|
The Chalice Friday, May 12 2023
>>>>CLICK HERE FOR FULL EMAIL VERSION “I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you.” John 14: 18 Such a comforting message that Jesus gives his disciples in this week’s Gospel! “I will not leave you orphaned.” Comforting even as we yearn for stability. Please don’t change. Please don’t go. We hope that our loved ones will be with us forever and we dread the day that they will no longer be at our physical side. The disciples were being given a message that must have been churning in their stomachs. Jesus is leaving them. What will they do now? All they understood about how to follow him was through his physical presence. I remember when I lost my father. It felt like the bottom of my life just fell. What will I do now? And so, I became ever so protective of my mother. No, I can’t lose you! We traveled back and forth to Rochester so often to make sure mom was ok. That she was still there. And yet, she too died less than five years after my father. We live in a world where many of us feel and experience the uncertainty of each day. Uncertainty and impermanence are always real. Yet, we long for something that is unmovable yet lifegiving. We are given that in this week’s Gospel. “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” This is how you are being called to live and love. Not holding tight, but sharing that love. Jesus’ farewell discourse takes place at the last supper the night before he knew he’d be crucified. He is preparing his disciples for their loss. He prepares us also. How to live into the uncertainty of the days ahead when we feel so alone and abandoned. But the good news is that we have not been abandoned. When Jesus tells his disciples “I will not leave you as orphans! I will come to you,” he is acknowledging their vulnerability and reminds them that they are never alone. “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you.” Jesus has sent the Comforter, the Intercessor, the Advocate, the Holy Spirit. When I travel to my birth home in Rochester now, I am not able to be in the physical presence of my own mother, and yet there are always the signs of her presence among us – my siblings and extended family, our old home – still occupied by a family member, my grandmother’s home where we picnicked and worked in the garden. I can smell mom in the flowers and freshness of the air around me. We celebrate Mother’s Day this Sunday. It is also a day when we think about all the people who have loved us and who we have loved in return. For the many of us who feel vulnerable – perhaps lost in a motherless world, be reminded that we all have an Advocate and Comforter. “O Love, that will not let me go”…. You have not been orphaned – not by the Spirit, and not by those in whom the Spirit has made a home! May we each find our home in You, Lord! Sharing with you in a love that will not let us go, Deacon Claire Friday, May 05 2023
>>>CLICK HERE FOR FULL EMAIL VERSION I Am the Way, the Truth and the Life Wherever someone knows that they are lost, Wherever someone searches for the truth Wherever someone sorrows over death You come to us before we ask or pray ~Malcolm Guite. One of the hardest things to deal with in our lives is the fact that we live in a temporal world. My mom died a few months ago and joined my dad in heaven. Those whom we love and love us will be separated from us one day, and everything we see will eventually fade away. As we age, we constantly hope to look and feel younger, but time will catch up with us. As difficult as it seems, we will witness the funeral of our loved ones or they will witness our funeral. When we see a beautiful flower, its beauty can only be captured in that moment. Two weeks later, that flower might be compost in the soil. Jesus offers us a look beyond the temporal life that we live. Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life. We don’t have to wait for the death of a loved one to understand that everything is passing away in this world. “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house there are many dwelling-places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way to the place where I am going.’ Thomas said to him, ‘Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:1-6) A deepening relationship with Jesus Christ is the path to the eternal. We can get a glimpse of the eternal by loving as we have been loved, giving generously of ourselves, forgiving as we have been forgiven, being thankful for everything we receive, and living life with joy in our hearts. We are Easter people because we live in the hope of the resurrection. We know that Jesus died for our sins and conquered death that we might live abundantly. Abundant life is not something we have to wait for, but is offered to us right now. In his Farewell Discourse, Jesus is telling us that he will soon be ascending to our God in heaven, but that we can get a glimpse of eternal life through faith, prayer, and action. John teaches a realized eschatology. Walk with Jesus in this life and the next and you will live the abundant life. In Christ’s love, Friday, April 28 2023
>>>CLICK HERE FOR FULL EMAIL VERSION Community Prayer for All To Recite: Lush mountains, vast Oceans By Rabbi Susie Heneson Moskowitz, Sr. Rabbi, Temple Beth Torah, Melville, NY Please remember that this week we celebrated Earth Day. Plant some flowers or a tree in the coming weeks. Pick up some garbage or plastic if you see it. Commit yourself to recycling, reducing your carbon footprint and caring for this planet each and every day. St. John’s is committed to environmental stewardship! Our solar panels have given us a zero sum electric bill in the new section of the church. We have invested wisely and the dividends are both financial and environmental. Please recycle all paper at the church and help us to reduce our consumption. On Sunday April 30th there is a program at the Cinema Arts Center at 3pm. Please join us for "Kiss the Ground" with a community discussion to follow. There is a Trash Problem in Huntington according to Supervisor Ed Smyth: The only garbage landfill on Long Island is expected to close in less than 2 years. The cost of shipping existing municipal solid waste (garbage) off Long Island is projected to increase dramatically over the next 5 years. Cut back your garbage usage any way you can!
