Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity, September 15th, 2019

Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity, September 15th, 2019

In the Tenth Chapter of his Gospel, St. Luke tells us about the time when Our Blessed Lord was answering questions.  St. Luke tells us that a certain lawyer asked Our Lord what must we do to inherit eternal life.  Now Our Lord wanted to see what the man would say so He asked the lawyer what does it say in the Law?  To this question the lawyer responded:  "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself." (St. Luke 10:27)  Our Lord was impressed with this answer which the man gave and told him if he does this he will indeed live.  But the lawyer asked a follow-up question.  He asked Our Lord:  "And who is my neighbor?" (St. Luke 10:29)  Now we must understand why the man asked this question because it was actually a very good question for him to ask.  This is because to the Jews a "neighbor" was a fellow Jew.  In other words, a non-Jew would not be considered a neighbor.  This led Our Lord to tell the Parable of the Good Samaritan.  We all know this parable.  This is the parable which tells the story of the man who fell victim to thieves and nobody would help the man.  That is nobody would help him until a Samaritan found the man and helped him.  The Samaritan, Our Lord tells us, had compassion on this poor soul.  He took the man to an inn where the man could receive care and the Samaritan even paid out of his own pocket for the care this man received. 

Our Blessed Saviour told this parable with two ends in mind, in my humble opinion.  First, He wanted to show that a person's neighbor is not based on religion.  In other words, those who were listening to Him based their definition of a neighbor being a Jew.  Our Lord pointed out that it was the Samaritan, a non-Jew, who was the one who truly took mercy and helped his neighbor.  In other words, as faithful, devout, committed Christians should not base our compassion on "externals," whether they be religion . . . . or race . . .  or gender .. .  We could go on and on but the point is that we are called to follow Our Blessed Lord's example.  Our Lord did not limit His compassion.  He spent time with people in all conditions of life.  

The second thing I would dare say which Our Lord was pointing out was that we need to back up our words with actions.  Have you ever met someone who talked a good game but that is basically all they did:  talk?   Actions speak louder than words.  As Christians, it is not enough just to get dressed up and go to church on Sunday.  Yes, we need to go to church on Sunday but we need to live out our beliefs the rest of the week in the way we treat others.  When Our Lord founded the Church, he intended for us to be an active participant.  In other words, we are His instruments in the world.  God uses us as His hands .  .. . . His feet.  Honestly, the vast majority of the people we meet with, interact with and encounter, during the week probably won't be active church members.  The majority of people we come into contact with probably don't go to church . . . . don't read the Bible . . . don't pray . . . . the majority of these people probably don't have time for God.  And it is to these people that you will be the "face of God."  It is through those encounters that you will have the opportunity to tell them about God.  And this you will do not only through your words but also through your actions.  

The neighbors we will encounter will come in all shapes and sizes.  Some will go to church and others won't care about going to church.  God is calling us to be His instrument in the world.  It will be up to us to decide what we will be and who we will be.

St. Margaret Church gathers together every Sunday morning and we would love for you to join us in our weekly worship of Our Heavenly Father.  Mass begins at 9:30 AM.  We celebrate Mass in the Chapel of Marquette Manor, which is located at 8140 N. Township Line Road in Indianapolis, Indiana.  Please choose to take some time out of your busy schedule to spend some quality time with God.

More Than We Either Desire or Deserve . . .

I love to go to Mass.  And as a priest I certainly love to say Mass.  To me the Mass is beautiful.  I wouldn't miss it.  Sundays are not Sundays if I do not begin the day by going to church; hearing the Word of God; and receiving Our Lord's Precious Body and Blood at Communion time.  There is just so much in the Mass to pay attention to because it is just chock-full of meaning.  In other words, every action by the priest has a purpose.  Every prayer whether uttered aloud or said silently means something.  And because there is so much richness of meaning in every single Mass, it is understandable that sometimes we miss out on something very meaningful.  For example, I would imagine that very few people pay attention to the "Collect" near the beginning of Mass.  What is the Collect?   The Collect could be described as the gathering prayer by the priest right before the readings begin.  The Collect directs our intentions for that particular Mass and addresses it to God.

