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Saturday, June 29, 2024

Catch as catch can

Sermon for the fifth Sunday after Trinity

You notice two multitudes 
gathering around Jesus.

The first multitude
are the crowds gathered 
around Lake Gennesaret
eager to hear
the Word of God.

The second 
is the multitude
of fish caught in the nets
of Simon and his crew
and which nearly sink the boat.

Two multitudes to be caught.

This rather raises the question
what is it like
to be caught
by a fisher of men?

[PAUSE]

You would hope
that Our Lord doesn't mean
that we suffer the same fate
as the fish when we are caught 
by a fisher of men.

Indeed,
Our Lord doesn't mean 
that we are to be prepared
for the fish mongers.

We are not going to be
killed or eaten 
and Our Lord's words
in Greek really bring that out.

When Our Lord says "catch"
the Greek text really does say
"catch alive".

He is expecting 
that men who have been fished
to remain alive.

Indeed St Paul uses the same word
in his second letter to St Timothy
to describe those servants of God
who have been caught
in the snare of the Devil.

He reminds Timothy
that they are still alive 
and can recover themselves 
out of the snare of the Devil
through repentance to the acknowledgement of the Truth.

This shows us
the power of our Baptism.

The snares of the Devil
catch us alive and we still have
the means of escape
through repentance 
and seeking the Truth.

This is why the saints
are important 
as fishers of men.

Our Lord means
for those caught 
by Simon Peter and
the other disciples
to be caught up
to life.

The fish,
of course will die
when taken out
of the water.

But when we are caught up
we are drawn up 
through the waters of Baptism
through Death
and into Life.

[PAUSE]

But we must beware.

We can still perish
in the snares of the Devil
who is seeking to devour us.

His capture leads to death
and Our Lord's to life.

St Paul tells us
that we will be caught up
to God 
and that this is our salvation.

In being caught
we are rescued from the current
generated by sinful pleasures,
the wiles of Satan
and the ravages of Time.

This capture is a rescue
for us in the helplessnes
of our sins.

[PAUSE]

We are being saved
and we await being caught
with baited breath.

Friday, June 28, 2024

Reaching out

At our Diocesan Synod this year, we passed a resolution to reach out to all who consider themselves orthodox or traditional Christians of goodwill with the purposes of establishing the highest degree of fellowship that mutual theological positions would allow. We rejoice in our agreement and seek to show love and respect in those areas where we disagree.

I, personally, find myself on good terms with Orthodox and Roman Catholic Christians alike and that is truly wonderful and I hope that we will find common ground and mutual, prayerful support.

There are other groups, too. I do count Archbishop Jerome Lloyd as a friend from the Old Roman Catholic Church. He is one of the successors of Bishop Arnold Harris Mathew, and is doing great things not only in this country but in developing traditional Catholic ministry in the Philippines.

Sadly, there does not seem to be much contact with the Traditional Anglican Church in the UK despite the greater concord among the G3 Continuing Anglican Churches. My worry there is that often the people have moved from one of the TAC or ACC to the other out of soured relationships and so the impetus to establish contact is rather thwarted.

The Free Church of England and the Church of England (Continuing) exist, of course, but they not enamoured of our strictly Catholic interpretation of Anglican liturgy and our distance from the classical Anglican Formularies. Indeed, we have lost two parishes to the Free Church of England: these parishes preferred a more Protestant and less liturgically rigourous environment. Nonetheless, we wish them all well in their conversation with Our Lord.

What we have lost, we have gained in St Osmund's Dudley in which the new parish priest is ministering to adherents of the Sarum Use and those Roman Catholics who have been disenfranchised by recent developments in Roman Catholic order and practice.

My hope, then, is that despite our size, we might prove ourselves as prayerful friends to all who find themselves disenfranchised or forced out by elements that would seek to change the Church according to the winds of politics and poor conceptions of social justice.

Monday, June 24, 2024

St John the Baptist and the Centre of Catholic Liturgy

 



Why Anglican Catholics take their Liturgy seriously with the prayers of St John the Baptist.

Saturday, June 22, 2024

Terms and Conditions apply?



Sermon for the fourth Sunday after Trinity

Think about your average day.