Today we are back in John’s Gospel. Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (John 10:11). Jesus is the Word of God made flesh that we might know that Jesus is our redeemer, God’s son. John uses the metaphor of the good shepherd that we might understand the relationship between us and our Lord. God came to us that we might have abundant life in him. We are called into relationship with Jesus Christ through the breaking of Bread and the scriptures. Jesus, the good shepherd, will walk with us through these troubled times and into the higher plane of the Beloved Community if we will stop to hear his voice. I urge every member to develop a deep relationship through worship, prayer, and service to the Living God. Join us daily as we walk together with our Lord at 9:00 am through Morning Prayer. If you are going through a difficult time, we will stand beside you and pray with you. Follow the path of righteousness that Jesus has laid before us and have your soul restored. We will make it through this difficult time. Join us next week on Monday at 6:30 pm for a bible study of Jonah on Zoom. Our Thrift Shop is open on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays from 12-3. We need volunteers to sort and sell our cloths and collectibles. Mary Beth and our Thrift Shop team really need your assistance! You can offer one day or come every week. Please join us. In Christ’s love, Friday, April 21 2023
>>>CLICK HERE FOR FULL EMAIL VERSION Our Road To Emmaus We join a journey that began before us, that stretches back, and also onward. The Unknown One joins us, and hears. We tender our brokenness. The Storyteller tells the old story in a new way and we see in a new way. It is our story. Steve Garnaas-Holmes
As I was preparing the sermon for this week, I felt a little lost. There were so many directions to go. Lost - probably not unlike the disciples who were on the road to Emmaus right after the tomb was found to be empty by devoted and strong women. Women, who were not afraid to speak truth out loud. The tomb is empty! And yet, for the multitudes that had been singing hosannahs only a week before, there may have been a sense of betrayal, anger, sadness, and loss. Let’s get out of here! We had hoped… “We had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.” We may feel so similar to the two disciples of Emmaus, full of disappointed hopes, which make us angry or even resentful. Put yourselves there – on that road – maybe, just maybe the pain will go away by the time we reach Emmaus. We are disoriented, unable to make sense of the events around us. Let’s get away from the feelings deep in the pit of our stomachs – We’ve been betrayed… yet We had hoped… So, in all of my pondering and preparation, I simply wondered – where are our Emmauses? Where are those places we go to escape from the intensity of the pain that we imagine might be more than we can bear. Escape from something too large to grasp – and yet how can we fully grasp the Resurrection? This Resurrection! Can we allow ourselves to hope? Who is this intruder in our pain. The one who chastises us for not remembering the scriptures. Yet, he listens – deeply listens. There is something about this stranger that makes us want to know him. So, we invite him to rest and have dinner with us. And as the bread is broken, we are reminded that while on that road, our hearts burned – a profound knowing. Our hearts burn within us. Drawn together, we invite the Stranger to our table, offering our gifts and hospitality. We break bread, and in the sharing we behold the Holy. Our eyes are opened. Wonder, reverence, awe, and gratitude swell in us, and raise us up and send us out to tell others. We go with haste, rejoicing. Steve Garnaas-Holmes
This IS the one who through suffering redeemed Israel. He is ALIVE! We are never alone. Pray that we recognize his presence as we all journey through this life together. Hope is indeed alive! Your sister traveler, Deacon Claire Monday, April 17 2023
Friday, April 07 2023
>>>>CLICK HERE TO READ FULL EMAIL VERSION THE RESURRECTION by M.S.Lowndes The stone's been rolled away; The tomb lay open and bare — They looked for Him, and then the angel said That He is no longer here Oh what joy they must have felt To see Him just once more, To eat with Him, to drink with Him, To receive Him back as Lord In the resurrection story from Matthew, the first witnesses to the action of God were the women. On Good Friday they wrapped the body of Jesus, put spices on to preserve the body, and laid him in a tomb given to them by Joseph of Arimathea. They left the tomb while it was light because their Jewish law prohibited work on the Sabbath, which began at sunset and lasted for 24 hours. Early in the morning, after the Sabbath had ended, several women walked