemy but specifically He said that we should "pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you."  So, for us to be more Christ-like as Christians we should both love our enemies and pray for them.  Now, bear in mind what we are called to do is not just a suggestion.  It's even more than a recommendation.  It's actually a commandment that we should love one another:  "A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.  By this shall all men know that ye are My disciples, if you have love one to another."  (St. John 13:34-35)

Is any of what Our Lord commanded easy to do?  Not in the least!  Will we always be successful?  No!  And yet we are called to love . . . . Nay, we are commanded to love one another . . . . This is how the world will know that we are Christians Our Lord tells us.  As I say it will not be easy to do.  It will not be simple to achieve.  But we need to do if we want to be a Christian.  Our Blessed Lord never asks us to do something that He was not willing to do Himself.  Our Lord didn't just "talk the talk," He "walked the walk!"  He loved those that hated Him.  He showed love to those that mocked Him.  He asked forgiveness for those who crucified Him.   He died on the Cross for my enemy just as much as He did for me.

Let us lift up those in prayer those who oppose us.  Let us bring them to God in prayer.  Let us ask God to bless our enemies and to be with them.  As hard as this may be for most of us, it may ultimately benefit us as well when we pray for our enemies and those who oppose us.  Number one, in order to truly pray for someone we have to begin letting go of the hatred and bitterness inside of us that we are holding on to.  Second, when we get rid of the anger and hatred inside of us, it will stop eating us up inside.  Typically, I have found that the anger and hatred that I have towards someone else does more damage to me than it does to the person I am angry with.

"Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth, and let not thine heart be glad when he stumbleth."  (Proverbs 24:17)

Fifteenth Sunday after Trinity, September 24, 2017

Fifteenth Sunday after Trinity, September 24, 2017

"Ye cannot serve God and mammon." (St. Matthew 6:24)

In the Sixth Chapter of St. Matthew's Gospel, we hear Our Blessed Saviour giving what has come to be known as His "Sermon on the Mount."  Now, bear in mind that this sermon begins back at the beginning of Chapter Five in St. Matthew's Gospel and it finishes up at the end of Chapter Seven.  So the passage that we are dealing with is somewhere near the middle, give or take.  If you look through chapters Five through Seven in this Gospel, you will be able to see for yourself a wide arrange of subjects/topics that Our Blessed Saviour talks about.  But in the passage that we are covering today deals with a very important topic.  I say "very important" because it is one that certainly still has bearing to our generation some two-thousand years later.

In Verse 24 of this Sixth Chapter, Our Lord states:  "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other.  Ye cannot serve God and mammon."

As devout Christians, we are called to place God first and foremost in our life.  I am sure that every single one of you that is reading this would agree with that statement.  God should hold the utmost place in our life.  Period.  And yet as human beings we know that we are ruled very often by, how shall I put it, "base desires of the flesh," if you will.  In other words, people want to satisfy their desires at THAT particular moment.  For example, if I am hungry my stomach will rule my actions until I fill that hunger.  If I get focused on buying a new pair of shoes, for example, I will plan out when I can go to the mall and look for that particular pair of shoes that I want to buy.  If the shoes are expensive, I may have to wait until I save up the money . . . . work overtime . . .  until I get enough to buy the shoes.   How about the alcoholic man or woman that "lives for the next drink?"  And yet so many of us . . . myself included . . . . "live" for the next gadget or doo-dad or meal or pair of sneakers, etc, etc, etc.  We can all come up with our own examples of "what we live for."

We focus our efforts, . . . we focus our time . . . . we focus our energies into obtaining things of the world.  Again, in this same "Sermon on the Mount," Our Lord states:  "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:" (St. Matthew 6:20)

Our Lord states the obvious.  How many "treasures" do we own . . . how many "treasures" have we placed so much of our time and effort into acquiring? . . . . how many of these "treasures" are now "out of style," "out of date," "broken," "last years model," "rusted away"     Whether it be clothing that has gone "out of style" or technology that has been "outdated."  So much of our time and effort and energy is spent on things of this world that does not last.

Our Lord continues in Verse Twenty-One:  "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."  (St. Matthew 6:21)  So many of us in the world have our "treasure" here below.  As Christians, our true "treasure" should be up above and not down below.   God calls us to a mansion up above where we will spend eternity.  We should spend our time preparing for that mansion that we are called to.   Let us spend our time focusing our attentions on "things above" and less time focusing on "things below."  Our Blessed Saviour assures us that we will always be taken care of by Our Heavenly Father.  Let us do our part, yes . . . let us work as we are called to do . . . .but let us focus on living for God and placing our trust in Him.  And let us always remember where our true treasure is . . . .up above and not below.

St. Margaret Church gathers together every Sunday morning for Mass at the beautiful Chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.  Mass begins at 9:30 AM.  Please join us as we gather together to worship Our Heavenly Father.  We use the 1928 Book of Common Prayer and the King James Version of the Bible.

Seventh Sunday after Trinity, July 30, 2017

Seventh Sunday after Trinity, July 30, 2017

In the Eighth Chapter of the Gospel of St. Mark, we hear about the feeding of the Four-Thousand.  Now Four-Thousand is indeed an impressive number.  But in those days, it would have been beyond "impressive."  Consider some two-thousand years ago, there would be no social media to make announcements . . . . lack of transportation (at least compared to how "easy" we have it now . . . . just jump in your car and "go!")   . . . .  no television commercials announcing a gathering, etc.  These Four-Thousand people gathered by hearing others talking about the "mysterious rabbi," the "wonderful teacher," the "miracle worker from Nazareth."  They heard about him by word of mouth, I am quite sure, and came for a multitude of reasons ranging from pure curiosity to faith to needing or wanting something from Our Lord.  Again, the vast crowd that had gathered was certainly impressive, but this is not what St. Mark was focusing on when he wrote this passage of his Gospel.  Nor was the size of the crowd what Our Lord was focusing on when He performed the miracle.  No, Our Lord was concerned about the well-being of those who had gathered to hear Him speak.  "My heart is moved with pity for the crowd, because they have stayed with me now for three days, and they have nothing to eat."  (St. Mark 8:2)  What a wonderful Saviour we have.   He had compassion on the crowd and was "moved with pity" because He was worried for them.  He was concerned for them.  He had their well-being in mind.  "My Sacred Heart is moved with pity!"  Our Blessed Saviour was not just concerned with their spiritual well-being  . . . .  He was concerned also with their physical well-being!   This shows the compassion that Our Lord had!

