Growing in Christ Jesus

Dear Creator Family,

As we enter Fall, it is time for us to give God thanks for all we have been given this summer. In a global sense, we give thanks for…

• peace in our city, county, and country
• political movements to right old wrongs and create opportunities
• bipartisan efforts to revitalize and strengthen our national identity
• social movements to illuminate error and fight for truth and justice
• interfaith dialogue to foster open hearts and the ability to learn
• multi-cultural engagement and a path to understanding
• national dialogue aimed at a global consensus
• peace in many of the troubled areas around the globe
• the end to conflict and the beginning of rebuilding
• hope for a path forward
• investment in the ties that bind and the hands that hold
• God’s presence with us in all things

I, of course, have left so much off this list, for no effort of mine could produce a list exhausting that which we must thank God for. Perhaps the last item in this short tally should take precedence over the rest. In fact, as people of faith, that last entry MUST bear our greatest and most constant thanks. It is imperative that our thanks starts and is riddled through and through with the echo of this anchor point, if for no other reason than to mediate our fears.

We face what we must contend with each day. In a global sense, we fear that…

• peace in our city, county, and country, is unobtainable
• political movements to right old wrongs and create opportunities are corrupted
• bipartisan efforts to revitalize and strengthen our national identity are misguided and myopic
• social movements to illuminate error and fight for truth and justice are actually platforms for bullying and self-aggrandizement
• interfaith dialogue to foster open hearts and the ability to learn is simply compromising and placating
• multi-cultural engagement and a path to understanding is unobtainable and a waste of time
• national dialogue aimed at global consensus is futile and, in fact, archaic
• peace in many of the troubled areas around the globe is impossible and never ending
• the end to conflict and the beginning of rebuilding is a sham used to waste time and money for special interest
• hope for a path forward is dead and buried under the shouting and screaming of one deaf perspective at another
• investment in the ties that bind and the hands that hold is threatened by outside forces, and, in the end, we will be alone
• God’s presence with us in all things isn’t really true

The reality of our lives is that these two short lists co-exist, even overlap as we encounter the world in which we live. This is why it is so important to delve deeper into the spiritual reality of life. In every age everyone has been faced with trials and tribulations. As people of faith, our perspective (while it is constantly challenged) must focus on, and grow from, our relationship with Christ. Our unrest, which is created by the conflicted events and positions of our time, is easily remedied by the call of Jesus:
Come unto Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (1)

We strive to rest in God and live through God’s call for liberty and justice for all. Our faith, history, and heritage become one in our deepening submission and relinquishment to God in all things. We have no greater clarity or assurance than that which springs from the heart of God:
Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (2)

This year’s Fall programs and events are, in part, our answer to the call of God and the opportunity that Jesus gives us to grow. They are:

1. The Rectors Bible Study continuing on Thursday nights. In the past year we have studied the Book of Revelation and the Book of Tobit. The group will be deciding in the next month what we will study next. Will you be there? We are meeting on ZOOM to make this study available to all and each may have the opportunity to learn from Jesus.
2. The Wednesday Night Program restarts in September, after a short break from our previous study using The Chosen video series. We have used this time, over the years, for book studies, video programs, spiritual direction and counseling, and to look at current events by faithful reflection (The Bible and the New York Times). The group will soon decide what we do next. Will you be there? We are meeting on ZOOM to make this study available to all and each may have the opportunity to learn from Jesus.
3. The Sunday Morning Adult Forum (9:30-10:15) has tackled Biblical Exegesis (understanding specific biblical passages in light of living experience), strait up Bible Study, studies in liturgy, Christian history, spiritual education, and other foci, such as the Study of Christian Icons which we completed at the beginning of summer. Our Forum will be re-gathering at 9:30 on Sunday September 17th. Will you be there? Those gathered will decide what our study will be; everyone has a voice.
4. Spiritual Direction and Counseling is available as an ongoing group or individual event. Spiritual Direction and Counseling undertakes the journey into personal communication with the Divine. Your habit or pattern of prayer, reflection and contemplation is assessed, and instruction is offered that will help you overcome roadblocks to embrace opportunities. Delving deeper into your desire for a closer encounter with Christ, you will be given methods by which you can grow and draw closer to God. Do you want this? There are time slots available during the day or at night and, while this is best done in person, ZOOM is available.

Held in common by each one of these programs or events in you! Your faith life is the core of your encounter with God and the world. We gather to grow in the knowledge and love of the Lord and to face that which we must contend with each day.*

It is my prayer that you will be filled and will have power, together with all the saints, to comprehend the length and width and height and depth of the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. (3) 

Learning and growing in Christ Jesus,
Fr. Bill+
 
1.       Matthew 11:28
2.       Matthew 11:29-30
3.       Ephesians 3:18-19
*        Please check our calendar for additional gatherings and parish events.