e-piphanies

Confirm Thy Soul in Self Control

As we approach this Independence Day, my thoughts are on the internal threats to our nation and the need to restore unity. Whatever problems we face, "we the people" are much stronger than a mob of individuals pointing fingers, insisting on our own way, and fighting over ideologies. We also know better than that and we've always been more effective in solving our problems by pulling together than by pulling apart!

So, for those of us who believe we are called to pray for our nation - for one another - now would be a very good time! There are many fine prayers for such an occasion, but the one that has been on my mind this week is best known as the hymn, America the Beautiful. Every word is packed with the kind of spirit we need to restore our unity of purpose. But the words that are ringing in my ears are these:

America! America! God mend thine every flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control, thy liberty in law.

In order to face one another and to work effectively with those with whom we differ, we need the humility to admit that none of us has yet achieved the perfection we seek. Whether or not we ever actually achieve it, we'll come closer if we pursue it in the company of our fellow Americans. That requires that we face the truth that flaws exist - racism, wealth inequality, poverty, suppression of rights, limited access to affordable healthcare, just to name a few. Let us humbly ask God to mend our flaws.

We also need divine help in gaining self-control so that our impulses and anxieties will not drive us apart. Many of our problems are truly frightening. No wonder we are so anxious and so prone to knee jerk reactions. We can't listen to one another or really seek understanding in that condition. Let us ask God to calm us down.

And, we need to respect the boundaries that make it possible to live and work together. Some of those boundaries must be imposed from without, but the most important ones must be established within us. Jesus taught us that all the Law is summed up in one commandment, "Love your neighbor as yourself." When that law is at work, we are most inclined to do the right thing in relation to our brothers and sisters at home and abroad. So, let us ask God to write that law in our hearts so that we all might be truly free.

It will come as no surprise to some of you that I am a longtime Judy Collins fan. In 1993, she and the Harlem Boys Choir led a host of people on the National Mall in singing America the Beautiful. It is one of the most moving performances of this prayer/hymn I know. Maybe you'll enjoy watching the video and singing along.

Have a safe and happy Fourth of July!

 

 

 

 

The Very Reverend Ron Pogue
Interim Rector
St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church
Keller, Texas

 

 

 

Precious in God’s Sight

When I was a child, I loved attending Sunday School. I had some amazingly loving and deeply faithful teachers whose influence profoundly affected the formation of my faith in a loving God. I can see them and hear their voices now as if it were only yesterday - Mr. Frantis, Mrs. Brittian, Mrs. Baber, and others. They loved us and shared their faith in Jesus with us. They reinforced the faith into which our parents were trying to guide us.

However, when I looked back on that time from the perspective of a young adult in the late 1960's, I realized something was wrong. They taught us to sing (with gusto) "Jesus Loves the Little Children." In that song, there is a line that says, "Red and yellow, black, and white, they are precious in his sight." But the church I attended was 100% white. From its members I overheard conversations from time to time about the place of our neighbors who were black, brown, and yellow. When I looked back, I realized that, while Jesus loves people besides white people, my white church people didn't. Jesus might love them, but they weren't really welcome in my church. Jesus might love them, but they weren't worthy of the dignity and respect enjoyed by white people. Jesus might love them, but our behavior toward them didn't have to look like we love them as he loves us. Jesus might love them, but they had better not act "uppity." (And what about brown children?)

If you grew up in a racist culture like I did, you know what I am talking about. Perhaps for you, as for me, recognizing that something was wrong was an epiphany, a time for repentance, and the beginning of transformation. My world could no longer be all white with a little color around the edges.

This all came to me during a time when black people were turned away from white churches. It was a struggle for one like me, who was taught that people of all colors are precious in the sight of Jesus, to reconcile that message with the actions I was witnessing. Given the rhetoric of the day, I suppose I could have rejected that message and clung to what seemed to be the majority view reflected in the rhetoric and behavior of my white world. But the security, control, and privilege of that world was slipping away. Abandoning it or confronting it could be dangerous. White people said harsh and hateful things to other white people who didn't participate in keeping non-white people "in their place." The message wasn't wrong; my white, privileged, dominant world was wrong and I couldn't live in it anymore. I had to set out on a journey toward someplace else. I'm still on that journey.