How many transactions 
take place.

How many times
do you say something like, 
"if you do this
then I'll do that"

or

"I'll do this
on the condition 
that this happens"?

We're very good 
at entering into 
contracts and covenants.

And when those
contracts and covenants 
are broken
this is where 
we bring in the Law
so that order and fairness
can be re-established.

You you think 
things are like that
with God?

[PAUSE]

As Christians
we are part of 
the New Covenant 
on which the sacraments are based.

If we fulfill our side,
God fulfills His.

If a priest offers up
bread and wine
at the Mass
with the intention 
of doing what the Church
has always done 
for the means of Grace,
then God gives us His Grace
in His Real, True, Physical Presence
which we consume 
In order to be more like Him.

We have God's promise
that if we do this in remembrance of Him
He is there.

So it seems that God
does enter into transactions 
with us.

But what of our Salvation?
What of the business of Sin?

Does God not keep score
of our wrongdoing?

[PAUSE]

The typical Anglican answer
is "yes and no".

It depends on whether we keep score.

It depends on whether 
our love for others 
is conditional, legalistic 
or transactional.

Jesus tells us that 
this is so.

If our approach 
is to judge our neighbour
to determine if He is worth loving,
whether he will return our investment,

if we judge our neighbour 
and decide that he is too sinful 
to love,

If we judge our neighbour 
and decide
that his sins are
unforgivable 

then that's how we will see 
God's love for us.

If we judge others 
by our own criteria
then we will expect 
to be judged by that criteria
because that criteria 
will be all that we know.

If we are unmerciful 
then we will expect no mercy 
because we cannot know
what mercy is.

If we are unforgiving 
then we will not receive forgiveness 
because we don't know
what forgiveness is.

If terms and conditions apply
to the way we see our relationship 
with God and neighbour 
then that's all we can expect.

We trap ourselves 
in a cage of terms and conditions 
even if we don't think 
that those terms and conditions 
apply to us.

This is not the relationship 
that God wants with us,
His Church.

His love, 
His mercy,
His forgiveness 
are always give 
in superabundance.

In the boxes He gives us
marked Love, Mercy, Forgiveness 
there is no bubble wrap,
no foam blocks 
no paper packing.

Each box is filled to the brim
with just what it says
on the box.

There is nothing 
to quibble about,
there are no terms and conditions.

At the heart,
Christianity is about
this love of God 
for us
without any limits on His love
except those limits 
we put upon ourselves.

[PAUSE]

We sin, yes,
but forget about the law court;
forget about the idea 
of God as judge, jury and gaolor.

See God as being on our side,
hating the sin 
that separates us from Him,
and wanting us 
to come back to Him,
giving us the Way back
through Our Lord Jesus Christ,
and asking only 
for our love, trust and fidelity 
which can only come 
from our free will.

[PAUSE]

What we struggle with,
in life,
are the terms and conditions 
which we insist upon 
to protect ourselves 
from being hurt.

Following Christ is painful,
but His painful death
upon the Cross shows us
that it is worth it 
to embrace the truth 
which sets us free.

Terms and conditions 
need not apply.


Monday, June 17, 2024

Anglican Catholic Poetry?

 



Why the words of St Ephrem allow us access into the truth that lies beyond words

Saturday, June 15, 2024

A Compass for Heroes



Sermon for the third Sunday after Trinity

It sounds rather rough 
on the ninety nine sheep who stay.

No one rejoices over them.

The lost sheep 
is the subject of much joy
more than the others that stay.

The lost coin
is the subject of much joy
more than the others
that remain in the purse.

The Prodigal Son
is the subject of much joy
more than his elder brother
who stays and looks after the father.

There is more joy in Heaven
over the one who repents
than the ninety nine 
who need no repentance.

That makes the ninety nine
seem undervalued 
and forgotten.

It seems that
Our Lord values
sinners and tax collectors 
more than those who try to 
hold fast to the religion
that they have always received.

It seems that Our Lord's love
is not unconditional.

It seems that Our Lord 
likes those who need help
as if to satisfy His own need
to be seen as their saviour,.

Our Lord has a hero-complex!

[PAUSE]

If that were true
then Our Lord would be
no better than 
the Scribes and Pharisees.

