Trinity XVII- Ephesians 4:1-3; Luke 14:7-11

The Seventeenth Sunday after Trinity highlights the trait of humility. The Epistle from Ephesians 4:1-6 exhorts believers to "walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called." The Christian way of life is based on the divine call to believe in and follow Jesus Christ. In Ephesians 4:2-3, this way of life embodies humility, patience, and loving forbearance.

The second part of the Sunday Gospel, Luke 14:7-11, also teaches about pride and humility. Our Lord has noticed how people try to claim the best places at dinners. He responds with a short parable encouraging humility. Christ summarizes the point in Luke 14:11, “For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.”

This principle certainly applies in social life, but more importantly, it has deeper moral and spiritual implications. It applies to self-righteousness and spiritual pride. All of us tend to feel superior in some ways. At times, we all confuse our personal wishes or preferences with faith or with holiness. Ironically and sadly, sometimes Christians can be proud of being humble.

So we always need to seek God's grace to pursue a delicate balance. On one hand, we should be people of strong convictions who hold fast to Scripture and our religious heritage. We need to keep pursuing high standards of doctrine, worship, and morality. On the other hand, we must avoid exalting ourselves or being arrogant. We need to be humble before God, in our relationships with other Christians, and even in respecting the human dignity of non-believers. True humility is an attitude rooted in the Gospel. 

Our Lord Jesus Christ was humble without being weak in His convictions. He always spoke the truth in love. But we often struggle to keep strength and humility, truth and love, in the right balance. As sinful creatures, we make mistakes in the ways we express them. Nevertheless, with divine help, we keep looking to Jesus and praying for grace to grow in Christ-like humility.

Trinity XV- Matthew 6:24-34

 The Gospel for the Fifteenth Sunday after Trinity is from St. Matthew 6:24-34. The reference to God's provision is appropriate for late summer/early autumn, the beginning of the harvest season, but it implies much more. It points us to divine providence and mercy in all its expressions. All creation depends upon God for existence and survival. He watches over and cares for wild plants and the least birds. How much more must He care for human beings, especially for His faithful people! 

Divine providence also implies other points. An important result of God's care is His expectation of a faithful response. This expectation appears in the first verse of this Sunday's Gospel. In Matthew 6:24, Jesus says, "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon." God's grace comes first, but human beings must respond. We must choose: either we serve God, or we serve material wealth and possessions. We can not have two top priorities, and if we try, life becomes filled with irreconcilable conflicts. 

Divided loyalties remain an ongoing issue in human life. When people are prospering, they tend to become greedy to increase profits or comforts. When they are facing economic uncertainty, people tend to become anxious or grasping just to maintain minimal standards. In both cases, materialism tends to push loyalty to God and His eternal values aside.

Yet, our passage also contains beautiful images of what life can be like when human beings put God first and trust in Him. Christ points us to examples from nature. Even birds and wildflowers, which only live briefly, are cared for under divine providence. So faithful human beings should find comfort and joy in life. Earthly life may be fleeting, but God cares for us and gives us what we need. And as believers, we trust that when our allotted time here is complete, God will grant us even greater spiritual solace. Therefore, let us cast aside faithless anxieties. We must reject the idolatry of mammon or materialism. Let us place God's kingdom and His righteous standards first. Then life becomes truly meaningful.

Trinity XII- Mark 7:31-37

The Gospel for the Twelfth Sunday after Trinity is from Mark 7:31-37. Like the collect for the day, it emphasizes divine mercy and grace. It is a miracle of the healing of a deaf-mute. This miracle takes place in the Decapolis, a region east of the Jordan. In the first century, this region had both Jewish and pagan Greek-speaking inhabitants. This circumstance points to the significance of Christ's ministry for all people. The healing of a deaf-mute of unspecified national origin suggests that divine grace is for all peoples. This healing also points to Christ's fulfillment of Messianic prophecies (Isaiah 35:5 and Ezekiel 24:27). So this fairly simple Gospel passage points to two profound themes: 1) the universality of divine mercy and grace, and 2) the arrival of the Messianic kingdom in the person of Jesus Christ.

