Laughter, astonishment and joy

2 Pentecost/Year A - June 14, 2020

Genesis 18:1-15; (21:1-7); Psalm 116:1, 10-17; Romans 5:1-8; Matthew 9:35-10:8

 God will transform our private laughter of disbelief into shared laughter of astonishment, joy, and delight. (saltproject.org)

I was able to attend and participate in two different graduation ceremonies this week…One was online…the other was in person.

The one I attended in person, to give the opening invocation, and the closing benediction, was a local ceremony for those graduating from the Alaska Law Enforcement Training Academy…The graduating class, was a diverse group, who had endured a rigorous and well-rounded training, equipping them to serve their communities where-ever they would be called to go after their graduation. I heard inspiring words by the speakers, who spoke of lessons learned and wisdom gained in these past few months of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the recent uprising of voices and actions taking place across the world, in response to the centuries long issue of systemic racism.

The other graduation this week, was for Muriel…one of the children who grew up here at St Peter’s…Muriel and other students from her college were celebrating a new goal reached in their lives...in earning their master’s degrees in the arts and music field…Muriel was one of the speakers for the ceremony…and offered some inspiring words…as well as some of the other speakers…who also shared the lessons learned and the wisdom gained in these past several months of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the recent uprising of voices and actions taking place across the world, in response to the centuries long issue of systemic racism.

At both of these graduations…although for two very different career paths…they shared much of the same lessons learned, and wisdom gained. Each one of the ceremonies…pretty much began with the words of unbelief…never imagining that this year would unfold in the way it had…there were shared sentiments…that today’s graduation ceremony, was not what they would have envisioned.

There were shared insights, that spoke of how difficult these past few months had been in their journeys…yet their stories of perseverance, their commitment to their goals, their dreams, their aspirations to use their diverse and varied gifts to serve the people, and the world around them were full of hope and reasons for joy and laughter and celebration…

So, although, initially, they were perhaps, nervously laughing to themselves, in disbelief at how their year and culmination of all their months and years of training, had been thrown into the midst of such chaos…they came through this time…with new, and unexpected joys, new and unexpected delights, new and unexpected reasons to laugh and celebrate…new reasons to laugh and celebrate and give thanks for the way that God, transformed their private laughter of disbelief, into shared laughter of astonishment, joy and delight…

I came across that wonderful phrase this past week, on a website called saltproject.org (not sure on the author)

God will transform our private laughter of disbelief into shared laughter of astonishment, joy, and delight. (saltproject.org)

This makes me think about Abraham, and Sarah in today’s 1st reading….

Sarah initially laughed, in disbelief when she and Abraham were told, that even though they were old, and advanced in years, that Sarah would bear a child, they would have a son. Here’s that passage again that we heard a few moments ago:

So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I have grown old, and my husband is old, shall I have pleasure?” The Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’ Is anything too wonderful for the Lord? At the set time I will return to you, in due season, and Sarah shall have a son.” But Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh”; for she was afraid. He said, “Oh yes, you did laugh.”

We later heard in that first reading, that indeed Sarah did bear a son, just as God had promised….and he was named Isaac…Sarah’s laughter was transformed…

Now Sarah said, “God has brought laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me.”

And then, my thoughts turned to our gospel reading today…and I wonder too, if the disciples were laughing to themselves in disbelief, when Jesus summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to cure every disease and every sickness. I wonder, if this diverse group of the apostles, that are named in today’s reading, were laughing nervously to themselves, in disbelief when Jesus sent them out into the world  with these instructions: “Go nowhere among the Gentiles, and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. As you go, proclaim the good news, ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. You received without payment; give without payment.

I imagine these first laborers sent out to do the work they were being called to do…to proclaim the good news of God’s love…and kingdom coming very near…here on earth…found themselves laughing to themselves, often, in disbelief….crying, in disbelief…ready to give up, in disbelief…tired, beyond tired…in looking out at the world, and looking at themselves, and thinking…when will all this disease and illness end…when will all this suffering end…when will the kingdom really be near…because right now…it stills seems pretty far off…

What about you and I?  We’ve been summoned by Jesus, too… How often, lately, have you shook your head, and nervously laughed to yourself, in disbelief…cried in disbelief…ready to give up, in disbelief…tired beyond tired…in looking out at the world, and looking within at ourselves…and wondering…when will all of this suffering end…when will this pandemic be over…this covid-19 pandemic that is infecting our hearts and our bodies and our lives in the past several months…this pandemic of racism, that has infected our hearts and our bodies and our lives for hundreds of years… when will this kingdom, built upon a foundation of Love for God, for one another, and all of God’s creation, really be near… because right now...it still seems pretty far off…at times..”

When? When we stop laughing to ourselves in disbelief, thinking nothing will ever change…When we repent of our sins that keep us from fully loving our neighbors, and turn our hearts again towards trusting and believing in the Word of God, in the promises of God,…putting all of our hope in God…knowing that it is God who will transform our private laughter of disbelief into shared laughter of astonishment, joy, and delight. (saltproject.org)

We know it’s possible…we’ve seen how God has transformed laughter of disbelief, into a laughter of unexpected joy and delight, as we heard in the story about Sarah and Abraham today…

We know it’s possible, we have seen how God has transformed laughter of disbelief, into a laughter of unexpected joys and delights, as we heard in the stories of the two graduation ceremonies that I spoke about today…

We know it’s possible, we have seen how God has transformed laughter, of disbelief …. into bringing unexpected joy and delight to people whose lives had been oppressed for many years….