His actions would be 
all for show.

We know that this can't be the case.

The miracles
are signs that Our Lord 
is not delusional.

His Resurrection is a sign
that His testimony is true.

His Ascension is proof
that He has no hero-complex:
he is greater than any hero.

If Our Lord loves
sinners more than Pharisees 
then what's gone wrong?

[PAUSE]

Who said that Our Lord 
loves sinners more than Pharisees?

That's an assumption 
that we make when we think 
that what our Lord says
means some people
are more valuable than others.

Listen to what He says.

"Joy shall be in Heaven 
over one sinner that repenteth,
more than over 
ninety and nine just persons,
which need no repentance."

The key is what 
we understand by repentance.

[PAUSE]

We know this already.

Repentance means
to turn to the Lord.

Like the needle of a magnet
always points north,
so do we return to Christ
after our deviation into sin.

To repent means to realign ourselves 
to Christ.

This means that
if we need no repentance,
then we must already be 
aligned to Christ.

If we need no repentance 
then what matters more 
to us is not whether we are valued
but whether we value what 
Jesus values.

If He rejoices 
over a sinner's repentance
then the righteous 
will also rejoice!

It is the hearts' joy
of the ninety and nine
to see the smile on the Lord's face
as He runs out to meet
the Prodigal Son,
as He carries back the lost sheep
on His shoulder,
as He brandishes aloft
the lost piece of silver.

It isn't that He values
the Scribes and Pharisees less
than a repentant sinner.

He loves them just as much
but He waits for them
to turn to Him 
and believe in Him
and receive Him as He is.

[PAUSE]

We know ourselves 
to be sinners.

We spend our lives
struggling against 
the sins in our lives,
falling, repenting,
falling, repenting...

Yet our struggle 
is always met with joy
because the very fact 
that we struggle with sin
is a sign that we are struggling 
to turn to Christ.

And Jesus sees that struggle
and knows that you are struggling 
for Him
and that is a sign of your love 
for Him
even if it is far from perfect.

And that makes Him rejoice.
And that makes the angels in Heaven 
rejoice.
And that makes the ninety and nine
rejoice.

[PAUSE]

Of course there is more joy
in Heaven 
when you repent of your sins.

It's because you are of more worth
than a universe filled
with silver pieces.

Because you are worth
the Cross.

Friday, June 14, 2024

Reordering Whitby

 

What did the Synod of Whitby achieve?

Monday, June 10, 2024

Anglican Catholics and Ephesian Canon III

 



Why Anglican Catholics separated from the Anglican Communion.

Saturday, June 08, 2024

Refusing Dinner



Sermon for the second Sunday after Trinity 

Why do they refuse?

Guests bidden to a fine dinner
make excuses 
and refuse the invitation.

A sumptuous meal
gets passed over
for inspecting 
a piece of land
a yoke of oxen,
a new wife.

Could these ever
be convincing excuses?

[PAUSE]

There are often good reasons 
why we refuse an invitation 
to dinner:

Ill-health,
unforseen circumstances,
urgent business.

These might be genuine 
or they may be covering
the fact 
that we simply
don't want to go to dinner.

Either way
in refusing the invitation 
we are declaring
that there is something 
more important to us
than this meal.

Making excuses
that aren't genuine 
shows a desire 
to conceal the truth 
from the giver of the feast.

This rather shows 
a desire to keep up
an appearance 
rather than be honest 
and state the real reason
to the one giving the feast.

Of course, 
if the feast is Our Lord's 
wedding banquet
then this is like Cain
denying the truth
before Almighty God.

This feast is unworthy
of the person
who makes false excuses.

[PAUSE]

"I have bought a piece of land.
I must inspect it.
I cannot come to the feast."

This excuse
shows that the land
is considered to be 
more valuable than the feast.

Those who prefer 
to control the land,
who lay claim to estates,
who seek kingdoms 
and dominions 
who enter into disputes 
over territory to control
are not worthy of the feast.

They do not wish
to share the same space 
with others 
if it is not on their terms.

[PAUSE]

"I have bought some oxen.
I must inspect them.
I cannot come to the feast."

This excuse shows 
that acquiring property 
and wealth
is more important than the feast.

