Angels in the Darkness

 

Why, on Michaelmas Day, we need to be reaching out to the saints and angels for defence against the darkness.

Anxiety anxieties

Sermon for the fifteenth Sunday after Trinity 

We human beings

are time-bound.

We are born,

we live and we die

and our lives are divided 

into past, present and future.

At every instant

we are aware of 

our circumstances now,

our histories then,

and our expectations to come.

Each comes with 

its own dreads.

We call the dread

of things happening around us

fear.

We call the dread 

of rembering the past

regret.

We call the dread

of things to come,

anxiety.

Each of these

stunts our lives

because dread

allows something 

to take control over us

and how we live.

Our Lord says very clearly

that we have a choice between 

two masters:

God and Mammon.

The one gives us life

and the freedom to live it.

The other controls our life

and takes living away from us.

It isn't that we serve Mammon

willingly,

though some do.

But rather that we allow 

material things 

to control us.

Dread is itself 

a sign that we trust more

in material things

than we do God.

[PAUSE]

Of the three dreads

anxiety is the worst

because it is so slippery.

Because we can't see the future 

we imagine what the future 

will be like

and our imagination 

can take many forms.

If our imagination

can take many forms 

then so can our anxiety.

This is why the Ghost 

of Christmas yet to come

is the most terrifying 

of the three spirits 

that visit Ebenezer Scrooge.

For Scrooge,

the terror of what might happen 

completes his redemption 

and helps him realise

that if he lives in love 

then love will live with him

in him and through him.

The genius of the Ghost 

of Christmas yet to come,

isn't that he instills anxiety

with some vague threat

but that he gives Scrooge

something clear to focus on

and avoid 

by changing his life.

[PAUSE]

Our Lord shows us the same thing.

He shows us lives

blighted by crippling anxiety

about what could happen 

in the future:

homelessness,

pain,

starvation,

loneliness,

misery,

pointlessness,

hatred,

exhaustion.

All these nebulous fears

about what could happen 

take control 

and stop us from living.

That's not what God wants.

[PAUSE]

Jesus is so clear.

Only God knows the future.

But God values you, yes you,

so much 

that He is willing to die

for your salvation,

eternal happiness

in a good eternal home,

eternally free from pain,

surrounded by those who

truly love you,

eternally refreshed,

eternally nourished and enriched,

and eternally fulfilled.

Even in this life

God knows what we need.

He even knows our anxieties 

and their cause

and their effect

and He wants you

to give Him control,

not to enslave you

but to fulfill you.

He isn't going to guarantee 

a future without hardship 

but He does guarantee 

that whatever hardship we face

will not define us,

will not control us,

will not last forever.

But we have to trust Him 

on that 

because our little lifespan

cannot cope 

with the presence of Eternity 

just as a balloon 

cannot cope with being

filled with the entirety of the sea.

[PAUSE]

The Cross is the proof 

of Jesus' words that 

we are each one

not only lovable 

but actually loved.

We cannot let our expectations 

of the future rule us,

nor can we allow the fear

of disappointment 

cause us to turn way from God.

Through prayer,

and living the Christian life,

we come to learn

to recognise the voice of God

so that,

when things get too dark for us to see

we can hear Him call

and guide us through

into His marvellous light.

The future might be a frightening place,

with anxieties and dreads,

but Eternity with God

is longer lasting

and more certain,

and this wonderful state

promised for us,

causes Dread to dread

and gives Anxiety anxieties.

Why do Anglican Catholics get so hung up on Liturgy?

 

The Liturgy is just a means to an end, isn't it?

The hunger of an apostle

Sermon for the Feast of St Matthew

When and where

do we first meet 

St Matthew?

We might think

that we see him first,

sitting at his table of custom.

But, in a strange sort of way

we first meet St Matthew 

at Christmas 

when we begin his Gospel.

"But all the Gospels

are anonymous!"

Well, that's what 

those who somehow

want to depersonalise 

the Gospels say.

They say that

to undermine 

the reliability of their message.

They want to make them

anonymous 

so to take away 

their authenticity

and their authority

in our Church.

The problem is

that St Matthew's gospel

is credited with being

St Matthew's Gospel

from the earliest times.

And St Matthew

is the first voice we hear

of the New Testament 

sounding out

the news of the Incarnation,

connecting Our Lord

with Abraham and David.

We don't see St Matthew first,

we hear him.

St Matthew's first words to us

are of Our Lord's place

in History,

in a family

and in a royal dynasty.

That's where we first meet him.

Only later

does he tell his backstory.

[PAUSE]

We first see St Matthew 

sitting at the seat of custom

as a tax-collector. 

Even if he were an honest tax-collector 

and not extorting extra money 

from his own people,

he is still a collaborator

betraying his people,

his family,

his heritage in the Jewish race

by working with 

the oppressors, 

the enslavers of Israel,

the new Egyptians,

the Romans. 

That's why many tax-collectors

charge more

and cream off the profits

just to make the job worthwhile 

in the face of such hatred.

Is it worth it?

[PAUSE]

Well, clearly not.

Just like the fishermen,

all Jesus has to say is

"follow Me!" 

and St Matthew is up

and after Him

seemingly immediately.

Like the fishermen,

St Peter, St James, St John,

St Matthew sees something in Jesus

that he hungers for,

something that will 

take him away from

this wretched job

that he was enticed to do

and which has brought

such hatred upon him.

He follows and,

with other tax-collectors and sinners,

he sits down to eat

with the One

Who preaches love 

and not hate,

Who seeks to reconcile 

and not ostracise,

Who seeks to feed and nourish

rather than throw money

and hope that will 

solve all the problems. 

[PAUSE]

St Matthew's discontent

with his life is clear 

and he embraces life with Christ 

and death for Christ

rather than betray 

his own humanity 

and his own heritage

by continuing in sin.

In choosing to become 

a tax-collector, 

St Matthew loses

his place in society,

his heritage,

his history and 

the connection with God

upon which 

the Old Covenant was built.

In seeing Christ

he realises how hungry he is

how empty,

how separated,

how lonely he is.

And then,

eating a meal with Jesus,

he finds himself

becoming whole again

part of a new society

part of a new heritage

part of a new history

- new but old.

For nothing is really changed

it is renewed,

restored,

mended,

healed.

It is the sick that need the physician

for there is nothing to heal

in the healthy.