We have been witness to this transformation in the stories of the labors of our ancestors, and other saints and martyrs who have gone on before us…who began the hard work of paving a way for justice and peace and equity for all God’s people….

We know this work has really only  begun… we still have a long way to go, for all God’s people to be truly free to live and work and dream dreams for themselves and their children….and to fully share in the laughter and joy and delight in all God desires for all of God’s people.

It’s our turn now…to continue the work, that was started, so very long ago.

God is inviting each one of us, to work together, with our varied gifts, right where we are…no matter what stage of life we find ourselves in…to proclaim the good news of God’s love for everyone…to strive for justice and peace for everyone…to respect the dignity of every human being… to proclaim a gospel of hope…

A Hope in God, A Hope in Jesus Christ, A hope that will not disappoint us…because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.

A hope that proclaims: this is not the end of the story…a hope that decides that death is no longer an option…(The Rev Dr William Barber III); A Hope, that encourages us, to begin anew, every morning…A Hope that whispers to us… I am with you always…

Hope in God….God will transform our private laughter of disbelief into shared laughter of astonishment, joy, and delight. (saltproject.org)

After sermon: The Hymnal 1982 - #376 Joyful, joyful, we adore thee/piano

Rev. Julie Platson, Rector, St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church, Sitka, AK

Trinity Sunday: 1st Sunday after Pentecost

June 7, 2020

Today’s scriptures

Genesis 1:1-2:4a; Psalm 8; 2 Corinthians 13:11-13; Matthew 28:16-20

 

In the beginning, God had a dream.

God’s dream was so vivid, and full of so many beautiful and exquisite details. Nothing was left out.

We listened to a summary of God’s dream, in our Creation story today.

I can only imagine, how eager God must have been, to create this world God saw in this dream.

I wonder, though…if this was a one-time dream, that was so profound, that God had to do something right away…

Or, I wonder…if this was a dream that God dreamed about, for many days, and many nights?

And, I wonder, too…what it must have felt like to begin the work of creation…and to see its’ vision come to life…and then to sit back, on the 7th day, and look upon it all, this gift for all humankind to share in, for eternity…. and to rest…and declare it all good…very good.

In this dream, God thought of everything…

Beginning with light…to separate the light from darkness – calling the light, Day and the darkness, Night.

On the 2nd day, the waters were separated from the waters, and God created a dome and called it Sky.

On the 3rd day, the dry land appeared, and God called the dry land, Earth. And the earth brought forth the vegetation, plants yielding seed of every kind, trees of every kind, bearing fruit.

On the 4th day, God created two great lights – to give light upon the earth, to rule over the day, and over the night.

On the 5th day, God created all the living creatures of the sky and the seas.

On the 6th day, God created all the living animals of the earth and God created humankind in the image of God.

And then, on the 7th day, God looked upon all that was created, with great love…and rested…confident, assured…thankful…that the world and all that was in it…was indeed, good…very good.

God, thought of everything!

In God’s dream, there was enough for everyone.

In God’s dream, people were entrusted to take care of the land, the waters, the creatures of every kind, and most especially the care of each other.

For all God’s people, were created in the image of God. And the image of God is love. We were created out of this love…to love one another.

I wonder, if that’s what God sees now, when God looks upon us:  Does God see people of all cultures, different colors of skin, and diverse walks of life,  loving one another, as we have been so loved by God?

I wonder, if God is grieving for all of creation, and for all of humanity right now…as God’s beloved children are suffering in so many ways…hurting each other, turning against one another…

I wonder, how devasting it must feel, to God, to have such a beautiful dream, become distorted and destroyed, by the very people God created, in the image of God, to love one another?

What about you?

Have you ever had your dreams shattered?

Has your heart ever been broken, day after day, year after year, and as you have heard in the stories of your grandparents, and ancestors?

Can you think of a time, in your own life…that you have been utterly distraught, and left powerless, as you watched a loved one suffer needlessly, at the hands of another human being? And while others stood by…and watched, in silence…

We have all been witness to this horrific scenario, the past couple of weeks.

We have watched together, as a nation, and a world-wide community, protests, acts of violence, and the outrage of people whose dreams have been shattered for centuries – whose brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, grandparents, have not been given the opportunity to fully live into God’s dream that was created for them, and for all people.

That is, because as individuals, and as a society, as a whole, we have fallen short, in loving one another as we have been so loved by God, and as Jesus has shown us what it means to walk in the way of love, in word, and in action.

We have broken God’s heart, over and over again, by the ways in which we have not allowed all God’s people to love and dream and live into the abundant life that God dreamed, and created for every one of us.

We have not respected the dignity of every human being, every person that God so loves, and has created equally, in God’s image.

We have acted out in fear, instead of trusting and believing in God’s dream, for all of God’s people.

Here is the hope, that we can hold onto…

Because of God’s unending and all-encompassing love for us, and because we believe in Jesus’ life, death and resurrection – we know that this is not the end of the story…this is not the end of the dream…that God envisioned for God’s people…in the beginning.

God was there in the beginning.