Those who prefer to hoard
their possessions 
who see everything 
in terms of asset and gain,
who reduce everything 
to utility and fashion
are not worthy of the feast 

They do not wish 
to extend their bounty 
with others
or to see others as 
anything other 
as means to their ends.

[PAUSE]

"I have married a wife.
I must spend time with her.
I cannot come to the feast."

This excuse shows
that personal pleasure 
is more important than the feast.

Those who prefer 
to enjoy themselves 
on their terms,
who even base their identity 
in terms of what they enjoy,
who lose their temper
when their pleasure is denied them 
are unworthy of the feast.

They do not wish
to share their joy with others
nor share in the joy of others.

And what does the Lord of the Feast do?

[PAUSE]

He gives them what they want.

He allows their excuse.

They don't have to come 
if they don't want to.

But their place will be taken 
by those who are grateful 
to be called worthy of the feast
because they will enjoy it
for what it is:
free, generous, nourishing 
good
and not regarding 
where they have come from.

Those who refuse the feast 
will never partake of it
in respect of their own choices.

They made themselves unworthy 
but God makes all who choose Him
worthy of His bounty
which He shares
liberally and joyfully with us
and bids us 
share His bounty 
liberally and joyfully with others.



Monday, June 03, 2024

An Anglican Catholic uses Sarum

 



Why the Sarum Use matters and how it brings us together.

Saturday, June 01, 2024

Worth a good meal?

Sermon for the Sunday in the octave of Corpus Christi

But we're all
unworthy of the Body
and Blood of Christ
are we not?

How can we 
receive our Holy Communion 
worthily?

It doesn't matter 
if we've confessed our sins
and repented 
does it?

We're still
not worthy of
such a wonderful 
sacrament
- the Body and Blood 
of Jesus Christ 
our God.

So how can we ever
receive the Body and Blood 
of Our Lord Jesus Christ 
worthily?

[PAUSE]

When we read our Bible
we do have to take care
that we understand that
sometimes things get 
a bit muddled in translation.

When St Paul
says that we must 
not eat and drink
unworthily
he is referring specifically 
to the rather raucous meals
that used to precede 
the Eucharist.

People at these meals
get drunk 
some go hungry 
others overeat
- it doesn't bring our 
minds to the last supper.

These folk aren't eating 
and drinking in remembrance 
of Him 

They have forgotten.

It is not the people
who are unworthy
but they are treating the Eucharist 
unworthily 
- it is not worth their
undivided attention.

Indeed, St John reminds us
that there was someone 
who did not treat the first Eucharist 
at the Last Supper as being
worthy of his time.

Judas only sees the worth 
of Christ too late,
for his treatment 
of the Body of Christ
means that he knows
that he has eaten and drunk
damnation upon himself
as the thirty pieces of silver
rattle in his pocket.

St Paul is quite clear.

If we do not treat 
the Eucharist with respect 
then we eat and drink
damnation upon ourselves.

It is precisely because 
of St Paul's words
that we Catholics 
now receive the sacrament 
in our Mass.

People may laugh
and poke fun 
at the elaborate rituals
and ceremonies,
but for us
offering the sacrifice of the Mass
is the pinnacle of worship,
greater than singing pious songs
greater than listening 
to long passages of Scripture,
greater than erudite and learned sermons 
greater than confessing our sins.

It is the pinnacle of our worship 
because we are doing what 
we are told to do.

We do this in remembrance 
of Our Lord.

This isn't a casual memory
like thinking back
to the last meal you had
with good friends.

This is a bringing to mind,
making presents
the Body and Blood of Christ
according to the ancient rites
of the Holy Church.

The Mass exists 
precisely in order to make sure
that no-one brings
damnation upon themselves 
by being reckless
like Nadab and Abihu
who were reckless with
the Ark of the Covenant 
and were burnt up.

It is why we have a duty
to educate our layfolk
to ensure that we are prepared 
to meet with Our Lord Himself
as we take Him into 
the inmost part of our very selves,
not as bread and wine
but making sure
that we know the Body and Blood
of the One Who deems us worthy
of His love 
and Who trusts that we believe
Him to be worthy 
of our love.