2007 Trinity Sunday

Today was Trinity Sunday. In most churches, the vestments and altar are decked in green, the color of both the growing and Trinity seasons. But, in our church the world was gold for our Feast of Title. The weather in Alpine was close to, if not, perfect. It was clear and 72°F when the service started and 76°F when we ended our post service meeting. It was also the First Sunday of the Month, or Free Teen Guitar Class Sunday, which meant Ashley Turner joined us, bringing our total attendees to 26.

For our second continuing Christian Education Class, Father Acker started on what it means to be a Christian and why we need to not only be a member of a church, but attend and participate regularly. This section of teaching will concentrate on four main areas:

ϖ What does it mean to be a Christian?
• What does it mean to be a Christian in a local church?
• Who are Anglicans and what do Anglicans believe?
• What does it mean to be a part of Alpine Anglican Church?

What does it mean to be a Christian?
We are imperfect creatures, made in God’s image, but imperfect nonetheless. Each of has gaps between who we are today and who we are called to become; between us and other people and between us and God.

The Bible calls the gaps sin.

All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23)

Oddly enough, most of us recognize these gaps, but rather than acknowledge them for what they are, we call them what we would like them to be. We often try to fill those gaps with other things like possessions or pleasure or power. Many times we just work harder. We think if we just keep at it and try harder, we’ll succeed.

Actually, God has told us what to do and how to do it. Being imperfectly lazy creatures, we oftentimes we decide to modify God’s rules. We obey the easy ones and ignore the hard ones. Other times, we just quit trying.  We give up working at it and walk away.

But the gaps still persist.

God gave the Jews the Law, the Law they could not follow. To restore our broken relationship, He sent His Son Jesus. Jews thought that everything depended on their own efforts and sacrifices. In Christianity there is a unique understanding among all the religions of the world that God comes to us, not the other direction. Even if we don’t believe in Him, God believes in us.

While we were yet sinners, God sent Christ to die for us. Romans 5:8

A word of caution: Many people think as long as they believe in something, and they are sincere, they will be saved.

Our salvation can be found in no one else, for there is no other name but Jesus, by which we must be saved. (Acts 4:12)

If I live a good life, I will be saved. Actually, if you live a perfect life you won’t need to be saved. But, good is not perfect. That is a hard concept for people to understand, particularly today. But, words have meaning and if you want to get into heaven, you need to be perfect.

God has a solution to your problem, He sent His Son, our Lord, as a propitiation for our sins, yours and mine.

It is by grace you are saved, through faith - and this is not your own doing - it is the gift of God - not by your own works, so that no one can boast.
(Ephesians 2:8-9)

It is not about us, it is about HIM.

Yet to all who received Him, to those who believe in His name, he gives the right to become children of God
(John 1:12)
 
How can I be certain?

Let the Holy Ghost, the Holy Spirit into your life and you will find a trust that God sent Jesus to die on the cross for your sins, all of them

If you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved.  
(Romans 10:9)

So God loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, to the end that all that believe in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16-17)

What more do you want?

By the way, until next week think about Ephesians 2:19 from the Living Bible which says: You are a member of God’s very own family, and you belong in God’s household, with every other Christian.

• God’s design for the church is to be like a family.
• God’s wants you to be an active participant in a church family
• A Christian without a church family is an orphan.

Free Teen Guitar Class
In addition to being Trinity Sunday and the Second Sunday before Father’s Day, it was also the first Sunday of the month. Each first Sunday of the month, Father Acker’s Free Teen Guitar Class provides the music for our service. Although we had most of the new sound system in place for the first time, we were even more organized than last month and the kids did a great job. It was obvious they had been practicing the songs a lot and the music went smoothly. We really enjoy singing to the guitars; for some reason, it encourages the congregation to really participate in singing the hymns. The guitarists sounded great and the new sound system let us hear it.

Jan Macauley read today’s Epistle, which came from the Revelation of Saint John the Divine, the Fourth Chapter, beginning at the First Verse. In one of the more readable portions of Revelations, there is a powerful description of the Lord’s Throne in Heaven. The various and sundry creatures surrounding the throne are constantly giving God praise and thanksgiving, a reminder to us of the commandment to pray and praise.

“After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter. And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald. And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold. And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God. And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four living creatures full of eyes before and behind. And the first was like a lion, and the second like a calf, and the third had a face as a man, and the fourth was like a flying eagle. And the four living creatures had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come. And when those living creatures give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever, the four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are, and were created.”

