Here’s just a sampling of the activities for kids at Messiah:

Sunday School
Vacation Bible School
Christmas Pageant

Here is just a sampling of the activities for adults:

Valentines Day Dinner
Messiah Dinner Groups
Christmas Charity Auction
Memorial Day Church Picnic
Adult Forum
Women’s Advent Tea (and Men’s Anti-tea)
Harvest Festival
Adult Choir
Praise Band and Choir

Here is just a sampling of the activities for teens:

Senior Youth Group — 1st and 3rd Sundays 11:30 – 2:00
Middle School Youth Group — 1st and 3rd Sundays 11:30 – 2:00
Hammonasset Youth Gathering, The Zone — Youth Retreats
Hampshire Hills Lock-in
Praise Band and Choir
Confirmation and Sunday School
Camp Calument — Lutheran summer camp

Lauren Cordts is in the Lutheran magazine, pictured making cotton candy at our booth on the 4th of July. She also is on the Lutheran website. SWEET!

Pastor Tom’s article “Preaching from a Manuscript is not Heresy” can be found on Luther Seminary’s workingpreacher.org which is an acclaimed site for pastors as they prepare to preach the word. Pastor is also working on a bible study on 1 Peter that will be released in early 2011 by the ELCA publishing house Augsburg Fortress.

Pentecost 13 C   8/22/10

Luke 13:10-17

Grace and peace from our Father in heaven, and from our Lord and savior Jesus Christ.

They say the memory’s the second thing to go. Now if I could only remember the first thing. And who this “they” are.

My memory has never been good in some respects, but with age—it’s getting a bit spotty. And that’s rough for me as a pastor. Cause people expect me to remember names and dates and meetings and other things—anniversaries. I tell them I have to focus on the “here-after.” You know what the hereafter is, right? It’s when I need something from Joanne, so I get up to go from my office to hers. A scant twenty feet or so. But enough to forget what it was I wanted. That’s life in the hereafter—I no longer know what I’m here after!

Memory. In the Harry Potter books, memories take on the form of silvery strands of glowing spun recollections. In my estimation, memory and memories are more like droplets of mercury. They’re a roly-poly, slippery, inherently dangerous, but way cool. Remembering grounds who we are, and yet it is elusive and ever-failing. Once you think you have it, it’s gone!

An eighty year old man and his wife were having problems remembering things, so they decided to go to their doctor to make sure nothing was wrong. After checking the couple out, the doctor told them that they were physically okay but might want to start writing things down, making notes to help them remember things.

Later that night while watching TV, the old man got up from his chair and his wife asked, “Where are you going?”

He replied, “To the kitchen.”

She asked, “Will you get me a bowl of ice cream?”

“Sure.”

Then his wife asked him, “Don’t you think you should write it down so you can remember it?”

“No, I can remember that.”

“Well, I also would like some strawberries on top. You had better write that down cause I know you’ll forget that,” his wife said.

“I can remember that, you want a bowl of ice cream with strawberries.”

She replied, “Well, I also would like whipped cream on top. I know you will forget that. Write it down.”

With irritation in his voice, he said, “I don’t need to write it down, I can remember that.” He went into the kitchen.

After about 20 minutes, he returned from the kitchen and handed her a plate of bacon and eggs.

She stared at the plate for a moment and said, “You forgot my toast.”

Listening to today’s gospel you might have thought it was about a healing. And it was, and it wasn’t. Hearing today’s story from Luke, you might have deduced it was all about those religious leaders in Jesus’ day and their overly strict interpretation of the law. And again, it was about that—and it wasn’t.

What this passage is about is memory. It’s about remembering. Not remembering the strawberries for the ice cream. Remembering the Sabbath day. The third commandment. Write it down—oh, wait—God already has. In stone. Remember the Sabbath day, and keep it holy. That’s what this gospel story is about.

But in case you think that the main point of the passage is that you don’t have to keep the Sabbath if it’s a healing, you’re only getting half the impact of this provocative encounter. Healing can indeed occur on a Sabbath day. Not because human need supersedes God’s Law. But because it fulfills God’s law. Jesus’ healing of this woman on the Sabbath day is not an exception—it is the law being carried out. Healing is remembering the Sabbath day.

Now, obviously, there’s a good bit of difference in the Christian Sabbath and the Jewish Shabbat. And there’s a good bit more to remembering the Sabbath day than what first comes to mind. Leisure activities. Laying on the beach or in a hammock. No work. That’s part of it, as the meaning of the Hebrew word Shabbat, indicates. It means “to cease, to end, or to rest.” A day of rest was a novel thing back in biblical times—especially when the people of Israel were in captivity. A day of rest in our society is also something we can’t seem to totally embrace, either. We either go ahead and work as usual on the Sabbath. Or we so fill the down time with activities and chores, that we need a Sabbath to rest from our Sabbath!

But even if you were to sleep all Sabbath day long, you’d still not be getting at the heart of the commandment. For that we must turn to the source, the Hebrew bible (or Old Testament), and a resource that will help us learn what shabbat is all about for our Jewish brothers and sisters. And that prestigious resource is…JewFAQ.org. Seriously. Good information. From it I learned that, for Jews, the Shabbat is kept by zakhor and shamor. Zakhor being “to remember,” and shamor, “to observe.”