God is with us now.

God will be with us, always…to the end of the age.

We can no longer, stand by and just watch. We must become part of the re-building of God’s dream, here on earth….and beginning now.

This is our moment now, to begin anew...to repent of our ways, known and unknown, our words and actions and inactions that continue to oppress others, and take the life and breath out of our fellow human beings…

This is our moment now, to begin anew…to listen with our whole selves, to the voices which have been silenced for too long…and to work alongside of those whose dreams have been shattered and stifled, for a lifetime and longer…

This is our moment now, to begin anew…remembering, that on the day of our baptism, we were sealed by the power of the Holy Spirit, the gift given to each one of us, to strengthen us, to empower each one of us…to always begin again...to empower each one of us…to work together, by loving one another, as Jesus has loved us,  and to heal and rebuild the beloved community, the dream of God – for all God’s people.

God has not given up on God’s dream for all of creation, and for all of God’s people.

And neither should we.

By the power of the Holy Spirit, we are called to be a part of building up this kingdom of God…this dream of God...here on earth…right now…wherever we are…a beloved community where all will be free to dream dreams for themselves and their children, for generations to come…and to live into those dreams, that God has envisioned for them, and for all who will follow in their footsteps.

Oh, what a day that will be…when we, with God, can finally rest on the 7th day, and see, that indeed, all of this that God has created, for every one of us…is indeed good…very good.

In the beginning….God had a dream…

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with us all…

Rev. Julie Platson

St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church, Sitka, Alaska

 

A Word to the Episcopal Diocese of Alaska (from Bishop Mark Lattime)

June 3, 2020

"The Way of Love is the Church"

This has been a season like no other season. While we continue to make our way through the COVID-19 pandemic and continue to adapt to the loving work of protecting the most vulnerable, we are now witnessing large-scale social unrest and protests that lay before us the abiding sin of racism in our nation.

Now is the time for all who claim the faith of Jesus to renew our Baptismal identity. Now is the time to make clear that we are not our buildings, our symbols, or even our liturgies. Now is the time to be the Church that cannot so easily be co-opted or appropriated by the powerful and used to endorse or bless injustice and oppression, and to repent for the many ways we have. Now is the time for us to walk in love: to be the body of Christ standing in the public square; the body of Christ listening to the voices of the oppressed; the body of Christ walking the stony road with our brothers and sisters; the body of Christ bearing the weight of the cross of injustice; the body of Christ proclaiming in word and deed the way of love over the way of domination and death.

While we continue to wonder, wait, and prepare for when we might safely return to worship in our buildings, I pray that the Holy Spirit's fire will kindle in our hearts a passion for being the Church Jesus calls us to be: a Church present and at prayer outside the walls of our buildings; a Church that perseveres in resisting evil and the powers of this world which corrupt and destroy the creatures of God--the children of God; a Church that follows and obeys Jesus Christ as Lord.

His way of love, his faith, his justice, his life--these are not just our calling, they are our hope.

Please join me in praying the The Baptismal Covenant every Friday for the month of June

(BCP pgs 416-417).

****FROM REV JULIE: WE WILL CONTINUE TO RENEW OUR BAPTISMAL CONVENANT DURING OUR SUNDAY SERVICES, TOO…IN THE MONTH OF JUNE****

God's gracious love is always with us

7 Easter/Year A - May 24, 2020

Acts 1:6-14; Psalm 68:1-10, 33-36; John 17:1-11

I want to begin this morning…with a brief check-in with all of you…

How are you doing this morning? What is weighing heavily on your mind and in your heart, this morning?

Let’s take a moment of silence right now…Let your thoughts be known to God alone…and imagine that God is right there with you…listening to every heartfelt cry, and listening to every hope that you are holding onto…silence…

With the words of the psalmist this morning, I pray… You sent a gracious rain, O God, upon your inheritance; *you refreshed the land when it was weary. I give thanks for this moment to be still and remember, that God is always listening to us, God is always with us, pouring out his gracious love upon us; refreshing the land, and the places, we call home, a home with God, where we can find true rest, and refreshment for our weary hearts. Amen.

I wonder how often any of us, are taking moments like this throughout our day, throughout our week?

I know that I have not done it, faithfully and as often as I should, lately.

Like most of you, who have jumped in with two feet, who have hit the ground running, and who have poured out every ounce of energy within you to respond to the immediate needs, and the ever changing landscape in this time of the COVID-19 pandemic…I’m right there with you…understanding that we’ve all been doing what we need to do, to survive and try to keep up with all the changes.

We have been thrust into learning new things daily, changing and updating plans daily. We’ve endured loss after loss in these past several months…and we’ve been witness to other’s accumulating losses;  our hearts are heavy as we try to cope with the news of how this current pandemic is affecting the lives of the most vulnerable people among us. We are overwhelmed at times, in our attempts to comprehend the dizzying swirl of news and resources that are being published and broadcast daily.

And then, boom…here we are…fully two months into this season of our state and city’s response to the pandemic…and longer, in many other areas of the country and world…and we realize…that we’ve barely had a chance to stop and catch our breath to even begin to mourn any of our losses…

We haven’t taken a moment to stop and grieve for the people we love, and miss, who have fallen ill and died during these past few months, and for others whose names we don’t know, whose deaths have been attributed to the COVID-19 virus….almost 100,00 in the United States, alone...We haven’t taken a moment to stop and grieve for the friends and family we’ve been unable to meet up with, in our usual gatherings in our church buildings, our schools, and other public places that have been closed.