When Our Lord had determined that there was a need, a desperate need!   He called the disciples around Him and asked them what to do in this situation.  The first response back from the disciples was an objection:  "Where could anyone get bread to satisfy them in a desert place like this?," was their response.  (St. Mark 8:4)    Instead of focusing on the positive, the disciples focused on the negative.  Aren't we like that?  I know I am.  How often when something comes up that needs to be taken care of, how often is my first response:  "How am I going to do this?!?"  "I can't believe this!"  "I'm never going to be able to take care of this!"  This is what the disciples were, in essence, saying.  But Our Lord did not listen to their objections.  He immediately challenged them into action by asking how many loaves they had.  Very often we defeat ourselves because we look at the total amount needed and we get scared.  But more often than not the solution to a problem is to begin with a little bit and then move on from there.  The disciples responded that they had seven loaves and He was content to begin there.  From there it turned out, St. Mark tells us, that they also had a few small fishes as well.  We all know what happened next:  "So they ate until they were completely satisfied." (St. Mark 8:8)  "How many loaves have ye?"  "What do you have?"  "What can you spare?"  "What can you give?"  The words may be different but the meaning is the same.  The important thing really is the response we give.  What can you give?   Is our response negative?  "Oh, what can I do?  I don't have that much.  It won't make a difference.   Why should I even try?  Or is our response positive?  Well, I don't have very much but let's at least try.  You see, Our Lord doesn't expect riches from us but He does expect us to give 100% of what we do have.  This is why He was so impressed with the example of the widow who gave her two mites into the tithe.  Compared to most others, she had "nothing" to offer.  And yet she gave everything that she had.  What was seven loaves of bread compared to Four-Thousand hungry people.  What could seven loaves accomplish?  And yet Our Blessed Saviour takes we have and completes the rest.  Our Lord fills in what we lack.  The key is that we need to do our part.  We need to give our all.  We need to give 100% effort when it comes to God.  What do you have to give?  This is the question we should all ask ourselves today?  What do I have to give?  And am I willing to give it?  God doesn't expect us to solve all the problems of the world but He does want us to help.  He wants us to show some effort.  What will you give?

St. Margaret Church meets each and every Sunday at 9:30 AM at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.  Join us as we hear the Word of God found in the 1928 Book of Common Prayer and the King James Bible.  Come dedicate one hour of your week to God.  Step away from the busy-ness of the world for just one hour and focus totally on God.  Come and worship Him.  Let Him feed you spiritually.   Receive the Precious Body and Blood at Communion time.

Sixth Sunday after Trinity, July 23rd, 2017

Sixth Sunday after Trinity, July 23rd, 2017

" . . . . . even so we also should walk in newness of life"  (Epistle to the Romans 6:4)

In addition to my work as a parish priest, I work as a counselor for the Department of Corrections in a juvenile facility.  The unit that I administer is a "faith and character" based unit and I wear many hats, as they say.  On a daily basis I write reports, and do counseling sessions, attend classes with the students, answer questions, give commissary,  speak to family members, etc, etc, etc.  Every day brings new challenges.  Every day is an adventure, as I like to say.  One of the things that I am required to do is sometimes sit in on either family sessions or meetings held with representatives of outside agencies.  These meetings, more often than not, are held in the visiting room of the facility.  While I set there in the visiting room I can not help but notice a curious thing just outside the window.  Outside the visiting room is a small courtyard with one or two picnic tables.  Since this is a maximum security facility, it is enclosed by a ten foot chain link fence with strands of barbed wire attached to the top of the fence.  Now the curious thing I noticed is that there are two birds nests nestled inside of the barbed wire.  I will see birds on occasion fly in and out of the nests.  It seems that it would be a very precarious place, to say the least, for a birds nest to be built---in barbed wire.  But the birds don't seem to mind.  The reason I bring all of this up is because I found myself staring at a bird this week setting in the barbed wire on top of that fence, totally oblivious to the danger surrounding him.  He didn't seem to notice or if he did, he obviously did not care.  How many of us are in similar situations, so to speak, in our lives?  Just like that little bird was satisfied to sit on that barbed wire and didn't think anything of the danger, so too we are satisfied to exist in a world caught up in greed, and hatred, and jealousy, and envy.  We sit in a world consumed with desire of material things . . . . .  expensive clothing,  .   .  fancy cars . . . drugs . . . . drink . . . . .   We lust after the desire of power and wealth and fame.   Clothing styles certainly change over time.  Modes of transportation and communication change over the centuries.  But beyond that, man has been the same since the beginning of time.  And just like that little bird was totally oblivious to the dangerous "perch" it had inside of that barbed wire, so too are we totally oblivious to the dangers and snares that this old world offers.  But St. Paul reminds us that we have a "newness of life" as Christians.  We are called to see the world differently.  We are called to live in this world, yes,  but not to be of this world.  Through our baptism, we are new creatures.  Through Christ's dying on the Cross, we are forgiven our sins.  And through Christ's rising to new life, each one of us has the opportunity to spend eternity with Our Heavenly Father.  This is the "newness of life" that we are called to, as St. Paul puts it.  But, sadly, so many in the world are content to sit inside of the "barbed wire" that is the world, just like that little bird, and not think any differently of it.  We are so accustomed to the baseness of the world that we are content to exist in it.  But Christ calls us to a new life.  Christ calls us to be new creatures.  Let us spend our days following Our Blessed Saviour instead of the world.  Let us walk in the "newness of life" and not the same ol', same ol' that the world offers.