Trinity XI- Luke 18: 9-14

 The Gospel for the Eleventh Sunday after Trinity is from Luke 18:9-14 and emphasizes God's mercy toward humble and penitent sinners such as the tax collector. Frequently, when human beings think of divine power, we tend to focus on creation, amazing miracles, extraordinary natural phenomena, or divine judgments against sin. We can certainly see manifestations of divine power in such things, and we should appreciate them. However, today's Gospel points us in a very different direction. Although God's creative work and His justice are notable expressions of His power, His grace, pardon, and mercy are even more powerful. We see this same emphasis in the opening words of the traditional collect for the day. Those words are "O God, who declarest thy almighty power chiefly in showing mercy and pity...." 

Like both the Pharisee and the tax collector, we are all sinners in one way or another. All fallen human beings deserve judgment and separation from God. Nevertheless, God is loving and merciful, and if we are open to His grace expressed in Jesus Christ, then we can humbly repent, receive divine mercy, and be justified or set right with God. God's great power is chiefly expressed through His love, mercy, and compassion! For all of us, that is certainly the Gospel, or Good News!

Trinity X- Luke 19:41

The Gospel for the Tenth Sunday after Trinity comes from Luke 19:41-47. This passage follows Luke’s account of Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem. These verses highlight our Lord’s concern for the city and its people. St. Luke 19:41 says, “And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it…” There were various reasons to weep over first-century Jerusalem. The city was important for several reasons, and it suffered from diverse forms of corruption.

In this post, let us focus on the key aspect of corruption: Jerusalem's role as the heart of the Jewish religion. The city was the place where the whole Jewish people focused their relationship with God. In general, the people honored the religious establishment even though many religious leaders lacked living faith. Such leaders thought all was well as long as certain external forms were maintained. Most of the priests and religious scholars viewed Jesus as a troublemaker to be neutralized. Most official religious leaders sought to maintain the respectable, prosperous, and powerful situations permitted by Rome.

Of course, worldly Rome would only allow these leaders to continue for so long. Rome was greedier and more powerful than the Jerusalem priests and scribes were. The Empire would eventually tire of Judean party squabbles and rebellions; in 70 AD, Roman military might would destroy the rebellious city. Such then was the city over which Jesus wept. He wept because He loved His people, and He still honored the religious heritage and values which Jerusalem symbolized. He wept because of the corruption, spiritual blindness, and sin that endangered the city and the Jewish people.

There is a historical aspect to this Gospel selection. It is about first-century Jerusalem. However, it is also about the human story, and sadly, it seems to have many applications to present-day Christianity. Like the religious parties of first-century Jerusalem, many contemporary Christians, especially the religious leaders, do not know the things that bring true peace. Many who profess Christ do not follow Him, and the problem is more than general human weakness or individual sins. Our post-modern religious institutions are permeated by various forms of moral and spiritual corruption. 

Christendom does have a great heritage, but so did ancient Jerusalem (and so did ancient Rome). Even a great heritage can become so corrupt that it collapses from internal weakness and external pressures. Christ's Church will continue to the end of the age, but particular institutional and civilizational expressions of the Church may fade away. That includes, for example, the Vatican and Canterbury, as well as many smaller religious organizations. The dangers are real and acute.

Yet, we are not without hope. Christianity is a faith based on repentance and renewal. If even a remnant heeds Christ and lives by His truth and His values, their message survives through the chaos and destruction. Jesus Christ offers us a different way than the worldly way. He offers true peace, peace with God and fellow believers. He offers new life through divine grace and living faith. The question that faces supposed Christians is whether we really accept Him and His peace, or we ignore Him and pursue the corrupt ways that lead to destruction. Lord, have mercy upon us.

Trinity VI- Matthew 5:20; Romans 6:11

 On the Sixth Sunday after Trinity, the Gospel begins with Matthew 5:20: "Jesus said unto his disciples, "Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.'"  How can this be? The Pharisees were noted for their pursuit of legal righteousness. How can the disciples of Jesus even hope that their righteousness might exceed that of the Pharisees?