First zakhor—remembering. Two things.

1. God rested on the seventh day of creation. When they in turn rest on the Sabbath, Jews are remembering that God is creator of all things. Now, if God almighty Yahweh King of the universe, can take time out to rest, certainly the world won’t fall apart if we rest from our trivial labors!

2. In Deuteronomy 5:15, when Moses presents Israel with the ten commandments, he reminds them that it was the LORD who brought them out of the land of Egypt, where they were slaves, it was the LORD who led them out with his outstretched hand, who also commanded them to observe the Shabbat.

Thus remembering the Sabbath includes remembering that you are free. Free then, from the bonds of slavery. Free now, if we remember, from the things that hold us in bondage in this modern day world: Over-extended credit, a dead end job, a house that won’t sell, back to school, the tarnished face of what was supposed to be the golden years. Free to realize that you can’t make it on your own, but that God is with you all along the way. You don’t go it alone. Remembering the Sabbath frees us for a while from the life draining ness of the world, and fills us up with the memory of who we are. Who all of us are—including Christopher Chase, who will be baptized into God’s family this day. Sabbath is for remembering we are god’s and nothing will ever change that.

Shamor. Observe. The way Jews observe the day of rest and freedom is to set aside work—or more precisely, creative work. Like God resting from his creating on day seven. We observe the Sabbath mainly by attending worship.

Jesus kept this particular Shabbat by curing a woman whose malady had kept her separated from the community at large (also due to the Law). Jesus was a Jew. He knew what her was doing. Breaking the Sabbath? No. Remembering the Sabbath. With a remembrance that brings the past into the present and the present into the past and the future dancing and playing a fiddle!            Jesus radically remembers the Sabbath by freeing her from her isolation and despair and physical ailment  and social networking problem. What Jesus does shouts out: This is Shabbat! This is zahkar and shamor! This is who we are! You are free!

As we gather on this Sabbath, what shall we remember? Shall we remember who we were as a church once upon a not so long ago. Abundantly benevolent? Does this thermometer thingee remind you of our shortfall in giving to the wider church? Or does it remind you that we are The Messiah Church of God—and we will fill that tube with plastic golf balls and the church’s offering plates with funds to help strat new churches, care for the hungry, educate new pastors, tend to the  old and forgotten and so many more things.

Will we came to worship joyfully, excitedly, eagerly, on time, and ready to feed on each other’s energy and the body and blood of Christ Jesus, the ultimate remembering? Will we fulfill the promises we made as parents of young ones at their baptisms—to bring them to church, give them the scriptures, teach them to pray, and model for them a godly life?

Will we keep the Sabbath day holy not by doing the crossword, but by creatively working to free people who ar ebound – bound in poverty, addicition, or affliction.

Yes we will! As Living Reminders of Christ’s presence, we will reconnect ourselves and others into the good news that human existence, with its highs and lows goods and bads is a part of the rushing river of God’s existence, which brings it new meaning, new value, and new joy and hope.

Memory. Baptize in the triune name of God. Taje and eat, take and drink. To remember me, said Jesus. Jesus is our Shabbat .

One more illustration that shows you may not remember everything, but that at least what you do remember is precious.

Two elderly couples were enjoying friendly conversation when one of the men asked the other, “Fred, how was the memory clinic you went to last month?”
“Outstanding, ” Fred replied. “They taught us all the latest psychological techniques, visualization, and association. It made a huge difference for me.”
“That’s great! What was the name of the clinic?”
Fred went blank and he thought and thought, but couldn’t remember. Then a smile broke across his face and he asked, “What do you call that flower with the long stem and thorns?”
“You mean a rose?”
“Yes, that’s it!” He turned to his wife . . . “Rose, what was the name of that clinic?”

Remember the Sabbath. You are free! (write it down). AMEN

Linnea Micciulla has taken the position of Messiah Church musician, after substituting for us for several weeks. More on this news to come.

Please welcome Linnea in good old Messiah fashion!

Pentecost 11C  8/8/10

Luke 12:32-40

Grace and peace to you from God our creator, and from our savior, Christ the Lord.

Have you ever climbed Mount Washington? Then you know those signs that are posted at each trail head that leads to its summit. They warn climbers that they are about to enter an area that has some of the worst weather in the world, and advise them to turn back if the weather changes, and to be equipped for extreme conditions.

So I’m always amazed at how blithely some people act towards making an ascent of Mt. Washington. I’ve seen people heading up a trail late in the afternoon, dressed in shorts and t-shirts, wearing sneakers, with just a day pack and a bottle of water. Having never climbed a mountain before. These are the people you meet as you come down the trail, whose question is always, “How much farther to the top?” The experienced climbers call them “goofers,” and they account for a majority of the high mountain rescues on Washington—and the deaths. Their lack of awareness, lack of preparation, and lack of the correct protective clothing results in disaster.