  St. Margaret Church celebrates Mass each and every Sunday at 9:30 AM.  Mass is celebrated at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, located as 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.

Join us for Mass as we listen to the Word of God found in the King James Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  Join us as we hear God speaking to us in His Word.  Our Lord also offers to each one of us His Most Precious Body and Blood at Communion time.  Receive the Precious Body and Blood to strengthen and nourish you for your daily journey.  And afterward, please join us for our Coffee Hour to have some delicious goodies and good fellowship.

Trinity Sunday, June 11, 2017

Trinity Sunday, June 11, 2017

In the Third Chapter of the Gospel of St. John, we hear a conversation between Our Blessed Saviour and Nicodemus talking about being "born again."  At one point in the conversation, Our Lord says to Nicodemus:  "We speak that we do know . . . "  I am sure that everyone reading this can think of a time  . . . . or two  . . . . or three . . . . where you could not get something to work.   Perhaps something broke.  Perhaps something quit working when it was previously working.  Perhaps you bought something at the store and although it was working . . . .  it did not seem to be doing what it was supposed to be doing.  In any case, you get in contact with an "expert" to remedy the situation.  In other words, to see if someone else could fix it.   I am sure that each one of us can think of a time where we sought someone out to fix our problem that we could not fix ourselves.  And when this person started working, you were amazed at how quickly and efficiently they were solving the problem.  I know this has happened to me many a time.  In other words, people are "experts" at what they do.  People "know" what they are trained in.  Teachers know how to teach.  Cooks know how to cook.  etc.  But, of course, with just about every field there comes education .  . . there comes training . . . . there comes dedication to learning and knowing that particular field . . . . there comes effort to put in the needed work . . . . etc.  An engineer has to go to school in order to be a good engineer.  A doctor has to go years to Medical School in order to become a doctor.  Same way with a nurse, a teacher, .. . .  . you name it.  The point being is this:  everyone is an expert in what they know because they have made the effort to learn about it;  they have dedicated the time to know the specific subject.  When it comes to God, the question becomes "Are we able to speak with authority?" or "Is God a far-away subject that we know little about?"  As Our Lord says, "We speak that we do know."  As Christians, we should be sure in our faith.  As Christians, we should be rock-solid in our beliefs.  As followers of Christ, we should be able to speak with authority on behalf of Our Saviour.  And yet, sadly, so many of us do not stand firm in our Christian beliefs.  We do not feel comfortable speaking on behalf of Christ out in the world.  Is this because we do not have the proper training?  Is it because we do not have the desire?  Is it because we do not have the motivation to learn the things of God?  To spend time with God?  When a person decides that he or she wants to become a nurse, for example, we could say they desire to become a nurse.  But it doesn't stop there.  Desire must transform into motivation . . . . being motivated to follow through on the classes  . . . follow through on taking all the courses necessary.  This, of course involves effort to study, to read, to prepare for tests.  And of course dedication is needed to continue towards the goal.  Without dedication, it would be easy to give up.  Remember Christians also need to have desire .  . . motivation . . .  dedication . . .  and effort as well.  We need to desire to have a relationship with God.  We need to be motivated to spend time daily with Him.  We need to dedicate our lives to Him.  And all of this involves effort on our part, to do what God calls us to do.

St. Margaret Church meets each and every Sunday morning at 9:30 AM.  We gather together at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis. Come join us as we listen to the Word of God found in the King James Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.

Mary Magdalene

Mary Magdalene

When it comes to Holy Scripture there are some people that we know a great deal about.  Moses, for example, comes to mind as someone mentioned quite often in the Bible.  St. Paul is another person that has many epistles/letters attributed to him in the New Testament.  Thus, we know a good deal about St. Paul from his own writing.  Obviously, a goodly portion of the Acts of the Apostles is about St. Paul.  On the proverbial "other end of the spectrum," there are others that were very important and yet we do not know very much about them.  St. Joseph comes to mind.   And also Mary Magdalene is another important person associated with Our Lord and yet we do not know that much about her from Holy Scripture.  There are less than twenty verses in the Bible which mention Mary Magdalene.  Yet we know that Mary Magdalene was important to Our Lord and the early Apostles and Disciples.

1)  The Seven Devils

It is commonly believed by many people that Mary Magdalene was a former prostitute.  But despite this widely-held belief, it is never mentioned in Scripture that Mary Magdalene was a penitent prostitute at one time or another in her lifetime.  While it does not say in the Bible that Mary was a prostitute at one time or another, it does say that Mary did have a miraculous recovery.  Let us look at St. Luke 8:2:  "And certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom when seven devils."  What can we learn from this verse?  Well, for one, we learn that she was "called Magdalene . . ."   Remember that Magdala was a place.   It was near Tiberias, on the the western shore of the Sea of Galilee.  Thus, more than likely the name "Magdalene" was really a nickname, if you will, for where she was from.  Similar to how we would call someone from Ohio a "Buckeye."  Or we would call someone from Indiana a "Hoosier."  The second thing that we learn from the verse cited above is that Mary had been miraculously cured of "seven devils."  Now, again, when the term "seven devils" is used, it could be an analogy for sicknesses or illnesses.  She could have been cured of seven different illnesses.  Or the number "seven" could have signified something very important or dramatic.  In either case, nowhere does it say that Mary Magdalene was a former prostitute.  What we can learn, though from this is that each one of us has our own "devils" that we deal with in our lives.  Each one of is more than likely targeted by devils and we have to deal with them.  Certainly, without a doubt, once you become a "Child of God," once you become a "Son or Daughter of God," you become "Public Enemy Number One" to Satan.  Once he sees the love of God growing more and more in your heart, he will certainly send devils to plague you and torment you.  Mary Magdalene had seven devils.  How many do you have?  How many do I have?  The number is not important.  What is important that each one of us is not immune from attacks by the devil.  Each one of us needs the healing touch of Our Blessed Saviour to bring us back to fullness of health:  physically, spiritually and emotionally.

