Good day, 

The snow on the trees looks beautiful here but it wasn’t so much fun to get it off my car before heading to the office… Oh well…

Anyway, here’s what’s on:

Monday, Zoom Lenten Bible Study Tonight!! 7pm – 8:15pm. Same link as always. Feel free to join us this evening even if you haven’t had a chance to join in yet. Next week (the 14th) will be our last study for the time being.

The final Lenten Lunch for this year is this Wednesday, April 9 at Christ Church, 12-1pm. See you there…

A Liturgical Note For You:

Why do we always use the Passion Narrative in John’s Gospel for Good Friday?

John speaks of Jesus being glorified in connection with his crucifixion. Why is that? This is a lengthy theological answer covering a few different aspects but, here’s a brief outline: Thinking of Jesus’ transfiguration on the mountain, when he was revealed in his glory as the Son of God, this, too, happens on the cross. God reveals his perfect and abundant love for us through giving us his son even though he knows it will result in us murdering him. Jesus embodies for us the perfect, abundant love of God on the cross, accepting what humans/the world are throwing at him and still loving us and forgiving us. In doing so, the powers of sin and death are shown to be powerless against the love of God. The worst was thrown at Jesus and he did not deviate from his perfect love. In addition, through the cross Jesus fully enters into God’s kingdom and becomes the first to experience what he makes possible for us to experience…Jesus gains his resurrection body – the body robed in the glory of God, not immediately recognizable even to those who were closest to him. We do live in God’s kingdom – that was accomplished for us through Jesus’ death and resurrection – but, God’s kingdom is not fully come on earth as in heaven. When the kingdom has come in all its fullness, we, too, will be robed in God’s glory as Jesus is. One last facet to mention: John also expresses the fact that, through the cross, Jesus is glorified by taking his position at the right hand of God in God’s presence. Jesus of Nazareth, Son of God, now rules in glory with God. 

For Your Devotions:

Wednesday, April 9th is the commemoration of William Law, Priest and Spiritual Leader, died 1761. When William was just 28 years old, his career seemed to be over when it had only just begun. Queen Anne had died without an heir and, when George I took the throne, William refused to swear allegiance and that was that…he had to give up his fellowship at Cambridge University and he could go no “higher” in the Church of England. However, no one could stop him from writing and we are highly indebted to William Law for his contribution to the questions “What is an ethical Christian life?” and “How do we live an ethical Christian life?” His writings “aimed at uncovering shallow devotion and stirring up readers to renewed moral vigor and holiness.”  In his most famous work called A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life, Law challenges the average Christian “to wake up from their spiritual stupor and apply all their energy to the holy life.” He gives examples that hit close to home…”I’d say grace if I weren’t in such a hurry” and “I don’t want to miss church but __________ is happening at the same time.” (I’m not pointing fingers…missing church every now and then isn’t what Law was speaking to.  Law was aiming his comments at habitual non-attenders, etc.)  To read more: https://www.christianitytoday.com/history/people/innertravelers/william-law.html

Friday, April 11th is the commemoration of George Augustus Selwyn, First Missionary Bishop of New Zealand, died in 1878. I just recently had a discussion about how missionaries go about spreading the gospel…Sometimes they are just as interested in spreading their culture. But, George Selwyn worked to give all people an equal voice (in their own language and in their own way). This is evident in his work as Bishop of New Zealand in a different culture but also in his work closer to home with the poor, the homeless, the working class, the lay people…he worked to give everyone a voice. To read more, go to p.142:  https://c2892002f453b41e8581-48246336d122ce2b0bccb7a98e224e96.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/ForAlltheSaints.pdf

In the hope of Christ,

Susan