St Matthew's Jewish heritage

is completed in

the Jewish heritage of Jesus

and extended

into the heritage 

of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church

- the Church in which

he becomes an apostle 

- the Church which is built 

upon his Gospel

and testimony of his redemption 

and salvation

in the Divine Humanity of Christ.

[PAUSE]

St Matthew hungers

and thirsts for righteousness 

rather than accept

a life of discontent

and contempt.

And he urges us

not to live lives

of dreary, hopeless nothingness 

but receive the fulness

of our belonging to Christ

and our salvation 

in which we are growing

day by day.

Whatever we hunger for

in this life

we might never receive. 

If we hunger for the true Christ

to whom St Matthew points,

then we shall receive Him

in abundance eternally.

Anglican Catholic, quiet and proud?

 

Why soap box evangelism is not the Anglican Catholic way.

A Glorious Crossing

Sermon for the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross

St Paul tells us

that we should 

glory only in the cross of Christ.

If you remember, 

the word Glory 

- chabod in Hebrew -

has a sense of weight

behind it.

Glory makes an impact.

Glory is something 

you can't fail to notice.

Glory weighs a ton!

It is the glory of the cross

that prevents 

Emperor Heraclius

from entering Jerusalem 

with it in triumph

after defeating 

the Persian aggressor

King Chosroes.

It weighs too much

for his worldly riches

to bear

and he must cast them aside

so that he can pick up the Cross

and carry it into Jerusalem. 

Heraclius' glory in his triumph

has itself been beaten 

by the glory of rough wood

upon which Our Lord

bled to death.

[PAUSE]

Often  we forget the fact

that the Cross is 

supposed to be

the image of a shameful death.

We Christians have done 

a good job of turning 

the meaning of the cross around.

Every Easter, though,

we ought always 

to remind ourselves that, 

although the Cross is glorious 

it is still the way 

Our Lord was killed.

The Cross does not allow

for its glory to be something 

flippant.

It's not a decoration

for a party,

painted in bright colours

and festooned with streamers.

Its glory is grave,

heavy,

a memory of both

agony and rejoicing

neither one without the other.

In the Cross,

we see human life mirrored:

the pain of living in

a world corrupted by sin

and inhumanity,

and the joy 

of Resurrection 

and the bliss of

the World to Come.

This is what glory looks like.

It is substantial,

something that is 

too heavy to bear,

but also something you

can cling onto

and know that you

won't be swept away

by the winds and the floods

of life.

Even if the Cross

exposes our sin and shame,

we cling onto it

because through it

we are forgiven.

[PAUSE]

If we are to bear our own cross

then we must venerate that, too.

What does that mean?

What is this cross we bear?

What is this thing

that Our Lord mentions

when He tells us that,

to follow Him,

we must deny ourselves,

take up our cross

and follow Him.

He is referring 

to His death and resurrection.

The same is true 

for us,

for we must suffer

for our faith in Him.

For most of us,

this suffering comes

from trying to renounce

Sin, the World and the Devil

and turn to Christ.

Turning to Christ 

MUST matter to us.

It's not something we do

with a nod of the head

and a signature 

on a bit of paper.

We have to recognise

the impact of Christ

on our lives

and seek actively

to repent,

to amend

and to progress in the Faith.

How do we know that

we are progressing?

We sin less!

If we sin less,

then we are coming closer

to God

by definition. 

But if we are to take up our cross

then we are to venerate it

and allow its glory

to change our lives

away from sin

and towards virtue.

If our faith doesn't have

a real impact on our lives,

then there is no glory.

If, however, we embrace 

the cross as where our God was crucified

then we shall embrace His glory

in Heaven. 

Anglican Catholic Purity? Anglican Catholic Clarity?

 

Which takes precedence, the Affirmation of St Louis or the Anglican Formularies?

Missing the great blancmange trick

Sermon preached at the Cathedral Church of St Augustine of Canterbury on the twelfth Sunday after Trinity

Tubbo the clown,

that great children's entertainer, 

is performing his usual

magic tricks 

at Janie's birthday party.

In the middle of his act

he takes Janie

and three of her friends

into a corner

away from the rest of

the audience.

With a cry of

"abracadoodles!"

there is a squeal of delight

from the girls.

A puppy!

A puppy has appeared

from nowhere

it seems.

Girls and puppy

race back to the audience

all eyes focused 

on the confused

but happy little dog.

All eyes on dog.

Not on Tubbo

who wants to continue his act.

He stands there

trying to grab the audience's attention.

He wants

to show them 

his greatest trick 

of turning Janie's dad

into a six foot blancmange. 

What's gone wrong?

[PAUSE]

"Don't tell anyone 

about what you have seen!"

Does Our Lord

really expect that to happen?

Why do this incredible trick

of healing a deaf and mute man

and then tell people

not to tell others?

Just look at what is happening!

All eyes are on

the man who has been healed.

There's a kerfuffle. 

People running about

"He hath done all things well;

He maketh both the deaf to hear

and the dumb to speak."

What is Our Lord thinking?

Surely God

in His infinite wisdom 

knows this will happen. 

So why allow it?

[PAUSE]

It's a fact

that you can't get a dog

to go in the direction 

that you point to.

They don't look 

at where you're pointing

they look at your finger.

They look at 

what is doing the pointing.

It's the same thing here.

The girls are more interested 

in the puppy

than they are in Tubbo.

Tubbo has certainly 

succeeded in entertaining 

his audience,

but not by his performance,

rather by the effects of his performance. 

As a result,

the audience

miss out on seeing

a thirty-five year old

chartered accountant 

from Market Harborough 

being covered

in two gallons of pink dessert.

[PAUSE]

In seeing the formerly 

deaf and dumb man

healed

in a literal act of creation,

the multitude 

turns a miracle

into a magic trick.

They focus on the healing.

They don't focus

on the One Who heals.

They miss out 

on what Jesus is pointing to.

The miracle is only a sign,

an indication 

that God is with us

that He cares for us,

that He wants us to be saved

from our sins

and be reconciled to Him.

The miracle is there

for one man's physical good 

and everyone's spiritual good.

[PAUSE]

After Mass,

we have our healing service.

Perhaps we shall see

a physical healing

as a testament of God's presence. 

Whether or not we do

experience an immediate 

and full physical healing,

our focus must be on Christ

because in Him

we shall all be healed,

saved, blessed 

and know the power of his love.

Yes, we pray

for all our ailments to be taken away.