Today’s Gospel started in the Third Chapter of the Gospel according to St. John, beginning at the First Verse. Nicodemus, a Pharisee, came to see Jesus at night, fearing a loss of his position if he came to him by day. He said he knew God was with Jesus, because of the miracles he had performed. The Gospel starts, “There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: the same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit. Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be? Jesus an-swered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things? And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.”

Just like the street sign, there is but one way to heaven for mortals – ONE WAY.

Sermon - For the Love of God
Today is Trinity Sunday, it is also our Feast of Title, like every Sunday, it is a day set aside to celebrate the Love of God.

Not an event, but God making Himself known to us:

God, the One True God, the single Creator, Master and Ruler of the Universe. He who always was, is and always will be. I AM.

• Not a god of good & a god of evil—the Force & the Darkside

• Not a godess of mother earth or pyramid power

• Not everyone having their own god—themselves!

• One God, a Unity of persons, a single master of all.

Like CS Lewis’ description of earth as the Shadowlands, where life is only a dim version of God’s country, the Old Testament God is only a shadow of the God of Love revealed by our Lord and Savior.

In God is true love, in this Shadowland, we dimly see the love between:

Parent & Child nurture & trust
Friends common concern and delight
Husband and Wife two coming together as one flesh

The Holy Trinity, God in Three Persons, Blessed Trinity:

ϖ Jesus tells us He has come to His Father’s work;
ϖ God sends His Son to save our souls, “This is my beloved Son, listen to Him.”
ϖ The Holy Ghost comes to bring us both comfort and understanding of Jesus and God.

Each is about the other, a single unit making one. Only as they relate to one another do we see the fullness and reality of the one God.

Christians are defined by this belief:
            They say, “I believe in one God: the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost.”
            They are baptized in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost
 
Free Teen Guitar Class Winner
Each FTGC Sunday there is a drawing or lottery for a special computer or guitar oriented prize, no one can win a second prize until each person present has won one. Today, Alex Springer, after successfully guessing a number between one and one, won a 1Gb jump drive and a new set of strings for his electric guitar.
 
Birthdays and Anniversaries
Today we had no reported birthdays or anniversaries.
 
After Church Hospitality
Jan Macauley brought the goodies today. Your Beadle tried to convince everyone that they would become deathly ill if they ate even one of the peanut butter stars, which sadly no one believed. She also brought multicolored cookies, which were excellent, baby quiches, goldfish and lovely cherries. For some reason, she did not bring any of her customary deviled eggs, much to your Beadle’s disappointment.

Coffee was brewed and dispensed by barrista Don Patton for Tim’s House of Coffee. Father Acker made his customary low carb lemonade, which was much appreciated by your Beadle.

Travel
No reported travel.

Sick or in need of healing
Betty Cooke
Diane Chase
Muriel Pappin

Lona Walsh (Wanda Michaelis' mother) surgery has been put off.

Miney Farrell is doing well. She asks your prayers for Bertha Rose’s balance problems which are compounded by her blindness. Miney would also like to come to church at least once a month. So, if you live in, or pass by El Cajon, perhaps you would pick her up. For information on this opportunity to serve, talk to Father Acker.

Barbara Emrich wishes she had better mail service as she has to wait for Father Acker to bring her the Beadle’s Report.

Evelyn Hunt is is at home, but still not able to drive to see Gene who said, “No use complaining.”

Lorraine Winkles thinks she is having some improvement. She’s been down with this very painful version of chicken pox since Christmas.

Donna Dingwall is doing quite a bit better and is in fact on travel at present. Please keep her and her family in your prayers.

Back Door Lending Library
The Back Door Lending Library is happy to announce the availability of Amazing Grace books of several flavors, in addition, there are still several sets of the Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis, as well as some background books on the series. There are plenty of sets, so don’t be shy.

There are also Annotated Holy Communion Books. These books have the Prayer Book Holy Communion service on the left page and an explanation on the right page. They are a great way to learn about the service. Pick one up when you come in and use it for the service, if you like.

The Lending Library is a resource you need to use. Most of the books are short, understandable, but very powerful. Also, if you have any books you would like share, please bring them in.

Personal 1928 Books of Common Prayer
While not strictly part of the Front Door Lending Library, we have some personal 1928 Prayer Books. A church in Florida disposed of a nice quantity of personal hardback 1928 BCPs in excellent to new condition, which we were lucky enough to acquire. There are some on the Front Table. We have plenty, although we only put out a half dozen at a time. They are yours to take home as your very own. The only thing the parish asks is that if you ever go to the dark side, please return it. Otherwise, it is yours forever.