Most people probably focus on the readings appointed for Mass that day.  And this is understandable.  Whether it be one of the Epistles from St. Paul, for example, or the Gospel of the day telling us a story about the life of Our Blessed Lord.  But as I say the other prayers in the Missal are not only beautiful they are very rich in meaning if we would only pay attention to what they say.  A very good example of a Collect rich with meaning would be as follows:

 "ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, who art always more ready to hear than we to pray, and art wont to give more than either we desire or deserve; Pour down upon us the abundance of thy mercy; forgiving us those things whereof our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things which we are not worthy to ask, but through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord. Amen "  (Collect for the Twelfth Sunday after Trinity)

This Collect really knocked me for a loop, so to speak, when I read it.  In particular, the first part really struck home for me.  "Almighty and everlasting God, Who art always more ready to hear than we to pray, and art wont to give more than either we desire or deserve . . . . "  It would be so easy to gloss over this if you heard it being said at Mass.  But, in my opinion,  we could spend the rest of our life focusing on the reality and truth of what was just said:  God is more ready to listen than we are even to pray in the first place.  And that He is ready to give us even better things than we have ever imagined or dreamed of.  And the fact that He is ready and willing to give to His children when we do not even deserve to be rewarded to begin with.   As I stated, this Collect is so rich with meaning we could spend the rest of our lives pondering these words.  These words speak to the wonderfulness of Our Heavenly Father.  "The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion . . .  " (Psalm 145:8)

Everything that we have, everything that we possess comes from Our Heavenly Father.  Whether it be the life we have been given . . . the air we breathe . .  . the roof over our head  . .  . the food we partake . . . the talents and abilities each of us possess . . .  everything we have has been given to us by Our Heavenly Father.  St. Paul recognized this fact and it was a common theme he presented throughout the Epistles he wrote to the various churches.  For example, in the Fifteenth Chapter of his First Epistle to the Corinthians, St. Paul writes:  "For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. Therefore whether it were I or they, so we preach, and so ye believed" (I Corinthians 15:9-11)   Yes, it is true that St. Paul, in this passage, states "I am what I am" but it is so important to remember that he preceded this statement with "But by the grace of God . . . ."  Thus:  "But by the grace of God I am what I am."  (I Corinthians 15:10)  All of us could make this our motto in life.  Who are we if not for God?  What would we have if not for the goodness of Our Heavenly Father?  Who would I be if not for God?  St. Paul is the first to acknowledge all the things he done in life.  For example, he goes on to say " . . . .  but I laboured more abundantly than they all . . .  "  This would sound almost like a boast coming from St. Paul, wouldn't it?  And yet St. Paul always puts his "boasting" into proper context when he continues:  " . . . yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me." (I Cor. 15:10)  Again, St. Paul emphasizes that any strength that he possesses or any skill or ability which he can boast of, is due to the grace of God being with him.  As I like to say, each one of us has skills and abilities which only we possess.  And each one of us should use our specific skills and abilities for the glory of God.  But we should imitate St. Paul in acknowledging where these gifts and abilities come from.  "But by the grace of God I am what I am."  (I Cor. 15:10).  We are who we are, yes, but we are who we are by the grace of God.   He has created us.  He has given us life.  He nourishes us and sustains us.  And He loves us.

Again, St. Paul continues on this train of thought when he writes his Second Epistle to the Corinthians.  We hear in the Third Chapter of this Epistle:  ". . .  not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God . . ." (II Corinthians 3:5)   God is the One Who provides.  He is the One Who sustains us.  But we must do our part as well.  We need to be open to God's holy will.  We need to also recognize that God is the One to Whom we owe everything.

 "Blessed be the God and Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again into a lively hope by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.  To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in Heaven for you."  (I St. Peter 1:3-4)

God, through His abundant mercy, St Peter tells us, not only has begotten us but has given us hope of everlasting salvation through the efforts of Our Blessed Saviour.  It was through the efforts of Our Blessed Lord taking our place on the Cross at Calvary.  But He not only carried our sins on His shoulders He also rose again on the third day in order to defeat death and afford us with the opportunity to enjoy eternal life with Him.