Yes we pray 

for an end of our pain

and infirmity.

Let's keep that up!

But if our ailments 

are taken away,

if our pain and our infirmity

are healed

that's not our focus.

Our healing can become

the distraction from Christ.

This is why many people 

give up on Him

when they do continue in pain 

despite praying that He take it away.

Yes, there are those in constant pain,

- constant agony -

who can only think of that pain.

We can help them

by praying not only 

that the pain be taken away

but also that they may find a way

of being able to focus on Christ 

despite that pain

and find blessing and comfort

in doing so.

[PAUSE]

The crowds that tell everyone

about Jesus 

being a miracle worker

now focus the minds of others

on the miracles 

not on the message.

But some are faithful

and listen.

This is how we know 

that Our Lord tells the witnesses

to the healing 

not to tell anyone else. 

If no-one was faithful,

we would only know

The Amazing Jesus Barjoseph 

in the same way as we would know

Tubbo the Incomparable

or the magnificent 

Honi the Circle-drawer!

Who?

Precisely!

If we are faithful 

then we know Our Lord

to be more than a miracle worker,

more than a teacher,

more than a healer

but our lover,

our hope,

our king,

our God

and our destination in life.

And that's worth more 

than blancmange.

Anglican Catholicism and the internet of the future

 

What does "love thy neighbour mean" in an age when there might not be anyone there?

Real righteous reality

Sermon for the eleventh Sunday after Trinity

What's wrong with 

being a pharisee?

You don't extort money.

You don't commit adultery.

You act according to the law.

You are follow the religious practices. 

You fast like you're supposed to.

You give alms like you're supposed to.

Everything has been done

according to the very rules

that God has set down

for you to live your life by.

The Pharisee does nothing wrong.

But we know that's 

not the real issue here,

don't we?

[PAUSE]

St Luke tells us 

right from the start 

why Our Lord preaches 

this particular parable

"unto certain which trusted 

in themselves that they were 

righteous,

and despised others."

We can see exactly 

what's gone wrong,

can't we?

The Pharisee despises the Publican.

But that's not surprising

if you think about it.

A publican doesn't run a pub.

He'd be more popular 

with his community 

if he did.

No. 

This man is a tax-collector,

like Zacchaeus,

like St Matthew.

He is a tax collector,

collecting money 

for the Romans who oppress

Israel and Judaea.

Not only that,

he's charging more

and creaming the profits

off the top.

He extorts 

and he is unfaithful 

to his country and his God

- no better than an adulterer.

Is the Pharisee not justified

in his assessment 

that he is more faithful to God

than one who is not?

Is the Pharisee's sin

really that he despises

someone who is contributing 

to the ruin of God's nation?

[PAUSE]

And what of this Publican?

If we look at him

as he bows his head

and strikes his breastfeeding

and begs for mercy in his sinfulness,

isn't he agreeing with the Pharisee?

So why does he go home

justified

and the pharisee not?

Well,

we know why.

The Publican 

goes home a changed man 

like Zacchaeus,

like St Matthew.

He has been made right,

he has been justified.

Something about him

is different. 

He enters the temple

a sinner,

he leaves it righteous.

His prayer to God

is for him to be made righteous again.

He doesn't thank God

for himself

because what he knows of himself

is sin

against God and against his neighbours,

and he sees it

and he hates it.

And so, 

he does what only he can do.

He comes to God

bearing only his sin

and begging for healing in his soul.

And that's what he gets.

He is made righteous. 

Not just declared righteous, 

made righteous,

really righteous.

And what of the Pharisee?

What does He bring God?

[PAUSE]

All God is presented with 

is the Pharisee's opinion

of himself

in relation to others. 

The Pharisee offers God 

nothing of the reality of himself.

Yes, 

he keeps the law

and respects the prophets

and fasts and gives to charity

and does all the things 

that you are supposed to.

But he gives God

nothing of himself.

What does he want God for?

Clearly not for forgiveness!

A medal?

a reward?

a blue plaque on his house?

Is he asking God to receive his thanks?

Well, yes, 

thanks that he is more righteous 

than other people.

Why should God receive his thanks?

There's nothing real here

that the Pharisee is thankful for.

He's done the work.

He's not extorted.

He's not committed adultery.

He's fasted.

He's given tithes.

Where is God in his thanks?

It seems little more 

than lip service. 

The Pharisee wants nothing 

and so he receives it in abundance. 

He leaves the temple 

unchanged,

no better, no worse.

His heart empty

and his life its own reward.

[PAUSE]

Every Mass,

we come to God

with an opportunity 

to offer him ourselves 

as we really are.

And we come here,

not to be smug

and happy that we're 

better than others

but to bring to God

that brokenness 

that needs healing.

Of course,

we bring thanks,

thanks for what God is doing

thanks that we have not 

got what we have deserved,

thanks that God is willing to make us

right with Him

based on who we really are

not on how we think we are,

especially in relation to

other people.

[PAUSE]

The way that we should live life

is determined by God Himself

because He is what it means 

to be righteous.

God does good

because He is what it means

to be good.

The Publican knows this

which is why he can only

approach God 

in humility

not presuming on God's mercy

as a done deal,

but actively desiring it

and only expecting it

because that's how God is

and for no other reason.

The Pharisee's idea of goodness 

lies in his keeping of the Law

and forgetting Who gives that Law.

If God is what it means

to be righteous, 

then this means

righteousness is real 

something to be lived

and experienced

and grown.

Not a list of rules

and consequences. 

To be justified 

means more than 

"well, you're okay with me."

It means

being really infused

with God Himself. 

Justification 

isn't just something 

that is pronounced;

it isn't just a legal statement 

ratified by a judge;

it is something in us

that is planted and grows

and grows by how much 

we tend it

through engaging

actively

with Our God Who

gives Himself to us

in the Holy Eucharist. 

[PAUSE]

The Pharisee may do what is right

on paper

but it is the Publican 

who goes home

with God in his heart

rather than scrolls 

of parchment. 

We, too, can leave here

with parchment in our hearts

or God Himself.

It depends on what

of ourselves we truly offer God

in the sacrifice of the Mass

and why.

Anglican Catholic Vestments

 

What do Anglican Catholic clergy wear?

Night of the Living... Apostle?

Sermon preached at the Cathedral Church of St Augustine of Canterbury on the Feast of St Bartholomew

Horror films 

aren't what they used to be.

