The "Average Anglican"

For a while now, we have been hearing that the "average Anglican" is black, female and in her late teens or early twenties. A woman of great faith and a life of great hardship - yes, a woman who deserves our respect (and she probably deserves my two-bedroom condo for her family). After shaking off my annoyance with the terrible practice of "averaging" race and gender, I always come back to one thought.

When I was a young woman, the world was my oyster. Raised in the Washington, DC suburbs at the end of the Baby Boomer generation, I was well-educated, attractive, and knew which fork to use without thinking about it. Should I go back to grad school? When will I marry, how many children? I was traveling all over the country, learning new things, different music and food to experience...I think you get the picture.

Yes, I my ego might have been a wee bit big, but I quickly picked up that I had a lot to learn - and to enjoy the process. But one thing is certain: even though I was "average" for a woman raised Episcopalian on the East coast (there were many just like me), the Bishop of Washington and the Presiding Bishop didn't think the church should revolve around me, and certainly not the path of the entire Anglican communion. And there I was, living just a few miles away from the National Cathedral!

Yes, our "average Anglican" deserves our respect - and a decent place to live, a future for her children, and a place to worship without fear. Are Peter Akinola and Henry Orombi looking out for their future and their faith when they condemn my LGBT friends and neighbors? Is this hatred feeding, housing and educating their children? I wonder if Christian love and a giving attitude toward the home flock might be just the impetus needed to "compete" with Islam, and perhaps they should stay home and give it a try. And allow us the same respect for our societal concerns and norms that they purport to want for theirs.

Just some mid-week thoughts.

(p.s. does anyone want to organize a fund-raising BBQ for the Lambeth deficit? I make great sides but need someone to work the grill).

Is this the part where....?

Everyone will find a different Sunday blessing in this - may your Sabbath day be filled with God's love.
Lynn and Fred

Ah, just watch this...

(See Fred's post below - Let it Ring, for more info. Thanks, Fred. It's terrific.)

LET IT RING

I just saw the most outstanding commercial and I will not spoil it for everyone else so I will just point the the web site and say go read. The actual commercial is not there but the organization is there and can use some help. All I can say to pique everyone's interest is that I could not live without the one I love. If you can find the commercial please post it here so every one can see it. It is terrific!!!

"Let it ring"

Fred, is this what you wanted? :-)

Blueberries

In a USDA Human Nutrition Research Center laboratory, neuroscientists discovered that feeding blueberries to laboratory rats slowed age-related loss in their mental capacity, a finding that has important implications for humans.

Blueberry Crisp

4 cups fresh blueberries, rinsed and completely dried
1-1/2 cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour (set aside the extra tablespoon)
1-1/2 cups light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 stick (1/4 pound) unsalted butter, cut into pieces


Preheat oven to 350◦ F. Spread the blueberries in an 8x8x2” square baking dish. Sprinkle the 1 tablespoon of flour over the berries. Thoroughly blend the remaining flour, brown sugar and cinnamon; cut in the butter to make coarse crumbs. Sprinkle crumb mixture over berries. Bake 40-45 minutes, or until berry juice starts to bubble and the topping is light to medium brown. Best served slightly warm, or at room temperature if you don’t melt the vanilla ice cream on top. Warning – if you reheat this, the topping gets soggy; however, it is fine eaten cold from the pan the next day. I don't have any idea how those last two informational gems were discovered, just that they are true.

Enjoy your antioxidants. I think you will have more fun than the lab rats if you try this.

PETRA SKANDALOU

"When Jesus at a symbolic moment was establishing His great society, He chose for its corner stone neither the brilliant Paul nor the mystic John, but a shuffler, a snob, a coward - in word, a man. And upon this rock He has built His church, and the gates of hell have not prevailed against it. All the empires and the kingdoms have failed, because of this inherent and continual weakness, that they are founded by strong men and upon strong men. But this one thing, the historic Christian Church, was founded upon a weak man, and for this reason it is indestructible. For no chain is stronger than it's weakest link."
G. K. Chesterton

I am neither a Greek scholar nor am I a student of Church history, but I love Peter, the apostle. I love to read about him and his antics. And I truly love Peter the person because he is most like me or more correctly I am most like him.

