Sermon: Wilfred Thomason Grenfell

 

Sermon for October 9, 2014 ~ 11:00 HE I

Feast Day of Wilfred Thomason Grenfell,

Medical Missionary

St. Philip’s In The Hills Parish, Tucson, AZ

Thursday, Holy Eucharist Rite I

The Rev. Vicki K. Hesse

For online access to the readings click here

I speak to you in the name of One God:

Creator, Christ and Holy Spirit. Amen

Today is the feast day of Wilfred Thomason Grenfell.

What do you know about this missionary?

We hear that he was

·        Born in Cheshire, England in 1865

·         Studied medicine

·         Met in England the evangelist Dwight L. Moody

o   Known for Moody Bible Institute and great evangelist of the 19^th century.

·        After earning his medical qualifications, joined the “Royal National Mission to Deep Sea Fisherman” as a medical missionary.

·        1892 went to Labrador – coast of Newfoundland

·        Built there the first hospital, few boarding schools, hospital ships, & clothing distribution centers

·        1912 “Int’l Grenfell Assoc” to support his work

·        Died 1940 in Vermont

As we heard from 1 Corinthians:

^“4Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit;

⁵and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord;

⁶and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone.

à⁷To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.”

God blessed Grenfell with gifts, services, and activities

that he used for the common good.

Grenfell invites us, today, to consider our gifts, services and activities…

think of the gifts that God has given you…(handout)

How are you using our gifts for the common good?

~.~.~

As I read Grenfell’s auto-biography, this paragraph described Grenfell’s motivation:

“In 1891 … Lord Southborough…[discussed] service among the fishermen of the northwest Atlantic, and [he asked…]

“Would I consider crossing the Atlantic in one of our small sailing vessels, and make an inquiry into the problem?

“Some … friends have thought that my…decision to go was made under “strong religious excitement,”

and in response to some “deep-seated conviction”

that material sacrifices or physical discomforts commended one to God.

“I must, however, disclaim all such lofty motives.

I have always believed that the Good Samaritan

went across the road to the wounded man

just because he wanted to.

I do not believe that he felt

any sacrifice or fear in the matter.

“If he did, I know very well that I did not.

On the contrary,

there is everything about such a venture

to attract my type of mind,

and making preparations for the long voyage

was an unmitigated delight.[1]”

So we have this man who was so gifted

and offered these gifts for the common good –

but it seems that his “motivations”

were not necessarily spiritual nor religious.

Rabbi Abraham Heschel once wrote that

“the act teaches you the meaning of the act.”

He said, “I don't care why you're doing the good deed. Do the good deed.”

And the example he gave was this:

a musician may be playing a concert

to earn a lot of money.

But if when he’s playing the concert

he’s concentrating on all of the money

he’s going to make, he’s going to play a lousy concert.

While he’s playing the concert,

he has to be in the moment.

He has to be concentrated on the music.

And if he’s concentrated on the music, he’ll play well.

Rabbi Heschel would say,

“Don’t worry about it, forget about it.

I don’t care why you’re doing it.

Just do it, it doesn’t matter;

if you do it with your whole heart,

it will purify your motive.”[2]

The Gospel for today offers this water walking story:

⁴⁹But when they saw him walking on the sea, they thought it was a ghost and cried out;

⁵⁰for they all saw him and were terrified.

But immediately he spoke to them and said, “Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.”

⁵¹Then he got into the boat with them and the wind ceased.

I think this gospel text was selected

for Grenfell’s commemoration

not only for the obvious “boat” reference

but for the good news that

Jesus got into the boat with the disciples,

just as Grenfell got into the life in Labrador.

When we offer our gifts for the common good,

Jesus says, Do Not Be Afraid.

When we offer our gifts for the common good,

Jesus affirms our gifts

and strengthens them even more.

When we offer our gifts for the common good,

Jesus gets in the boat with us,

And that adverse wind ceases.

So for today, may Grenfell inspire you to simply

          Do the deed

And recognize Jesus’ presence in your life.