Once upon a time,

it was a classic battle

of good and evil 

where the evil 

was a vampire

Frankenstein's monster, 

a werewolf

or a zombie.

Yes, sometimes 

this battle between 

good and evil

was not so clear cut.

Is the Phantom of the Opera

truly evil

or is he the victim

of some psychological trauma?

These days,

horror films

seem to be more

about punishing the audience

for going to see them.

They are more gruesome

and much time is spent

in forcing the audience

to endure the evil acts

that the villain

is inflicting upon the innocent,

and then allowing 

the villain to triumph

over the innocent.

There is a strange fascination

that human beings can have

about the horrible things

we can do to each other.

Why?

[PAUSE]

When St Bartholomew 

is mentioned,

we easily remember that

he is a Martyr.

And what's the first question

we think of when we hear

that someone is a Martyr?

"How did they die?"

Do we really want to know?

No.

But yes.

But absolutely not!

But we sort of do!

behind our fingers,

with eyes half turned to watch

with a squint and a readiness

to turn our face away.

[PAUSE]

Cards on the table.

St Bartholomew

probably wasn't skinned alive.

Like many other martyrs,

it is likely that his death is dressed up

to make him appear more holy,

to present a faith so strong

that it won't bend under torture.

He is more likely to have been

beheaded or drowned.

His death doesn't need to be dressed up.

He faces death 

for his faith,

for his Christ,

for us.

Surely, what should concern us most

is that St Bartholomew would rather die

than renounce His Saviour, 

the Saviour that He spends

so much time with,

listening to His teaching,

seeing the miracle,

eating and drinking together 

enjoying each other's company.

St Bartholomew would rather

die for the truth

than live for a lie.

Indeed,

many Christians today

owe their faith and lives

to the Gospel 

St Bartholomew preaches

in Armenia and India. 

That should be all that concerns us.

But nonetheless, 

at the back of our minds

there is still that possibility 

that St Bartholomew is skinned alive.

And it niggles us.

[PAUSE]

Some of us

don't want to go there.

We want to push it aside,

not thinking about it,

because it disgusts us

frightens us,

appals us,

makes our skin crawl.

Others of us 

become fascinated

and even depict it

in ghoulish fashion in art

determined to confront

the squeamish 

with the gory details.

What's going on?

What's going on

is our inability to cope

with human suffering,

especially the suffering 

of one so obviously 

engaged in battle with Evil.

[PAUSE]

Those who turn from 

the death of St Bartholomew 

disturbed and sickened,

don't want to participate 

in his pain and suffering. 

It's too much for them,

because they experience the world 

with empathy

and recognising others' feelings.

Those who turn towards it

are fascinated by the truth,

while still yet being horrified by it,

but their need to know 

prevents them from looking away.

The fact is 

that we cannot handle fully

the suffering of others

and, when we can't do anything 

to stop that suffering,

we either run

or remain transfixed and helpless.

The fact is, 

we need both 

attitudes.

If we keep turning away

from the suffering of others

then we deny the reality

of that suffering.

It becomes

hypothetical,

and, because it's unpleasant,

we can be tempted 

to deny its existence.

If, however, we keep

fixating upon the suffering of others 

then we can again forget

that there is a human being suffering.

The fixation becomes clinical,

passionless,

and distracting from 

what matters.

Thus, the suffering of others

becomes a horror film to enjoy

and then walk away from. 

[PAUSE]

In both cases,

we separate 

the suffering

from the sufferer.

Our Lord Jesus Christ

shows that you cannot 

do that.

You cannot

separate the suffering 

from the sufferer.

When He appears

to St Bartholomew and the other Apostles 

He still bears the wounds of the Cross.

Our Lord's suffering means something. 

The Cross has become 

part of the Incarnation. 

Likewise,

the gruesome legend

of St Bartholomew 

points to his participation

in the agonies of Christ

however he meets his martyrdom.

But how he meets his martyrdom 

doesn't make him greater

or lesser than any other martyr.

Oh, be assured 

that whatever we suffer in this life

will be recompensed to us

by Almighty God.

But we cannot measure a martyr

by the cruelty inflicted on then

by human beings. 

The glory of the martyrs

is the same, one cross of Christ.

There is no greatest 

or least save only

in the judgement of God alone.

And yes,

yes, of course we should flinch

yes, of course we should turn our head,

yes, we should be disturbed

at the agony of others.

That's Love working in us.

It's our natural state 

of sympathy, empathy 

and compassion. 

Our reaction is human.

It is those who are inflicting the agony

who are denying their own humanity

because they can

separate the suffering 

from the sufferer.

Our duty is not to let

the agony of others

cause us to walk away

without seeking God in that agony.

For God is not the torturer.

He hears the cry 

of every drop of innocent blood spilled.

God ensures that 

every scar borne for Him

and His Children 

becomes a badge of honour

because He does not separate 

the suffering from the sufferer. 

He replaces pain with pleasure.

He replaces tears of sadness 

with tears of joy.

He replaces humiliation 

with exaltation.

All that is given up

for Him

is returned by Him in abundance,

but not to become the greatest

or the least,

not to create status

but solely because it is joyful

in the eyes of God

to restore that which has been

taken away for His sake

by the cruelty of Evil.

And, for us,

disturbed and traumatised 

by the Good Fridays of the saints

He gives us their Easter Days 

of Resurrection.

[PAUSE]

Life may be

a horror film at times, 

but it's a classic film

- one where, in the end

Good triumphs over Evil.

Modern horror films

truly depict 

the cruelty that hides

within us

but they often fail 

to show us of the truth 

that God is alive and with us

until our journey's end.

And, 

after all his suffering 

for His Master,

St Bartholomew 

walks away into the same

Sunrise of the

Eternal Divine light

that will envelope us

in our turn

when our time comes.

Anglican Catholic Vocations

Do you feel called to ministry? Might that ministry be in the Anglican Catholic Church Diocese of the United Kingdom?

Blessed battle banner bearer?

Sermon for the Sunday in the Octave of the Assumption of Our Lady 

A nervous young man,

enflamed with love,

turns to his beautiful girlfriend,

looks her lovingly in the eye,

and, barely concealing

the passion for her 

that causes

his heart to beat faster,

opens his mouth and says,

"Ee Luv,

yer like a big, frightening

formation of Sherman tanks!"

It kills the moment, rather,

don't you think?

Ladies, 

how often does your man

compare you to

military manoeuvres?