back to the tomb where Jesus had been laid. Their hearts were broken and they were filled with compassion and sympathy. When they arrived, the ground began to shake and the heavy stone in front of the cave-like tomb rolled away from the opening and a dazzling white figure appeared on top of it. They heard a voice in their hearts that settled their nerves. Then a voice came from the angel and said, “Jesus has risen. Do not be afraid. Enter the tomb and see the linens folded neatly where Jesus was placed.” Then the angel said, “Go tell the disciples that he has risen from the dead and that he will meet them in Galilee.” Jesus appeared to Mary and the other women on the path and gave them a warm greeting. They fell at his feet and worshiped him. Jesus asked them to tell the other disciples to meet him in Galilee. The disciples went to the hill in Galilee and Jesus told them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age’” (Matthew 28:16-20). Good Friday – April 7th 7:00 pm – Stations of the Cross 7:30 pm – Good Friday Holy Eucharist Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86443860086 Easter Sunday – April 9th 7: 30 am – Rite I Sunrise Holy Eucharist 9:00 am – Rite II Family Eucharist 10:15 am – Easter Egg Hunt in the Garden of Blessings 11:00 am – Rite II Choral Eucharist In Christ’s Love, Saturday, April 01 2023
>>>CLICK HERE FOR FULL EMAIL VERSION Our Road To Emmaus We join a journey that began before us, that stretches back, and also onward. The Unknown One joins us, and hears. We tender our brokenness. The Storyteller tells the old story in a new way and we see in a new way. It is our story. ~Steve Garnaas-Holmes As I was preparing the sermon for this week, I felt a little lost. There were so many directions to go. Lost - probably not unlike the disciples who were on the road to Emmaus right after the tomb was found to be empty by devoted and strong women. Women, who were not afraid to speak truth out loud. The tomb is empty! And yet, for the multitudes that had been singing hosannahs only a week before, there may have been a sense of betrayal, anger, sadness, and loss. Let’s get out of here! We had hoped… “We had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.” We may feel so similar to the two disciples of Emmaus, full of disappointed hopes, which make us angry or even resentful. Put yourselves there – on that road – maybe, just maybe the pain will go away by the time we reach Emmaus. We are disoriented, unable to make sense of the events around us. Let’s get away from the feelings deep in the pit of our stomachs – We’ve been betrayed… yet We had hoped… So, in all of my pondering and preparation, I simply wondered – where are our Emmauses? Where are those places we go to escape from the intensity of the pain that we imagine might be more than we can bear. Escape from something too large to grasp – and yet how can we fully grasp the Resurrection? This Resurrection! Can we allow ourselves to hope? Who is this intruder in our pain. The one who chastises us for not remembering the scriptures. Yet, he listens – deeply listens. There is something about this stranger that makes us want to know him. So, we invite him to rest and have dinner with us. And as the bread is broken, we are reminded that while on that road, our hearts burned – a profound knowing. Our hearts burn within us. Drawn together, we invite the Stranger to our table, offering our gifts and hospitality. We break bread, and in the sharing we behold the Holy. Our eyes are opened. Wonder, reverence, awe, and gratitude swell in us, and raise us up and send us out to tell others. We go with haste, rejoicing. ~Steve Garnaas-Holmes This IS the one who through suffering redeemed Israel. He is ALIVE! We are never alone. Pray that we recognize his presence as we all journey through this life together. Hope is indeed alive! Your sister traveler, Friday, March 31 2023
>>>CLICK HERE FOR FULL EMAIL VERSION The King (Tanner Olson) You’ve always done things differently … and they’ve never failed. Like the time you turned water into wine. Or like when you rubbed mud on the blind man’s eyes so he could see. Or when you healed the paralyzed man because his friends truly believed. And like the time You entered Jerusalem riding on the back of a colt, And they asked, “Who is this?” And they - along with the rest of the world would soon know. They knew you as the one who healed the sick and fed the poor. The one who turned lives inside out and upside down. The one who had 12 close friends, raised a man named Lazarus from the dead, and told a cripple to get out of bed. But soon they would see you are more than anyone who had come before. Just in time - Hope had arrived. Some cheered and cried Hosanna. Save us! Save us now! Please, save us. They waved palm branches