And even now…when some of the places are slowly opening, there are still so many uncertainties, there are still so many restrictions and requirements associated with opening safely…that cause us to continue to grieve…and wonder…how long, Lord…how long, Lord?

When will you send some relief…when will you send some comfort…when will you put our hearts to rest, and refresh our hope in life again?

Jesus addressed a similar question the disciples were asking him in last week’s scriptures.

Jesus was talking about the time that was coming, when he would be leaving them, yet not leaving them orphaned.

They were worried and distressed about so many things and wondering how would they go on without him? Jesus offered words of assurance and hope, that they would not be left alone.

Jesus spoke of sending the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, the Spirit of truth, to live and dwell with them, and in them…reminding them that they would never be left alone to navigate the heart-aches of this world.

He spoke of sending the Holy Spirit, who provides a seed of stillness to calm and comfort the sorrowful heart.

He spoke of sending the Holy Spirit, who whispers words of encouragement to support the weary heart.

He spoke of sending the Holy Spirit, in moments of stillness and prayer, to help us let go of whatever grieves our hearts by offering up every heartfelt cry, every worry and sorrow, and every hope we are longing to hold onto…and to place it all, in God’s hands…reminding us that God is always listening, and that God is always with us, pouring out his gracious love upon us; refreshing the land, and the places, we call home, a home with God, where we can find true rest, and refreshment for our weary hearts.

And again this week, in our Gospel reading, Jesus offers additional assurance, in his final words to his disciples before his arrest… Jesus lifts up a prayer of love to God, for all of us…lovingly and passionately asking God to take care of us, to protect us, and to bind us to one another in this life and the life to come, through the love of God, through the remembrance of the many ways the love of God was revealed to us in Jesus, and through the love of God, that will continue to be revealed to us, abide in us, comfort us, and restore and refresh our hope in life again, through the gift of the Holy Spirit.

As we prepare to begin a new week….Be sure to include time for prayer…for yourself and for others, as Jesus so lovingly prayed for us…. Make a plan to set aside some time in your day to regularly pause and breathe, for a moment of stillness and prayer with God. 

Ask the Holy Spirit, to help you let go of whatever grieves your heart….take time to mourn your losses…and place it all, in God’s hands…believing and trusting that God is always listening, and that God is always with us, pouring out his gracious love upon us; refreshing the land, and the places, we call home, a home with God, where we can find true rest, and refreshment for our weary hearts.

A home, too…where we can find true joy…in gratitude for the many blessings in our lives that remind us to smile, to pray for one another and to love one another…

***Show photo/video collection of the children at St Peter’s***

 

Rev Julie Platson, Rector

St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church

Sitka, Alaska

Spring flowers, colorful gardens and beautiful places

6 Easter/Year A

May 17, 2020

Acts 17:22-31; Psalm 66:7-18; John 14:15-21

Today, I just want to talk to you about spring flowers, and colorful gardens and beautiful places.

This year, it seems as though the colors of the flowers, and the variety of colors in the spring gardens are especially vibrant and beautiful.

Every shade of green, in the trees, the flowering bushes, and the growing grass…seem especially fresh and alive.

As I walk around town and throughout the neighborhoods….my heart is at rest, and at peace…because when I look at the spectacular landscape of spring all around me…I remember God, who made the world and everything in it…I remember that it is God who gives us life and breath and all things….I remember, ‘In him we live and move and have our being.’

And I remember, Jesus…I remember Jesus and his resurrection…his promise of new life, in death; new joys in times of sorrow, new hopes, in the midst of a world that shouts for our attention, and grabs on to our deepest fears, and threatens to extinguish any joy, any hope, any love that we have for ourselves and one another.

I remember all of this. I do believe in Jesus’ resurrection, and in the many ways it matters to me now. I do believe that the way of love that has been revealed to us in Jesus’ words and actions, has the power to transform our all of our lives, as we follow Jesus and his commandments to love God and one another.

But sometimes, in a world that feels so overwhelming at times, it is difficult to believe it and live it out in our daily lives…or sometimes, life just feels too full at times, and we are tired…and we forget this Good News that lives in us, dwells with us, and can never be taken from us.

‘For in him, we live and move and have our being.’

And Jesus reminds his disciples of this.

They are worried and distressed that Jesus is talking about leaving them. They want him to stay with them forever.

Jesus tells them that he is leaving, but he will not leave them orphaned. He assures them, that another Advocate, the Spirit of truth, the Holy Spirit, will be given to them, will abide with them, and in them, and will remind them of every word of love, every act of love, every commandment to love God, and one another as Jesus taught them when he walked his earthly life with them.

They would never be alone. Jesus and his love are only ever a heart-beat away.

This Advocate will provide a seed of stillness to calm and comfort the sorrowful heart.

This Advocate will whisper words of encouragement to support the weary heart.

This Advocate will remind us of the love and the beauty in the world that is still very much alive in this time and in this place, even in the midst of so much grief and loss.

