Bishop's Note: Collect For The Second Sunday Of Easter

Bishop Eric Menees

Alleluia. Christ is risen! The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia.

What a joyous proclamation of our faith! So much is captured in this opening acclamation of the Easter Season. Jesus broke the bonds of sin and death, and opened the gates of heaven to all who believe in his name. But this is not only a future hope: his sacrifice has made possible true, lasting, and profound reconciliation between man and God, here and now.

This Sunday we are reminded that the Church is God's instrument for that reconciliation:

Almighty and everlasting God, who in the Paschal mystery hast established the new covenant of reconciliation: Grant that all who have been reborn into the fellowship of Christ's Body may show forth in their lives what they profess by their faith; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

In this week's Gospel, Jesus appears to the disciples in the upper room on that first Easter Day. He breathes on the disciples and says: “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.” (John 20:22b-23)

What an awesome responsibility, and what an awesome joy, Christ has given to his Church. As a priest of the Church, it has been my greatest honor to pronounce absolution upon men and women who come to the Lord with contrite hearts. That forgiveness is available to us because of Christ's sacrifice on the cross and his resurrection from the dead. 

At St. James’ Easter Vigil this year, a man named Curtice was baptized and confirmed.  Curtice embodies this reconciliation. He gave his testimony about how he'd lost everything, fell into the depths of drink and drugs, and was homeless for years until Dcn. Anna & Dcn. Melinda shared the good news of Christ's reconciling love with him. Curtice received Christ into his life and accepted Jesus’ forgiveness. With that grace, Curtice's life was transformed:  he has been clean and sober for 265 days, is training to become a cook, and is serving at St. James’ Cathedral. Curtice has experienced the Paschal mystery, and for that I give thanks.

God Bless you All!

Note: These articles are written by Bishop Menees for the Diocese of San Joaquin. I have posted them on Soundings with his permission for a wider audience. This is also the case for his "Why I am an Anglican" series. Dale+

Bishop’s Note: Collect for Easter Sunday

 Bishop Eric Menees

Almighty God, who through thine only-begotten Son Jesus Christ overcame death and opened unto us the gate of everlasting life: Grant that we, who celebrate with joy the day of the Lord's resurrection, may be raised from the death of sin by thy life-giving Spirit; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the same Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

As I write this weeks Bishop’s Note, I am smack dab in the middle of the planning and preparations for all of the truly beautiful and intricate liturgies of Holy Week, along with the sermons that accompany them. Additionally, I am smack dab in the middle of several sensitive pastoral situations and the daily cares and concerns of my family. In other words - I’m smack dab in the middle of life! We live in a fallen world - a world that knows pain and suffering; sin and death - and this Holy Week we are reminded very clearly of that reality. However, in our Easter celebrations we are reminded once again that Sin and Death do not have the final word. Jesus had, and has, the final word with his glorious resurrection two thousand years ago.

Allow the words of these weeks collect to wash over you. Note that there is no hesitation, no wavering, no doubt or fear that so often accompany the voice of the world around us. “Almighty God, who through thine only-begotten Son Jesus Christ overcame death and opened unto us the gate of everlasting life,” This is a profound proclamation of our faith that is grounded in the reality of the resurrection! On that first Easter Sunday, Jesus completed what the Law and the Prophets could not do. With the Fall of Adam and Eve came death and sin, and with the resurrection of Jesus Christ came eternal life with God for all who would put their trust in him. 

Jesus’ resurrection demands a response, and the “Easter Bunny” just won’t cut it. Note that the petition in the collect is not: “Allow us to have a beautiful day full of joy and happiness.” The appropriate response to the resurrection is a deep desire to live a godly and holy life that overcomes sin and death: “Grant that we, who celebrate with joy the day of the Lord's resurrection, may be raised from the death of sin by thy life-giving Spirit….”

The “death of sin” is not only the end of our earthly life - the final beats of our heart.  It is the death that comes when we compromise and tell ourselves, “My sin is not really that bad - I’m better than Joe or Mary.” With that kind of compromise comes the rationalization that sin is a relative term: “What is sin anyway but just a little mistake.” And with that rationalization comes the spiritual death that this prayer speaks against. 

Rather than hate the sin in our lives, we tell ourselves to love it - to accept it. Before too long we compromise on other things as well. We don’t need to pray daily, or read scripture daily, and when there are more entertaining things to do on Sunday, well, we certainly don’t need to go to church. All of this rationalization and compromise leads to a void in our lives, and an ache in our souls, that only the Risen Lord can fill by the power of his life-giving Spirit!

I pray that this Easter Sunday, and every day, you and your family will be filled with that same life-giving Spirit; that same power of the risen Lord; that same joy and awe that comes when we realize that Jesus didn't die and rise again for some unnamed, unknown person out there somewhere, but that he died and rose again for YOU!

I pray you all a Happy and Blessed Easter!