We see the answer in the following verses, Matthew 5:21-26. In these verses and throughout the Sermon on the Mount, it becomes clear that our Lord is talking about more than a mere external obedience to the commandments of divine Law. While obeying certain rules can help restrain evil and provide guidance for good behavior, external obedience is not sufficient. Following the rules is not enough because true righteousness involves inner attitudes. God wants us to turn from sin and be renewed inwardly in faith, hope, and love each day. And such repentance and renewal only come through divine grace manifest in Jesus Christ. 

In other words, Matthew 5 refers to the same spiritual renewal discussed in Romans 6:3-11. The only way for fallen human beings to be righteous is through union with Jesus Christ, a union which takes place through Baptism and Faith. This renewal begins with the grace of Christian Baptism, but in our fallen condition, we need new applications of grace until the end of our earthly pilgrimages. Many aspects of life and experience can be associated with renewal, but notably, it occurs through hearing and reading the Word, participating in the Lord's Supper, and constant prayer. Day by day and week by week, we must continue dying to sin and being "alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 6:.11) Only the righteousness that comes through living faith in Jesus Christ truly exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees!

Trinity III- Luke 15:1-10

 The Gospel from Luke 15:1-10 contains two brief parables: the lost sheep and the lost coin.   A shepherd who loses one sheep out of a hundred and a housewife who loses one coin out of ten make great efforts to recover what has been lost. And when they do recover the lost sheep or coin, they rejoice greatly. These parables illustrate the divine attitude toward sinners. God cares for every soul, no matter how insignificant that person might seem. He searches for the lost, and He and all of heaven rejoice over every soul recovered.

These parables apply to us. We all belong to God, but at different times or in different ways, we get lost. Yet, each of us has great value to God, and He keeps seeking us. He offers us His amazing grace in Word and Sacrament; He takes the initiative even when we are unaware. If we have already been found by Him, we should be grateful to Him and live accordingly. If we are still wandering like lost sheep, we should be aware of God's desire to find us and accept His mercy.  We should always be aware of the divine grace that seeks us, and we should respond in humble gratitude. We should also acknowledge that the same divine grace is seeking the people around us.

Trinity II- Luke 14:16-23

In this week's Gospel from St. Luke 14:16-23, our Lord tells a parable about a feast. He uses the comparison of a feast to illustrate God's gracious invitation into His presence and the human tendency to resist and reject divine grace. Many of those invited to the feast despise the gracious host's hospitality and offer plausible-sounding excuses. The host knows that there are others who will gladly accept, and he promises that the ungrateful will not benefit from his hospitality.

Of course, the parable of the ungrateful guests is about redemption and the kingdom of heaven. Throughout history, and especially in our time, many people have rejected the offer of divine grace. They make all sorts of excuses, great and small. They always seem to have extenuating circumstances for every avoidance or rejection of God's invitation to fellowship with Him. However, by their excuses, they really harm themselves, not the divine host. 

God is the gracious host who takes the initiative. He invites us into fellowship with Him. If we refuse His grace, we may offend Him, but He can always find other guests who will be grateful. Every day and every week, God invites us to spend time with Him. He asks us to read and hear His Word and pray, both privately and publicly. He also invites us to the Lord's Supper. God wants us to accept His hospitality and fellowship with other guests, but we human beings are often ungrateful. We look for excuses to refuse divine grace and deprive ourselves of great blessings. So, let us examine ourselves and re-order our priorities while there is time. Let us accept the grace that God offers and respond in gratitude.

Trinity I- Luke 16:31

 This Sunday's Gospel from Luke 16:19-31 contains the Parable of the Rich Man and the Beggar Lazarus.  (The rich man is sometimes called "Dives" from the Latin for "rich.") This passage brings us several themes, including the importance of compassion and the nature of the afterlife. In rereading the passage this week, another theme was noticeable. In Luke 16:31, the Gospel concludes, "And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead." 