Amen

---

[1] Autobiography can be read at http://www.gutenberg.org/files/22372/22372-h/22372-h.htm

[2] From On Being Adele Diamond interview: http://onbeing.org/program/adele-diamond-the-science-of-attention/transcript/6694#main_content cited on October 2, 2014

Sermon: St. Michael and All Angels

 

Sermon for St. Michael and All Angels

St. Philip’s In The Hills Parish, Tucson, AZ

The Rev. Vicki K. Hesse, 

Healing Service, Tuesday September 30, 2014

Lectionary readings for the day, click here.

Open our lips, O Lord,

that our mouths might proclaim your praise. Amen.

Today we commemorate Michaelmas:

the Feast Day of St. Michael and All Angels. 

The word “angel” means, literally, a messenger. 

Messengers can be visible or invisible, human or non-human. 

We gather today to seek healing –

for ourselves and our family

and for many people who seek God’s love,

We gather today to recognize those

healthful spirits that are

depicted in Christian art

·        with wings to represent their capacity to freely through space,

·        with swords to represent their strength,

·        with bright vestments or halos to represent their dazzle.

Angels serve in two main ways:

1^st as messengers who serve and praise God and

2^nd as signs of God’s power and will.

See, angels reveal God’s grace

in unexpected times and places.

And Michael is the penultimate messenger who “wards off evil and delivers peace at the end of this life’s mortal struggle.”[1]

So I wonder, who are the angels in your life

        Who may have “warded off evil” or simply

        Delivered peace to you in your mortal struggle?

Who are the angels who have, in your past,

who have evoked in you Jacob’s response,

“Surely God is in this place!”

*wait and discuss*

------------------------------------------

Today’s gospel is from the “call” story of

Philip, Andrew, Peter and Nathanael –

A story in which Jesus invokes angels that

draw us into the mystery

at the heart of Christianity –

that of the simultaneous humanity

and divinity of Jesus.

When Jesus sees Nathanael across the way,

under his breath, Jesus says,

“here is truly an Israelite

in whom there is no deceit.”

Or, in many translations, no “guile” –

no cunning, no craftiness, no slyness. 

Jesus sees only the good in Nathanael.

And, Jesus sees only the good in us. 

But, Nathanael wears his

mistrust, doubt and wariness,

like a protective vest;

“Where did you get to know me?”

(sounds like a human response to me!)

Jesus replies,

“I saw you under the fig tree.” 

Jesus “saw” him even before Philip called him. 

Jesus really “saw” him.

And Jesus sees us, loves us and calls us,

even before we arrived here in this sanctuary.

That’s pretty surprising.  Have you ever had someone introduce themselves to you by saying, “I heard about you from…” or

“Aren’t you the one who lives next door to…”?

Well, Jesus’ remark

surprises even Nathanael,

which is why he responds with

that wild profusion of messianic titles,

“You are the Son of God! 

You are the King of Israel!”

echoing Jacob’s comment,

“Surely God is in this place!”

Jesus says something surprising to us, too:

That the mystery and sureness of God’s love

Sometimes arrives on the wings of angels.

I think that sometimes it is easier

to imagine certain people in my life as angels. 

As messengers.  As gifts of love.

Who are those people in your life now?

*wait and discuss*

------------------------------------------

Jesus invites Nathanael – and us, to go deeper –

to go beyond a “belief”

and to see greater things than these…

to imagine the heavens opening

and the angels of God

ascending and descending…

We can’t help but make a connection

between this image of angels

ascending and descending

and Jacob’s vision of

the ladder of angels at Bethel

Jesus reveals himself as the ultimate ladder

stretching between heaven and earth,

with angels ascending and descending.

Jesus connects the finite and infinite, time and eternity. 

The angels are messengers of God’s love,

Invoked at every Eucharistic feast:

“Therefore we praise you,

joining our voices with

Angels and Archangels

and with all the company of heaven,

who forever sing this hymn

to proclaim the glory of your Name”

With all the angels who are present

in the Holy Communion, every time,

we are all

utterly transformed by the encounter. 

So today, how is Michael and all the angels –

past, present, and yet to come,

inviting you to find healing and wholeness?

Today’s good news is that

in every single moment,

God and God’s angels are present…

Today, the angels reveal God’s grace

in unexpected times and places. 

Today, God invites us to recognize

all the many angels

who accompany us

on our life journey towards Love.

Amen

---

[1] Holy Women, Holy Men, p. 612