and laid them down so you wouldn’t have to touch the ground. Children sat on the shoulders of parents as they pointed to the one they’d been waiting for Echoes of Jesus is Lord filled the city as you moved toward the beginning of the end. And we thought that The King was coming to take His crown! But you knew the King was coming to be buried in the ground, to bring us from lost to found. Good arrives only to die, only to rise, only for the world to realize You are who you say You are: The King. This Lenten season has sure had its ups and downs. Our Lenten program featured a courageous group of parishioners that brought hope to the border. We met Max and Yuna, who are refugees from Ukraine living in our apartment. They told of how they were forced from their homeland and how much they appreciated the kindness and love of the inter- faith communities of Huntington. They have received jobs and are learning to drive this week. Last week we sent our Curate off to St. Paul’s, and we will miss him dearly. Palm Sunday and Easter are the core liturgical observances of the Christian year and they are filled with ups and downs. Many of us experience ups and downs in our faith. This is the week when many people who have been down spiritually, come back to church. At St. John’s we say we, “Know Christ and make him known.” Please invite a family member or friend back to church. Maundy Thursday is a simple Seder at 5:30 PM and Eucharist at 7:30 PM in the tradition of the last supper. The Gospel from John is read and we wash each other’s feet as a sign of our servanthood and love of one another. The service ends with a dramatic stripping of the altar and we pray through the night, unable to stay up for even an hour. Good Friday is a somber reminder of the depth of God’s love for us. We begin with Stations of the Cross at 7:00 PM and then have a Good Friday service at 7:30 PM. We pray at the foot of the cross with Mary and John. We pray in silence and ponder the incredible love of God in the act of Jesus death on the cross for our sins. Easter Sunday is a celebration of Christ’s resurrection and the hope that Christ gives to each of us. All are welcome to share with us in his resurrection. The 7:30 AM service begins with a fire in the Garden of Blessings. The children will celebrate with singing during the 9:00 service and an Easter egg hunt afterwards. The 11:00 AM service will have beautiful music. We will proclaim the resurrection. Alleluia! Christ is risen. The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia! These services help us to see ourselves as part of a community baptized into the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I urge you to come to as many Holy Week services as you are able, to invite guests and to welcome everyone with open arms to meet the King. In Christ’s love, Friday, March 24 2023
 >>> CLICK HERE FOR FULL EMAIL VERSION To set the mind on the flesh is death, -Romans 8:6 To the people of the Community of St. John’s Church in Huntington: grace and peace to you. This Sunday’s biblical texts all center around the paradox of death and new life; the ending yet the beginning; the completion of one story and the creation or launch of another. The bolded quote above is from this weekend's second reading of St. Paul’s letter to the Romans, which St. Paul sums up quite nicely. We as human beings have an inclination to focus on the material, immediate results, and what is right in front of us rather than imagining the future tree from seeds planted: the larger picture. Our gospel this Sunday takes us straight to the heart of this. Jesus’ longtime friend, Lazarus, has died. Jesus knows that He divinely shares in God the Father’s majesty and power, but he still weeps at Lazarus’ grave. The last time I wrote to you, we were reminded that Jesus was fully human and fully divine. Jesus’ humanity showed when He wept for the loss of his friend, when He shared in solidarity the hurt and pain of Lazarus’ sisters Mary and Martha. Jesus was brought into setting His mind on the flesh - the times that were right before Him. I’m writing to you today to say that it is okay. We can take moments to cry and mourn like Jesus did for Lazarus. It is okay to be upset. What brings us to metaphorical death is the everlasting dwelling there in that space. Our first reading is the shortened version of the Valley of Dry Bones, which is typically read as part of the Saturday night Easter Vigil service. If you have ever attended an Easter Vigil service, the reading of this scripture from Ezekial in the twilight vesper hours by candlelight is an experience. God asking “Mortal, can these bones live?” and the response being “Oh Lord, only you know.” God commands the mortal to prophesy over the bones and make them live and they graphically