2)  Near The Cross

When you think of all the people whose lives were touched by Our Blessed Lord, it is an absolute travesty that there were so few with Him when He was crucified.  Think about all the people that were healed by Our Lord.  Think about the people that were inspired by His words as He taught and preached.  Think about the people that were touched by Our Blessed Saviour and their lives changed forever.  And yet look at how few people were there at the Hill of Calvary on that dreadful day.  It is obvious that many people were fearful and afraid.  It is apparent that those closest to Our Blessed Lord were afraid for their very lives.  Look at St. Peter.  Our Lord foretold that St. Peter would deny Him and St. Peter did not believe Him.  And yet look who was correct.  St. Peter denied Our Lord not once . . .  not twice  . . .  but three times.  We all know this. There were some faithful souls that remained close to Our Lord in His hour of agony.  "Now there stod by the Cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene."  Mary Magdalene was one of the few that stayed faithful to the end.  This is what faith is all about.  When things look the darkest, how many of us give up?  When things look like they could not get any worse, how many of us give into despair?  How many of us just throw our hands up ready to surrender.  Now, I am not saying that Mary Magdalene and those who were there on that fateful day were not scared.  I am sure that they were very fearful.  I am sure they were confused.  I am sure they were emotional.  We could say a hundred things.  And yet no matter what they were, they were also faithful.  They were faithful to Christ.  They did not know what would happen next and yet they stayed close to the Cross.  In our own situations, we become fearful.  In the drama that we call life, we become confused.  And yet whatever befalls us in life, let us always remain close to the Cross.  Let us always remember that Our Blessed Saviour carried His Cross and that we should carry our own crosses as well.  Our "crosses" are what we have to carry on a daily basis:  money woes . . . .  sickness . . . . perhaps drug or alcohol problems . . . . loved ones who seem bent on self-destruction . . . . Each one of us can come up with our own "cross" that we carry.  Let us be inspired by Mary Magdalene.  Let us remain faithful to God, yes, in the good times but still remain faithful to God when the bad times come as well.  It's easy to be a cheerful Christian when we've got life good.  But how easy is it to be a cheerful Christian when the world is attacking us?

3)  "Woman, why weepest thou?"

In the Twentieth Chapter of St. John's Gospel, we hear a very interesting story about Mary Magdalene.  St. John tells us in this chapter that Our Blessed Lord had already been taken down from the Cross and had been laid in the tomb.  Now bear in mind from what we said above about Mary Magdalene, she not only remained faithful to the end, she remained still faithful once Our Lord had been laid in the tomb.  St John, in his Gospel, tells us that Mary Magdalene had come "to the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre." (St. John 20:1)  At that point she ran and told St. Peter.  But this is not the interesting part yet, in my opinion.  If we move further down in this chapter we will soon find beginning in verse Fourteen:  "   . . . . she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus.  Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou?  whom seekest thou?  She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away.  Jesus saith unto her, Mary.  She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master." (St. John 20:14-16)   How many times has God appeared to us and we did not recognize Him?  How many times has God spoken to each one of us and we did not hear Him?  Did we not recognize Him because we were too busy seeking after  worldly goods?  Did we not hear God because we were too busy listening to others?  Or perhaps we only listen to God when He says what we want Him to say.  Other than that, we don't hear God.  In our children we call that "selective hearing."  Do any of us have "selective hearing" when it comes to God speaking to us.  Do we only recognize God when He "fits" our description of what He should look like?  Our Blessed Lord speaks to us at various times.  Our Saviour appears to us at various points in our life.  Let us always remain faithful to God so that we will always recognize Him.  Let us learn from the example of Mary Magdalene and always stay close to God, even to the very end.

You're the Best Thing That Ever Happened . . .

In the annals of "Pop" music, one of the biggest hits  . . .  if not the biggest hit . . . .  for Gladys Knight and the Pips was their version of "You're The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me."  Although I don't have any numbers or statistics in regards to how many records it sold, I would dare say that their version was the biggest selling version of this song.  But it would probably surprise many people that they were not the first artists to record this song.  Actually, I enjoy the version of this song by Ray Price, which was released in the 1950's . . . . some twenty years prior to the "Gladys Knight / Pips" version.  Now the song was obviously a song telling of  love between two people devoted to one another.  And yet as I listen to the song I can not help but think of God when I listen to the lyrics of the song.

In particular, some of the lyrics in the song that make me think of God are as follows:  "If anyone should ever write my life story . . . . For whatever reason there might be . . .  You'll be there between each line of pain and glory . . . "

When I hear that last line of the lyrics mentioned above I can not help but think of God because, without a doubt, He has been there for me in the good times and the bad.  We know as human beings we will experience good and we will experience bad.  Sometimes we will get a promotion at our job and sometimes we may get laid off.  Sometimes we will have the pleasure of getting bills paid off and other times we will end up receiving an unexpected bill like when the car quits running.  Our lives are similar to the weather sometimes . . . .  always unpredictable  . . .  despite the best efforts of the weather-man.  Life sometimes goes more smoothly than other times and life is certainly more difficult at times and less difficult at other times.  But whether we are experiencing good times or difficult times, God is the one constant that we can always depend on in our life.  To paraphrase the song, "God has been there between each line of pain and glory" in our life.