Our Lord stated plainly:  "I go to prepare a place for you."  (St. John 14:2)  It is there where we will be in the Presence of Our Heavenly Father.  The riches and the glory of this world pale in comparison to the glory of Our Heavenly Father.  Our Lord promises us that He goes to prepare a place for us.  He is doing this because of the love He has for us.  God willing we will all end up there and if we do, please God, it will not because we were deserving to be there.  It will be because Our God is a merciful God.  He is a forgiving God.  He is a loving God.  God loves us so much that He gave His Only Begotten Son to die on the Cross.  Not for His sake,  . . . . He died for our sake.  He died for you and for me.  God gives us more than we could ever dream of . .  . ever imagine.

Twelfth Sunday after Trinity, September 8th, 2019

Twelfth Sunday after Trinity, September 8th, 2019

Have you ever watched the Oscars?  I have not watched the Oscars in years.  Well, it would probably be more accurate to say I have not watched the Oscars in decades but  I digress.   But my reason for bringing this example up is that whenever someone gets up to accept an award they have just won they spend the next ten minutes thanking all the people who made it possible for them to win their award.  They thank the director of the film.  They thank the producer of the film.  They thank the writers and the co-stars and the film crew.  They thank the Academy for voting for them in order to get this award.  In essence, without all these people, they would not have achieved what they have achieved.  This is true for all of us, isn't it?  Whether it be loving parents who have scraped and sacrificed for us.  It might be teachers who helped to mold us and motivate us to do great things.  It might be a supervisor at our job who encourages us and works alongside us to be the best we can be.  All of us can find someone whom we can thank . . . . somebody to acknowledge that person has done incredible things for us and has helped shape us into who we are today.

In the Third Chapter of St. Paul's Second Epistle to the Corinthians, St. Paul is doing his best to get the Corinthians  . . . . and us too some two-thousand years later . . .. to understand that God is the source for all the blessings in our life.  We read in this chapter:  ". . . . not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;" (II Corinthians 3:5)   To a degree this is part of what St. Paul also discussed in his First Epistle to the Corinthians.  In that letter he emphasizes the fact that all the amazing things he did; all the incredible things he accomplished were first made possible by God:    " . . .  yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me." (I Corinthians 15:10).  As Christians we should give credit where credit is due.  Without a doubt this is God.   He is our sufficiency, as St. Paul would say.  He is the One Who sustains us.   He provides for us.  He gives us the knowledge and the know-how to do what we do.  Without Him, what could we do?  Without Him, what could we achieve?  It is through the grace of God that I am saved and have my sins washed away.  It was due to the efforts of Our Blessed Saviour dying on the Cross which achieved this incredible accomplishment.  We should thank God each and every day for all the wonderful blessings in our life.  We should thank Him for loving us.  We should thank Him for making us who we are.  So many of us dwell so much on the negative things in our life that we miss out on the many wonderful blessings we have.  As Christians we should get in the habit of counting our blessings every day.  And once we have acknowledged our blessings we should then get in the habit of thanking God for the many blessings which we enjoy.  

Join us as we gather together as God's family to:  hear the Word of God; listen as God speaks to each one of us in our hearts; worship God in song and in word; listen to the King James Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer; and, finally, receive Our Blessed Lord in Holy Communion so that we can be nourished for the journey we call life.  Take one hour out of your busy schedule to worship God, to honour God, to acknowledge the need for God in your life.

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

Eleventh Sunday after Trinity, September 1st, 2019

Eleventh Sunday after Trinity, September 1st, 2019

In the Eighteenth Chapter of his Gospel, St. Luke writes of the time Our Blessed Lord told the parable of the two men who went into the temple to pray.  In telling this parable, Our Blessed Lord portrays the first man, a Pharisee, as being very self-righteous.  Our Lord describes the way this man prays:  "I thank Thee that I am not as other men . . . ."  "I fast twice in the week."  "I give tithes."  And then Our Lord describes the prayer of the other man:  "God be merciful to me a sinner."  The point which Our Lord was trying to make in telling this parable was to be humble because He explains:  "I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted." (St. Luke 18:14)  How often do we depend on ourselves and ultimately end up failing miserably?  How often do we depend on others and end up being disappointed?  How often do we put our trust in worldly possessions which end up coming short?  In the Fifteenth Chapter of his First Epistle to the Corinthians, St. Paul counts himself as one of the Apostles because the Lord appeared to him and chose him.  And he then goes on to briefly describe all the labors he performed as working for the Lord.  But ultimately, St. Paul acknowledges that everything he did  . . . . all the good works he was able to achieve . . . none of it would be possible without God's graces.  " . . .  yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me." (I Corinthians 15:10)   The Good Lord has given each one of us strengths, abilities and skills which we possess.  Each of us have something that we are very good at.   But that being said, we should always be like St. Paul.   We should acknowledge where these abilities come from.  We should acknowledge that all that we have, all that we are, all that we possess is only made possible through the good graces of Our Heavenly Father.  In the parable which Our Blessed Saviour spoke, the problem with the Pharisee was that he emphasized himself when he prayed:  "I .  . .  I  . . . . I . . ."  We need to be more like the second man and place the emphasis on God.  We need to always humble ourselves and acknowledge where are gifts come from.