They weren’t dressed for action. And you gotta be—if you want to survive. As the old mountaineering adage says—summiting is optional, getting back down is mandatory. You need to be ready for what ever might come your way—rain, snow, high winds, slippery rocks, cold and heat, brilliant sunlight or dense clouds. Conditions are unpredictable and could change at any moment. Who knows what you may be called upon to do? You must be dressed for action.

In today’s gospel, Jesus advises us to “be dressed for action.” He’s not talking about mountain climbing, though—but the two relate.  Jesus is still talking about the kingdom of God which it is the Father’s good pleasure to give to us. The question is—when can we expect that kingdom to arrive? The answer is—it will come, some day. But until that day, because of the faithfulness of God, we can live as if the kingdom was already here—even as we are watchful and alert for its in-breaking. That paradox—already, but not yet—describes the relationship we have with others. And it also explains what Jesus meant by “dressed for action.” It means we suit up for the eventualities that present themselves while we stand ready. Just as a good mountaineer equips himself for every possible scenario.

The difference between the mountain climber and us is that the alpinist suits up to protect him or herself, to perhaps achieve the prestige of attaining the summit, but definitely to make the mandatory descent. While the action for which we dress accordingly is in service to others, in the name of Jesus, and to his glory—not our own. Jesus bids us dress for action that will hasten and ease the kingdom into place—whatever that may be.

So, you gotta think—are we dressed right for this “action?” Or are we goofers stumbling about in the dark as the kingdom rushes over us like an avalanche? Unprepared. Unawares. Unequipped. Are we ready to welcome the Master, dressed to the nines, with lamps burning to light his way, or are we sitting around in boxers watching Jersey Shore?

Now, you might ask, “What should we be wearing, Pastor Tom?” (answer) Well, I’m going to give you some hints. And true to form, I’m going to do that by telling you What Not to Wear. Ever see that TV show? The smug, style-conscious hosts take the contestant, who obviously has a warrant out on them from the fashion police, and run through her clothes closet, picking out and discarding everything that is “what not to wear.” Then they teach the contestant what style clothes would suit her, send her out on a shopping spree, and then insult her fashion sense some more, before giving her a makeover and revealing the new and improved her in clothing that satisfies the hosts, if no one else.

Using that template then, I would like to present to you What Not to Wear if You’re Dressing for Action. But fear not, I’m not going to pick one of you and go through your closet. I already went through mine and picked out some examples. And for the what to wear for each I will be presenting an alternative, kingdom-style garment that will help remind us what we are to be doing. A couple of examples anyway.

First, I found this shirt. (hold up luau shirt) I don’t think anyone here would consider this to be fashionable. I don’t—and it’s my shirt. But the hedonistic, leisure lifestyle that it sometimes represents is something that most of us would desire. It’s cool in our society to be the devil-may-care, rebel who thinks only about himself. So, it’s hard to toss this apparel away—especially when it’s replaced by something like this. (holds up AMH shirt) Two turkeys from Amherst is what they call Richard and me at AMH, since we almost always make turkey dinners for the residents. This shirt represents being ready for action on behalf of the hungry, the displaced, the poor—those whom God favors in their need. Dress in a shirt like this. And since you never know what the weather or the kingdom will bring, add a coat. Not to wear. To give to one who has none. You have plenty.

This hat was in my closet. Again, it wouldn’t get raves on the red carpet. But it does say something about the wearer. It says, “I’m not convinced that you won’t hurt me, so I’m going to look out for myself. If you have any sense, you’ll wear one too.” Compare that hat with this one. It states for all to see that you are associated with Messiah Lutheran Church. Now, just because I wear a Red Sox ball cap doesn’t mean I’m going to get on the field and play. So too just wearing this hat doesn’t fulfill your call to worship and service. But—wearing this hat, you’ll be open and vulnerable to people asking you about it and the church and your faith. It is a hat of welcome, rather than one warning others away.

Shoes. Here’s one—not from my closet, someone else’s, who shall remain nameless. Now, far be it from me to call these shoes ugly—even though that’s obvious. I’m told they’re quite comfortable, and I don’t doubt it. But they are limited as to what they can do. They can keep your dogs from barking around town and at home. What they can’t do is protect your feet from cold, wet, hilly, swampy, rough terrain. These are more suited to that. And if we are to follow Jesus, and tend to this earth and all creation as responsible stewards—the path is going to get rough, and we’ll need all the traction we can get, and all the protection. To be ready for action we need to not be afraid we’re going to get our feet wet in another’s tears, or stub our toes on the obstacles put in our way, or sink in the muck and mire of human suffering. We need to be ready to stomp on the temptations that sway people from the pathways of righteousness. And we need to be careful to not stumble when the way gets rocky and steep.

What to wear when climbing Mt. Washington is serious business. It could actually mean the difference between life and death. What to wear to be dressed for action as Jesus’ followers is also serious business. Our salvation does not rest upon it—Jesus has done that for us, and the Father has promised us the kingdom. But it is a matter of life and death—or more correctly—of death to sin on the cross of Christ, and new life in Jesus for those who hear about or experience God’s grace and love through your action.

Get dressed.