Do you take it 

as the complement 

intended?

Or is he saying,

"Yer a reet battleaxe,  Luv?" 

And yet,

in our most passionate book

of the Bible 

we hear the Great Lover

say of His Shunamite Bride,

"Who is she 

that looketh forth as the morning, 

fair as the moon, 

clear as the sun, 

and terrible 

as an army with banners?"

And whatever you think

of the failings

of Ancient Israelite courtship,

this verse is consistently applied

to Our Lady.

In our liturgy,

the Blessed Virgin,

Queen of Heaven,

full of grace 

is described as being

as terrible as an army 

with banners!

Our Lady the battleaxe?

[PAUSE]

Seeing Our Lady 

as a cosmic Nora Batty

is an image that belongs to our culture

not to the culture of Bronze Age Israel.

Imagine

a young man

beset by the turbulence of life

an uncertain future,

tormented by

the same demons

that beset us today.

Yes, the same demons

who try to turn us from God

with enticements to sin,

and despair,

demons that show us

that we are worth nothing

demons that makes us feel laughed at

ridiculous, 

hated.

Imagine that young man

surrounded by this army of misery

look up into the eyes

of his girlfriend

and see in those eyes,

love,

the love that makes Him

feel seen, appreciated and cared for,

the love that drives those demons away

howling and screaming. 

One woman

routing the Army of Darkness

with a kiss.

How terrible as an army with banners!

[PAUSE]

It is said that 

the Powers of Hell

fear Our Lady in the same way.

It's not that she possesses

a Divine Nature,

but rather that,

through her and in her

the Divine Nature of Our Lord Jesus

shines forth.

Our Lady is not our Redeemer

but she certainly plays a vital rôle 

in our Salvation 

just as much

as the person who dials 999

plays a vital rôle in saving the life

of a heart-attack victim.

All who know her,

who see her,

who talk to those that have met her

know that she is indeed without sin.

She needs Salvation nonetheless 

because no-one can be raised

from Earth to Heaven

without Christ.

No-one can participate 

in the Divine Nature

without the Divinity

of Christ taking on

our Humanity.

And Our Lady

participates in 

the Divine Nature of Christ

by saying "Yes!" 

to bearing Him from embryo to foetus to baby

bearing Him to infant, to boy, to teenager, to man

bearing Him to ministry and miracle

to suffering and crucifixion, 

bearing Him to death

and bearing Him

to resurrection.

The whole of His Holy Incarnation 

is borne in the person 

of one sinless virgin.

All of our Salvation

is borne in the person

of one sinless virgin.

And the demons know it.

And they tremble. 

At the sight 

of a lady, 

so little and gentle

the armies of darkness flee,

because of the Christ

Who shines in her.

Yes,

Our Lady is as terrible

as an army with banners

but an army

that fights for us,

formidable and strong 

and yet 

wins its battle 

with a kiss,

a gentle word,

a look of love and compassion,

a warmth that tells us in our misery,

"you are not forgotten."

This is why Our Lady 

is assumed into Heaven,

soul and body.

Where else should she be?

Should a Christian engage in mockery?

 

What is mockery for?

Future Tense?

Sermon for the eighth Sunday after Trinity

Do you know

that the world

was supposed to end in 2012?

That's according to 

an old Mayan calendar.

According to St Malachi

Pope Francis is supposed 

to be the last.

Nostradamus

predicts an apocalyptic event

in 1999.

And perhaps you remember 

Harold Camping

who very publicly

proclaims the end of the World.

When that doesn't happen

he says he's got his sums wrong

and gives another date.

When the world doesn't end

on that day either,

he says it is a spiritual apocalypse.

Prophets of doom

have an expiry date

when we know whether

they are truly foreseeing the future.

By the fruit of their prophecy

we will know them.

Until then, 

we might laugh off

a prediction about the end of the world

but still keep an eye 

on the calendar.

But we know that 

not all prophets are 

as easy to test.

The fruit of a prophet's testimony 

always lies in the future.

[PAUSE]

The future is the place

where all our work is tested

and sometimes waiting to see

the outcome of our labours

is uncomfortable. 

But it is the prophet of God

whose work will be 

most rigorously tested

in the passage of Time.

And that makes it 

uncomfortable for us 

because we cannot see 

whether this prophet is true 

or false

for the foreseeable future.

A prophet 

may do wonderful deeds now

but turn out to be

a damp squib.

For us with the benefit

of 20-20 hindsight

we can see clearly

that Our Lord's prophecy

is reliable 

and that He truly is

the Son of God.

When we think 

that His testimony 

is snuffed out on the cross,

He rises again

not only proving Himself 

to be the Son of God

but also proving the worth

of the Old Testament prophets

who said that He would.

He rises again

according to the Scriptures.

The prophets of the past

though dead

live again

and are proved to be truly 

the messengers of God

which is why we,

in their future,

venerate their prophecy

in our Bible.

Our Lord Jesus

in His resurrection 

binds up the past, present and future -

Jesus Christ

the same yesterday, 

today

and forever. 

[PAUSE]

This is important for us.

We are born in time,

haunted by the past

and worried about the future.

Around us are sheep

that have always looked like sheep

but who will be

unmasked by the future

as ravening wolves.

People and institutions

that we thought were good

may turn out to be far from good.

Do we have any way of knowing?

Is there anything

or anyone who can

give us confidence?

Such a one must be

the same yesterday, today

and forever.

[PAUSE]

We don't put our trust

in anyone but Christ.

Even the saints

receptive their trustworthiness 

through Christ.

Even Our Lady,

the Queen of Heaven

can only be a true saint

because of her son,

Our Lord.

The Church can only ever be

One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic

if it is true to the One Lord Jesus Christ,

separated from the World 

by His Holiness, 

according to the sane Catholic Faith

proclaimed everywhere

by His faithful Apostles

and their successors.

In order to see the future,

we Christians 

must hold onto the past,

but we only hold onto the past

in order to sanctify the future.

As Christians,

we embrace past, present and future

altogether. 

We might not see the future

but we can be confident 

in what is coming

by holding on to what

we have always been taught.

What we Christians see in the future

is the return of Christ,

the judgement of the world

by Him

and the exaltation of

all who believe in Him.

In the future,

we will see the union 

of all Christians 

because all Christians 

will gather at the feet of Christ.

For this reason 

we must see the sacraments 

as passports to the future.