Recent events in our nation have brought me to the sad truth that many of my fellow white people are still trapped in that world. It is even sadder that they seem to be completely unconscious of it. They say and do things that are blatantly racist yet are oblivious. I know it's true because I've been there and I still find myself trying to overcome some of those prejudices that were planted in me long ago. People of color who loved me enough to point out the harm, sometimes hatefulness, of my words and actions stuck with me until I began to understand where they were coming from and how my words and my behavior affected them. Many of those people are still in my life. I give thanks to God for them. I've sort of been their lifelong project and I'm still not finished. They patiently continue on the journey with me. And as we travel, we sing that song hoping our rainbow beliefs are evident in our lives. Maybe the colors of our rainbow are still a little bit pastel, but we hope they are growing more vibrant with each step we take together. Together.

So, what I wanted to suggest today to my friends of all colors, races, religions, genders, and nationalities is that it might help heal our fractured, hurting world if we would sing this song and test ourselves to see if our words and actions show that we really believe it is true. Whether you believe that Jesus is God Incarnate, a wise prophet, or just a very gutsy nice guy, could it be true that he loves all the children of the world? Are all of us - red, yellow, black, white, brown - really precious in his sight? If I am one of the Jesus people, shouldn't they be precious in my sight as well? How do I love and treat people who are precious in Jesus' sight? Who are precious in my sight?

This isn't a final exam! It's a pop quiz to monitor progress in a lifelong course. I invite you to take it with me and see if we can be the difference we'd like to see in God's amazing, changing world.

Blessings,

 

 

 

 

The Very Reverend Ron Pogue
Interim Rector
St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church
Keller, Texas

The Providence of God

One of the earliest names for God in the Hebrew scriptures is יְהוָֹה יִרְאֶה (Jehovah Jireh), meaning "God will provide." (cf. Genesis 22:14)

The collects for the first several Sundays after Pentecost emphasize how God provides for us. For example:

O God, your never‑failing providence sets in order all things both in heaven and earth: Put away from us, we entreat you, all hurtful things, and give us those things which are profitable for us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

And this:

O God, from whom all good proceeds: Grant that by your inspiration we may think
those things that are right, and by your merciful guiding may do them; through
Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God,
for ever and ever. Amen.

In a world where we are encouraged to believe that what we have comes only through our work, ambition, the political process, the economy, war, or some other human endeavor, it is refreshing to be reminded that God provides! Moreover, when we consider the potential danger of confronting the evils of our time - racism, wealth inequality, greed, mendacity, war, hatred, disenfranchisement - we must have moral courage beyond what we can summon for ourselves.

Learn to look through the window of your soul to recognize God’s hand at work. Awakening to that reality brings about a transformation of consciousness that liberates us from dependence upon material things and deepens our love for our Creator and Provider.

Blessings,

 

 

 

 

The Very Reverend Ron Pogue
Interim Rector
St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church
Keller, Texas

Regathering to Begin Soon at St. Martin's

I am overjoyed to announce that Bishop Mayer has both praised and approved our plan for returning to in-person worship. A reservation system will make it possible for us to limit the number of people who are inside during the service. Seating will be assigned. Those inside the building will have their temperature taken, wear masks, sit in family groups at a distance from others, and sanitize their hands upon entering and exiting. There will be safe procedures for receiving Holy Communion. Initially, congregational singing will not be permitted. The 10:30 a.m. Sunday service will continue to be live streamed as will drive-in worship. We will advance this plan in phases over the next several months as we move toward a time when few, if any, COVID protocols will be necessary. If at any time the COVID indicators raise concerns, we will suspend in person worship until conditions improve.

We will begin on May 16 with a special service for the Vestry and Regathering Team and their households. This will allow us to test our reservation system and other arrangements we are putting in place. This service will take place at a different hour and will not be live streamed.

On May 23, the same group of worshipers will attend the 10:30 a.m. service in person. Their additional input will help us make further improvements in our protocols and procedures.

Beginning on May 30, we will increase the number of people who can be inside and the invitation will be open to all on a first come, first served basis. The reservation procedures will be explained leading up to that date. We will continue to live stream the 10:30 a.m. service each Sunday and worshipers may still join us in their vehicles in the parking lot. Those who wish to bring their chairs and sit on the lawn outside the building may do so, with masks and distancing protocols. The live streamed service can also be seen on the television in the parish hall where there overflow seating will be available.

When we are sure it is safe, we will add an 8:00 a.m. Sunday service, which will not be live streamed. This will allow sufficient time to make the nave ready for the 10:30 a.m. service and get the audio and video equipment ready for live streaming. It will also allow more time between services to resume in person Christian formation for all ages.

This announcement comes on a day when Coronavirus infections in the U.S. are at their lowest levels in seven months, thanks to the vaccines. We have been waiting, planning, and hoping for this time for over a year. I am so proud of the people of St. Martin’s who have been so patient and respectful throughout this long time apart. Our plans have been developed collaboratively by the Vestry, the Regathering Team, the Staff, the Buildings and Grounds Committee, the Liturgy and Music Commission, and the Christian Formation Commission. The Regathering Team has met almost weekly since March of last year. Their devotion and thoughtful contributions have been amazing. All of those leading our services, hosting zoom events, and quietly working behind the scenes have been faithful and dependable. Chuck Ambrose has worked miracles with our audio and video requirements. I give thanks to God for all of you!

Blessings,

 

 

 

The Very Reverend Ron Pogue
Interim Rector
St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church
Keller, Texas

Easter is more than a day

During the forty days of Lent each year we spend time getting ready for the celebration of Easter. There is fasting, self-denial, prayer, intensified devotion, scripture study, and other disciplines designed to cleanse our hearts.

Then, comes the big celebration. Easter. Like so many Christian holy days, Easter seems to disappear the next day as life returns to "normal." But Easter should be more than that to us! It certainly was to those early disciples. Easter is more than a day!

Easter is a season of celebration. The Risen Christ walked among his disciples for forty days after his resurrection. He taught them, ate with them, prayed with them, and loved them. Before he was taken up into heaven, he promised to send the Comforter, the Holy Spirit. The promise was fulfilled on the fiftieth day when they were in Jerusalem celebrating the Jewish feast of Shavuot, the Feast of Weeks. In Greek, it is called Pentecost. Pentecost is seven weeks, or fifty days, after the observance of Passover and commemorates the spring wheat harvest. This feast has also been associated with the remembrance of the giving of the Law to Moses. As the law was written on tablets of stone, the Spirit would write God's law upon the hearts of believers. When Moses came down from the mountain, he found God's people worshipping an idol and 3,000 of them died. When the Spirit was given, the disciples were obediently waiting in Jerusalem. 3,000 people were saved! The New People of the New Covenant were empowered by the Life-giving Spirit to be Christ's Body in the world, proclaiming to everyone the Easter message that Christ is alive.

Easter is a lifestyle. We are Easter People! As those early disciples in Jerusalem, Emmaus, and Galilee experienced the living presence of the Risen Christ, so we recognize that he stands among us today. To paraphrase Jesus, "believing is seeing." When we hear the Word and share in the Holy Meal, it is easier to experience his presence "enthroned upon the praises of his people." The challenging part comes when we go about our day-to-day lives. As Christ's Body touches the world through you and me when we are apart from one another, do you suppose the Living Presence is felt?

Easter is our only hope. St. Peter writes, "By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead..." (I Peter 1:3). There is a lot of help out there for people with all kinds of needs. But Christians believe that beyond help, people need hope. So what if you are physically or emotionally well. Life is just not complete without hope. The Easter faith gives the world hope. 

So, don't let Easter fade like the blooms on your Easter Lily! Easter is more than a day; it is a season, a lifestyle, and a faith that fills our lives with hope.

Blessings,

 

 

 

 

The Very Rev'd Ron Pogue
Interim Rector
St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church
Keller, Texas

Six Better Questions

We are beginning to see light at the end of the pandemic tunnel. Our Regathering Team, Vestry, Staff, and other groups are having intentional conversations about how we will be ready to regather in person when it is safe. There will be many logistical details and procedures that are quite different from what was “normal” before this started.

I recently came across an interesting article by small church pastor Karl Vaters, in which he addresses a question many are asking: “When the pandemic is over, will the congregation come back?” In his response, he suggests that there are several better questions we should be asking ourselves. You can read the article HERE, but this is my summary of it.

Pastor Vaters offers the following six questions we should be thinking about as we anticipate the time when we can regathers in person for worship, study, service, and fellowship.

“Have we represented Jesus well during the lockdown?”

“Are we representing Jesus well as we come out of the lockdown?”

“What have we learned – and what are we still learning?”

“How can we better serve the people at home?”

“How well are we serving our online church members and visitors?”

“How are people hurting, and what can we do to help them?”

He notes that there will be other issues we can’t yet foresee, but “more than ever, the communities around us are going to need the help of healthy, missional, compassionate, worshiping, and loving churches.”

He concludes by saying, “Whether people come back through our church doors is not the big issue. How we honor Jesus by reaching the hurting people outside our doors is what matters. Ministry needs to happen from the church, not just in the church.”

I invite you to read the article and contemplate these questions in relation to our parish, St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church. Our church leadership would be interested in hearing your thoughts. We would love to hear how you have made a contribution or been the recipient of the ministries of our parish during this time. Do these questions lead you to a sense of being called to a role in the ongoing life of the parish? How is God calling you to keep St. Martin’s growing as a healthy, missional, compassionate, worshiping, and loving church?

In the interest of full disclosure, I should let you know that I am heartened by the numerous examples that have come to mind as I pondered these questions. I have witnessed so many occasions when our people have been in ministry to one another and to others outside of our faith community, in spite of the strange and limiting circumstances of the past year.

Thank you for what you have done and are doing! Thank you for answering the call to represent Christ and his Church.

Blessings,

 

 

 

 

The Very Reverend Ron Pogue
Interim Rector
St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church
Keller, Texas

UPDATE ON COVID PROTOCOLS AT ST. MARTIN'S

Earlier this week, the Governor of Texas held a press conference in which he announced that Texas will open 100%, including lifting limitations on gatherings and the mask mandate. You may be wondering how this decision will impact us at St. Martin-in-the-Fields.

The protocols we follow at St. Martin’s were developed by a team of knowledgeable people assembled by Bishop Scott Mayer and in conversation with clergy across the diocese. Those will continue to be the protocols under which we operate until the Bishop and those upon whose counsel he relies believe it is safe to relax them. Until then, we will continue to operate as we have been.

That said, recent trends suggest that our protocols may move to another phase in a few months. We are encouraged by the increased number of vaccinations and the decreasing number of COVID-positive cases in Tarrant and surrounding counties. In fact, we believe that the practices we have been following have contributed to these positive trends.

Our own regathering team, which has met almost weekly for the past year, our Liturgy and Music Commission, our Christian Formation Commission, and our Vestry have begun having conversations about how we can take the first steps toward return to in-person worship, study, fellowship, and other parish gatherings in the not-too-distant future, perhaps even sometime this summer.

Initially, we anticipate two Eucharistic services on Sunday morning, the second of which would be live streamed. The distribution of Holy Communion would continue in the same safe manner as we have for some time. We would have to limit the number of worshipers in the Nave and require hand sanitization, face coverings, and assigned seating to facilitate distancing. Drive-in worship in the parking lot would still be an option and we would have the ability to provide additional seating in the Parish Hall where we have large screen televisions on which to view the service. Seating outside on the lawn between the Nave and the parking lot might also be possible if the weather permits. These conversations are allowing us to anticipate logistical and practical challenges that will require management by members of the parish.

What this means is that, while we will abide by whatever laws or protocols are required by public officials, we will continue to exercise controls that we believe are in the best interest of those given into our care at St. Martin’s. When the community trends reach the point when we can begin to regather, we will be ready!

In the meantime, thank you for your patience and understanding. Please continue to join us online for worship and other opportunities. Help with our ongoing outreach ministries. Sign up to work in the Good News Garden or join the Holy Mowers. Pray for the Rector Search and pray for progress in the effort to subdue this virus. Love one another, be mindful of others with whom you come into contact, wear your masks, wash your hands, maintain distance, get the vaccine, and stay in touch. If you need the help of your clergy or our St. Martin’s Helping Hands Team, please let us know.

Blessings,

 

 

 

 

The Very Reverend Ron Pogue
Interim Rector
St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church
Keller, Texas

It's all about relationships.

Earlier in the week, the Ten Commandments came up in a conversation with a couple of other people. One of them said, “For some, Christianity seems to be a list of rules to obey.” I think he’s right. There are those who view Christianity that way.

But for me, Christianity is first and foremost about relationships – with God, with others, and with my own spiritual being. The “rules” God gives us are intended to help us cherish, protect, and sustain those relationships. Following the “rules” don’t make us worthy of our relationships; they help us abide in them.

For starters, God invites us into relationship not because we are worthy, but because God is worthy. And God always takes the first step, even when we falter. In the Parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32), after the son wakes up to his own prodigal reality, he rehearses a speech that he hopes will convince his father to accept him back into the household just as a hired hand. When the father sees him coming toward home, he runs out to meet him. And before a word comes out of the son’s mouth, the father embraces him and restores him to his place in the household as a son and not a servant. Our relationship with God is grounded in God’s worthiness and not our own. The rules God gives us are to hold us close in that relationship as God's beloved daughters and sons.

Our relationships with others are healthiest when we place the worth of the other ahead of our own. Jesus demonstrated that in his life, death, and resurrection for us. St. Paul summed it up when he wrote, “God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). The heart of the Paschal Mystery is that Jesus Christ overcame death for our sake. Before we even knew there were any rules to follow, he deemed us worthy to act on our behalf. But it is the Savior’s worth and not our own that makes it possible for us to live in him. He calls us again and again to love others the way he loves us.

And, it is vital to our spiritual well-being that we be mindful of our soul’s progress throughout life and aware of how all other relationships affect our inner being. Because we live in a material world, it is easy to forget that we are, first and foremost, spiritual beings. Things often block progress on the spiritual journey. Some people bring good into our lives. Others have a harmful or hurtful influence. There are spiritual disciplines and rules of life that help us be mindful and to monitor the soul’s well-being.

To couch my point in sacramental terms, the inward and spiritual needs to be expressed in the outward and visible. It is the relationship that drives the behavior. Because I value the relationships, I strive to act in ways that sustain them.

I love my wife and I will never forget that she loved me first. Some important rules have been helpful in strengthening the bonds of our marriage for fifty-two years. But following those rules grows out of the deep love and respect we have for one another. The rules don’t make us love one another. It is our love that gives the rules their purpose.

Our parents taught us not to play in traffic because, before we knew it was dangerous, they loved us enough to give us that and other rules that protect us from physical harm. We teach our children to brush their teeth and other rules because we love them and want them to take care of their health. We follow COVID protocols in an attempt to live out the Great Commandment, loving others as well as ourselves. The Church commends spiritual disciplines because Jesus loved us enough to create the Church for that purpose.

The Godly Play Curriculum for children speaks of the Ten Commandments as “The Ten Best Ways to Live.” I like that. Because God loves us so much, God has provided these and many other ways to live in a sacred relationship with our Creator, with those around us, and with our own true self. The purpose of the rules is always about relationships.

Blessings,

 

 

 

 

The Very Reverend Ron Pogue
Interim Rector
St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church
Keller, Texas

How is it with your soul?

A friend said to me the other day, “Maybe it’s just me, but 2021 is beginning to look a lot like 2020.” He’s right; it kind of is, isn’t it? An impeachment trial in the Senate, more pandemic, challenges of trying to get everybody vaccinated, brutally cold weather, a breakdown in the Texas power grid, loss of water pressure, and more. Surprises, disappointments, inconvenience, unfamiliar emotional terrain, and rising anxiety levels as we wonder what’s next. It’s enough to try one’s soul.

How is it with your soul? The Season of Lent calls us to grapple with that question every year, but this year it has a different intensity. Maybe that’s not such a bad thing. Maybe the mounting pressures can move us to seek the help we need for the care of our souls. Maybe we will be more intentional in taking advantage of the spiritual disciplines of self-examination, repentance, prayer, fasting, self-denial, and reading and meditating on God’s holy Word. Maybe we’ll read the daily Lenten Reflections that members of our parish have shared with us.

If our faith teaches us anything, it teaches us that our God is the gracious Lover of our souls who will never leave or forsake us. In fact, that is the one thing that can never be taken away from us, no matter how bad things may be. In Baptism, we are “marked as Christ’s own for ever.”

The familiar hymn It is Well With My Soul was written after traumatic events in the life of Horatio Spafford. The first two were the death of his four-year-old son and the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, which ruined him financially. His business interests were further hit by the economic downturn of 1873, at which time he had planned to travel to England with his family on the SS Ville du Havre. In a late change of plan, he sent the family ahead while he was delayed on business. While crossing the Atlantic, the ship sank rapidly after a collision with a sea vessel, the Loch Earn. All four of Spafford's daughters perished. His wife Anna survived. Shortly afterwards, as Spafford traveled to meet his grieving wife, he was inspired to write these words when his ship passed near where his daughters had died. Phillip Bliss composed the tune for the hymn and called it Ville du Havre, from the name of the stricken vessel.

The series of tragedies could have broken Spafford. By God's grace, he dealt with the question, "How is it with your soul." The outcome was his echo of the response of the Shunammite woman in her encounter with the prophet Elijah, "It is well." Moreover, the hymn he wrote about the experience has brought reassurance and peace to countless souls for a century and a half.

So, I ask again, how is it with your soul? Seize the opportunity Lent provides to grapple with that question. Observe the Lenten disciplines. Your clergy are always available to help, as are members of the parish who have emerged from their own experiences with renewed spiritual health.

Blessings,

 

 

 

 

The Very Reverend Ron Pogue
Interim Rector
St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church
Keller, Texas

 

Seeking Wisdom and Understanding

On Sunday, we will have our Annual Parish Meeting at St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church. We will do so against the backdrop of the lectionary readings for the Fourth Sunday After the Epiphany, which focus on the wisdom that comes to us when we have reverence for divine authority in our lives and in our world.

The Psalm appointed for the day is Psalm 111. The first and last verses serve as bookends for the Psalm's description of the majesty and reign of God:

Hallelujah!
I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart, *
in the assembly of the upright, in the congregation.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; *
those who act accordingly have a good understanding;
his praise endures for ever.

As we assemble virtually for our meeting on Sunday, we will indeed give thanks to God with our whole heart. Through our oral and written reports, we will recount the mighty works of God in our life during the past year, and there are many. We will also ask God to help us see into the future and discern what are the next steps in the mission entrusted specifically to us. We will acknowledge that God rules all things both in heaven and on earth. Such reverence for God, as the psalmist says, is the beginning of wisdom. This is the true agenda for our assembly!

Let us prepare ourselves for this annual event with this prayer from The Book of Common Prayer.

Almighty and everliving God, source of all wisdom and understanding, be present with those who take counsel in this Annual Parish Meeting for the renewal and mission of your Church. Teach us in all things to seek first your honor and glory. Guide us to perceive what is right, and grant us both the courage to pursue it and the grace to accomplish it; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Blessings,

 

 

 

 

The Very Reverend Ron Pogue
Interim Rector
St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church
Keller, Texas