Advent I- Matthew 21:1-13

On the Western Christian calendar, the First Sunday in Advent begins a new church year and the season of preparation for Christmas. When Christmas entered the Latin calendar during the fourth century, Advent, which comes from the Latin word "coming," became a time to emphasize the theme of Christ's coming into the world.

We see this theme of Christ's Coming in the Gospel selection from Matthew 21:1-13. At this time of the year, the account is not so much about the historical details of Christ in Jerusalem as it is a reminder of the varied ways that Jesus Christ comes into human lives. Christ the Messianic King has already come into the world long ago, He keeps coming to us through the work of the Holy Spirit in Word, Sacrament, and prayer, and Christ will come again to conclude earthly history on the last day. 

As Matthew 21 shows, Jesus comes humbly and peaceably as our rightful ruler who does not have to prove Himself. Yet, even when He comes in this simple peaceful way, He is so holy that He automatically brings rebuke and judgment upon human corruption, a corruption that even perverted the purposes of the Jerusalem Temple and still corrupts the Church in this world. So as we begin our Advent preparations for the great Christmas festival, let us also begin to examine our souls. Only through spiritual self-examination, repentance, and renewal in faith and devotion can we truly develop an appreciation for the good news that Christ's Coming brings.

St. Andrew's Day- November 30- John 1:35,37

 On the Western Church calendar, St. Andrew is either the last or the first saint commemorated in the church year. Advent I is the Sunday closest to his feast. Andrew and his brother Simon Peter were disciples of John the Baptist (John 1:35) who became early followers of Jesus (Matthew 4:18). In fact, Andrew brought Simon Peter to Jesus (John 1:37). Post-biblical stories say that he was martyred in Achaia, and a medieval tradition adds that he was crucified in the form of an X (hence the St. Andrew's Cross).

The example of St. Andrew illustrates two important points. 1) Andrew is a person who responds to Jesus immediately and dedicates himself completely. 2) Andrew is also a reminder about the need for humble Christian witnesses. Andrew is not the obvious kind of leader that his brother Peter is. His witness is quieter and more one-on-one. Yet, Andrew is the one who brings his brother to Christ, and without him, the Church might not benefit from Peter's enthusiastic leadership. 

All of us can not be the kind of leaders that Peter was, but our faith and witness are still valuable in Christ's kingdom. Day in and day out, the Church also needs the Andrews. It needs those who talk to others and bring them to Christ. May Andrew's example motivate all of us!

Harvest Thanksgiving

Through the ages, many peoples, cultures, and religions have observed feasts and prayers of thanksgiving for harvests. Several Hebrew festivals were related to harvests, as well as to historical events.  In medieval and early modern Europe, including England, there were various local occasions when thanks were offered, and over time, local forms of prayer for autumn harvest festivals developed. In colonial North America, English explorers and colonists gave thanks in several places that later became the US and Canada. In the 1789 American Book of Common Prayer, there was a Thanksgiving Day Office, and parts of this office are still reflected in the 1928 BCP.  The 1962 Canadian BCP also includes forms for harvest thanksgiving.

It is a normal part of Christian worship to give God thanks for all things. It is also appropriate that we should pause in autumn to give special thanks for the products of the land which sustain and enrich life. This impulse is admirably expressed in the 1928 Collect for Thanksgiving Day: 

O most merciful Father, who hast blessed the labours of the husbandman in the returns of the fruits of the earth; We give thee humble and hearty thanks for this thy bounty; beseeching thee to continue thy loving-kindness to us, that our land may still yield her increase, to thy glory and our comfort; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Sunday next before Advent

The Gospel assigned for the last Sunday of the church year in the 1928 BCP is John 6:5-14, the familiar story of feeding the 5000. This story is filled with meaning, but on this occasion, let us focus on the final verse. When the people saw Jesus' miraculous act, they affirmed that He was "that prophet that should come into the world" (John 6: 14). He is the one who was to come. He is the prophet like Moses predicted in Deuteronomy 18:15 &18. 

Certainly, Christians think that Jesus is more than a mere prophet. He is the divine Savior. Yet He is also the ultimate prophet. Jesus is the fulfillment of the entire Hebrew line of prophets. Jesus is much greater than Moses, and He establishes a covenant greater than the one established through the work of Moses (Hebrews 8:6). Jesus is not just any prophet but the long-expected one who brings completion. 

At the end of the church year, we also look forward. We anticipate the continuing work of redemption. Jesus is the One who was to come and the One who has already come; He is also the One who will come again. Although Jesus Christ has already accomplished the great acts of redemption, we still await the consummation of His Kingdom. We live between the times, and we continue to look for growth in faith and in service.

Trinity XXIV- Colossians 1:4-5

For the Twenty-fourth Sunday after Trinity, my attention fell upon the Epistle from Colossians 1:3-12. Especially striking are Paul's words in Colossians 1: 4-5: "...we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have to all the saints, for the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel." 

Although we often associate the Christian virtues of faith, hope, and love with I Corinthians 13:13, Colossians 1 emphasizes the context of love in Christian life. God is love, and divine love is preeminent, but in Christian faith and life, love must not be separated from faith and hope. Unfortunately, some modern Christians tend to make such a separation. Their emphasis on "all you need is love" is more like the Beatles than the Bible. Yet, apart from faith in Christ Jesus, we neither know what love really is nor have the capacity to love as we should. We must respond to divine love with Christian faith before we really begin to love. Furthermore, Christ-like love points believers to our heavenly hope proclaimed in the gospel of Christ. So there is a close relationship between faith, love, and hope. There is an ongoing dynamic of these virtues in our Christian faith and life. Let us hold fast to all three!

All Saints- Hebrews 12:1; Jude 3

 All Saints Day is one of the great celebrations of the Church. This feast reflects a long development from the early years of Christian history through the centuries. In the New Testament, there was already a strong sense of community, communion, and continuity among believers. Christians shared with one another, interceded for one another, gave thanks for one another, and honored the witness and example of the faithful who had gone before. They had the sense of being surrounded by a great "cloud of witnesses" (Hebrews 12:1); they also knew that they must continue to "contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints" (Jude 3).

Thus, All Saints Day is a celebration of the Christian faith from Biblical times to the present and beyond. Let us rejoice in the heritage of the saints, and by divine grace, let us seek to be saints who pass the Christian faith on to others!