This statement highlights the basic human spiritual and moral problem. God has created human beings to be spiritually and morally responsible. He expects them to love Him and their neighbors. In His mercy, God has provided and still provides revelations of His expectations. In nature, in the Mosaic Law, and in the prophets, the divine expectations are clear for those willing to see and hear. In the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God has revealed His expectations even more clearly. Moreover, He has revealed the possibility of repentance, faith, pardon, and renewal after human failure. God offers redeeming grace. 

Unfortunately, human beings are often like the rich man in the parable. They ignore both divine expectations and divine grace. They persist in hardness of heart. They continue in their selfish sinfulness. Not only are they immoral, but they are also unspiritual. Their attitude is the central problem. They are not open to divine holiness, love, or grace. They have no transcendent faith. Their confidence is in themselves and their earthly status or possessions. And such hardened attitudes have eternal consequences.

Fortunately, such a sad state can be remedied. Sinful and selfish human beings are offered grace. In His mercy, God can change them and soften hardened hearts. With God, all things are possible. People can turn from sin, and faith can arise in unexpected ways. All humans (even a poor Lazarus) are sinners who can develop humble and faithful attitudes through the divine grace revealed in Jesus Christ. May we have eyes to see, ears to hear, and hearts to believe this good news!

Thursday before Easter, commonly called Maundy Thursday- I Corinthians 11:23ff

The Thursday in Holy Week has a rich history and several liturgical associations. These associations include preparing for baptism or confirmation, the blessing of holy oils, the washing of feet, and the stripping of altars. However, the chief theme of the day is the commemoration of the institution of the Lord's Supper, Holy Communion, or Eucharist. 

The Prayer Book epistle for this day is from I Corinthians 11:23ff and contains St. Paul's version of the words of institution of the Lord's Supper. These simple words are at the heart of Christian worship. Theologians have often discussed and disputed the exact meaning of the words. But although sacramental theology is important, the significance of this holy meal goes beyond our explanations. In other words, obedience and faith are more important than human theories.

Several simple affirmations seem clear. First, Jesus Himself began and commanded His disciples to continue this sacred meal. Secondly, He related it to His self-sacrifice that was about to take place for human salvation. Thirdly, this commemoration of His death also points to His continuing presence as a living Lord and anticipates that He will come again in glory. 

So, as followers of Christ, the main issues are not abstract theories; the most important thing is an attitude of humble faith. The Eucharist is about what Christ has done and is doing for our salvation. Through the blessed bread and wine, our Lord offers us His continuing presence. He offers us His grace to continue the journey in faith.  And our response to His grace should be thanksgiving.

Wednesday before Easter- Luke 22

This Wednesday in Holy Week has sometimes been called "Spy Wednesday" because tradition has remembered this day as the time when Judas Iscariot agreed with the chief priests to betray Jesus (Luke 22:2-6, 47-48; Matthew 26:1-5,14-25). A variety of human characters opposed Jesus- the Jewish authorities in Jerusalem, the Roman rulers, the fickle crowds, and Judas the traitor. Even the other close disciples made the situation worse. They did not really listen to or understand Jesus, and Simon Peter, the spokesman for the Twelve, would lose courage and faith, and he would publicly deny Jesus.

This sad state of affairs reflects the fallen human predicament. All are sinners who contribute to Christ's suffering and death. Yet, He still loves us, dies for us, and offers us His love, grace, and forgiveness. The key is our response to Christ. Judas will later be sorrowful, but he doesn't have faith in Jesus' mercy and forgiveness. Peter and the others will truly repent and trust in Christ's saving grace. As we meditate on the suffering and death of Jesus, may we also trust in the love, grace, and pardon that He offers each one of us!

Lent 1- Matthew 4:1-11

 The Gospel this Sunday is the familiar story of Christ’s great fast and temptation from St. Mathew 4:1-11. After Jesus’ Baptism, He withdrew to the wilderness for a period of devotion. At the close of His days of prayer and fasting, the Tempter sought to catch him in a moment of weakness. Satan used appealing lures, and even though the Tempter’s aims were contrary to Scripture, he tried to confuse matters by quoting Scripture.

