Rev. Valerie's Reveille

While most of us are brought up to say “Thank you” when someone does something for us, it can feel rote or empty.  I think that part of what Thanksgiving helps us do is re-member what giving thanks is about.  It is recognizing that another has had an effect on your life (usually good) AND you want to acknowledge it in some way.  The precipitating action might be opening a door or wishing you a good day. Simple enough, yet it is the fact that the other made a small sacrifice to step outside themselves by recognizing another human and did something kind.  These gracious acts are freely given and we accept them graciously by replying, “Thank you.”  There is grace underlying our giving thanks.  Grace – a gift freely given for which we do nothing to warrant – binds our relationship with God.  We are made worthy of God’s love and salvation by grace, and for that we give thanks, always and everywhere. While God does more for us than open doors or wish us...

The term “king” may feel antiquated to us living in the age of presidents and prime ministers. Many countries that still have royal families also have some form of democratic governance that does most of the work of running the country.  While I would hesitate to call Queen Elizabeth a “figure head,” her power lies more with tradition than tactics. The examples of inherited nobility we see in Holy Scriptures leaves much to be desired. Even the great King David abused his authority to get what he wanted (Bathsheba) rather than what the people needed.  How, then, are we to reconcile our earthly understanding of the term “king” and claim it with any sort of integrity for Jesus, who we celebrate as “Christ the King” this Sunday? First, we must recognize that our language is limited and it can only go so far in capturing the meaning in which it is endowed, yet, it is the best tool we have to express our understanding of the world.  We also acknowledge that God is wholly o...

What does a commitment look like to you?  Is it an appointment on the calendar, a handshake, a ring?  We use the word “committed” to say we will attend an event and to keep our vows to a spouse or partner, but do we mean the same thing?  What do we mean when we say we are committed to God and accept Jesus as our Savior?  What does it mean that God is committed to us? These are valid and difficult questions.  Part of our life together in the community of believers we call St. Barnabas is to help support each other as we strive to understand such quandaries.  We may even say we are committed to supporting each other in our life in Christ.  (BCP p. 303) Commitment to a Christian life involves responsibilities and sacrifices.  In our Baptismal Covenant, we vow: to believe in the Triune God, to continue in the apostle’s teaching and fellowship with prayers and breaking of bread, to persevere in resisting evil and repent when needed, to proclai...

As most of you know, I am not a fan of rushing seasons, especially when it comes to Christmas and Easter.  Our secular culture has put us into a fast-forward mentality, anticipating what is next before we even have a chance to enjoy what is.  Not only is this not healthy, but also it can be detrimental to our spiritual formation, especially when we cannot recognize an encounter with the mystery of God in the here and now.  Ironically, it may seem that I am “rushing” the season of Advent by starting it 3 weeks early, however the intention is to expand our experience of Advent rather than rush it. I offer a reflection from The Very Rev. William Petersen, PhD, DD, founder and convener of the Advent Project Seminar in the North American Academy of Liturgy.  He introduced the 7-seven week Advent in 2011 and invited churches to try the practice. Why Expand Advent? Two principal reasons come to mind. First, the churches long ago lost the Advent season to what I call ...

Family reunions are not a part of my life experience. My mother was an only child and my father’s family lived far enough away that we didn’t visit much.  On those rare occasions when we did visit – usually around a death or wedding – I felt surrounded by strangers who shared stories I didn’t know.  I knew I was connected to these people in some way, but it didn’t feel organic, like when I was with my nuclear family. There are times when coming to church can feel that way, knowing that all the people in the space are connected, but not quite knowing how to tap into those underpinning narratives.  While we sense a familial bond, like I did at those long ago family gatherings, we also feel disconnected because we don’t necessarily know each other’s stories.  Yet we know we are connected by our shared Christian story.  We come together baptized into the Body of Christ, sharing the identity of being God’s beloved children.  We tell the stories of faith pas...

Being of German heritage, the idea of an Ocktober Fest appeals to me, although I don’t drink much beer nowadays (too much gluten!).  We can, however, re-purpose this time of enjoying the fruits of our labors in other ways.  It seems especially fitting to do so during our discernment time about Stewardship to consider all the gifts and talents God has given us and how we can give those back in service to God. Yes, we need financial resources in order to run an organization, but we also need energy and enthusiasm in order to do the work God has given us to do.  It may be helpful to discern where our gifts and talents can be the most helpful by first knowing what our gifts and talents are.  In Scripture, these are known as “spiritual gifts” and are described by Paul in several of his letters.  A condensed list is: Administration, Apostleship, Discernment, Evangelism, Exhortation, Faith, Giving, Healing, Knowledge, Leadership, Mercy, Shepherd, Prophecy, Serving...

As a child, I remember a poignant anti-littering campaign with “the Crying Indian.”  These commercials (staring an actor named Iron Eyes Cody) did to me exactly what they were intended to do – to have a visceral reaction to someone else’s pain toward careless consumption and waste.  I remember getting angry at my father for throwing an apple core out of the car window – only to be (rightly) told it would decompose and actually help the earth.  This was my early ecological education (or lack thereof), tied mostly to emotional conviction to “do the right thing.”  Unfortunately, no one really explained to me the realities of the cycle of garbage.  We even had a compost pit in our backyard that was put on the garden, but I didn’t know that was eco-friendly.  I do remember driving by the garbage dumps off of I-95 near Newark and holding my breath because it smelled so bad, but didn’t think about the amount of garbage that 4.5 billion people (in 1980) make o...