Our priests aren't ordained 

just for now but for ever 

after the order of Melchisedek;

our bishops are consecrated

in order to keep the Apostolic line going

for our brothers and sisters yet to come. 

And the same is true 

of all Christians. 

Whatever we do,

we must do it for Christ and, 

in doing what we do for Christ,

we are doing it also

for our brothers and sisters yet to come:

the Christians who aren't yet born,

the Christians who will live

long after we are dead and gone,

the Christians we will only meet

at the Resurrection of the Dead.

[PAUSE]

We Christians aren't meant

to live just for now. 

Our behaviour shouldn't be

just for pleasures

that seem wonderful now

but are blown into oblivion

on the winds of Time.

Our lives are to be built on

the rock that is Christ

and this means

living faithfully to Him

despite what those winds of Time 

blow at us.

We must live

as if we are building something

that we would expect

to be permanent 

for God.

If we do,

then we should not find

the future a worry for us

but rather the arena

in which we will meet God

face to face.

Anglican Catholic Bishops

 

Why unity is a key principle for episcopacy.

Fishfinger sandwiches

Sermon for the sixth Sunday after Trinity

There is probably

nothing quite as

quintessentially English

as a fishfinger sandwich.

It's a delicacy that

has not really made it

across the Pond 

to America

and yet, perhaps,

in a twisted imagination,

just perhaps,

Our Lord feeds the four thousand

with something like

fishfinger sandwiches. 

Perhaps this is proof

that Our Lord

really is Anglican!

But then,

perhaps this is 

a somewhat spurious 

argument.

It does, however,

cause us to wonder

where the fish come

In Our Lord's miracle.

We always hear about bread:

the Bread of Life,

the breaking of bread

leavened and unleavened bread

and so on.

Our Lord consecrates bread

to become His body

in the Eucharist

and the parallels 

between the Eucharist

and the feeding of the multitudes

is unmistakable. 

But we always seem

to gloss over the fish.

Where do the fish fit in?

[PAUSE]

The multitude have followed

Our Lord into a wilderness

in the Decapolis region

which is not far

from the Sea of Galilee

where Peter, James and John 

usually fish.

While bread is a food

that is shared across 

so many different communities

and cultures,

fish are usually found

only in fishing communities.

Fish don't travel well

unless they are refrigerated 

or dried out in the sun.

The fact that these fish

have survived a few days

in the wilderness 

is a miracle in itself.

Yet, here too, 

the fish are multiplied

for people to eat,

and they clearly eat well.

It is a food

that they are used to.

But still, the question remains:

If the feeding of the multitude 

is supposed to be a clear pointer

of the Eucharist,

and if we have bread at the Eucharist,

why do we not have fish as well?

[PAUSE]

Put simply,

it's because 

there were no fish 

at the Passover.

And Our Lord

fulfils the Passover 

when He offers us His Body and Blood

under the appearance 

of bread and wine

which are associated 

with the Passover,

Our Lord Himself being 

the Paschal Lamb.

No fish.

So what does this detail

told to us by St Mark 

tell us

that the multitude are fed with fish?

Why are the fish 

important for us to know about?

[PAUSE]

In our Mass,

you will be aware 

of the Offertory.

It's when the priest 

takes the host

and the wine

and offers them up.

What else happens?

Isn't the collection 

of money offered up too?

It's what we bring to Jesus

that gets offered up

and sanctified.

We do the same sort of thing

in our Harvest Festivals.

We bring our produce 

to God to give thanks

and for that produce to be blessed.

And the fish are

the produce of Galilee.

They are offered to God

Who blesses them

and then magnifies them

to feed so many people.

It's what we bring to Christ

that matters.

We offer Him bread 

and He makes it His body.

We offer Him wine 

and He makes it His blood.

We offer Him fish

and four thousand people

are fed good food.

It's what we bring to Christ 

that matters.

We only get anything out of the Mass

if we have put something in.

If we leave Church

feeling uninspired

or grumpy

or indifferent,

is it because we did not 

bring anything with us

for Christ to sanctify?

Did we forget 

to offer ourselves

to God

to be made Holy

to be distributed for

the good of all people?

We only get out of the Mass 

what we are willing

to invest in it.

If we don't even bring ourselves

to be sanctified 

then the Mass will be

just as much as a desert

but without the miracle.

We can receive

the Body and Blood of God

but if we only offer indifference

to Him,

we will only receive indifference 

in abundance.

[PAUSE]

The fish represent

ourselves,

our situations,

our cultures,

our homes and families,

our daily lives.

If we offer these to God,

He will bless them and use them.

If He can consecrate

a fishfinger sandwich, 

how much more

will He consecrate us 

in His service

and in His love?

Anglican Catholic Soundbites

 

Why we have to be careful about the language we use to bring Christ to the people and people to Christ.

Judging disciples

Sermon for the sixth Sunday after Trinity

"You Christians

are so judgemental!"

We hear that a lot,

but what does it mean?

We often find ourselves

in situations 

where the Christian life

runs contrary 

to the life of the world.

We have seen this 

in the public votes

in Parliament 

which have ruled

that there are circumstances 

in which it is lawful

to take the lives of innocent people.

We also live in an age

where profoundly 

destructive worldviews 

are being taught 

uncritically 

to those who are

learning how to live life.

And we Christians speak out

and get pilloried for doing so.

But we have to be careful

because people do not like to be judged.

Why not?

They think that

what they are doing

is good,

not harmful,

beneficial,

even beautiful.

And the basis for their judgement 

is that it "feels right" and

"isn't hurting anyone "

and "isn't trying to control people".

The basis of their sense of righteousness 

is themselves 

or it is the culture around them 

telling them that they are right.

Their righteousness 

is man-made,

not God-made.

Their righteousness 

will change with the times

and they will look back on the past

and declare it immoral

"by today's standards."

But "today's standards"

will be immoral by tomorrow's.

[PAUSE]

Our righteousness 

as disciples of Christ

has to exceed the righteousness 

of the Scribes and Pharisees 

of today.

Let's be clear,

there is no-one more 

educated in the Law

than the Pharisee. 

It's his job to know 

and to follow all the little bits and pieces

of the Divine law,

but his basis for the Law

is the law itself.

The Pharisees righteousness 

is based on a law

which is indeed God-given

but applied by a greater law

namely the Pharisee's

self-righteousness.

But doesn't the Church 

follow the Divine Law?