Of course, Jesus of Nazareth rejected the three great temptations of the devil. He knew that it was wrong to serve Satan for any reason. Jesus chose to live on the earth in the ways His heavenly Father wished. He would not turn away from those principles despite attacks, misunderstandings, and objections. He would remain steadfast even when it meant rejection by the crowds and an agonizing death on the Cross.

In certain respects, the Temptations of Christ were unique. No one else has ever been so innocent. No one else has ever had to make such important spiritual choices. No one else has ever resisted temptation so completely.

Yet, although Christ's person is unique, in some other ways, His temptations were similar to those faced by other human beings. So His basic temptations apply to all of us. These temptations are rooted in three basic needs in human life. All of us need to care for our bodies, and this leads us to seek some degree of physical or material comfort. All human beings are made for interaction with others. So, there is a natural desire for approval from at least some other people. All of us humans need some control over our surroundings, and so we desire some power over people and things.

The problem is that the Tempter, the Evil One, uses all these natural needs and desires to draw us away from God and His intentions for human life. Even Jesus, in His human nature, was tempted, but we are fallen descendants of Adam and Eve. And we do not have the purity and spiritual strength of Christ. We are still sinners.

Thus, we must be vigilant, and we need more moral and spiritual discipline. We must continue to struggle to remain loyal to divine principles in all areas of life.  Above all, we need to look to the grace and assistance of Jesus Christ each day.

Epiphany I- Luke 2:52

 One of the liturgical/lectionary idiosyncrasies of traditional Anglicanism is evident on the First Sunday after Epiphany. On this Sunday, many calendars and lectionaries, ancient and modern, commemorate the manifestation of Christ at His Baptism. However, Books of Common Prayer from 1549 through 1928 and 1962 focus on the visit of the Holy Family, including twelve-year-old Jesus, to the Temple. The 1928 American BCP provides for the Baptism on Epiphany II, and the 1962 Canadian BCP provides for the Baptism with optional propers to be used on Epiphany or later.

The epiphany or manifestation of the youthful Jesus in St. Luke 2:41-52 shows forth both His true humanity and His divine Sonship. The reality of His human development is summarized in Luke 2:52, "And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man."

Throughout His life on earth, our Lord Jesus Christ was both unique and ordinary. He sensed His unique relationship with God the heavenly Father, and He knew that He was called to live as a real but perfect human being. Unlike fallen humans, He always put the Father first. He grew and developed without sin. Although we are sinners who repeatedly fall short of Christ's perfection, His example should elicit our humble and faithful response. As Christians, we affirm the unique manifestation of God in Christ while we also seek the grace to follow Him and grow in wisdom and holiness. 

Trinity XXII- Matthew 18:21-35- Forgiveness

The Gospel for the Twenty-Second Sunday after Trinity is from Matthew 18:21-35. This passage consists of two sections on forgiveness. In the first brief part (18:21-22), St. Peter wants to know the limits of his responsibility to forgive. According to one Jewish tradition, forgiving someone three times was sufficient. So when Peter suggests that forgiving seven times might be enough, he is being generous. Jesus, however, tells Peter that it should be "seventy times seven." Of course, keeping a mental count of 490 incidents would be impractical and unlikely. Thus, in other words, our Lord is telling Peter and us that we are not to keep count of how often we forgive. We should be gracious as God is gracious.

The second part of today's Gospel (St. Matthew 18:23-35) has been called the parable of the unjust or unmerciful servant. In this parable, a servant owes his king an enormous debt, a billionaire's debt. He and his family are about to be sold into slavery. The man begs for an extended payment plan, and the king writes off the whole debt. Rather than being humble, grateful, and kind, the servant goes out and ruthlessly tries to get every penny from a fellow servant who owes him a comparatively minuscule debt. When the king hears of this lack of mercy, he revokes his previous decision and punishes the unjust servant to the full extent of the law. Then our Lord adds the key conclusion in Matthew 18:35, "So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also to you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every man his brother their trespasses."

