A Positively Poetic Priest

 Lets take three deep breaths together breathe in hold it for a second then let it all out again breathe in hold it for a second then let it all out one more time breathe in hold it for a second then let it all out Its biologically proven that we can listen and concentrate better after breathing intentionally. How many of you know the life stages of Danaus plexippus? which in Greek means "sleepy transformation" the stages are eggs, larva or caterpillar, pupa, what most know as the chrysalis, and then the adult butterfly. Monarchs, milkweed butterflies, or common tigers typically have around four generations each summer. The first three live around two weeks, each moving further north as they travel, the fourth, the winter generation, can live almost nine months and they are the ones who fly to Mexico. Butterflies are an Easter symbol, though they could be a year round Christian symbol the transformation from caterpillar to butterfly is radical but not so complete that butterf...

Let your continual mercy, O Lord, cleanse and defend your Church; and, because it cannot continue in safety without your help, protect and govern it always by your goodness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Proper 13 BCP 232) I have loved living in St. John's Rectory the last five years. However, I am not always thrilled about having to clean it. Eight bedrooms, two staircases, three bathrooms, lots of spaces for dust and bugs and random stuff to collect and make a mess. Cleaning can be a specific process. Sometimes I forget this fact and dust after I have cleaned the floors and then realize I got dust all over the floors again. Cleaning takes time and energy and attention to the details. The wood floors need the wood floor cleaner, not the kitchen vinyl floor cleaner. Thankfully though, I do feel happier after everything is clean and neat and smelling fresh.  The Collect for this coming Sunday uses...

Gracious Father, whose blessed Son Jesus Christ came down from heaven to be the true bread which gives life to the world: Evermore give us this bread, that he may live in us, and we in him; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (Fourth Sunday in Lent BCP 219) Bread has such an interesting history. It comes in so many different varieties. Scientifically it delivers to our bodies some of the nutrients and carbohydrates we need to survive. It is scientifically true as much as Biblically true that humans cannot live on bread alone. After only one month of a bread and water diet you'd begin to develop nutrient deficiencies that would be problematic. Variety and diversity are not only the spices of life, they are also very necessary for our survival.  The same is true when it comes to spiritual matters. Jesus may be the True Bread of Heaven, but without Scripture, community, and prayer, we humans are worse for wear. Our ability to thrive spir...

Almighty and everlasting God, increase in us the gifts of faith, hope, and charity; and, that we may obtain what you promise, make us love what you command; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Proper 25 BCP 235) Every prayer we pray is in some ways dangerous. Prayer always changes the world. Prayer changes the pray-er, the pray-ee, and the situation, even if we do not realize it. In that way, every time we pray, we are changing the world. For those fighting for the status quo, all our prayers are dangerous. This coming Sunday we will pray for God to increase in us the gifts of faith, hope, and charity. These are especially dangerous gifts in the power structure of the world, because every act of faith, hope, or charity changes the world and realigns its trajectory towards God's justice. Attached to the newsletter today you will find a PDF of a novena, a set of prayers for nine days, leading up to Elect...

"Oh good Lord! You are awesome!" "Oh good Lord, I pray..." "Oh good Lord." Full stop. I don't know about you, but this has mostly been my prayer life lately. Every sentence starts with "Oh good Lord," and every time the attitude is different. Sometimes weary, sometimes baffled, sometimes frustrated,  sometimes annoyed, sometimes joyful, sometimes grateful. The words, and sometimes the lack of words, are jumbled and confused, my desires, my needs, my hopes for our community, my concerns and worries for our town, all add up to a very hilly experience of life and prayer. Jesus on the other hand, seems to know exactly what he is saying  in the prayer we overhear in the Gospel passage from John today. Jesus is focused on relationship. His relationship with God, his followers relationships with God, and the ending completeness of all things in God. We hear from the Gospel passage much about Jesus' relationship with God. Jesus was with God befor...

When you go about your daily routine do you do it for yourself or do you do it in Jesus' name? I don't think most of us really actually think about it. We simply do what we feel like we need to do and get on with it. However, when we start our day with prayer, and make an intention to do things in Jesus' name our understanding and perspective on everything we do that day, is different. And pretty much always for the better. We are able to see through Jesus' eyes and heart we are able to respond with Jesus' compassion all of which far surpasses our own abilities. Its amazing that even Christians can forget to claim Jesus' name in their lives. We believe and do good works out of our belief and then we simply go through our day forgetting to acknowledge that Jesus is walking with us. During this time with the Diocesan Partnership, there is an online book study happening on Jim Wallis' book, Christ in Crisis. Which very much seems like the kind of title we need ...

I want you to picture in your mind our local drug dealer. Every town has one or two and by the way the local news talks about the drug crises we have more than one or two in Franklin. I want you to try to picture our local drug dealer, wandering down Buffalo Street, thinking about his business, when he stops and looks up at St. John's doors. For some reason, he decides to walk in and say a prayer. He says, Hey God, to you, I'm messed up. Forgive me, will ya? Also in the church at that time is one of our long time faithful regulars, praying. This long time member is giving thanks for something going really well in their life. Then Jesus walks in with a bunch of people and points to the two people praying. He says that the drug dealer is in better standing with God at that moment than the long time faithful member. What? Its a confusing and shocking and harsh parable. What can Jesus possibly mean? Interestingly, this parable only...

"My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore will I trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone." This is one of Thomas Merton's famous prayers, and an extremely useful one for daily life.  Though my favorite Thomas Merton prayer  is one about tulips.  One of the lines says, "Up with the revolution of tulips...