November 13, 2016 (full size gallery)
39 in attendance on a beautiful fall day. Fall was all around us – from the river, along Market street and somewhat on St. Peter’s property. The sycamores have only turned alightly. The weather was "sweater weather" but not cold.
Today was Veteran’s Sunday. We recognized 8 at 11am. All services were represented. Thegraveyard featured the flags of the veterans who served.
It was also collection for the UTO and 1st Sunday to collect for Samaritan’s Purse. The ECM made an announcement about their collection for Thanksgiving due next Sunday.
Today was also Susan Linne Von Berg’s birthday celebrated with the birthday prayer and a "happy birthday" on the organ
We are nearing the edge of our church year, the brief pausing abyss between the waiting for the Second Coming, for Christ’s kingdom to come—and Advent, waiting for the birth of Christ as a reminder of waiting for Christ to do a new thing.
Today’s readings call us to remain steadfast in the faith. After Judah returned from its exile in Babylon, the people and their leaders did not quickly rise to great levels of virtue. The passage from Malachi (“my messenger”), however, also offers a vision of the day of the Lord—a day of judgment that will “burn like an oven.” A large fire burns up the dead things to allow new life to flourish and to purify. Malachi assures us that healing and restoration will come only to those who cling to God’s name. Concerned for the holiness of worship, worshipers and priests at the temple, Malachi condemns moral and religious abuses.
In 2 Thessalonians, Paul proclaims that the Christian life has no room for laziness but calls for enduring faithfulness to be active in the ministry of the Gospel. Paul instructs the Thessalonians to be good stewards active in their faith and not to be idle extorting the church for their own benefit.
Unimpressed by the temple’s beauty, Jesus redirects his disciples’ attention to the end of the age. Nations have been rising against nations for generations. Earthquakes and storms, famines and plagues have ravaged civilizations for eons. Time is precious and Jesus is calling us to action each and every day. Jesus’ point is that in all times and in all places we are compelled by the Good News to witness to his presence in the world.
We can imagine that there were those making excuses in Thessalonica not to be giving and serving for the proclamation of the Gospel and only to take from the church. Jesus’ encouragement of us to endure in faith, even the calamities of apocalyptic nature, speaks to remove all excuses from practicing faithful stewardship. In both Jesus’ and Paul’s words we are reminded that the Gospel is not for us to keep to ourselves but to share with the world in both deed and word. The "season" to steward the Gospel with our whole lives is yesterday, today, and tomorrow.
The sermon was about recent political events and how to respond using the thoughts of Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Catherine quizzed the congregation on the sermon, the 5 parts of the baptismal covenenant, a basis for the the sermond offering candy for those who could name them .
"This Sunday is an appropriate one, then, on which to talk about the interaction between faith and politics, and the church and government in our lives, and I’m going to call on Dietrich Bonhoeffer to help us today with this conversation.
"Bonhoeffer, having grown up as a patriotic German as well as a committed Christian, believed that all governments are brought into being by God. In other words, when the government is working as it should, the government creates justice for all people and space for all people to grow into the people that God means for us to be. When the government is working as it should, we Christians have the space to live out our baptismal vows fully.
"The church’s job is to call sin by its name, and to warn people against sin. Bonhoeffer writes and I quote “This warning against sin is delivered to the congregation openly and publicly and whoever will not hear it passes judgement on himself.
"Bonhoeffer explains that the church and its preachers are to focus on summoning the world to belief in Jesus, and to be a witness to the reconciliation which has been accomplished through Jesus and the reign of God. The church is to preach the grace of Jesus Christ.
However, if the government does not do this, we need to do it. "In other words, we are to be responsible for living into our baptismal vows. When we live into these vows, then each one of us is helping the government do what it needs to do—and remember, that is to “to maintain… an outward justice in which life is preserved and held open for Christ.”
"Today’s collect says that scripture is written for our learning. Knowing scripture and the trajectory of the story of God’s plan of salvation for us gives us a context for dealing with the disturbing aspects of our own times.
"Put the lens of scripture, the traditions of the church and reason ahead of TV, social media and the editorial pages of the newspapers as you think through the events and ideas that continue to tear this country apart, and what your response, as a Christian, should be. Don’t simply react, but reason with yourself first. Then respect the dignity of every human being as you respond to others.
"But because we do not agree, respectful conversation is of the utmost importance, not to change someone else’s viewpoint, but to make way for the Holy Spirit to enter in and to guide our conversations with one another. This is a unique gift that the church can give to the country right now—the example of people who have varying and sometimes conflicting beliefs, understandings and ways of acting coming together and talking, listening to one another, and even loving one another in our differences—so that the Holy Spirit can be at work in our midst.
"And I would encourage you to spend part of your prayer time each day praying not only for our president-elect, but for this nation, for St Peter’s, for our friends, and for our families, especially for those from whom we feel estranged because of our differences, and as Jesus reminded us last week, to pray for our enemies.
"We’ve just used tradition by turning to Bonhoeffer’s theology to learn more about the relationship between government and the church. Take the time to read up on what has gone on in our Christian tradition throughout the centuries regarding politics and culture. "On the pages of history, human institutions form and then disintegrate. But Jesus says that our role as Christians is not to withdraw in hopelessness, no matter how hopeless the times, but to proclaim the gospel by speaking out– even in the face of persecution.
"Paul offers his own words about how to proclaim the gospel in hard times through action. “Brothers and sisters, do not be weary in doing what is right,” helping one another along in this beloved community so that people out in the world can see how we love and care for one another, and will care for them too
"This is the beginning of our lives, and the ending, and the wholeness and the richness and the power of our tiny lives in the short time we have on this earth. "When we start here, the lives we get to live, no matter how hard, will unfold as they should—so that we can be loving people who carry God’s healing out in the world. "