All the debts that we human beings owe each other are minuscule in comparison to what we owe our heavenly King. We can never repay God for what He has given us and forgiven us. Our trespasses are enormous offences against divine goodness, and we are completely dependent upon divine mercy. So we too must show mercy by forgiving others. As we pray repeatedly, "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us."

Trinity XV- Galatians 6, Matthew 6, and the Collect

 For the Fifteenth Sunday after Trinity, both the Epistle and the Gospel are relevant passages for our Christian faith and life. In the Epistle from Galatians 6:11-18, St. Paul emphasizes the need to look beyond legalism to faith in the crucified Christ. In the Gospel from Matthew 6:24-34, our Lord stresses the importance of right priorities. He warns that we must put God and His kingdom first. Earthly material matters must not dominate our lives; spiritual concerns for God give human life its only real meaning.

On other occasions, I have focused on the details of each of these passages, but this week, it struck me how both these concerns are held together and illuminated by the Collect of the Day. The text of the Collect for the Fifteenth Sunday after Trinity dates at least to the Gelasian Sacramentary compiled in the 700s, but it may be more ancient. This thematic prayer for the day highlights the overwhelming importance of divine mercy and grace. 

Both the Church and individual Christians are beset by many frailties. On our own, we would not have faith in the crucified Christ or make God and His kingdom our first priority. We all fall in thought, word, and deed. Therefore, we pray that the Lord God may keep us in his perpetual mercy, protect us from all things that hurt us (especially our souls), and lead us to everything that brings His salvation into our lives. We do seek right beliefs about God and good Christian living, but both the Church and the individual believer are totally dependent on divine mercy and grace!

St. Matthew the Apostle/Trinity XIV- Matthew 9:9-13

This year the Fourteenth Sunday after Trinity falls on 21 September which is the Feast of St. Matthew. The Gospel is from St. Matthew 9: 9-13 and gives the account of Matthew's call to follow Christ: Matthew also seems to have been called Levi (Mark 2:14). According to ancient tradition, Matthew may have collected Aramaic sayings of Jesus which formed the basis for Matthew's Gospel. He may have also been a missionary in the Jewish Diaspora and a martyr. In first century Palestine, tax collectors were despised as traitors, extortioners, and generally immoral scoundrels. Yet,  Jesus associated with such people. He called tax-collectors as well as all others to repentance and service for the kingdom of God. 

So on this day, we remember and give thanks that our Lord called people such as Matthew. God's grace extended to Matthew and allowed him to be a witness to the Gospel. Likewise, our Lord calls other sinners including us. He offers us His divine grace, and He can empower us, just as He did Matthew, to witness in word and deed to the good news of Jesus Christ.

Trinity XII- 2 Corinthians 3:5-6

 For this Twelfth Sunday after Trinity, my attention was drawn to the Epistle from II Corinthians 3. The Apostle emphasizes the true nature of the common Christian ministry that he and other believers share. In II Corinthians 5-6, Paul asserts, "not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God; who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life." Even the great missionary apostle who had been given great gifts and a strong will knew that he was not self-sufficient. He acknowledged that God was the source of all that was good and truly valuable. Certainly, the same must be true of every faithful Christian. In some sense, depending on our gifts and circumstances, every believer is called to be a minister (or servant) of the Gospel. From the greatest pastors and preachers to the humblest greeters, cleaners, and workers, we are all asked to serve the cause of Christ, and none of us is up to the task on our own. We all have weaknesses which can only be remedied by the grace of God.

This also means that Christian service must be spiritual. While we value the literal meaning of Scripture and Creed, we must not be literalists. While we respect the guidance of divine law, we must not be legalists. In other words, in serving Christ, we must seek to go beyond letter and law. We must be open to the Holy Spirit who makes the Word alive in our lives, and by grace, transforms us. The Spirit makes us truly alive and enables us to share the life-giving message through serving our Lord Jesus Christ. The ways that we do this are varied (a sermon, a kind word, a prayer, a simple unnoticed act, etc.), but through God's grace in Christ, every believer is asked to serve the Gospel.