What makes the Church

any better than the Pharisees?

[PAUSE]

Our Lord shows us

that the law 

goes beyond the letter.

To.murder someone 

means more than 

sticking a knife into them.

We can commit murder

by calling someone a fool

and kill their place

in our hearts.

We can commit adultery

by looking lustfully at a women 

just as well as getting her

into bed.

The law of the Pharisee

is written on parchment. 

The law of God

is written on human hearts.

We've seen the effects

of applying the written law

inhumanely 

and the effects have been appalling.

If the written law 

has the capacity

to end the life of 

an innocent person 

then innocent people will die

and the world will think

that it has done a good thing.

And anyone who objects

will be regarded as

judgemental

and inhumanely

for allowing people's suffering 

to continue. 

[PAUSE]

This, of course,

ignores the sovereignty of God

and His ability

to turn our suffering into joy,

perhaps not in this life

but Eternally so.

All pain and suffering on earth

will end in time

and the heart that seeks

the righteousness of God

will find peace in Him.

Man does not have the capacity

to see the fulness of another's pain

nor the value that it possesses.

Man can only walk with those 

who suffer and tend

the wounds inflicted. 

Only God can reach the cause

of pain

because pain tells us

that something is wrong,

that there is a conflict 

between what is and what should be.

The righteousness of this world

seeks to numb that pain

by providing a distraction 

or a pleasure to distract

from sorrow

rather than addressing 

the actual cause.

[PAUSE]

It is only through Christ

that we can see true righteousness 

which will exceed the righteousness 

of Scribe and Pharisee 

because it is based

on Love

- not the sentimental feeling,

- not the legalised idea of compassion

- not the politically correct form of caring.

God is Love

and God is Righteousness. 

He is the basis of morality 

and if we make our judgements

based on His love,

then the World can call us judgemental

as much as it likes

but our judgement will be good

because it will pour the love of God

into the wounds of the suffering

and they will be healed in Him

eternally.

All age Anglican Catholicism

 

Why Anglican Catholicism is not  rooted in the 1950s

Baited breath?

Sermon for the fifth Sunday after Trinity 

What does He say

that draws people to Him?

What words does He use

that makes Him worth listening to?

What is it about Him

that makes crowds of people

gather around Him

to the extent

that He can only teach

by launching Himself 

out onto the Sea of Gennesareth

and using the natural acoustics

to magnify His words?

Our Lord is clearly 

a phenomenal teacher.

But then,

we must admit,

He does back up

His extraordinary claims

with miracles.

If Our Lord is

the great Fisher of Men

what is He using as bait?

[PAUSE]

It is interesting that

St Peter probably does not use bait

to catch the fish.

This is why he fishes at night.

The idea is that the fish

don't see the net as well

and swim into it unawares.

If this is the case

then we see why St Peter

thinks Our Lord's words

to cast the net in broad daylight

as odd and perhaps

even a bit exasperating.

The result: two ships full of fish!

Clearly something 

has drawn them to this place

where they can be caught. 

Just like the crowd.

Something has drawn them

to this place

where they can be caught

by God

in broad daylight.

Why broad daylight?

If you can see the net

then you can choose

to swim into it

or not.

Ironically, 

it is those who swim 

into Our Lord's net

who are saved.

Unlike St Peter,

Our Lord uses bait. 

He knows that there is something 

for which each of us

is truly longing.

It may not be something 

that we realise we long for.

It may be a longing 

which we mistake for another longing 

or one which we try to cover up

with something 

more accessible 

and immediately gratifying. 

Our Lord knows

what we truly long for

and He can supply it.

And this is something 

that we crave because 

we are created

and we look to our Creator

to make us whole again

from the wounds 

Caused by the battering 

that sin, the World and the Devil

inflict upon us.

Our Lord Himself is the bait.

He says,

"no man can come to Me, 

except the Father 

which hath sent Me draw him: 

and I will raise him up 

at the last day."

It is the Father 

that draws us,

and if we see Jesus

then we see the Father.

And it is Jesus

who will raise us 

from the depths of Death.

How?

Because in consuming His flesh

and drinking His blood

we become one

with Christ's humanity.

But it is the Divine nature of Christ 

that draws Him up from Death

into Heaven

to stand before the Father.

If we are one with Christ

then we are drawn up into Heaven

to stand before the Father.

We have been caught

and landed

like a prize carp

on the end of a line.

While the carp may be cooked

and eaten

we have been drawn to life

and joy.

This is what Salvation is.

And we need to fall for it,

hook, line and sinker.

Authentically Anglican Catholic!

 

What does it mean to say that a Church is authentic?

Oh, for crying out loud!

Sermon for the fourth Sunday after Trinity

How's your Greek?

A quick test.

What's the Greek 

for mercy?

You have no clue

until you remember

that you have sung

your "Kyrie eleison" today

and "Kyrie eleison" means

"Lord, have mercy!"

"Hooray!" you think 

"The Greek for mercy 

is eleeos!"

You're right...

but you're not right,

though you must be praised

for your reasoning there.

You're not right in the sense

that Our Lord isn't using

eleeos when He tells us

to be merciful

even as Our Heavenly Father

is merciful.

And now you're thinking,

"Oh, for crying out loud!"

And now you'd be nearer the mark.

[PAUSE]

We're often presented 

with trying to reconcile

the mercy of God

with the justice of God.

How can we be both

merciful and just

to a murderer that says,

in all sincerity,

"I'm sorry, please forgive me!"

We can't let him off,

but neither can we ignore 

his plea.

The Greek for mercy here

is oiktos,

and the "oi" bit

is a cry.

The mercy that is oiktos

should make us

cry "Oh!" to someone's predicament. 

Oiktos is the mercy 

that cries out in compassion

that recognises 

a human being in distress.

Oiktos causes us

to raise our eyes

from a list of misdemeanours 

and see a human being,

fallen and broken through life,

and yet failing and breaking others.

Oiktos is to see ourselves 

in another 

in all the pain and sorrow of life

and hold onto that.

Oiktos is having compassion

in the highest order.

But what of eleeos?

Why do we ask God 

"Kyrie eleison"?

[PAUSE]

Eleeos is active.

Eleeos has the sense

of pouring oil on troubled water.

Oiktos is what motivates eleeos.

The cry of "oh" and recognising

the distress and misery in another 

causes us to act with compassion.