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven." (Ecclesiastes 3:1) Of course, this verse and the following verses from the Third Chapter of Ecclesiastes are very famous.  These verses remind us that there is a time for every action.  Just as there are different seasons:  Winter . . .  Spring . . . . Summer . . . Fall . . . . there are times for us to build and times for us to work.  There are times for us to rest and times for us to move.  There are times for us to rejoice and times for us to mourn.  None of us are guaranteed an easy life.  None of us are guaranteed a perfect life.  None of us are guaranteed a life without burden.  But no matter what season we find ourselves   .  . . . no matter what difficulties life throws at us . . . .  we know that God is always there for us.  The Psalmist reminds us:  "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou are God. (Psalm 90:2)  God is indeed everlasting and His love is everlasting.

The thing that we always have to remember about God is that He is always faithful to us even when we are not always faithful to Him.  There are times in our life where we get sidetracked.  There are times in our life where we get distracted.  There are times in our life perhaps when God seems distant.  And yet we know that it anything, we are the ones that separate ourselves from God and His Majesty.  "For I am the Lord, I change not . . ." (Malachi 3:6)

Always remember that God is there for us if we only go to Him.  Spend this holy season of Lent looking forward to Easter.  We are not a people that live in the past.  We are a people of hope.  We look towards the future.  Our hope lies in Christ, Who is our Saviour.  "'Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is." (Jeremiah 17:7)

Epiphany . . . . The Search For The Saviour

The Feast of Epiphany falls on January 6th each year.  It is a feast that seems to be almost forgotten by so much of our society because Christmas is finished to most of society.  Christmas was finished on December 25th and, in the eyes of much of society, it's time to move on.  "Much of society" started celebrating Christmas and preparing for Christmas around Thanksgiving.  And as such they are tired of Christmas by the time December 25th arrives.  On January 6th, "Much of society" is too busy focusing on moving on with their lives and trying to figure out what to do with their New's Years Resolutions.  This is why I say that to "Much of Society," the Feast of Epiphany is in many ways the "Forgotten Feast," . . .  And this is a real shame for so many reasons.  For you see, Epiphany is the feast day set aside by the Church to celebrate and remember the fact that Our Blessed Saviour came to reveal Himself as the Son of God to the Gentiles:  in other words, you and me.

There are so many things that we could write about this wonderful feast day but for our purposes right now, I would like to limit it to two points, if you will allow me:  Firstly, the search by the three wise men for the Child Jesus. Secondly, the gifts that they brought along with them.

The Search for the Christ Child

"When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Juda, in the days of king Herod, behold there came wise men from the East to Jerusalem, saying: Where is He that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen His star in the East, and are come to adore Him." (St. Matthew 2:1)

Those who were searching for the Christ Child, referenced in the Second Chapter of the Gospel of St. Matthew, have come to be known by many names:  the wise men . . . . the three kings . . . . the magi . . . .  and tradition has given them specific names:  Melchior; Caspar; and Balthassar.  No matter what name they go by, their purpose was still the same:  to answer the question, "Where is He that is born King of the Jews?"  In other words, their search was a vital one to them.  Their search had great meaning or else they would not have undertook the journey to begin with.  To them, their search had purpose.

Quite frankly, though, for each of us doesn't every "search" have a purpose?  In other words, if you think about it, every single day we search for something, don't we?  Now don't get me wrong, the search might be for something as simple as "where did I lay down my eyeglasses this time?" or "where is that phone number that I need?"  But no matter what we search for, the item that we are searching for must have great meaning to us or else we would certainly not make the effort to search for it in the first place.  Our Lord makes this very point when He tells the story of the woman looking for the lost coin, for example.  And He says that she sweeps the house and looks diligently for the lost coin until she finds it.  It is important to her.  It is valuable to her.  She has need of it and this is why she puts the effort and the time into searching for it.  Quite frankly, as stated above, we basically search for things that we need at the time . . . . we search for things that are valuable . . .  we search for things that we have need of.

If you look back to the Old Testament, you will find:  ". . . . and remember all the commandments of the Lord, and do them: and that ye seek not after your own heart, and your own eyes." (Numbers 15:39)  So much of the world around us is seeking after "their own heart" and "their own eyes."  In other words, they are seeking those things that are important in the eyes of the world.  They are searching for those things that are considered valuable to the world in general.   But the things in which the world searches for, these items only bring temporary happiness at best.  Mechanical items or electronic items eventually wear out or break completely . . . .  what is "hot" and "in fashion" today is suddenly "out of fashion" tomorrow.  The hottest fads and trends are just that . . . .  a fad . . . . a trend.  And they are only popular until the next "fad" or "trend" comes along.  And yet so much of the world spends its' time searching after worldly lusts that can only bring happiness, at best,  temporarily.

The wise men chose to search after something much more permanent.  This is the important lesson we can learn from them.  They chose to spend their time in search of the "King of the Jews."  " . . .  and in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek."  (Isaiah 11:10)  We need to follow the example of the three wise men in spending our time searching for God.  So much of our time during this human life is spend chasing after worthless things.  We seek after things which can not bring any lasting joy.  "But seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." (St. Matthew 6:33)

Let us follow the good example of the three wise men.   Let us focus our time on searching for the Christ Child instead of focusing our time looking for the things of the world that ultimately have no lasting value.  Only a relationship with God has permanent, lasting value.  Let us spend our time in this world wisely and concentrate on searching for God.

The Gifts We Bring

Whenever you look at a Nativity scene, you see the three wise men bearing gifts to the Christ Child.  As it has come to be known, Melchior offered gold; Caspar offered frankincense; and Balthassar offered myrrh.

