Friday, November 21, 2008

Thank the Christians

Do you enjoy having a Thanksgiving Day family gathering, complete with a turkey dinner? Thank the Jews and Christians; it is their custom of dedicating a day of rest for giving thanks that you are enjoying.

Do you like to have parties with family and friends while exchanging presents at Christmas? Do you benefit at all from the significant influx of revenue into the economy each year? Thank the Christians as Christmas is one of their primary holidays that you are celebrating.

Do you like to have Santa Claus hear the children’s wishes and see the merry old soul bestow gifts? Thank the Christians because you are borrowing their remembrance of old Saint Nicklaus. He was a beloved Bishop who famously cared for the needy people of his diocese in Myra (in modern day Turkey).

Do you enjoy reading books? Thank the Christians, they invented books.

Do you like being able to go to a hospital for medical treatment when you or your child is ill? Thank the Christians; they started hospitals as we know them today.

Do you like having an education, being able to read, write, do math and study the liberal arts in an academic setting? Thank the Christians; they developed the academic system that you matriculated through.

Do you like to listen to music or play a musical instrument? Most classical and standard musical theory was developed through the history of the Church; thank the Christians.

Do you think it is a good thing for abandoned and orphaned children to be adopted by loving families? Then you agree with the Christians of the Roman era who rescued children who had been purposely abandoned to die of exposure. The Christians found caring homes for them. Thank the Christians for starting adoption & family counseling agencies.

Do you wish the homeless had shelters and warm meals on cold nights? Thank the Christians; they operate most of the shelters.

Do you think the hungry should have a place to get food, even if they can’t pay? Thank the Christians; they are feeding the poor hungry people around the world at this very moment.

Do you like to watch little children hunt for Easter eggs and beam with delight upon discovering their Easter baskets? Thank the Christians; you are celebrating their most important holiday.

Do you like to send and receive notes of friendship and affection or even chocolates on Valentine’s Day? Thank the Christians; this day remembers and celebrates the ancient priest, Saint Valentinus, who died aiding persecuted Christians and officiating their marriages.

Do you like to eat corned beef and cabbage and drink green beer, with a shamrock on you lapel while watching a parade of heart stirring Bagpipes and Drums every March seventeenth? Thank the Christians from Ireland; you are celebrating the holiday that remembers Saint Patrick who brought Christianity to the Celts and founded the Celtic Church in Ireland.

Do you think that animals should be cared for with love and respect? Thank Saint Francis and the Christians following his ideals, which cared for and blessed the animals. He even featured them in the first nativity scene of the middle ages - he honored them and demonstrated their importance by portraying them next to the manger of the Christ Child.

Do you prefer to worship in the church of your choosing or even not all? Thank the Christians who formed the United States of America upon the principle that people have the inalienable right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; where men and women are free to assemble as they desire for religious, political or social purposes.

Do you like to speak your mind openly among friends, publicly and in the media? The first amendment right which protects your freedom to choose a religion or decline membership in a religion is the same one that allows you to spout off your point of view. While you are using your right to speak up and speak out regarding any issue you desire; don’t forget to thank the Christians.

Blessings+
Father Daniel

Saturday, November 8, 2008

Salt of the earth

“Apart from the multitude of people with whom you live amongst and see every day, there is also another group of people who live within the multitude….Among the many who live a common life, there are a few whose life consists of little more than seeking the Lord every minute. That in itself brings them rejuvenation and an angelic sweetness. Their life is full of expectation and constant struggle. However, they go on with a sense of, as it called, ‘joyful mourning’. These people, however, remain unknown. If they were to reveal their particular way of thinking to the many, they would be found strange and would be ridiculed, so they keep it to themselves.” St. Nektarios of Aegina 1846-1920 (p 182 Saint Nektarios: The Saint of Our Century, by Sotos Chondropoulos 1997, 2004)


Blessings+
Father Daniel

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

What if you were locked in a closet...

What if you were locked in a closet and the people outside were trying to decide whether or not to kill you.