Let's get the scholarly thing out of the way quickly. This pope thingy. AS far as I can tell, read that my interpretation of the "rock foundation naming convention" falls in line with some thinkers from around town, past and present. St. Augustine became caught up in a war of words with Rome. Augustine's interpretation of the scriptural passage the RC uses is taken to mean that the church was founded on Him whom Peter confessed, namely the Messiah. Peter, the name was taken from Petra and the Petra is Christ. Peter, is everyman -- all of us. The Church Jesus founded was founded on everyman. Peter, his real life person, represents all of us. The Stone Peter takes his name from the (Petra) is Christ. Just as Christians get their name from Christ and not the other way around. I will let you shcolars of Greek and whatever help me out on this. I wish to turn my attention slightly left of center.

For me, I would like to add to the discussion that Peter is my kind of guy. When he saw Jesus walking on the water he jumped out of the boat and practically ran to him until he looked down and said, "Oh - Oh!" He realized he was doing something that he could not ordinarily do and began to sink, calling out for help! Isn't that just like you and me? We get out there sometimes and we are doing stuff we do not and could not ordinarily do and then suddenly realize, "Oh-Oh" and begin to sink. We then end up calling on our Lord to help us out. And He does!

Or, better still, how many times have you been in a position where you are receiving some gift or some accolade or some help you really do not deserve. Peter, having Christ come up to him and wanting to wash his feet, and Peter rebelling against that saying Lord, you should not be doing this, then finally gushing forth with not only my feet but my head and my hands and my whole body! Jesus is both generous and patient with us.

And how many times have we had someone standing on a street corner asking for help and we turn the other way and move away. Not unlike the people around the fire in the courtyard that would come up to Peter and say, "Don't you know this man Jesus?" And Peter would fairly shout I have never seen Him before in my life!" Jesus is always there to forgive our sins, seen and unseen, done and left undone.

And finally, the corollary. Jesus, after the resurrection asking Peter, "Do you love me." How many times in the quiet of our hearts has Jesus said this to us. And our response, "Lord you know that I love you!" and Jesus says, "Feed my sheep." This is always a tough one because Jesus defines His sheep as those tax collectors, the sinners the wanderers, the strays, just about all of us. And feeding his sheep seems like such a huge task. But we must all find our own way and do just that. Jesus wants us to love and transform that love into action in this world.

Yep, Peter is my favorite. John is a wonder, Paul is a brilliant scholar, Judas, while I think about him a lot his persona is really too complex for me, the rest of the apostles are just an amorphous group, but I like Peter. Peter thinks like me, acts like me, is rash and impulsive and is quick to cut and run when the going gets tough but is also loving and caring and compassionate and represents me in all my failings but also in all my potential. Yes, Peter is a good choice to build a church upon, that is just one more way I realize that we are all in!

AN OPEN LETTER TO ARCHBISHOP PETER AKINOLA

To the Most Reverend Peter Akinola,

I heard reported on the news today that another two foreigners were taken prisoner/hostage in Nigeria. National Public Radio reported that with this hostage taking it brings to a total over 200 foreigners being held in Nigeria by "rebels". While you attend GAFCON and while you come to the United States and while you make speeches and write articles on the poor treatment of conservatives/orthodox in various countries and while you rail against LGBT people over 200 hostages are kept away from their families, friends, loved ones by rebels in your country. I am told, or rather I have read, that you are the most powerful single person in the country of Nigeria. This may be true since you travel on a diplomatic passport, or at least that was also reported in the press.

Why is it that you cannot secure these 200 persons freedom? Why is it that you, the most powerful person in Nigeria, are not working day and night to secure the release of over 200 persons being held in your country, against their will? Why is it that you can work to secure the "freedom" of Americans who feel they are held hostage by the Episcopal Church but go home to thier loved ones, enjoy the ability to take long walks and feel free to reject the rights of LGBT persons yet you cannot work to get these 200 hostages a passport to their homes?

Is it not possible that you might bring some sense of freedom to these rebels, at least enough to allow them to release their hostages and send home those poor unfortunate hostages back to their families? These people really, really fear for their real lives!

Thank you in advance for your generous offer to work to free the hostages in Nigeria.


Sincerely,

Fred Schwartz
Member, Episcopal Dicoese of San Joaquin