St. Margaret of Scotland Anglican Church worships each and every Sunday at 9:30 AM.  Please take time to join us as we gather together to worship Our Heavenly Father as a family.  We worship at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, which is located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.

The Lost Pictures of Bishop Mote

The Story of the "Lost Photo's" of Bishop Mote

Recently, Mrs. Jean Smith presented to Fr. Todd a group of pictures of Bishop James Mote which had been in her possession for close to twenty years.  These pictures were taken at St. Edward the Confessor Cathedral (ACC) in Indianapolis, Indiana sometime around 2002 or 2003, I would imagine.  But I can not remember the exact year even though I remember being present when these photos were taken.

Mrs. Jean Smith and Mr. Phil Smith were married for over fifty years.  The Smiths had been long-time friends of the Bishop Mote.  They knew each other dating all the way back to when they were even teenagers and were active in church groups in Indianapolis where they had all been born and raised.

After Bishop Mote was ordained to the priesthood, he moved out to assist Fr. Lehman at St. Mary's in Denver, Colorado.  He spent the next fifty or so years there.  After his retirement he moved down to Florida for a time.   In the last years of his life, Bishop Mote moved back to Indianapolis to be close to his family.  This was around the year 2000.  It was at this point that I became familiar with Bishop Mote.  He was a wonderful man.  We spent many wonderful hours together and he would tell many wonderful stories.  Truth be known, Bishop Mote would very often tell the same story over and over and over . .  . . I am sure I had heard most of those stories a thousand times but I would gladly listen to them a thousand more times if I was given the chance.   I could tell so many stories myself about time spent with Bishop Mote but let me get back to these pictures.

I remember that the sister of Phil Smith (I believe the sisters name was Mary) and her son had come up from Florida for a family gathering.  The nephew (I think his name was Mark) was a photographer down in Florida.  So while he was up here they made a point to take pictures of Bishop Mote.  I do not remember the exact reason for the pictures at that particular moment in time.  It could have been his anniversary as a priest or perhaps as a bishop.  I just don't remember.   But I remember showing up at church one afternoon at the tail-end of this photography session.  So I was present when these photo's were taken.

In the years that followed after these pictures were taken, Bishop Mote left us back in 2006.  Phil Smith passed away as well a few years back.  And these pictures were left in a drawer or box among the possessions of Mrs. Jean Smith.  Jean had remembered these pictures and promised when she found them that she would give them to me.  Well, lo and behold, in the year 2019 Jean did stay true to her promise that when she located the photo's she would bring them to me!   And she did!  A wonderful memory of a wonderful man who dedicated his life to serving God and the Church.

Eighth Sunday after Trinity, August 11th, 2019

I am sure that you have heard the expression that someone is "bigger than life."  In other words, someone who is "bigger than life" is a person that is known for doing things in a wild way or who is known for doing something dangerous or exciting.  Like, for example, a race car driver or a movie star.  We meet a person with a "big personality" and we say he/she is "bigger than life."  You could say that a person "bigger than life" is someone who points to something beyond his or her self:  they do a dangerous job . . . they have a unique hobby . . . . they take care of dangerous animals, for example.  In a strange sort of a way, all of us point to something beyond us.    Each one of us represent something to someone else.  What do I mean, you are probably asking yourself.  Well, for example, to a store owner, you are not just a person, you are a customer or a potential customer.  If you have a spouse, you are a husband or wife.  If you have children, you are a parent.  If you like a particular sports team, you are a fan.  The list goes on and on.  To your boss, you are an employee.  It is rare that we are just merely our self, in other words.  Typically, we represent something beyond our self.  In other words, we fill roles that point beyond our self.  People don't look at us and just see . . . . Jack  . . . . or Mary . . .  or Gladys . . . . etc.  When people look at us they see rather . .   . a scout leader . . .  a customer . . . . a potential customer . . .  a parent . .  a neighbor, etc.