"And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary His mother, and fell down, and worshipped Him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto Him gifts; gold, frankincense, and myrrh." (St. Matthew 2:11)

At that time it was customary to bring gifts to a king when visiting him.  Certainly, this is a custom that seems to still be observed in our own time.  If you ever watch the news, you will hear about visiting presidents or dignitaries who visit our country and they present gifts to the president.  Or you will see our president vising other countries and bringing gifts to honor the king or president, as the case may be.  With this in mind, the gifts that the three Magi brought had specific meaning.  The first gift, Gold, was brought to venerate Christ as Lord and King; the second gift, frankincense, was meant to emphasize the divinity of Christ; and the final gift, myrrh, was presented to express that Christ, the Son of Man, must ultimately die on the Cross.  Each gift had meaning.  Each gift had value.  Each gift was presented with an express purpose in mind.

Similar to the three kings, we also can present "gifts" or "presents" to God.  We can offer God various gifts:  our obedience; our self-denial; alms given to the poor; etc.  The one gift that we can give to God that He desires more than any other gift, though, is the gift of our heart.  God desires that gift more than anything else.  You see, as I say so often, God is a perfect gentleman.  He never barges in unannounced.  He never forces His way in.  He never invites Himself.  He waits until He is invited into our heart.  Only we can issue that invitation.  Only we can make room in our heart for Him.  So often, our hearts are crammed full already of the loves and desires of this world.  Only we can "clear things out" and "make room" where God can dwell.  The greatest gift of value that we can give to God is the gift of our love.

Reflections On The Sixth and Seventh Sorrows of Our Lady

I remember back when I saw Mel Gibson’s “The Passion” when it was released.  Like all of you who saw this production, I was moved with sorrow and grief at seeing the visual portrayal of the brutal treatment of Our Lord.  Mel Gibson was able, it seems to me, to vividly portray the sorrowful and cruel series of events depicting the Passion of Our Lord.  In this sense, this movie presentation helped to portray some of the sorrows that Our Lady was forced to endure in regards to her Son.

Just as throughout His life, Our Lady followed the cruel events leading up to His death.  One of the titles that Our Lady has been given is “Our Lady of Sorrows,” or “Sancta Mater Dolorosa.”  One of the devotions in regards to Our Lady of Sorrows has to do with the “Seven Sorrows of Our Lady.”  These, of course, refer to the Seven Sorrows Our Lady endured in regards to her Son.  The final two sorrows in this devotion, the Sixth and Seventh Sorrows, we will deal with in this short essay:  “Our Lord’s Descent from the Cross;” and the “Burial of Our Lord.”

Our Lord’s Descent from the Cross

After His Crucifixion, we hear in St. Matthew’s Gospel, the taking down from the Cross:

“When the even was come, there came a rich man of Arimathaea, named Joseph, who also himself was Jesus’ disciple: He went to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus.  Then Pilate commanded the body to be delivered.  And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth.”  (St. Matthew 27:57-59)

As mentioned earlier, how can any of us ever imagine the intense pain that Our Lady felt for her Son during the events of His Passion?  After everything that she had seen . . .  after all the paid that she had endured . . . . what emotions must she have felt as she saw her Son taken down from the Cross?  Pain. Sorrow. Grief. Agony.  And, yes, most certainly even Relief.  Relief that Her Son’s torture was finished.  Relief that His pain was over. Our Lady now wanted most to see her Son taken down from the Cross, taken down from the instrument of His Death.   Surely, she did not want to see her Son left up on the Cross to continue the shame and agony He was forced to endure from those who hated Him.  As with all mothers who love their children so dearly, she did not want to see her child treated with such contempt and hatred. 

What lesson can we learn that Our Lady has taught us?  As Christians, we learn to have compassion for Our Lord in this world.  You see, Our Lady had no power over the forces that caused her Son’s death.  She could not stop the tragic series of events that led to her Son hanging on that Cross.  And yet she could do the one thing that she did His entire life:  try to comfort Him as best as she could.  Mothers tend to do that, don’t they?  So often, our mothers are there to comfort us when we are hurting the most.  And so often they do not know what to do to relieve us of our pain other than they do the one thing that they do best:  they embrace us and hold us while we are grieving.  They hold us to let us know that we have someone with us when we hurt.  They embrace us to let us know that we have someone who loves us. This is what Our Lady did when her Son was brought down from the Cross.  She did the thing that came naturally to her and to all mothers . . . . she embraced her Son even in His death.   We too should learn to comfort Our Lord when He is offended.  Like Mary, so often we will not have the power to stop those in the world from offending Our Blessed Saviour.  But like Mary we can do what comes natural:  show love and devotion to Our Blessed Saviour.  When we hear of Our Lord being mocked and hated in this world, embrace Our Lord and show Him your love.  This is what Our Lady did at the foot of the Cross:  she supported her Son when all others had left.  Thus, when we see Our Lord so cruelly treated by those around us in the world, embrace Our Lord and hold on to Him.  Support Him by showing Him how much you love Him.

The Burial of Christ

From St. John’s Gospel, we hear:  “Then took they the body of Jesus, and wound it in linen clothes with the spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury.  Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden: and in the garden a new sepulcher, wherein was never man yet laid.  There laid they Jesus therefore because of the Jew’s preparation day; for the sepulcher was nigh at hand.” (St. John 19:40-42)

Our Lady and the disciples of Our Lord buried Him with much care and compassion.  Keep in mind that surely each one of them that had gathered there must have been dealing with a whole host of emotions:  grief, agony, sorrow, confusion,  . . . .  And yet despite this whole host of emotions present in each one of them, they buried Our Lord with great compassion and love.  Despite the varied limitations that were in place, we know that the disciples of Our Blessed Lord prepared a burial place with much love, dignity and respect to their Blessed Saviour.  In their grief, they did their best to give Him a special resting place. 

