2Samuel 7 Now when the king was settled in his house, and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies around him, 2 the king said to the prophet Nathan, ‘See now, I am living in a house of cedar, but the ark of God stays in a tent.’ 3 Nathan said to the king, ‘Go, do all that you have in mind; for the Lord is with you.’ 4 But that same night the word of the Lord came to Nathan: 5 Go and tell my servant David: Thus says the Lord: Are you the one to build me a house to live in? 6 I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent and a tabernacle. 7 Wherever I have moved about among all the people of Israel, did I ever speak a word with any of the tribal leaders * of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, ‘Why have you not built me a house of cedar?’ 8 Now therefore thus you shall say to my servant David: Thus says the Lord of hosts: I took you from the pasture, from ...

Blue has long been traditionally the color for the Blessed Virgin Mary. She wears blue. A blue robe. A blue shawl. Or a blue sash. It isn’t a rule, just a custom. But makes it seemly for church and clergy to vest in blue for Advent. And blue candles in the Advent wreath. Based on the first chapters of Matthew and Luke, the doctrine of the virgin birth has been a tenet of Christian belief almost from the beginning. Later enshrined in the Creeds, it’s a vital part of the faith for many. How and why it came to be and what it may mean to us makes for interesting discussion. Which we shall tackle in our final Bible study session this morning, and again in adult Sunday school on Advent 4, which is -- Mary Sunday.  Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women. And blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Come and see. TW+

The pews at Trinity, Apalachicola have been in the nave since about 1838. Originally with gates, they were designed for keeping worshipers awake, not for making them comfortable. And some of the seats have three boards, some have four, thus the discomfort varies. No matter though, because anyone wanting a more expansive pew for a more expansive posterior could always move to another pew -- the only risk being settling into a pew with wider cracks between the seat boards, cracks that stretch open as the worshiper settles in, then as the worshiper adjusts position, may close on the aforementioned posterior. It would be a lie to insist that it has never happened. During my time as the Vicar, 1984-1998, one parishioner came to my office one weekday morning with a request. His pew was one with only three boards in the seat: could a fourth board be added to his pew seat to make sitting more comfortable? I said, “Frank (maybe his real name, maybe not), Frank, there are plenty of empty pews on...

The Advent Road Advent 1 - Mark 13:24-37 Advent 2 - Mark 1:1-8 Advent 3 - John 1:6-8, 19-28 Advent 4 - Luke 1:26-38 Come to Sunday School this morning and discover. TW+

It’s possible to be touched surprisingly when needed, when least expected, happens now and then. One of my favorite emails is a daily meditation that the author “HMM” calls “Days of Praise” from the Institute for Creation Research. The author’s biblical views and mine seldom merge, but that is irrelevant, because he is bright, a scholar of Hebrew and Greek, everything he writes is scriptural, and he writes well. Sometimes he hits me right in the gut, says just what I needed to hear. From Job 13 and James 5, this morning’s meditation is “Absolute Trust.” In anguish, Job says, "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him ... . He also shall be my salvation ... .” And the writer of the letter of James reminds us of "the patience of Job," probably the greatest example of all "the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience." This morning, HMM concludes, “We can, like Job, know that He who created us dese...

There’s a car dealer ad on TV with children saying “It’s Jesuses birthday” and shouting “Happy Birthday, Jesus”and they delight my heart every time. The little kids are absolutely adorable and they look so happy, and they make me smile because their joy is contagious.  On the other side of the street, there has developed this time of year a low mentality of taking offense when someone says instead of “Merry Christmas” as though it’s unChristian or anti-Christian, even “satanic.” Happy Holidays  is neither the Sign of the Beast nor the sinister codespeak of the anti-Christ, but some Christians like to take offense. Watching for an opportunity to be offended if someone wishes “Happy Holidays” is a sickness of the XNRT.  WWJD? WWJD? J and the early Christians never even heard of Christmas, which long after His time we converted from the pagan Winter festival Saturnalia; but if J were to, J would respond graciously and lovingly TW+

In the Advent Wreath this coming Sunday, Advent 3, the pink candle will be lit.  There is popular ignorance that it is “Mary Sunday” and that the pink candle is for the Blessed Virgin Mary. Further, there is wicked humor that the pink candle is because, in spite of what the angel Gavri el said, Mary was still hoping for a girl. No.  It is not Mary Sunday and the pink candle is not for Mary, it comes from Roman Catholic tradition. The pink candle is because it is Gaudete Sunday. Latin for “Rejoice” in contrast to the penitential purple. Gaudete is the first word of the introit for Advent 3. Gaudete in Domino semper: iterum dico, gaudete, etc. "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice. ...”  The Introit is the entry psalm or Bible verse the clergy chant or say as they enter the church and move to the Altar to begin the Mass.  The Roman Catholic Church permits rose pink vestments instead of purple vestments to be worn on Gaudete Sunday, and the tone of Advent (...