Should I: A) walk away and not get involved, because it is none of my business? B) stand off and see who is right and who is wrong? C) get involved, speak out on your behalf, and call for help?

...That's why I am pro-life! These are the casualties from yesterday's electoral process. There are lots of little people hidden away and at risk of being killed. The baby holocaust continues, please pray, please speak out with God's love.

"We elected the most pro-abortion president ever to sit in the White House. The State of Washington legalized assisted suicide. Michigan legalized unrestricted destruction of human embryos for research purposes. California said no to requiring that minors to obtain parental consent for an abortion. Colorado failed to pass an amendment affirming that life begins at conception. South Dakota failed for the second time to ban most abortions in the state. "
Lutherans for Life 11/5/2008

As we continue to speak out for the sanctity of life, let us pray for the women who are at risk of making the worst decision of their lives. Let us also pray for the mothers who aborted their children, now living with regret and sorrow that they may experience the joy of God's love and forgiveness in Christ Jesus.
Blessings+
Father Daniel

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Orate et Vigilate. Watch and pray.

The other day I had a joyful E-Mail dialog, regarding prayer, with a Brother in Christ via an E-Mail group in which I participate. I responded with the intent to encourage him to continue praying and not to be side tracked by nay-sayers. Since it was an open interaction and thus not a confidential communication, I can share with you most of the discourse as a meditation for your spiritual enrichment.


Fr. Coffey,
You're one of those strange fellows that believes prayer actually works. ;-) God bless you for it. Whenever I've posted prayer requests…, it's always a great comfort to know that Fr. Coffey is praying for me. By name.
In Christ,
(Signed)

My Brother,
Thank you for your encouraging word. Yes, I do believe that our good and gracious Lord does indeed hear our prayers. I have seen him answer prayers in many, many ways. In fact daily - Thanks be to God! I cannot but fervently believe he hears our prayers and answers those prayers. Sometimes they are "Yes" in the way I had hoped and sometimes they are "Yes" in ways I did not expect. Sometimes the answer is silence; even this apparent silence is an answer. I have gotten to the point where I mostly (but NOT strictly) pray the Our Father, the Psalms and practice the Jesus Prayer i.e. "Lord Jesus Christ Son of God have mercy on __(name)_ / on me a sinner." I know that the Lord God is good and gracious, and that His perfect will is rooted in His infinite love. When I call upon my dear Heavenly Father for His attention and assistance what more need I say? When my child has trouble with her toys she calls to me, "Daaaaddy." I look and see the trouble and I am moved to correct the problem. Sometimes I fix it right away and sometimes it is better for her that I show her how she is to fix it. Other times, I oversee the situation and encourage her to keep trying because, in spite of how she feels, she is on the right track. If I, an evil sinner most worthy of death and eternity in hell, tend to my daughters in such loving paternal fashion; how much more does our Heavenly Father tend to our cries for mercy and assistance! Call out to him He hears and answers your prayer. Orate et vigilate. Watch and Pray.
Blessings+
Father Daniel

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

IDEA!! This takes NO Money and Takes NO Time.

I have noticed a significant increase in the reports of persecution of Christians and I am deeply troubled. We must pray for our Brothers and Sisters in Christ Jesus. This last Sunday morning, a child in the Divine Service was crying. It dawned on me that this would serve as a good reminder in parishes. Here is the plan: Without disrupting the service, as the parents comfort and tend to the needs of the child, the congregation members can silently implore our Lord Jesus to comfort His persecuted Church. People are already distracted by the crying / fussing, so this is a good method to refocus mental attention back to the service. The Pastor and Liturgist need not change what they are doing, simply proceed as usual. Let the voice of that little one who is so precious to our Lord Jesus be the proxy voice in our parish for the imprisoned, persecuted, and suffering Christians. Maybe the Pastor could announce this to the congregation and make note of it in the bulletins. For information and resources on the issue of modern day persecution of Christians, click these links below; and remember to pray daily for our Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Blessings+
Father Daniel

The Voice of the Martyrshttp://www.persecution.com/

Focus on Persecution http://www.focusonpersecution.com/

International Christian Concern http://www.persecution.org/

Open Doors http://www.odusa.org/

Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service http://www.lirs.org/

