Fr. Dale Matson
06-16-2011
“Let a man regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.” (1ST Corinthians 4:1, NASB).
Although St. Paul spoke as an apostle, I believe it is the charge to all those in Holy Orders. The verse essentially outlines the “General Orders” for the clergy of the Church of Jesus Christ. I used the term General Orders because in the military all recruits must memorize and obey the rules of a sentry. A sentry is someone expected to stand guard at a post and be responsible for that area.
As stewards of the mysteries of God, we are charged to care for and to pass on these mysteries to the next generation. What are these mysteries? The mysteries are the truths once delivered to the Saints. “Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints. For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.” (Jude 3-4, NASB).
The central truths of the faith are the mysteries of God. If you examine the Nicene Creed carefully, it is not just doctrine or even dogma. At its foundation, it is truth as mystery received by faith. We believe that God created everything that exists, even the things we cannot see. We believe that Jesus Christ is both God and a perfect man conceived by God and born of a Virgin. We believe that He was crucified and died as a sacrifice on our behalf. We believe that Jesus Christ came back to life as predicted and ascended bodily into Heaven and will return to establish an eternal Kingdom that will include us. We believe in one God Who Is also the Holy Spirit Who is the Giver of life. There is one Church and one baptism.
The Christian Church is a Church of Mystery. It is miraculous and mystical. It also is the Spiritual meeting the material in the Sacraments and in the incarnation of Jesus Christ. The Church began at Pentecost and is awaiting the return of Her Bridegroom Jesus Christ.
What we cannot fully explain, we may not adjust to suit our understanding. These mysteries are perceived by faith, affirmed by the faithful throughout generations and authenticated by God the Holy Spirit. These truths are the breath of the Holy Spirit and blood of Jesus Christ flowing through His body the Church.
“God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:24, NASB).
Showing posts with label Confession. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Confession. Show all posts
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Friday, June 3, 2011
Sex Drugs and Rock and Roll: Choosing Death
Fr. Dale Matson
06-03-2011
Chorus
"Sex and drugs and rock and roll
Is all my brain and body need.
Sex and drugs and rock and roll
Are very good indeed." (Ian Dury 1977)
“But for the cowardly, the faithless, the vile, the murderers, those who commit sexual immorality, those who use drugs and cast spells, the idolaters and all liars—their share will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur. This is the second death.” (Rev. 21:8, Common English Bible).
The late Ian Dury’s lyrics were not a 1970’s anthem signaling a new era. The lyrics were a summative mantra portraying a decline that had already become mainstream in the 1960’s. The era of the 1960’s was a turning point for Western Society and I was very much a part of it.
Birth control pills were drugs that allowed for sex without pregnancy and were introduced in 1960. At that time sexually transmitted diseases were not as rampant or as potentially deadly. It was called “Free Love” but it was really uncommitted serial sexual encounters. The late Billy Preston coined the phrase, “If you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with” and it later became the title of a song by Stephen Stills (1970). We knew what it meant.
If Charles Wesley conveyed faith, service and doctrine through his hymns, the Beatles, “Satan’s Jesters” the Rolling Stones, and later groups like Guns and Roses breathed new life into an “old immorality”. It was antigovernment, disrespect for authority, anarchistic, hedonistic and narcissistic. Heavy Metal Groups followed with names like Megadeath and Black Sabbath and spewed nihilist notions of their own. I worked Grateful Dead concerts in Wisconsin as a mental health counselor and saw firsthand the drug induced hell they brought with them. Drugs are not just the cause of so much sorrow and death. Drugs are a symptom of a life devoid of meaning and purpose seeking respite from a living hell through self-medication. There is also the inestimable legacy of brain damaged and aborted children.
“I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants.” (Deuteronomy 30:19).
My generation chose death and is rightfully looked at with contempt by succeeding generations. As my cohort finds itself in the final developmental stage moving toward the death they so avidly courted and embraced during their lives, they mistakenly think that recycling and driving a Prius will undo the damage they have inflicted on the generations that follow and sooth the guilt they attempt to deny.
The theme song for my generation is “Sex, Drugs and Rock and Roll. The fitting recessional hymn could be “Is That All There Is?”. It was also a late 1960’s song by Peggy Lee. We were vain, conceited and turned our back on God. I hope and pray that those who follow us will find meaning and purpose in Jesus The Christ. I ask that God and our progeny would forgive us. As we approach the Season of Pentecost may God the Holy Spirit fall upon us afresh, quicken our mortal bodies and renew our strength. Amen
06-03-2011
Chorus
"Sex and drugs and rock and roll
Is all my brain and body need.
Sex and drugs and rock and roll
Are very good indeed." (Ian Dury 1977)
“But for the cowardly, the faithless, the vile, the murderers, those who commit sexual immorality, those who use drugs and cast spells, the idolaters and all liars—their share will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur. This is the second death.” (Rev. 21:8, Common English Bible).
The late Ian Dury’s lyrics were not a 1970’s anthem signaling a new era. The lyrics were a summative mantra portraying a decline that had already become mainstream in the 1960’s. The era of the 1960’s was a turning point for Western Society and I was very much a part of it.
Birth control pills were drugs that allowed for sex without pregnancy and were introduced in 1960. At that time sexually transmitted diseases were not as rampant or as potentially deadly. It was called “Free Love” but it was really uncommitted serial sexual encounters. The late Billy Preston coined the phrase, “If you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with” and it later became the title of a song by Stephen Stills (1970). We knew what it meant.
If Charles Wesley conveyed faith, service and doctrine through his hymns, the Beatles, “Satan’s Jesters” the Rolling Stones, and later groups like Guns and Roses breathed new life into an “old immorality”. It was antigovernment, disrespect for authority, anarchistic, hedonistic and narcissistic. Heavy Metal Groups followed with names like Megadeath and Black Sabbath and spewed nihilist notions of their own. I worked Grateful Dead concerts in Wisconsin as a mental health counselor and saw firsthand the drug induced hell they brought with them. Drugs are not just the cause of so much sorrow and death. Drugs are a symptom of a life devoid of meaning and purpose seeking respite from a living hell through self-medication. There is also the inestimable legacy of brain damaged and aborted children.
“I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants.” (Deuteronomy 30:19).
My generation chose death and is rightfully looked at with contempt by succeeding generations. As my cohort finds itself in the final developmental stage moving toward the death they so avidly courted and embraced during their lives, they mistakenly think that recycling and driving a Prius will undo the damage they have inflicted on the generations that follow and sooth the guilt they attempt to deny.
The theme song for my generation is “Sex, Drugs and Rock and Roll. The fitting recessional hymn could be “Is That All There Is?”. It was also a late 1960’s song by Peggy Lee. We were vain, conceited and turned our back on God. I hope and pray that those who follow us will find meaning and purpose in Jesus The Christ. I ask that God and our progeny would forgive us. As we approach the Season of Pentecost may God the Holy Spirit fall upon us afresh, quicken our mortal bodies and renew our strength. Amen
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