I heard green in the color for Ordinary Time, which is what we are in. What is it?
Ordinary Time is a season of the Christian liturgical calendar. The name corresponds to the Latin term Tempus per annum (literally "time through the year"). Ordinary Time comprises the two periods — one following Epiphany, the other following Pentecost — which do not fall under the "strong seasons" of Advent, Christmas, Lent, or Easter. The term Ordinary does not mean common or plain, but is derived from the term ordinal or "numbered." The weeks in the second portion of ordinary time are numbered after Trinity Sunday.

In the Anglican Church, Ordinary Time begins on the day after the Presentation of Christ in the Temple (Candlemas). Ordinary Time continues until Ash Wednesday (violet), which marks the beginning of the Season of Lent (violet). In the Church of England the first period of Ordinary Time is short — indeed it may be as short as a single day if Ash Wednesday falls on its earliest possible date of 4 February. Ordinary Time resumes on the Monday following Pentecost and continues through Saturday afternoon before the first Sunday of Advent, some five or six months later.

In the Church of England, "Sundays after Trinity", are the second period of Ordinary Time and are numbered until the final four, which are termed "Sundays before Advent". The total number of Sundays varies according to the date of Easter and can number anything from 18 to 23. When there are 23, the Collect and Post-Communion for the 22nd Sunday are taken from the provision for the Third Sunday before Lent.

Feasts that pre-empt Ordinary Time
In addition, certain solemnities and feasts that fall during Ordinary Time will pre-empt numbered Sundays in the series when the observance in question falls on a Sunday.

Question that only you can ask
What would you like to know about our history, what we believe, what we do or how we operate? Father Acker is looking for material for the Catechism class and the Beadle is looking for Thought for the Day material. Help us help you. Please send your question to the Beadle so we all can get an answer. Just because you don’t know the answer to your question doesn’t mean you are the only one who doesn’t know. But, if you don’t ask, no one will know.

Bumper or Window Stickers
The church’s stickers are finally in. You can get them from the front door table or the Lending Library table, or ask Father Acker or the Beadle. If you are a long distance reader, you can request one from Father Acker or the Beadle.

Church Patches
The parish patches are in. They are embroidered, four inch and round. They are available either Velcro backed or plain. The plain are designed to be sewn on, the Velcro backed are designed to be stuck to furry Velcro patches sewn to the garment or whatever.

Opportunity to help the parish
The Vestry identified items that the parish now needs that were not in this year’s budget:

Trailer – Our parish is now the happy owner of a single axle 6X10 covered utility trailer with a side door. We will be putting it into service very quickly and hope to have the interior completed by the end of summer. We also are looking forward to getting out logo on the outside for advertising. If you would like to donate, you can write a check, or just add a bit to your normal contribution and put a note in the memo area.

Signs – Our Sunday morning signs have become quite worn. We are looking to get a set of new signs to match our bumper sticker and advertisements in the Alpine Sun, with snap on lower panels for times and special announcements. We are looking for people to donate towards that end. If you would like to donate, you can write a check, or just add a bit to your normal contribution and put a note in the memo area.

Advertisement – If you pick up the Alpine Sun, you will find a half page advertisement; at the suggestion and with the financial support of Muriel Pappin and a few others, we have committed to two months advertising to see if it has any positive effect. The advertisement follows the general layout of our bumper sticker and patches for “brand recognition.” If you would like to donate, you can write a check, or just add a bit to your normal contribution and put a note in the memo area.

Forward In Faith North America Resolution
Our parish belongs to Forward In Faith North America, one of the leading voices of orthodox Anglicanism in this continent.

Background
The World Wide Anglican Churches are looking for a single contact in the United States of America. As the Church of England expanded around the globe, it did so not as the “Church of England”, but rather as the Anglican Church with national churches in each nation.

When the United States formed, the Church of England then operating in the country re-formed as the Protestant Episcopal Church of the United States. Continuing the model of the Church of England, each country where this form of Christianity spread formed its own national church, each under the direction and leadership of a single bishop or primate. Until recently, all the national churches looked to the Archbishop of Canterbury as the symbolic head of the worldwide church. Unlike the Roman Catholic Church, the Archbishop of Canterbury is not the monarch of the church, nor does anyone think he is infallible. All of the national churches form the Anglican Communion, with, in theory, all subscribing to the same Articles of Religion found in the 1928 Book of Common Prayer and its predecessors.

As the church known as the Protestant Episcopal Church of the United States of America (PECUSA) succumbed to heresy and apostasy, it morphed into the Episcopal Church of the United States of America (ECUSA) and now The Episcopal Church (TEC). Over the past 30 years the now TEC has become less and less Bible oriented; its theology can no longer be found in the Bible. As the various dioceses elected apostates as bishops, membership dropped. With the election of a practicing homosexual adulterer as a bishop and the election of a woman who cannot bring herself to refer to Jesus as the Son of God, the one time important church has dropped to less than ten percent of its former size.