get up and have life put into them again, using the power of the Holy Spirit, Sophia. This is an Old Testament reference to the resurrection that was to come, certifying and proclaiming that yes, after death, there is life. As I mentioned last Sunday at church, the Bishop has asked me to answer the call of Priest-in-Charge at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Patchogue. This too is easy for me to focus on the material, immediate results, and what is right in front of me. I think about the big change of where I’m living, how much I will miss this community and the sadness that accompanies this change. I am also slightly nervous about my uncertainty of what is to come. This is natural. I must accept that these things will come to mind first. After this moment passes, where I should dwell mentally is the true point of St. Paul’s message: if one’s mind is set on God’s will, that is what gives humanity life in itself, and allows God’s Holy Spirit, Sophia, into the discerning human’s heart. Please join us this Sunday to share in Holy Communion at St. John’s Church in Huntington. You will be all truly missed, but I hope you, with me, see the greater picture for the universal (catholic) church at large. I give thanks to God for my time here, and for the growth and the good ministry of this holy place. I continue to pray for the influence of Sophia, the Holy Spirit, to guide the ministry that is happening here at St. John’s. It has been my pleasure to serve you all, St. John’s. Cheers to the journey; until our paths cross again. Your sibling in Christ, Friday, March 17 2023
>>>>CLICK HERE TO READ FULL EMAIL VERSION I Once was Blind, but now I See – God’s Amazing Grace The lectionary this week is filled with images of seeing, vision, light. The irony of seeing but not perceiving. I see! I get it! We come to learn that seeing, grasping, understanding from our human individual perspective has limits. Lent offers us a time to slow down, to journey with others in community and to look more deeply into our own hearts – to see, share, learn, and perhaps to heal. It is not unusual to view things differently when we gather in community. Hundreds of years ago, our ancestors thought the world was flat – simply because flatness was what was in front of them. In time, we learned otherwise, but most of us have not had the opportunity to journey into outer space to see firsthand the glorious roundness of the earth, our island home. After morning prayer coffee hour takes us into conversation about what we see. Shared from our varied perspectives we discover a bigger picture of what we face each day. The rain is preventing me from going out. The rain is flooding our streets. The rain is watering our earth. Last week, we enjoyed a perspective of “seeing” from Fr. Chavez, Canon for Border Ministries in the Diocese of Arizona. Borders are all around us – do we see them? How does being here - in my own little space - impact my consideration of a deeper, universal truth? We all stand together on our earthly home. Why borders? What do they teach us if we are willing to risk grappling with the larger view? How does engaging in relationship with those we “see” as “others” help our hearts to change? In our Old Testament reading, the Lord sends Samuel to locate a new king. Samuel, with grieving heart and eyes, is unable to see anything new or transformative in his immediate surroundings. But the Lord sends Samuel. Go, look, and trust that I will help you see. “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature… for the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” The Gospel this week is filled images of seeing and not seeing. When our eyes are opened by Jesus, we are offered the gift of transformation – but often, like the Pharisees, we don’t trust our own eyes – we don’t want to see what is in front of us as we reject God’s gift. We are not ready and so we choose not to receive God’s unconditional love and mercy. We get swept away with a group mentality that tells us “What you think you see – in front of you -- is not real – not truth.” So we miss a deeper healing of our hearts and a bigger picture of what God’s love and mercy truly is. As we continue our Lenten journey together, I challenge us all to open our hearts, minds, and eyes. Allow ourselves to receive and to notice things with new eyes – with the healed vision Jesus offers. Steve Garnaas-Holmes encourages us to “Loosen your grip. Stop trying to make things be what you want.” May we open our eyes, receive, and be healed. Maybe, just maybe, we will see, enjoy, and grow together in love as we accept and welcome the incredible beauty, richness and deep truths that surround us. Journeying with you towards healing, clearer vision, and deeper love, Latest Posts
Archive
|