As Christians, we are also called not to point to our self but rather we are called to point to something greater than our self.  We are called to point to something beyond our self:  God.  In a certain sense, this is why Our Lord gave a warning about false shepherds who were only looking out for themselves.  "BEWARE of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits." (St. Matthew 7:15 ff)  A true man or woman of God points beyond themselves.  They point to someone greater than they are.  A false prophet will only worry about fulfilling their own needs and not the needs of others.  A false prophet will spend their time feeding their own desires and making sure their own needs are met.  A false prophet will want all of the attention focused solely on them . . . they want the spotlight focused on them alone.  But we as true,  committed Christians are called to focus the light on God.  We are called to point towards God and not to ourselves.  We should learn to imitate St. John the Baptist when he said:  "He must increase, I must decrease." (St. John 3:30)

St. Margaret of Scotland Anglican Church meets every Sunday at 9:30 AM at the beautiful Chapel at Marquette Manor, which is located at 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.

Seventh Sunday after Trinity, August 4th, 2019

Seventh Sunday after Trinity, August 4th, 2019

Recently, I was browsing the internet and I came across a meme which caught my interest.  It was a picture of a priest and the caption read:  "I am a Priest of Christ."  And it also stated that these were his last words.  These words needless to say caught my attention and the fact that these words were the last ones spoken by this priest fascinated me even more.  So when I got the opportunity I did a little research.  Well, the quote was attributed to St. Pedro Poveda, a Spanish priest who dedicated his life to working with the poor and also took a great interest in education.  During the Spanish Revolution, when there was much religious oppression and persecution, Father Pedro was told to identify himself by his persecutors.  And he proclaimed it loud and clear when he stated loud enough for everyone to hear him:  "I am a Priest of Christ!"  You see, Father Pedro was facing execution when he spoke these words.  He could have said and done anything, I would imagine, under those circumstances.  But he chose to proclaim loudly who he was.  "I am a Priest of Christ!"  But it got to thinking why don't all of us proclaim loudly who we are?  Maybe we do already.  But if we don't, why don't we?  St. Pedro was a priest who was facing execution by those who hated the Church with a passion.  And yet it didn't stop him from proclaiming who he was.  Does the world hate us for who we are?  Does the world try to hold us back?  Does our "politically- correct" society mock us and scorn us for our Christian beliefs, traditions and values?  Do we proclaim to these people?  "I am a Child of Christ!"  "I am a Son of God!"  "I am a Daughter of the Most High!"    We should scream out to the world:  "I am a Child of God!"  

You know, my grandson was home recently and I had the opportunity to see him in his dress blues.  He looked so handsome and the uniform was so sharp.  It was impressive to see.  He was proud to wear the uniform.  The uniform stands for something.  It means something.  It represents not only who he is but what he endured to earn the right to wear that uniform.  He had every right to feel proud and hold his head high.  But so do we as Christians.  We are indeed sons and daughters of the Most High.  Christ came into the world to save us from our sins.  We have been washed in the Blood of the Lamb.  We should feel proud as well.  Proud that Christ loved us so much that He was willing to die on the Cross for us.  Proud that God has forgiven us our sins and wants us to spend eternity with Him.  We should proclaim not only with our voices but also with the way in  which we live our lives:  "I am a Child of God!  Christ died on the Cross for me!  And I want to live for Him!"   Tell the world who you are.  Tell the world what you are.  Tell the world who you belong to.  

St. Margaret Church gathers together every Sunday morning and we would love for you to join us in our weekly worship of Our Heavenly Father.  Mass begins at 9:30 AM.  We celebrate Mass in the Chapel of Marquette Manor, which is located at 8140 N. Township Line Road in Indianapolis, Indiana.  Please choose to take some time out of your busy schedule to spend some quality time with God.