Note: These articles are written by Bishop Menees for the Diocese of San Joaquin. I have posted them on Soundings with his permission for a wider audience. This is also the case for his "Why I am an Anglican" series. Dale+

Bishop's Note: The Collect for Passion Sunday also known as Palm Sunday

 Bishop Eric Menees

This weeks collect opens up Holy Week for us in a powerful way.  Passion Sunday is full of just that - passion and suffering - in particular the suffering of Jesus.  I remember as a young man in high school, our youth group would often put the passion narrative into a play setting in which we would dramatically read the parts...I know, nothing new... but I've got to say that as I read the part of the narrator, or the guards, or Jesus the words came alive for me.  In preparation, the youth group would spend time studying the passion narrative in the gospels, and on more than one occasion I found myself weeping.  That seems to me an appropriate response when we not only think about Jesus’ suffering, but also about whom he suffered for - namely me and you!

Almighty and everliving God, who, of thy tender love towards mankind, hast sent thy Son our Savior Jesus Christ to take upon him our flesh, and to suffer death upon the cross, that all mankind should follow the example of his great humility: Mercifully grant that we may both follow the example of his patience, and also be made partakers of his resurrection; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

As we enter into Holy Week, this Collect asks God, who sent His son to suffer for us, to help us become more like him, and that He will give us patience to stay the course with Jesus as we are invited into the Living Word.

Thanks be to God for our liturgies over Holy Week.  If we will allow ourselves to be, we are invited to be with Jesus as he enters into Jerusalem and shout "Hosanna in the highest, blessed is he who comes in the name of The Lord."  We are invited to be with Jesus at the Last Supper and hear those words as if spoken for the first time: "Take, eat, this is my body given for you!"  We are invited to have Jesus wash our feet and be reminded that the greatest among us are servants.  We are invited to wait with Jesus through the night as he prays.  We are invited to sit at the foot of the cross and hear those amazing words "Forgive them Father, for they know not what they do."  And finally, we are invited to the empty tomb on Easter Sunday.

To be truly present in these liturgies; to meditate upon the sacrificial love of God for us; to know that our sins - not only the sins of those in the past, but mine and yours as well - are what nailed Jesus to the Cross where he bore the wrath of God for us...well, to do all that we desperately need God's help.  So we pray: "Mercifully grant that we may both follow the example of his patience, and also be made partakers of his resurrection..." And to that I say...AMEN

I pray you all a very blessed Holy Week!

Note: These articles are written by Bishop Menees for the Diocese of San Joaquin. I have posted them on Soundings with his permission for a wider audience. This is also the case for his "Why I am an Anglican" series. Dale+

Bishop's Note: Collect for Lent Five

 Bishop Eric Menees

On this, the last Sunday in Lent, the collect is a beautiful prayer that asks God to work in us to transform our character. 

O Almighty God, who alone canst order the unruly wills and affections of sinful men: Grant unto thy people that they may love the thing which thou commandest, and desire that which thou dost promise; that so, among the sundry and manifold changes of the world, our hearts may surely there be fixed where true joys are to be found; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

First, this collect acknowledges that we really have no power within ourselves, but that God, who is "Almighty," has the ability to "order" our "unruly wills and affections." Isn't it amazing that when we try by the power of our own might to change habits and character flaws, we fall short? Well, let me speak for myself: I find it impossible to change my habits and character flaws! However, I am not the same man today as I was three, or ten, or twenty years ago, because of the power of the Holy Spirit working within me. While not completely ordered, to be sure, God is transforming my will and affections, and I thank him for that!

Secondly, this collect asks God to change us to love what he commands and desire what he promises. When we can align our hearts and minds to that of God, we find ourselves truly blessed. King David speaks of this often in the psalms... 

“Blessed is the man

who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,

nor stands in the way of sinners,

nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

but his delight is in the law of the LORD,

and on his law he meditates day and night.”

(Psalm 1:1-2)        

I often experience the blessing that David speaks of because I truly desire to do God's will. The issue for me isn't in loving his commands or desiring his promises. Rather, it is in acting on that love and desire. The words of St. Paul in his epistle to the Church in Rome ring so true for me and, I suspect, for most of you as well: “For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.” (Romans 7:15) This collect asks God, in his mercy, not only to help us love and desire these things but to do them!

Lastly, this collect recognizes that we need God to work this way in our lives if we are going to be able to adapt and excel in a dynamic world that is constantly changing. Sometimes it can be overwhelming, watching the world change at a pace that is much faster than our own. But, by God's grace, we are able to “roll with the punches.” I think the key is to keep our eyes on God -  the one who is unchangeable, all powerful, all knowing, and all loving! And to that I say Amen!

Note: These articles are written by Bishop Menees for the Diocese of San Joaquin. I have posted them on Soundings with his permission for a wider audience. This is also the case for his "Why I am an Anglican" series. Dale+