We’ve all been touched in our lives, many times…by the death of a loved one…or the physical separation or leaving of someone we deeply loved. We are heart-broken and grieve over our lives never being the same. We grieve day after day, month after month, year after year sometimes, feeling like we could never find joy again, or hope again, or people and places to love again.

But then, little things begin to happen, in our lives…that remind us, that indeed our loved one still lives with us…they have never really left us. They are coming to us in new ways…new joys and new hopes, that we never knew were possible.

Every time, we see a new spring flower pop up, that was our loved one’s favorite…every time, someone plants a new garden, with the rich variety of flowers, every time the grass starts growing, the day dawns, the night falls and we finally close our eyes and rest…we can be assured that there they will be, they will always be…in our hearts, in that place, where we are all joined to one another by this love of God, that abides in us, and dwells in our hearts…

I’ll always remember my first experiences of arriving in Sitka, in 2015.

When I walked on the seawalk along Crescent Harbor, my thoughts immediately took me back to my grandfather, sitting by the harbor in Cape Cod every day, having his lunch.

When I came back to Sitka to begin serving with you here, the spring flowers took my breath away, and immediately took me back home, to my mother’s gardens and other family member’s gardens that were so lovingly created year after year…winter after winter.

And then my first Easter with all of you, and my first time taking part in the flowering of the Easter Cross….a tradition that continues to grow and flourish and fill my heart with such joy, at the sight of its beauty, year after year.

And, the gardens here at St Peter’s…continue to delight and surprise me every year…and these simple joys are the joys that I want to share with others.

All of these beautiful creations, lead me back to remembering people, people whom I love, near and afar…people whom I love, who have passed on, and left this earthly place, but are still very much alive in my heart, and influencing every word and action, and every invitation to love God and our neighbors.

This Advocate, this Spirit of truth, the Holy Spirit will remind us, that we are never left alone.

We need only to look all around us, to be reminded, in the people, in the flowers, in the gardens, and the many other beautiful places surrounding us…that God is with us, Jesus is still teaching us, and the Holy Spirit is calling us back home to that place of peace and rest that dwells in our hearts, when we remember:

God, who made the world and everything in it…when we remember that it is God who gives us life and breath and all things….when we remember, ‘In him we live and move and have our being.’

May this be our vision, ever held before our eyes, and in our hearts…

Click below to view the video of St Peter’s spring flowers…

Spring Flowers (April/May 2020) at St Peter’s by the Sea - Sitka, AK

Rev. Julie Platson, Rector

St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church

Sitka, Alaska

The Hymnal 1982 - #488 Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart

 

There are many, many rooms

5 Easter/Year A

May 10, 2020

1 Peter 2:2-10; Psalm 31: 1-5; 15-16; John 14:1-14

In this time of social distancing, and quarantines, and sheltering-in-place…I’ve been thinking a lot about rooms this week…

There’s been a lot of church memes circulating lately…that make light about people attending worship online, discussing where they will attend church on Sunday morning…the kitchen, the bedroom, or the living room?

Zoom has been a popular way for people to gather online now…and when we talk about zoom, “rooms” are a familiar buzzword we hear in the conversations often… there are even breakout “rooms”, that can be set up for people to meet with a just a few others for private conversations or for additional personal prayer time.

I’m thinking about the rooms we have set up in our homes that were probably not used for the things many people find themselves using them for now…using rooms for work, for church, or for school…or perhaps for a family member to be quarantined after travelling. I’m thinking about rooms, and how much time people are spending in their rooms, in their homes, during this time of the covid-19 pandemic.

I’m thinking about the rooms in the hospitals, in the pioneers home, and other care facilities…I’m thinking about how busy they are, in all of those rooms…but also how quiet everything is in some of those rooms…

I’m thinking about rooms in buildings, in churches, in restaurants…that are empty right now…empty of people...who would normally fill those places…

I’m thinking about those empty rooms, the full rooms, the changed rooms, and the new rooms, as I read this week’s gospel.

Our gospel reading today opens with Jesus offering words of comfort…some words of assurance…and some words of love for his disciples, who were experiencing a lot of worry and distress, as Jesus was speaking about the time coming when he would no longer be physically present with them, yet would still be with them…in a way that they could not fully understand, as of yet…

In the NIV version, we hear these words spoken like this: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.  You know the way to the place where I am going.” Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life.”

 “I am the way and the truth and the life.” Jesus said.

I imagine Jesus continuing with these words…

Let me show you what I mean by that.

Let me show you the way, the way of love that has been prepared for you, all along.

Let me tell you a few things about all the rooms that have already been lovingly prepared for you…and for others…

First…you really need to know….that God has spent a lifetime preparing a room for you. Even before you were born, your room was being prepared for you, with great love.

God has prepared every room, with great care and attention to the details of your life….God cares about part of your life.

All rooms, in God’s home…are a place of refuge, a castle to keep you safe, a place to trust God with all your prayers.

Every room, in God’s home…is a place of unconditional love, a place where you are welcomed with the wide, and open arms of Jesus’ love and compassion…

In God’s home, the rooms are a place of forgiveness, for grace and mercy, for healing and reconciliation.

There are many, many rooms…Jesus assures us…in God’s home.

There are signs of God’s love in all the rooms we are living in and working in now…signs that reveal to us that we do know that God is present…because Jesus has shown us the way of love…the way to love one another.