As Christians committed to Our Blessed Saviour, we too are called to prepare a special place for Him.  In the book of Exodus we hear:  “The Lord is my strength and song, and He is become my salvation: He is my God, and I will prepare Him an habitation . .  .” (Exodus 15:2)  This is the lesson we can learn from the Seventh, and final, Sorrow of Mary:  to prepare a place for Our Saviour.  Even in the shadows of His Death, Mary and the Disciples prepared a special place for Our Blessed Saviour.  We can follow their example by preparing a special place for Him as well.  Where will this place be, you ask?  The one place He wishes to be:  in our hearts, of course.  If we each prepare a special place in our heart for Our Lord, imagine how pleased He will be.  Mary and the Disciples did their best to prepare a place for Him with as much care and devotion as they could possibly show.  They did this to show their respect and love.  We too much prepare a place in our heart out of respect and love for Our Blessed Lord.   

Immaculate Conception

It would be benefical to all of us to have a correct understanding of the Immaculate Conception.  You see, this term "Immaculate Conception" confuses people, quite frankly.  Many people have a misconception of what this term truly means.  For these people, they think that the Immaculate Conception of Our Lady puts her on a par with God.  They feel as though the Immaculate Conception of Our Lady makes her equal with God.  They feel that the Immaculate Conception makes Our Lady some sort of a "goddess," herself and as such is in no need of God's saving grace.  Nothing could be further from the truth.

If you will, let me tell you a story.  I remember when I was a young boy growing up.  I remember a time or two when my mother would come into my room at home and she would take a look at the terrible condition of my room  . . . . with books everywhere . . .  clothes everywhere . . .  bed unmade . . .  toys out of place . . . . my dear mother would look at this mess and she would tell me:  "You better start cleaning up this room and when I come back it had better be IMMACULATE!!!!"   In other words, she wanted my room to be as clean as possible with nothing out of place or out of order.

Or fast-forward to adulthood.  In your business life, I am sure all of us have had the occasion when our boss was coming through on an official visit . . . or the owner of the company . . . or a big regional manager was coming to visit.  And the word always goes out to clean up your desk . . .  clean up your cubicle . . . clean up your area  . . . and make sure everything is IMMACULATE!!!!!

Or how about when we are expecting important company to our home . . .  whether it be dear friends that we have not seen in a while . . .  or beloved relatives . . . .  or neighbors . . . .  when we invite people over to our home, we want the best impression given.  We clean up.  We put things in order.  We tidy up.  We place things where they are supposed to be.  We vacuum.  We clean.  We do all of this in order for the house to be IMMACULATE!!!!

Even when I know that the bishop is coming to visit our parish on his annual visitation, what do I do?  I put everything in order.  I clean the sacristy.  I clean the church.  I polish up the altar.  I dust everything. In short, I want the church to be IMMACULATE because somebody important is coming to visit!!!

In each of the examples that I gave above, we are cleaning things up, we are putting things in order.  Whether it be our room; our house; or our work-space.  And why is this so important?  Why do we clean things up or put things in order?  We are getting our area in good condition because someone important is coming to visit.  When you think about it in those terms, God wanted the Blessed Mother to be Immaculate because a very important visitor was coming to visit us:  His Son.

Pope Pius IX wrote in 1854 in regards to the Immaculate Conception:  "The most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instant of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by almighty God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the saviour of the human race, was preserved from all stain of original sin." (IIneffabilis Deus, the Apostolic Constitution f Pope Pius IX on the Immaculate Conception (December 8, 1854).

As stated above, this statement scares a lot of people because they don't truly understand what it means.  Quite frankly, a lot of people who call themselves "Catholic" do not even understand truly what the term "Immaculate Conception" means.  Please note in the quotation referenced above two important points made by Pope Pius IX :  1)  The Immaculate Conception of Our Lady was a "singular grace and privilege granted by Almighty God."  In other words, it was not anything Our Lady did herself to make this possible: God made the Immaculate Conception possible for her;  2)  God permitted the Immaculate Conception "in view of the merits of Jesus Christ . . . "  In other words, the Immaculate Conception was permitted not for the benefit of Mary herself, but the Immaculate Conception was for the benefit of the Divine Infant she carried in her womb.  God wanted a proper place, free of all sin, as the proper place for His Son to dwell.  Again, this was allowed by God.  Mary did not make herself Immaculate . . .  God made her Immaculate for His Son's benefit!

We know that the Blessed Virgin Mary was the "vehicle" that brought Our Saviour into the world.  As such, God made her "immaculate" so that she could be a pure vehicle to bring the Saviour of the World to us.  We hear in St. Luke 1:42:  " . . . and she exclaimed with a loud cry, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!"  Indeed!  Our Lady was in fact blessed.  She was blessed because she was made so by God.  She was blessed because she said "Yes!" to God.  She was blessed because she was open to doing the will of God in her life.  "And Mary said; Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word."  (St. Luke 1:38)

If we have ever gone to pick up someone in our own vehicle . .  . whether it be a important visitor . . .  an important guest . . . . a boss .. .  a beloved relative . . . . if we are given the task of picking that person up and driving them somewhere, don't we make a point to try to clean up our vehicle?  Don't we try to put it in order as much as possible?  Don't we try to make it IMMACULATE as possible?

For my part, this is how I view the Immaculate Conception of Mary:  it's not so much about HER as it is about WHOM she was carrying inside of her.  In the Immaculate Conception, God was preparing a vehicle worthy of carrying His Son into the world.  A vehicle without spot, without sin, without stain.  When we clean our rooms . . . when we clean our work areas . . . when we clean our homes . . .  we are actually showing the importance of those who are coming to visit.  In this case, it was the most important visitor ever:  the Saviour of the World.  And God chose Our Lady to bring that Saviour into the world:  "Hail, full of Grace; the Lord is with you!"  (St. Luke 1:28)  . . . . the Lord is with you! . . . .  This is the reason God gave Our Lady the gift of the Immaculate Conception because the Lord was with her.

