Pax et Bonum

The Online worship resource for St. James Parish

November 4, 2009

I expect to pass through life but once.
If therefore, there be any kindness I can show,
Or any good thing I can do to any fellow-being,
Let me do it now,
And not defer or neglect it,
As I shall not pass this way again.
---William Penn---
O God, because without you we are not able to please you,
Mercifully grant that our Holy Spirit may in all things
Direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord,
Who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
One God, now and forever. AMEN
---BCP, p.233---

Faith-filled Promises

In Debra’s article below, she talks about the promises we make at Baptism, which are found in the Baptismal Covenant. Last Sunday we baptized four infants, and said together as a congregation the Baptismal Covenant.

As part of the Baptismal Covenant, we promise to continue in the Apostle’s teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in the prayers. In other words, we promise to gather together with others for worship.

We promise to persevere in resisting evil, to proclaim by word and example the good news of Christ, to seek and serve Christ in every person, and to strive for justice and peace.

These promises remind me of the statement by William Penn that is our quote for today: If there is any kindness I can show, let me do it now. Penn reminds us of the fragility of life, that we have no promise that another opportunity to do good works will come.

But the Baptismal Promises also echo the prayer found above: O God, because without you we are not able to please you…direct and rule our hearts.

We are called to good works. We are called to resist evil, to stand up for Christ, and to love our neighbors as ourselves. But we do not make these promises alone.

Our answer to each query in the Covenant is, "I will, with God’s help." We recognize that without God’s help to do what pleases him, we will fail miserably. But with God’s help, we can do all things through Christ, who indeed strengthens us.

Make the promise to live according to the Covenant. Take seriously our call to love and serve one another as Christ commanded; but know that it is only through God’s grace that we can accomplish the task. And rejoice that God gives grace generously to all who ask.

Grant to us, Lord, we pray,
The spirit to think and do always those things that are right,
That we, who cannot exist without you,
May by you be enabled to live according to your will;
Through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns
With you and the Holy Spirit,
One God, for ever and ever. Amen.
---BCP, p.232---

Contemplative Living: Conversion of Life

Conversion of life is the third of the great vows in monastic life. What it means is that I turn toward Christ, away from anything that is not Christ, including the false illusions I have built up around myself. St. Benedict says it this way in the Rule:
To prefer nothing to the love of Christ.
RB 4:21

Most of us will not find ourselves taking this particular vow but we do have our own list of ways in which we can practice preferring nothing to the love of Christ. It's called the Baptismal Covenant. It begins with the Apostles Creed and moves on to the promises. For the purposes of our reflection I want to look at the first two promises:

Will you continue in the apostles' teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in the prayers?
I will, with God's help.
Will you persevere in resisting evil, and, whenever you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord?
I will with God's help.

All Saint's Day makes these promises more immediate and real. We witness baptisms and we participate in them by reaffirming our faith and re-consenting to the promises. There is a remarkable beauty and helpfulness in these two promises.

First, we are given a way to connect with God and with community. We promise to follow the example set before us by the apostles. The way forward is made clear. We are invited to continue in the basics of the faith. When we answer, I will, we know that we will only be able to do these things with God's help.

The second promise is no less than daily, perhaps hourly, conversion-turning around toward God.

Conversion of Life is the bow we make to the first notes of the music that God plays to start the dance. God invites-we respond.

Rather than thinking of the impossibility of preferring nothing to the love of Christ, perhaps it will help us to think upon the invitation to come closer to Christ. Always, God is extending the hand to take us to the dance floor-to lead us in the reel.

Do you want to dance?

Blessings,
Debra

Daily Morning Prayer

Daily Morning Prayer

This Week at St. James

Prayers Etc.

For those on our prayer list:

For Matt our Postulant, and Barbara.
For those who are deployed and their families.

In Closing:

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
 
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen
---attributed to St. Francis---

Pax et Bonum,
Loree+

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