In the hospital rooms…God’s love is present in the way the nurses, the doctors, the CNA’s and all staff are caring for those entrusted to their care, for healing and comfort.

In the rooms, in nursing homes and other group homes, God’s love is present in the way the staff members treat all of those entrusted to their care, with love, and respect for the dignity of every person there.

In the rooms of our family homes, God’s love is present in the way the mothers, the fathers, the grandparents, and the caregivers are all doing their absolute best to teach their children, to care for one another, and love one another, in these times of feeling overwhelmed and worried.

In the rooms of our teachers, God’s love is present in the way that they have continued to give of their time and efforts to support the children and their families.

In the rooms of our city and state governments, God’s love is present in the way that our leaders are striving to guide us all through some very difficult times.

In the rooms of all the businesses that have chosen to stay open, and are beginning to open again, God’s love is present in the way the workers are safely serving the community, by providing access to food, and other necessities…

In the rooms of our homes, God’s love is, indeed present in the ways people are learning to do new things every day, with great love: learning patience, learning empathy, learning to deal with worry, day after day; learning to cope with death and loss, learning to be the church of God, the people of God…in our neighborhoods…by reaching out to others through phone calls, letters, words of hope, and love and encouragement…and reaching out to others by serving one another, in all the ways you are able..

Yes…you do know the way after-all…Jesus says to us today…

You do know that I am the way, the life and the truth…every time you have chosen to walk in the way of love…

I have been witness to your understanding and living out this love, in so many ways…in so many people…in so many lives…. And in so many rooms…

And from my heart to yours…

Thank you, for all the ways…you are taking care of each other, in the many, many rooms in God’s home…

As you begin a new week, I invite you to take some moments throughout your day, to just sit in your room…any room…and believe…believe that God is present with you, loving you, caring for you, guiding you, and giving you all that you need, for this day…and all your days to come.

Rev Julie Platson, Rector

St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church

Sitka, Alaska

Hymn (457) after the sermon: Thou art the Way, to thee alone

1 Thou art the Way, to thee alone

from sin and death we flee;

and all who would the Father seek,

must seek him, Lord, by thee.

2 Thou art the Truth, thy word alone

true wisdom can impart;

thou only canst inform the mind

and purify the heart.

3 Thou art the Life, the rending tomb

proclaims thy conquering arm;

and those who put their trust in thee

nor death nor hell shall harm.

4 Thou art the Way, the Truth, the Life:

grant us that way to know,

that truth to keep, that life to win,

whose joys eternal flow.

Words: George Washington Doane (1799-1859), alt.

Music: St. James, Raphael Courteville (d. 1735)

Meter: CM

Your ritesong purchase includes a one-time use reprint license for congregational use. This song may be printed in congregational song sheets for one-time use.

 

 

Good Shepherd Sunday

4 Easter/Year A

Good Shepherd Sunday

May 3, 2020

Acts 2:42-47; Psalm 23; John 10:1-10

 

Here we are…half way through the Easter season…gathered together for worship on Zoom, on our computers, or I-pads, or by phone…People online with us today, from Sitka and other places, far and wide… How strange all those tech words sound at times, in associating them with church and worship….Who among us this morning…had ever imagined that we would be gathering for church in such a way…Sure, there’s been other churches who have had an online presence, way before the COVID-19 pandemic was among us…but they were still offering in person services, and live-streaming from the service, in the church…where people gathered together each week..

Even though, we’ve been gathering this way, now…since the 4th Sunday in Lent…March 22nd …It’s still a daily struggle, at times…to want to be able to go back to worshipping the way we have always done it…gather together like we always have…move freely about the community, go to school, go shopping, go to concerts, travel, eat out at restaurants, gather with our friends and family, as often as our hearts desire…We want this Covid-19 pandemic to go away…we want the suffering of so many people to stop…we want it all to end…so we can go back to living our lives the way we were accustomed to…to go back in time, to the way things were…

But, we can’t go back. We’ve never been able to go back in time, to the way things were. Time, as we know it…is always moving forward…and in that time, as we understand it…things are always changing…always being transformed…into a new creation… We know that, in our minds, but not always, in our hearts.

In nature, we observe time moving forward, in the seasons of spring, summer, autumn, winter…and beginning again…year after year…season after season…

In the seasons of the church year, we observe time moving forward, as we observe the changes and transformations that happened to people in biblical times, in their times of suffering and joy, in their stories of their encounters with God, with Jesus.

We learn from all of this, in the hearing of the scriptures, in the singing of hymns, in the prayers, in the breaking of bread together, and in the fellowship of gathering together every week.

 And we learn, too…how all of these stories, are very much…our own stories too. No matter how much time has passed.

In today’s scriptures, we are reminded of the hope we can hold onto in this present time of unsettling changes, unknowns, grief and sorrows… that are marking our days and passage of time now…

On this 4th Sunday of Easter that we observe as Good Shepherd Sunday, we have a gospel story from John…and every year, on this 4th Sunday of Easter, we hear a different part of the story about Jesus, being called the Good Shepherd…

In today’s gospel, the disciples are having a difficult time comprehending what Jesus is speaking to them about…with all the shepherd and sheep and pastures and gate talk…Even though references to shepherds and sheep was most likely familiar to them, they seemed to be getting stuck on listening to Jesus’ words literally…listening with their minds only…

But, Jesus was speaking to their hearts….