Even the Primates are beginning to recognize that not only is the TEC not an Anglican Church, it is not a Christian Church, nor is it even a Church of the One True God.

The Primates are asking to deal with one entity in the United States of America. They seem to be confused by the myriad of Anglican churches in this country. They fail to understand that the myriad exists because of a lack of leadership by the Bishops of the PECUSA – ECUSA – TEC. With bishops leading the church to hell, valuing collegiality over God’s Word, the people began to see the problem. Over time many individuals and in a few cases congregations have left the PECUSA/ECUSA/TEC and formed new churches where they could practice their religion without fear of apostasy. Thus, the split was gradual and diverse.

The new churches are known as the continuing church. The continuing church is comprised of many splinter groups. They are often derided for not being willing to come together. Those from whom the derision arises actually mean not willing to compromise their principles and come to the other side. Most of the continuing churches saw what compromise brought and who brought it: bishops, bishops wearing purple shirts and sporting spade tipped tails, gutless bishops who preferred the collegiality of their exclusive club of bishops to following the clear Word of God. Lest we blame the event wholly on the collegiality of the American bishops, let it be recognized the Global Primates have yet to take a concrete stand on the heresy of TEC. They continually write almost incomprehensible letters to the TEC threatening action of indeterminate nature at an indeterminate time in the future.

There are differences in approaches, not so much in theology, but certainly approaches. No one should compromise, yet we should not let our differences override our natural ties through our allegiance to God, His Son, the Holy Ghost and our Anglican form of religion.

The time to act is now. We need a unified Anglican Church of the United States of America and we need it right now. Not five years from now, or even next year. NOW.

The solution is to act on what we can agree on and act now. We need to maintain our uniqueness. Yet, to have an effective voice in the Anglican Communion there needs to be one voice for the United States’ Anglican Churches.

In that spirit, our congregation has put forth a resolution for adoption by Forward In Faith North America at their upcoming meeting. Father Acker will be speaking to this resolution at Assembly as a delegate of our parish:

Resolution to form the
Anglican Province of the United States of America

Whereas, the members of Forward In Faith North America have an expectation that action be taken in substance and, by September 30, 2007, to form the Anglican Province of the United States of America,

Whereas, the members of Forward In Faith North America recognize that the organizational structures of the partner organizations of the Common Cause Roundtable provide cohesive structure to their congregations and are serving many of their immediate needs,

Whereas, the members of Forward In Faith North America do not expect a fully developed ecclesial structure as a prerequisite for a new orthodox Anglican province,

Whereas, the members of Forward In Faith North America expect Forward In Faith North America to take immediate action to present to the primates a viable structure to establish of a new orthodox Anglican province,

Therefore, be it resolved that, Forward In Faith North America, calls upon the member organizations of the Common Cause Roundtable take the following actions prior to September 30, 2007:

1. Hold a convention of the representatives from each Common Cause Partner (a bishop, a priest, and a lay representative elected by the partner organization) to conduct the necessary organizational tasks to form a federal structure of the partner organizations to work together in unity (see the items 2-4).
2. Elect a Bishop Moderator from the representatives who will act as the chairman for a 4 year term. (Limited to one term and sequential Moderators must be from a different partner organization than his predecessor.)
3. Affirmation of a theological statement or covenant for membership of partner organizations.
4. The Moderator shall approach a primate to present this province for recognition by the Primates.

Submitted: Alpine Anglican Church of the Blessed Trinity, Alpine CA
Certified: Janet Macauley, Clerk of the Vestry
Date: June 3, 2007


Next Sunday
Next Sunday is the First Sunday after Trinity, the long and lovely Green Season. We expect the Continuing Education Class will continue on track as we learn what it takes and what it gives to be a Christian in a local church. Perhaps the sermon will interface with that and maybe tie the propers in. For sure? No and unless you come to the service, you will have to wait until you read the Beadle’s Report to find out.

This will be a great Sunday, do not miss it.

See you next week on Sunday!


Father Acker posts a .pdf version of the current Beadle’s Report on the church website:

http://alpineanglican.com/BeadleReports.htm

An alternative version of the Beadle’s Report without photographs is available at:

http://web.mac.com/thebeadle/iWeb/BeadleBlog/Blog/Blog.html

All back issues of the Beadle’s Reports are available on request from:

thebeadle@mac.com