Not by condemnation for sins, 

but by finding a way to be generous

without diminishing sin.

Our God is generous and merciful.

He fills the barrel of mercy and love 

and shakes it

and presses it down 

to make more room

for mercy and love.

God, the perfect judge

knows full well how to deal

with repentant murderers.

 

He even made one a saint!

Oiktos forces us

to see the human being 

behind even the most vile of crimes.

Criminals should receive 

our pity that their brokenness

should influence them

into committing their crimes. 

That doesn't excuse them.

They made their choice 

to commit crime 

and that must be addressed

proportionately,

fairly and fully

in law for the good of society.

But we must not ever,

for the love of God 

demonise a criminal

on account of the crime.

A criminal is a human being

and a human being

is the object of God's love.

Yet, we don't want to love him

because of his crime, 

so we turn him into a demon 

because that makes it easier for us

to cope with.

[PAUSE]

Our Lord 

is telling us 

not to take the easy path 

to judgement

and condemnation. 

He is telling us 

that we need to react

in mercy.

Yes, to hear the blood of Abel

crying from the ground

but also to hear the cry of Cain

fearing for his life 

in his land of banishment 

for murdering his brother.

As Christians

we are called to a life

knowing that we cannot 

judge or condemn a criminal

to Hell,

and that is a life of discomfort 

because we see sin,

and we see the sinner,

one we must hate

the other we must love

and yet separating the two

is far from easy.

We have to live in that tension.

We have to live 

concerned that sin is called out

for what it is

and yet seeing our very selves

in the face of the vilest offender.

We only love our neighbour 

insofar as we love 

the worst of humanity.

That's hard.

That's so hard.

It's hard to the extent

that we cry out "Oh!"

And then God hears "Oh"

and that stirs his oiktos

the mercy that hears the cry

of one troubled,

even scandalised by 

the Divine love even for the most wicked.

And He has mercy 

- eleeos -

on us because 

we will probably fail

to be merciful 

even as he is merciful.

Even if we fail,

we must never despair

of the mercy of God -

the mercy that hears a cry

and the mercy

that seeks to do something 

about it

- all for crying out loud.

It's just one...

Sermon for the third Sunday after Trinity

"Oh it's just one..."

"...just one biscuit 

that's been dropped 

on the floor."

"...just one page 

that's been torn."

"... just one person

who missed the bus."

"It's just one..." is a 

handy little phrase

that we like to use

so that we know 

we don't have to care anymore.

Just one thing 

is lost, broken or won't fit,

so we can put it aside

and worry about

the other things 

that aren't lost or broken

and which fit into our scheme 

nicely.

That surely seems reasonable.

We can't worry 

about every little thing.

If we do

then we will

burn ourselves out

with too much worry,

caring too much about

things we can't control,

sweating the small stuff.

If we worry about 

every little thing

then it hurts us,

we become exhausted

and fearful.

Some of us 

are like that

and they need reassurance 

and care

for a condition that 

afflicted their lives.

Indeed,

the people who worry

so much 

that it becomes 

a disorder

must themselves 

not be written off.

"It's just one

of those people

with OCD."

This makes for

an uncomfortable dilemma. 

Do we care about things

too much

or too little?

[PAUSE]

The Pharisees

care a lot about 

the observance 

of the Law.

They are rigorous

and will let neither

t be uncrossed

or i undotted.

But woe betide anyone

who does not observe the Law,

the sinners, 

the publicans,

the prostitutes, 

even

the leprosy,

the maimed,

the sick.

They are completely 

written off.

"Oh they're just sinners. 

Not worth the time of day."

Human beings

who have no worth?

Human beings

in their God-given complexity 

in their God-given dignity

that have no worth?

And the Pharisees 

are effectively saying,

"Jesus, don't corrupt yourself 

with these sinners.

Just associate yourself 

with us, instead."

These sinners 

have been completely written off.

They have no value.

There is no chance 

of forgiveness,

reconciliation 

or rehabilitation.

Once a sinner

always a sinner. 

Oh doesn't that 

sound utterly dismal?

[PAUSE]

Where the Pharisees 

write people off,

Our Lord seeks to 

write people on.

Anyone 

who comes to Him

will be heard,

will be healed, 

will be loved.

No exceptions.

"Ah," say the Pharisees, 

"you just said,

that it would be 

harmful to care too much

about things."

"Things," Pharisee? 

People aren't "things!"

While we simply 

cannot worry about

the needs of everyone,

we don't see people 

as things.

If Our Lord speaks 

of the joy of finding

a lost sheep,

or a coin,

then how much more joy

can there be

for finding 

just one lost human being?

That joy makes

the Universe rattle

with millions of angelic feet

dancing in jubilation 

on the head of a pin.

And that's just one human being.

Just one human being

returning to God

sets heaven ablaze

with delight.

Just one human being.

Just you.

If that's the joy 

you cause God

when you return to Him

then imagine 

the joy of so many other

people who repent.

There are infinities

too small to contain that joy.

[PAUSE]

It's very true

that we human beings

can care too much.

We can stress,

overwork 

and forget about ourselves 

in order to care for 

absolutely everyone.

We can sweat the small stuff.

But perhaps we just need

to look at what we are valuing.

Just as the Pharisees 

value the Law 

above the spiritual 

and physical needs

of those around them,

so can we value the wrong thing

in helping other people

to the extent 

that we burn ourselves out.

God gives us two commandments

and one is certainly,

"love thy neighbour 

as thyself.

But the first commandment

is to love the Lord our God

with all our heart and soul 

and mind and strength.

Love God before Man.

Why?

Because it is 

in loving God first

with all the faculties 

that He has given us

that we learn to love

our neighbours 

as part of our own being.

And this regulates us.

We cease to dismissal others 

as just one of the crowd

and we cease to dismiss ourselves 

as just one of the crowd too.

In our prayers,

we present ourselves to God

Who doesn't see our prayer

as just one among many

but values it

because He values us

as individuals

and refuses to turn us away.

He possesses every magnitude 

of infinity 

to care intimately 

and fully for

every single human being

in every aspect

of their lives.

And he will not let us go.

In our prayer,

we bring our tears, sorrows,

cries for forgiveness,

cries for justice,

our bitterness,

our grief,

our loneliness

our longing for someone 

to love us just as we are.

And God hears

each of these

and, in the invisible mystery 

of His action

finds us and

brings us home,

not writing us off,

but writing us on His Sacred Heart.