  •   Jesus’ words for them today…were meant for their hearts to hear…and for our hearts to hear…

  • Jesus’ words for them (and us) today…were meant to remind us…to bend our ears toward our hearts for just a moment …that’s where we will listen for, and hear his voice calling to us…speaking words of encouragement and guidance and hope…

  • Jesus’ words for them (and us) today… invite us to enter through the gate, through Jesus’ words of love, and welcome, and compassion…for even when the world and all that is happening does not makes sense in our minds, and there seems to be relentless suffering in our midst…Jesus’ invitation to us to receive this gift of unconditional love, and welcome, and compassion is a balm for our soul and our hearts…

  • Jesus’ words for them (and us) today…are meant to point us towards life…to remind us of the abundant life intended for all of us…an abundant life marked with the joy of being in relationship with God, with one another, and all of creation…Even in times of uncertainty and worries…

  • Jesus’ words for them (and us) today…are meant to go straight to our hearts…to bring healing, comfort, peace and hope…in the midst of whatever is happening in our lives today.

A hope that transcends all time and all understanding…a hope that our minds cannot fully comprehend…a hope that speaks directly to our hearts…

Psalm 23 captures the essence of this hope and this assurance we can hold onto in Jesus, as our shepherd…

No matter what version you have heard growing up over the years…the one your parents, or grandparents taught you…the version you learned in Sunday school or the version you heard spoken at a funeral over the years…Psalm 23 is a timeless psalm…

Psalm 23….is a timeless psalm…that assures us throughout all times… and in all circumstances….We have a shepherd who is with us… speaking words of love, and compassion, and peace, and hope…directly to our hearts…

Yes, I am thankful that we have been given a mind to think and an imagination to envision new ideas…and the will to go out into the world to share all that we have learned with others…and to do all of this, for the good and well-being of our communities… but, my heart also rejoices…and I am filled with gratitude…in knowing, that in all of our days…and with all of the changes that come with the passage of time… we have something that does not change…We have a God who loves us and care for us….we have a shepherd who speaks words of love, and compassion, and peace and hope…directly to our hearts…on this day…and in all the days to come…

 Rev Julie Platson, Rector

St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church

Sitka, AK

Ali Hosford…sing solo after sermon…

The Hymnal 1982 - #663 The Lord my God my shepherd is

 

 

A NEW BOOK RELEASE - MAY 5

Identity, belonging and rediscovering God: Native (by Kaitlin B Curtice)

From her webpage:

Kaitlin’s new book Native comes out May 5, 2020

Native is about identity, soul-searching, and being on the never-ending journey of finding ourselves and finding God. As both a member of the Potawatomi Nation and a Christian, Kaitlin Curtice offers a unique perspective on these topics. In this book, she shows how reconnecting with her Native American roots both informs and challenges her Christian faith.

Winged Prayers - Sermon

Sermon (by Lisa Sadleir-Hart) for Creation Care Service (April 26 2020)

It’s 1970; I’m 8; I live in Woodland, CA - 20 miles north of Sacramento off of I-5. Mrs. Kroft, my third grade teacher, assigned a month-long nature project.  I don’t want to disappoint her, so well before 8am, I’m perched on a chaise lounge with notebook in hand in my 1805 Archer Street backyard.  It’s relatively quiet; I’m there to listen, watch and record the robins that visit my backyard in the morning every day for the next month.  American robins arrive early in spring.  I’ve seen them balancing easily on the fence line from the living room; I’ve heard their joyous morning and evening song;

It’s 1971; I’m 9; my dad is a California state Fish & Game Warden - a protector of God’s Holy Creation.  He’s home early; he has a surprise for my sister and I in the garage.  On his rounds today, he came across a snowy owl - alabaster white feathers with keen eyes and a broken wing.  She’s on route to the raptor center at UC Davis.  I am enthralled to be so close to God’s messenger; she is a true sight to behold.  This memory is etched on my heart forever.

It’s 2020; I’m 58; I’m in the garden with Jackson who’s there to help move 3 gooseberry plants.  Tapppppppppp “Jackson turn slowly around, look there,at the top of the roof - a Northern flicker”.  She flies to a hemlock tree and sings, chatters and fully delights us.   Five minutes later “ Jackson slowly looks up, there’s a Wilson’s Snipe;  oh, look” as 3 in the adjacent yard take flight & the one on the roof flies over our home as a bald eagle circles far above.  Earlier on Monday, I had recorded 7 Canadian geese, 4 Greater Yellowlegs, 2 Belted kingfishers, 2 Pacific wren, 2 chestnut-backed chickadees, 21 Buffleheads and numerous mallards, mergansers and gulls on my walk in Totem Park.  Later a rufous hummingbird graced our feeder on the back deck and 2 Northern flickers and a Wilson’s snipe hung out eating in the muskeg behind our home.  This was an exceptional day for birding or as I like to say “ for God-ing”

But ask the beasts, and they will teach you; the birds of the heavens, and they will tell you;  (Job 12:7)

My affinity for birds started at an early age.  My dad gave me my first set of binoculars which I still have then last summer helped me pick out my most recent upgrade. He, also, gifted me with my first Peterson’s Field Guide to Western birds.  He taught me that to really see and hear birds, to fully take them in, you need to pause, get still and listen.  Birds startle easily and quickly take their leave.  And for me, God’s a bit like birds.  To really connect to the Creator requires a deep sustained pause and an unwavering willingness to still both the loud inner and outer voices in our psyche and communities, respectively, to hear what the Divine has to say.