And here lies the importance of the whole notion of the Immaculate Conception:  the Immaculate Conception was not for the benefit of the Blessed Virgin Mary . . . . the Immaculate Conception was for the benefit of the Divine Infant she was carrying within her.  She was not "Immaculate" for HER benefit . .  .. She was "Immaculate" for HIS benefit.  She was made immaculate because she was carrying the Saviour of the World.

Join Us for the Second Sunday after Easter, April 10, 2016

Second Sunday after Easter, April 10th, 2016

In both of the readings appointed for today's Mass coming from the Epistle and the Gospel, both readings focus on Our Blessed Lord being the Good Shepherd.  In the First Epistle from St. Peter, we hear:  "For ye were as sheep going astray." (I St. Peter 2:19 ff)  I do not know much about sheep, but I have a bit of experience with cats and dogs and other such creatures in the "household pet variety," and I know that very often you can not find them without going after them.  Alright, in fairness, I'm really talking about cats more than dogs.  Dogs, in my experience, will pretty much come when you call them.  Cats, on the other hand, well .. . . . .  let's just say dogs will come when you call them.  In this sense, in my humble opinion at least, human beings more closely resemble cats.  We do what we want to do, for the most part.  If we set our mind on something, we go and do it.  And oftentimes this leads to us human beings getting into terrible jams.  We have all heard the term, "Curiosity killed the cat."  Well, again, curiosity has done an awful lot of bad things to human beings as well.  So many of us have "gone astray" in our lives at one point or another.  So many of us were as "lost sheep."  But thank God that we have such a loving Saviour that is the Shepherd of our souls!  Thank God that we have the Good Shepherd that is just as concerned as the one lost sheep as He is the other Ninety and Nine.  

Two opportunities for Mass on Sunday, April 10th, 2016:

At 9:30 AM, St. Margaret Church gathers together to worship God.  Mass is celebrated in the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.  

At 1:00 PM, Holy Spirit Church comes together to worship Our Risen Saviour.  Mass is celebrated in the beautiful, historic First Presbyterian Church, located at 116 W. South Street in Greenfield, Indiana.

Come worship at either church.  We use the King James Version of the Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  

Sermon for 23rd Sunday after Trinity, 2015

The sermon of Fr. Todd given on Sunday, November 8th, 2015 for the 23rd Sunday after Trinity.

To hear Fr. Todd's sermon, please click on the following link:

Sermon from Seventeenth Sunday after Trinity, 2015

The sermon of Fr. Todd given on Sunday, September 27th, 2015, the Seventeenth Sunday after Trinity.  Please click on the following link to hear Fr. Todd's sermon:

Sermon from 15th Sunday after Trinity, 2015

The sermon of Fr. Todd given on Sunday, September 13, 2015, the 15th Sunday after Trinity.  Click on the following link to hear Fr. Todd's sermon:

Sermon for the Eighth Sunday after Trinity, 2015

The sermon given by Fr. Todd Bragg on Sunday, August 26th, 2015, the Eighth Sunday after Trinity.

You can listen to the sermon by clicking on the following link:

Join us for the Ninth Sunday After Trinity, August 2nd, 2015

Ninth Sunday after Trinity, Sunday, August 2nd, 2015

As it has come to be known, the story of the "Prodigal Son" is certainly one of the most famous stories in all of Holy Scripture, if not the most famous.   There are so many aspects of this story that it is hard to pin it down to just one thing.  Of course the story revolves around the son who decides that he would rather have the inheritance "now" rather than "later."  And as a result he spends his inheritance on lavish living and then finds himself afterwards broke, and living in squalor.  And ultimately he comes back home with the intent of begging forgiveness from his father.  In my opinion, the most wonderful part of the whole story comes at about the midway point of the story:  "But when (the son) was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him."  (St. Luke 15:20)  If you notice, Our Lord tells us that the son was still a great way off when the father saw his son.  This implies to me that the father was on the "look-out" for his son.  And then when the father did finally see his son, he ran to him.  The father did not wait for the son to come to him.  He not only went to the son.  He went running to meet his son.  

This story of the Prodigal Son is really the story of humanity.  Humanity is the "prodigal son."  We have been given the gift of life.  We have been given the gift of salvation.  But not content with these two gifts we spend our "inheritance" also on riotous living as well.  We want to live life our own way and rarely bring God into our day to day living.  And just like the prodigal son in the story, we only think about God when we need Him or when we find ourselves in desperation.  And it is  then that we go to Him for help.  Like the loving father in the story, though, Our Heavenly Father also waits for us.  Our Heavenly Father comes running to us.  But He came running to sinful mankind in the form of His Son.  He sent His Son to rescue fallen mankind from their sinfulness and pride.  God is always on the lookout for us.  He not only waits for us . . . . . He looks for us to return to Him.  He is always ready to forgive, ready to bring us back, ready to love us and embrace us.  

Join us on Sunday, August 2nd, 2015 as we not only celebrate the Ninth Sunday after Trinity, but we also welcome the visit of His Grace, the Rt. Rev'd Stephen Strawn and Mrs. Strawn, who will join us for the bishops annual visitation to our parish.  Bishop Strawn will preach and celebrate Mass for us.  Please join us as we welcome the bishop and listen to what he has to say to us.  

There will be two opportunities to hear Mass and meet Bishop and Mrs. Strawn on Sunday, August 2nd, 2015:

St. Margaret of Scotland meets at 9:30 AM.  We worship in 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's Mass begins at 1:00 PM  We celebrate Mass at the beautiful First Presbyterian Church, which is located at the corner of South and Pennsylvania Streets in Greenfield, Indiana.  The address is 116 W. South Street, near downtown Greenfield.  

Fourth Sunday after Trinity, 2015

The sermon of Fr. Todd given on Sunday, June 28th, 2015, the Fourth Sunday after Trinity.

Click on following link to hear Fr. Todd's sermon: