e-piphanies

The Tree of Wisdom

Yesterday, a friend shared a couple of stanzas of a Good Friday hymn written by Seventeenth Century Hungarian poet Király Imre von Pécselyi and translated into English by Twentieth Century Congregationalist minister, composer, and musicologist Erik Routley. The common title of the hymn is “There in God’s Garden” and it is also known as “The Tree of Wisdom.” Alabama composer K. Lee Scott wrote the tune “Shades Mountain” specifically for this text.

I was introduced to the hymn during my two-year residence in Mississippi as Interim Dean of Jackson’s St. Andrew’s Cathedral. It became one of my favorite hymns, with its message of hope for the healing of the nations. Organist/Choirmaster Jessica Nelson led the Cathedral Choir and Congregation in singing it in my last Sunday service there, which was also the occasion for my retirement from active ministry. This seems like a good time to share it.

I invite you to contemplate the words, read the article by Emily R. Brink, and immerse yourself in the music, here sung by the Choir and Congregation of First-Plymouth Church in Lincoln, Nebraska.

There in God’s garden stands the Tree of Wisdom,
whose leaves hold forth the healing of the nations:
Tree of all knowledge, Tree of all compassion,
Tree of all beauty.

Its name is Jesus, name that says, “Our Savior!”
There on its branches see the scars of suffering;
see where the tendrils of our human selfhood
feed on its lifeblood.

Thorns not its own are tangled in its foliage;
our greed has starved it, our despite has choked it.
Yet, look! It lives! Its grief has not destroyed it
nor fire consumed it.

See how its branches reach to us in welcome;
hear what the Voice says, “Come to me, ye weary!
Give me your sickness, give me all your sorrow;
I will give blessing.”

This is my ending, this my resurrection:
into your hands, Lord, I commit my spirit.
This have I searched for; now I can possess it.
This ground is holy.

All heaven is singing, “Thanks to Christ whose Passion
offers in mercy healing, strength, and pardon.
Peoples and nations, take it, take it freely!”
Amen! Our Savior!

 

Blessings!

 

 

 

 

The Very Reverend Ron Pogue

 

O Thou Who Camest From Above

The Hymns of Charles Wesley are among the finest treasures of Christian verse, sung by Anglicans, Methodists, and others around the world. Today, I selected one of his hymns for the Unapologetically Episcopalian Facebook page, "O Thou Who Camest From Above." As I listened to the music and read the words, I had an epiphany. It dawned on me that, even though this hymn is included in both The Hymnal 1982 (Episcopal) and The United Methodist Hymnal, I don't recall ever choosing it for corporate worship. In fact, I don't remember ever singing it at any time during my 49 years of ordained ministry.

The text is a reflection upon a verse from the Book of Leviticus: “A perpetual fire shall be kept burning on the altar; it shall not go out” (Leviticus 6:13 NRSV). It has sacramental overtones in Christian liturgy as in the traditional Great Thanksgiving handed down to Anglicans and Methodists alike, we pray, "And here we offer unto thee, O Lord, our selves, our souls and bodies, to be a reasonable, holy, and living sacrifice unto thee..." Those familiar with the Christian experience of both Charles Wesley and his brother John Wesley, may recognize an allusion to their experience, which John described as one that gave him faith in Christ who kindled a flame in the "altar of my heart."

Interestingly, Hereford, the tune to which the hymn is set in the aforementioned hymnals and in the recording below is by composer Samuel Sebastian Wesley, grandson of Charles Wesley, who was Organist of Hereford Cathedral early in his career. His father, Samuel Wesley, was also a noted English organist and composer.

This hymn is a supplication to our Savior to supply the spiritual guidance and gifts to allow his followers to fulfill the vocation to work, think, and speak for him every day. It is a perfect prayer for any Christian's daily life and I commend it to you. Perhaps it will become a spiritual practice for you in your journey of faith in the Way of Love.

1 O thou who camest from above
the fire celestial to impart,
kindle a flame of sacred love
on the mean altar of my heart!

2 There let it for thy glory burn
with inextinguishable blaze,
and trembling to its source return
in humble prayer and fervent praise.

3 Jesus, confirm my heart's desire
to work, and speak, and think for thee;
still let me guard the holy fire,
and still stir up the gift in me.

4 Ready for all thy perfect will,
my acts of faith and love repeat;
till death thy endless mercies seal,
and make the sacrifice complete. 

Blessings,

 

 

 

 

The Very Reverend Ron Pogue
Arlington, Texas

Farewell to St. Martin's

Dear Members and Friends of St. Martin-in-the-Fields,

I began my ministry with you as Interim Rector at St. Martin’s almost two years ago. Three days from now, July 25, will be my last Sunday with you. Your new Rector, The Reverend Alan Bentrup, will lead you in worship on August 1. 

I write with mixed emotions to say farewell and express gratitude for the opportunity to share Christ’s work with you during this season of transition. We have worked together to remember and celebrate the history of the parish, to clarify your present-day identity, to manage changes in leadership, to strengthen ties with the wider Church, and to prepare for commitment to a new era of mission with your new Rector. We have wrestled with a pandemic and learned many things in the process. We have explored the joys of faithful stewardship, envisioned a robust new program of Christian formation for all ages, developed and populated a new model for mission and governance, reached out in love to our neighbors in need, and expressed lavish hospitality to newcomers seeking a spiritual home. It will make my heart glad to know that these experiences have made you ready for the days ahead. For, as St. Paul wrote to the Church in Philippi, "I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6).

We are confident that you will welcome your new Rector, Alan, his family, Elizabeth, Ford, and, Walker, with the same strong, generous, open arms that welcomed us. We are also confident that your ministry together will result in transformed lives and much thanksgiving to God.

Many have asked about our plans for the future. We’ll be taking a vacation in August. Upon our return, Gay will continue her artistic pursuits, including some online teaching, and I plan to undertake a few projects at our home in Arlington. I expect that my future service to The Episcopal Church will be primarily consulting and mentoring.

You are most welcome to stay in touch with us. We want to know what is happening in your lives and in the life of this parish so we can cheer you on from the “great cloud of witnesses.” However, my role as your Priest will be concluded. Your new Rector and his family will need every opportunity to establish a relationship with you. So, I will not be coming back or performing sacramental or liturgical rites for St. Martin’s. We’ve moved before and have seen the wisdom in this practice. We continue to have wonderful friends from every place we’ve ever served and everyone understands that we now play a different role in their lives. Please make a note of the following contact information:

Ron and Gay Pogue
5805 Dry Creek Lane
Arlington, Texas 76017

Ron’s Email: [email protected]
Ron’s Phone: 832-576-9019
Ron’s Blog: http://e-piphanies.com

Gay’s Email: [email protected]
Gay’s Phone: 409-939-9975
Gay’s Blog: http://angelsnakes.com/

May God bless St. Martin’s and may God bless each of you in your spiritual journey. I remain convinced that the greatest days of this parish lie in the future. You and those God leads to you in the future will have the joy of remaining open to the guidance of the Holy Spirit to discover what new things God wants to accomplish through this vibrant and welcoming community of faith. We love you and will keep you in our prayers. We ask that you also keep us in your prayers as God’s new day unfolds!

Blessings,

 

 

 

 

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

A Fruitful Life

Modern personnel practices in secular business settings emphasize the importance of performance appraisals. Some of that spills over into our perspective on our life as followers of Jesus Christ. That is not necessarily a good thing.

Business and the economy are concerned with performance and productivity. People are useful as long as they are able to contribute to the bottom line. People easily become cogs in the wheels of commerce.

Jesus was concerned about fruitfulness. He said, "Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing" (John 15:4-5).

I helped a family say goodbye to a loved one who was a renowned surgeon, husband, father, and Christian gentleman. During those last minutes of his life, they were not concerned in the least with his performance. They spoke of the wonderful life he lived and the stewardship of his gifts as a physician that allowed him to heal, save lives, give people another chance. "That was why he was put here," they said. He understood that God had made him a physician and guided his hands in God's healing work. He lived a fruitful life.

Every life he touched made a difference to others. We'll never know how many. I recalled a bit of wisdom:"Anyone can count the number of seeds in an apple, but only God can count the number of apples in a seed." Fruitful people go around planting seeds. Those seeds germinate, take root, sprout, grow, and produce fruit. And so the process continues from generation to generation.

Here's a question: When you die, do you want someone to say about you, "He always had good performance appraisals," or do you want it said, "He lived a fruitful life"?

Do what you have to do to earn a living, keep your job, and provide for your family. Be a top performer. But don't confuse being a cog in the wheel with living a fruitful, abundant, Christian life.

Blessings,

 

 

 

 

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

The Dynamic Relationship Between Mission and Transition

Here is a question I am often asked: What has been the most valuable learning experience in your work as an interim minister and why? Here's my response.

Mission and transition are dynamically related.

When a faith community is intentional about discerning the mission entrusted to it and committed to engagement in that mission, it is also willing to be intentional about the transitions that are necessary. The dots have to be connected.

While considering leaving the parish I had served as rector for almost a decade, I was intrigued by the work being accomplished by colleagues who were intentional interim rectors. In conversations with them, I was encouraged to explore service to the wider Church through transitional ministry instead of as a settled rector in one parish. That discernment led to training in intentional interim ministry, during which I suddenly realized that all churches are in some sort of transition most of the time, although often unconscious of it. That was a big epiphany for me. I had a firm grasp of the obvious!

Transition training should be core seminary curriculum. Transitions between settled rectors provide a unique opportunity to explore transition – remembering where we’ve been, clarifying where we are, discerning where God is calling us, making changes that are needed, connecting with the wider church, and embracing a new era of mission with a new spiritual leader. But that is not the end of transition!

During this epiphany, I recalled some words of Titus Presler: “Mission is not fundamentally something we do as Christians but a quality of God’s own being. It is not a program of ours but the path of God’s action in the world. The mission of the Church, therefore, derives from the mission of God, and it has meaning only in relation to what God is up to in the universe. Already engaged in mission, God simply invites us to participate in what God is doing.”

The Church doesn’t have a mission. The mission has a Church. Everything we do as followers of Christ in community is related to and in the service of that mission. And God’s mission is constantly in transition. It became clear to me that when a church continues to function as if nothing has changed, the mission suffers. It also became clear to me that the mission suffers when changes are needed but are avoided or resisted.

So, intentional transition work in the Church, whether between rectors or at any time, must involve discernment about mission, participation in what God is doing for the sake of the world at our doorstep. Transition work matters only in relation to mission.

This insight guides my leadership so that after our interim time together, consciousness of the dynamic relationship between ongoing mission and ongoing transition will continue. Churches that are engaged in mission are healthier, happier, and more attractive to those who are seeking what Christ offers through them. In such places, transition evokes transformation.

In my service to the wider Church, I would like to leave a legacy of healthy, mission-focused, transformative congregations.

O Lord, mercifully receive the prayers of your people who call upon you, and grant that they may know and understand what things they ought to do, and also may have grace and power faithfully to accomplish them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.              

(The Book of Common Prayer, Collect for Proper 10)

Blessings,

 

 

 

 

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

 

Sing to the Lord a New Song!

Someone posted this on Facebook this morning:

As hymnals fade, theology also suffers. The rich repository of religious wisdom contained in hymns will be lost. The old-fashioned language of hymns may strike some as unusual, but their text teaches the Christian faith far better than most of the praise choruses that dominate contemporary services. Old hymns were carefully crafted with theology at the forefront. Traditional hymns present doctrine clearly and beautifully convey the gospel story of saving grace.

My thoughts about this quote are mixed. Hymnals are a product of a new technology from another era - moveable type and the printing press. Just because the technology changes doesn't necessarily mean that the new technology will negatively impact our theology. Praise choruses are not that common in our tradition, but there are plenty of them that express sound theology. I wouldn't write them off. And, likewise, there are plenty of traditional hymns that express a theology that I would never embrace.

However, the writer, who is not cited, does offer a compelling testimony for the strength of our traditional hymnody, prompting me to reflect on the importance of hymns and singing in our worship.

Sometimes, when people ask us what The Episcopal Church believes, our answer is, “Come and worship with us.” That’s because both our liturgy from The Book of Common Prayer and the hymns in our hymnals beautifully express the heart of our theology and our faith.

For the past year or so, due to COVID protocols, we have not been able to sing aloud as a congregation. That’s been the case in many other places as well. However, in our parish, we have tried to compensate by placing the words and music in our bulletins, which are viewed online or downloaded for use during worship. We have gone to some lengths to ensure that we have all the permissions we need in dealing with copyrighted materials. In addition to that, our Organist/Choirmaster has sung the hymns for us.

As we are beginning to return to in-person worship, we are also continuing to live-stream our principal Sunday morning service. We have removed all prayer books and hymnals from the pews because we aren’t confident that we can adequately sanitize them. They will be returned to the pews as soon as we deem it safe to do so. However we access them, our prayers and the hymns teach us, remind us, inspire us, convict us, and assist us in our journeys as a worshiping community and as individuals. I'm reminded of a word of wisdom attributed to St. Augustine of Hippo: "Whoever sings, prays twice."

So, it’s important for us to include hymns in our worship when possible, even during a pandemic. Whether or not you can actually sing the hymns, you can read and listen attentively to the words and the music. When we reach the point when we can have congregational singing again, with or without masks, it will still be important to read the words and listen to the music. You can do that even when you don’t recognize a hymn. The hymn you don't recognize may be the favorite of the person sitting next to you in the pew.

Singing or silent, if  you will be attentive to the words and listen to the music, maybe you will experience the joy that comes when we “Sing to the Lord a new song” (Psalm 98:1).

Blessings,

 

 

 

 

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

 

 

 

When You Are in a Storm

Jesus has just finished a long day of teaching. He has taught the parables of the sower, the growing seed, the mustard seed, and explained the need for parables to his disciples. He is exhausted from his work and he wishes to sail from the Jewish territory of Galilee to the Gentile region of Gerasenes on the other side of the Sea of Galilee. (Mark 4:35-41)

The Sea of Galilee is really a lake. It is thirteen miles long and eight miles wide and is located on an ancient trade route linking Egypt with Syria and Mesopotamia. Towns founded by Greeks, Romans, and many others flourished in the region and there was a thriving fishing industry there. Although the lake continues to provide an abundance of fish, most of the ancient towns have long since been abandoned. But in Jesus’ time, people from all over the Roman world would have traveled through Galilee on their way to other places. It figures prominently in the stories of Jesus that have been handed down to us in the gospels.

On the occasions Mark tells us about, all of the disciples of Jesus are on board. At least four of them are fishermen. Jesus finds a cushion and goes fast asleep in the rear of the boat. As local fishermen, Peter, James, John, and Andrew would have been quite familiar with the lake’s unpredictable weather, including violent storms, and how to handle it. That they panic and wake Jesus up from what was probably a much-needed nap shows that this particular storm was especially intense.

The storm has pushed them to their limit. In spite of their knowledge of boats and the Galilean weather, their boat is sinking. In desperation, they wake Jesus, to warn him that his own life is in danger and because they had nowhere else to turn. Their question, “Don’t you care that we’re drowning?” is also a desperate cry for help. They wanted to be out of the danger so they called out to Jesus. They’d seen him do other miracles. Maybe he could deliver them from this perilous situation.

Their reaction to Jesus’ response indicates that it was not what they expected. This act of control over the elements of sea and sky stunned them. Only God has such power! In an instant they are removed from the life-threatening situation and brought to a new place, to a place not just of safety, but also of understanding, even if they cannot yet fully comprehend what is happening.

How many times in life do we find ourselves in a “storm” beyond our ability to handle? When we reach our limits trying to handle the situation, we simply want out of it. And when it becomes desperate enough, we often find ourselves crying out to Jesus, “Don’t you care that we’re perishing?”

Rembrandt’s Painting Storm on Galilee depicts that scene from Mark’s Gospel. In the painting, each disciple faced his fears in his own way. Two go to wake Jesus – maybe he can do something. They are looking at Jesus in anger. One struggles to hold on to the tiller, five wrestle with the sails. One hides in the rigging and one in the bottom of the boat. One is crouched over in dread and one is sick. There is also one who is kneeling in front of Jesus. If you have been counting, you’ll realize Rembrandt put thirteen – not twelve – disciples in the boat with Jesus. The extra man, the one who is kneeling, looks very much like Rembrandt! The artist puts himself in the same boat with the frightened disciples – as a stand-in for us.

“Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” Jesus asks. Because we are human, we struggle with our fears and our limits just as the disciples did. Yet, if we remain open to the unexpected, Jesus will “handle it.” And, in spite of our doubts, fears, and lack of faith, he by whom and with whom all things were created, the One whom the wind and waves obey, will bring order out of the chaos that threatens us as well. Who knows? Maybe his solution won’t be an obvious one. Maybe he’ll even make us a part of his solution and a part of his answer to our own prayers.

Blessings,

 

 

 

 

The Very Rev'd 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

The Holy Trinity - More Than a Theory

The Holy Trinity is a doctrine, a teaching, developed over time by the Church as an aspect of the unfolding revelation of God derived from, but not confined to the pages of sacred scripture.

Doctrine is not Truth, with a capital “T”, but rather our faithful approach to or reach for the Truth. Doctrine that really matters is more than an intellectual pursuit or a theory. The best doctrines are those that speak to deeply felt needs of those who seek God. For example…

We have a need to know who created the universe and placed us in it. In response, the Church tells us that it is the Lord God Almighty who is the Creator and Parent of all life and being. We see God’s hand at work in the world around us. It is powerful, though only a glimpse. To see God face to face is something we hope for and long for and live for.

We also need to know that we have a source of forgiveness and understanding that will not let us down. In our declaration of the divinity of Jesus Christ, we are saying that God sees us not just from the viewpoint of a loving Creator/Parent, but with redemptive concern as well. God’s reason for dealing with us in Jesus Christ is to offer us forgiveness of sin, release from guilt, to reconcile us and draw us closer to the ultimate purpose for all creation.

And, we need to know that we have a friend who is near, always able to sustain our faith, bind us together in worship, and empower us in God’s mission. So, we proclaim that God is the Holy Spirit, ever present in our midst for guidance, comfort, and strength. As St. Paul says, the Spirit of God bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God and heirs with Christ of God’s amazing grace (Romans 8:16-17).

The Holy Trinity: Three expressions of how One Living God relates to everything and everyone in the universe. More than a theory, it is a teaching given to us to help us better know who God is, how God loves us, and how God abides with us.

Blessings,

 

 

 

 

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