He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” (Matthew 13:31-32)

Birds are no doubt Divine messengers (think canary in a coal mine), and they are in serious trouble.  As humans, we have not planted hospitable gardens for them to nest in.  To the contrary, we have created environments that have put considerable stress on birds.  Audubons’ recent report on birds and climate, Survival by Degrees: 389 Bird Species on the Brink, indicates that 389 North American bird species—nearly two-thirds of those ­studied—are vulnerable to extinction due to climate change.  Risks to these winged species are on the rise due to wildfires, debilitating heat waves, heavy rains, red tide and sea-level rise.  AND as they point out, there’s hope - “If we take aggressive action now, we can help 76 percent of vulnerable species have a better chance of survival.” 

“Hope is the thing with feathers, that perches in the soul and sings the tune without words and never stops. -      Emily Dickenson

The Audubon report was on the heels of an in-depth assessment that appeared in the September 2019 online issue of Science - Decline of the North American Avifauna.  Over the last 50 years we lost 1 in 4 birds across North America and Canada.  That’s close to 3 billion breeding adult birds across all biomes!  We lost 33% of boreal forest birds, 23% of Arctic tundra birds and 37% of shorebirds.  This includes a loss of 1 in 3 Dark-eyed juncos - one of my frequent companions.  Cornell Lab of Ornithology conservation scientist, Ken Rosenberg, commented that “these bird losses are a strong signal that our human-altered landscapes are losing their ability to support birdlife...and that is an indicator of a coming collapse of the overall environment.” 

It is never too late to go quietly to our lakes, rivers, oceans, even our small streams, and say to the sea gulls, the great blue herons, the bald eagles, the salmon, that we are sorry.

— Brenda Peterson in Singing to the Sound: Visions of Nature, Animals and Spirit

So what are weary, yet cautiously hopeful, God & bird lovers to do?  First, and foremost, continue to take time in the Divine’s holy, beloved creation.  It brings solace to one’s soul and gives one clear evidence of how a changing climate is impacting local bird habitats.  Second, learn about climate change science through non-partisan organizations like Audubon, Sitka Sound Science Center or the Sitka Raptor Center and its impact on our winged brothers and sisters.  Third, speak up on behalf of birds.  They indeed are “canaries in coal mines” (miners actually did bring birds into mines to give them early warning signs of oxygen loss in the caverns) and the sheer loss of them since 1970 sounds a loud and clear alarm.  God is asking us clearly and loudly that THE TIME IS NOW!  REPENT - TURN AROUND/PIVOT/ABOUT FACE. YOU STILL HAVE TIME.  And finally, commit to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s 7 simple actions to help birds.

1.   Make Windows Safer, Day and Night.

2.   Keep cats indoors.

3.   Reduce lawns, plant native plants.

4.   Avoid pesticides.

5.   Drink coffee that’s good for birds. 

6.   Protect our planet from plastic. 

7.   Watch birds, share what you see as a citizen scientist. 

For more information, go to https://www.birds.cornell.edu/home/seven-simple-actions-to-help-birds/  and join me in giving our winged neighbors a fighting chance at survival.

To close, I’d like to leave you with a Mary Oliver poem, Such Singing in the Wild Branches.

Such Singing in the Wild Branches

It was spring

and I finally heard him

among the first leaves––

then I saw him clutching the limb

in an island of shade

with his red-brown feathers

all trim and neat for the new year.

First, I stood still

and thought of nothing.

Then I began to listen.

Then I was filled with gladness––

and that's when it happened,

when I seemed to float,

to be, myself, a wing or a tree––

and I began to understand

what the bird was saying,

and the sands in the glass

stopped

for a pure white moment

while gravity sprinkled upward

like rain, rising,

and in fact

it became difficult to tell just what it was that was singing––

it was the thrush for sure, but it seemed

not a single thrush, but himself, and all his brothers,

and also the trees around them,

as well as the gliding, long-tailed clouds

in the perfect blue sky–––all of them

were singing.

And, of course, so it seemed,

so was I.

Such soft and solemn and perfect music doesn't last

For more than a few moments.

It's one of those magical places wise people

like to talk about.

One of the things they say about it, that is true,

is that, once you've been there,

you're there forever.

Listen, everyone has a chance.

Is it spring, is it morning?

Are there trees near you,

and does your own soul need comforting?

Quick, then––open the door and fly on your heavy feet; the song

may already be drifting away.

-Mary Oliver

 

__________________________________________________________________________

Quotes about birds and wings:

“The reason birds can fly and we can't is simply because they have perfect faith, for to have faith is to have wings.” ― J.M. Barrie, The Little White Bird

“A bird is safe in its nest - but that is not what its wings are made for.”

― Amit Ray, World Peace: The Voice of a Mountain Bird

“Run my dear,

From anything

That may not strengthen

Your precious budding wings.”

― Hafez

"Faith is the bird that feels the light when the dawn is still dark."

-       Rabindranath Tagore