Lutheran World Relief http://www.lwr.org/

The U S Department of State, International Religious Freedom http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/

Saturday, October 4, 2008

St Francis of Assisi Day


Jan Van Eyck

Saint Francis of Assisi Receiving the Stigmata c. 1438-40Oil on vellum on panel

Philadelphia Museum of Art


Saint Francis of Assisi died at sunset on October 3, 1226 AD. (As the Judeo-Christian day starts at sunset, he is thus remembered on October 4th.) St Francis, who is one of the most revered men of God in Church history, is most remembered for his steadfast yet humble dedication to the Gospel of Christ Jesus. By the grace of God he not only reformed the thirteenth century church, he revitalized it with the Gospel. Within two months from now when the Christmass decorations start going up, look down and consider the nativity scene (live or statuary) and you will see one way that St Francis positively influenced the church. He set up the first nativity scene as a meditation on the blessed birth of our Lord Jesus. Its popularity has spread world wide and his tradition has lasted nearly 800 years. Most often he is pictured with animals and birds gathered around him and even landing on his shoulders. He lived in peaceful harmony with them, as evidenced by his ability to tame a wild wolf that terrorized a village. He proclaimed the love of God to the birds, pointing out that their loving God blessed them with special faculties to fly and they should thus be thankful and sing his praises. He once set free fish in a basket that were bound for market. He was not a total vegetarian though, as he did cook and eat, with thanksgiving, a pheasant that had been killed by a hunter and presented to him as a gift. His evangelical love for the Muslims inspired him to venture to the Middle East in an attempt to present to them the Gospel. When facing martyrdom he was willing to walk into a roaring fire if the Sultan’s religious clerics would kindly accompany him to demonstrate which god is the true God. The Sultan’s clerics begged off and St Francis was allowed to return to Italy. St Francis and his followers were well known for there joyfulness and exclamatory praises of Almighty God our Creator and Redeemer. St Francis is always pictured with wounds resembling the nail marks of Christ’s hands and feet. This is known as the stigmata. One day toward the end of his life, while in prayer he had a vision of an angel and Christ crucified from which he too felt the pains of crucifixion. When coming to himself he had in his hands and feet wounds like unto Christ Jesus. Some three hundred and fifty years later, St Francis was not absent from the minds and lips of the Lutheran Reformers. The official stance of the Lutheran Church is stated in Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Article XXVII, paragraph 21, 22.
21] Secondly. Obedience, poverty, and celibacy, provided the latter is not impure, are, as exercises, adiaphora [in which we are not to look for either sin or righteousness]. And for this reason the saints can use these without impiety, just as Bernard, Francis, and other holy men used them. And they used them on account of bodily advantage, that they might have more leisure to teach and to perform other godly offices, and not that the works themselves are, by themselves, works that justify or merit eternal life. Finally, they belong to the class of which Paul says, 1 Tim. 4, 8: Bodily exercise 22] profiteth little. And it is credible that in some places there are also at present good men, engaged in the ministry of the Word, who use these observances without wicked opinions [without hypocrisy and with the understanding that they do not regard their monasticism as holiness]. [1]
The Lutheran Reformers favorably spoke of St Francis in the two other citations in the Book of Concord: Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Article IV, paragraph 211; Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Article XXIV, paragraph 7. Note well that the Lutheran Reformers spoke well of St Francis in all references to him, his work and his life. Click the link below for a meditation of St Francis of Assisi in the form of a prayer to his dearly beloved heavenly Father.


Blessings+
Father Daniel


[1]Lutheran Church. Missouri Synod: Concordia Triglotta - English : The Symbolic Books of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. electronic ed. Milwaukee WI : Northwestern Publishing House, 1997, S. 427

Saturday, August 16, 2008

The Prayer of Saint Francis Before the Cross


Most High and Glorious God,
Enlighten the darkness of my heart.
Give me right faith, certain hope, and perfect love.
Grant me insight and wisdom, so that I might always discern
Your holy and true will.
Amen+