Augustine of Hippo- 28 August

 Augustine (354-430) was born in North Africa and spent most of his life in several cities there. In addition, he spent 5 very significant years (383-388) in Rome and Milan. The prayers and Christian witness of Augustine's mother, St. Monica, had a great impact on him. St. Ambrose of Milan was another important Christian influence. After his conversion and Christian baptism at Milan, Augustine returned to North Africa where he led a monastic life. He was ordained, and in 395, he was consecrated bishop. He served as a faithful bishop for the rest of his life, and he died while the Vandals were besieging the city of Hippo.

 Augustine of Hippo has traditionally been honored as one of the four ancient Latin doctors (from the Latin root, doceo, "teach") of the universal Church. Of the four of these teachers, Augustine has had the most widespread and long-lasting influence among all Western Christians.

Augustine's two most famous works are The Confessions, a spiritual autobiography, and The City of God, a Christian philosophy of history, but he also wrote essays, letters, manuals, and sermons. His theology, especially on themes such as faith, grace, and the Sacraments, had a great influence on Anglican Books of Common Prayer and the Thirty-nine Articles.

Trinity III- Luke 15:1-10

 The Gospel for the Third Sunday after Trinity is Luke 15:1-10, and it contains two brief parables- about the lost sheep and about the lost coin. In this context, our Lord is talking about sinners lost to God. Although many contemporary people resist such descriptions, Scripture in general and our passage in particular are clear that at some points in this life, all human beings are lost. We need finding and saving by divine grace. As the daily general confession in the Book of Common Prayer says, "We have erred and strayed from thy ways like lost sheep" (based on Isaiah 53:6 and 1 Peter 2:25). 

Such human lostness has two important applications in our lives. First, each of us needs to admit that at different times, we have all been lost. We also need to acknowledge our tendency to get lost repeatedly. So we all depend upon God's mercy, grace, and persistence in seeking us out-- in the past, in the present, and in each new day. 

Secondly, in addition to being sought by God, as Christians, we are called to participate in the Lord's work of seeking and finding the lost. We are asked to be lowly instruments of God's grace. We have benefited from the mercy and grace of God, and we want to share that good news with others. We want each lost person to be found. We want all people to know the joy of returning to God. May each of us be found by God, and may each of us humbly do our part to help others be found by God!

St. Peter the Apostle- 29 June (Trinity II)- Matthew 16; John 21

 Besides being the Second Sunday after Trinity, this Sunday, June 29, is also set aside to remember and honor the apostle Peter. This commemoration is one of the oldest saints' days on the Christian calendar. In 258 A.D., the Church at Rome set aside this day to honor Saint Peter and Saint Paul. Besides this feast, on medieval calendars, the two saints were honored separately on several different days. At the time of the English Reformation, the Book of Common Prayer reduced the number of saints days. June 29 was kept to honor St. Peter while January 25 commemorated St. Paul.

Throughout the New Testament, we see the importance of Simon Peter. Although he has obvious human weaknesses, he is a leader who often speaks for the whole band of apostles. Such is the case in today's Gospel from St. Matthew 16:13-19. The most important thing about St. Peter is not some personality trait or human accomplishment. He is not an authoritarian human ruler over Christ's Church. Instead, Peter is important because of his witness to the common faith which unites all faithful disciples. The authority that he is granted comes from his confession in St. Matthew 16:16, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." Despite his human failings, misunderstandings, and denial of Jesus during Holy Week, John 21:15-21 shows us Peter's restoration by the risen Lord. His mission to care for Christ's sheep is renewed, and the Apostle dedicates the rest of his life and his death to serving the Lord.

As the collect for the day indicates, Peter was blessed with "many excellent gifts." Nevertheless, he was all too human and fallible. He was a strong character with good leadership potential, but he did not always stand up for his convictions. Ultimately, his most notable characteristic was his willingness to accept divine grace for repentance, renewal, and service. In this, Peter provided an encouraging example for all Christian ministers and believers. So commemorating St. Peter is not just about Peter himself or even about bishops and priests; it is about the faithfulness of the entire Church. The example of the Apostle is a call to all of us. Through divine grace, may we all be faithful followers of Christ, the Son of the living God!