Someone has asked: What is reverential capitalization?
Reverential capitalization refers to the practice of capitalizing words referring to the Divine in religious texts. Wikipedia defines it as “capitalizing religious words that refer to deities or divine beings in cases where the words would not otherwise have been capitalized.”
Interestingly, it was very popular in the last century, mostly in the 1960's and 70's and somewhat more so among Protestant Christian denominations but has fallen out of use in most formal publishing since then. We might note that most biblical translations do not employ reverential capitalization in their texts including the King James, the New International and the New Revised Standard (the preferred translation in most of the Anglican Church of Canada).
The Anglican Church of Canada 1938 Hymn Book did not utilize reverential capitalization for pronouns (eg he) or possessives (eg his) but often applied it to names referring to God (eg Master, Friend, the King, the Crucified). By the time of the publication of the current Canadian Anglican hymnal, Common Praise, 1998, the choice was quite obviously made not to reverentially capitalize and generally uses capitalization sparingly, more in line with the now more common practices of the bigger publishers.
The use of capitals in English sentences (except in the opening word) has diminished steadily during recent centuries, not least in words of sacred reference where the process has accelerated in the last few decades. In a compilation such as this, which draws on a number of sources representing different stages of linguistic development, some inconsistencies may appear. In general the following standards apply: the names of rites are not capitalized except in their titles and in references to their titles; in liturgical texts appropriate words in the titles of sections of liturgies are capitalized, but the functions they contain are not; Word is capitalized when it refers to Christ as the incarnate Logos, but usually not otherwise; traditional titles of Christ are capitalized, but metaphors applied to God, either as titles or attributes, usually are not, except in forms of address. Spelling in the Psalter has been adapted to the standard of the Concise Oxford Dictionary. (B.A.S page 928)
The logic behind not using it is that more does not necessarily mean better. The question should be: what results in more effective communication? Simpler style is often preferred for clarity. If half of a hymn or songtext, for example, is reverentially capitalized, the overuse of capital letters actually makes the text less readable and does little if anything to improve or make it more understandable. One author points out that “not using capitalization does indicate lack of reverence and that capitals do not mean respect in English anyway.
When the name of God is used, of course, it is still proper and preferred to use a capital letter as it is with any proper name. Many linguists and language scholars confirm that there are no firm rules in English and that it continues to be mostly a matter of style and primarily the preference of the writer.
If there’s one thing we may have learned from this time of global pandemic, it’s that no matter the circumstance there is always much for which to be thankful. When we were locked down and in complete isolation from one another, I’m thankful that we were able to devise ways to reconnect. I’m thankful that even in the midst of the inconvenience and even danger caused by COVID-19, churches have continued to experience continuing support from members to keep furthering the important work that is ours to do. At times, the challenges were significant and it’s certain there are more to come, but it’s important that the challenge doesn’t define us, rather it’s the blessing even in the midst of the struggle that helps us be who we really are.
The Apostle Paul said, “Rejoice always, pray continuously, give thanks in all circumstances.” He didn’t say we should wait until we feel thankful. He didn’t say to express gratitude for all the good stuff of life or rejoice as long as things don’t seem too tough. “Always” is one of those words that leaves little room for misinterpretation. Whatever the situation, God has placed some gift in the midst. Can we find it and make the faithful response? – thanksgiving.
Too often we believe that giving thanks is the result of feeling grateful. In fact, it’s the other way around. Happiness is not thrust upon us. Happiness results when we follow the command of St. Paul. Thanks-giving makes us happy; we don’t give thanks because we’re happy; we’re happy when we’re full of thanks. Paul is telling us there’s something in every circumstance for which to be thankful. The result of giving thanks is gratitude. What we choose to do influences how we feel, not the other way around.
During this season, as always, we prayerfully remember those who are facing challenges in their lives. Whether that be adjusting to the loss of someone we love, changes in employment, continuing separation from family and friends, the onset of illness or the resulting changes caused by being older this year than we were last, let’s pray that we’ll look keenly for the gift even in the midst of the messiness of life. Bringing ourselves spiritually to the place where with sincerity we give thanks to God if only for the basics, we’ll reap the real harvest God promises the faithful.
May you find success in your thanks-giving this year and receive the true peace God grants to the thankful heart.
A Season Two episode of Star Trek the Original Series, “Return to Tomorrow,” sees Captain Kirk in the briefing room with the Enterprise senior officers. A risky decision is before the Captain, and he is in consultation. He says,
“I'm in command. I could order this. But I'm not because, Doctor McCoy is right in pointing out the enormous danger potential in any contact with life and intelligence as fantastically advanced as this. But I must point out that the possibilities, the potential for knowledge and advancement is equally great. Risk. Risk is our business. That's what the starship is all about.”
In the Church, too many of its members believe leadership is more or less a slam-dunk, cut and dried, black and white. The Bishop is the person in command. If something goes right, it shines well on us all. If anything goes wrong, it must be the commander’s fault. Anyone in a position of leadership will quickly acknowledge that “control” is one thing not too often experienced, at least far less often than most would assume.
We sometimes like to think of the Church as a ship, fully equipped with a captain or skipper, crew and deck hands. The image is convenient, orderly and easily conceived. If we were to position the Bishop on this church-ship, most of us would see the episcopal officer as the person at the helm, steering the ship. If the ship is going in a difficult direction, it's obviously the skipper’s fault. After all, the one steering must be deciding where we all go. Those who have done any sailing will affirm that, from the deck, the wind seems to blow hardest and the boat leans the most when the bow has been brought into the wind (a tack) and there’s significant distance being covered.
In the Church, I think Bishops are more accurately and most often in the crow’s nest or the bosun’s chair. At the top of the mast, its possible to see the clouds forming on the horizon forewarning a coming storm. From there, one can see other nautical traffic and make navigational decisions based on the big picture view. From “the top” the world of the ship looks like a different place and the one there always has the advantage of seeing the bigger picture.
And so it is with our bishops. Even knowing that the ship is headed the wrong way, often the best that can be done is to bellow the warning and hope the crew and helms-person of the moment take heed. The crow’s nest can be a helpless place, where the sun shines brightest and all the weather batters with full force. From the point of view of the church-ship’s membership, the orders may sound unproductive, even absurd. From the view on the deck, we all have what we think is the perfect direction for the ship, if we could just take the helm.
Even in the midst of a crisis, when the tiller is set and the sails are trimmed to bring smooth and productive sailing, the wind can suddenly change. Even though with adequate skill and experience most often the ship will reach the intended destination, any captain will admit, its all “in the wind.”
The Church in these days often encounters rough seas and heavy weather. When the boat heels over the crow’s nest feels it first. There is a risk in setting sail and most of the decisions during the journey are exercises in risk-taking. Most bishops who find themselves in this unique Anglican Church of ours – “episcopally lead and synodically governed” – see the huge potential that exists when the followers do so at their choosing and with full knowledge of the risk. Stepping out in faith is “our business.” That’s what the Church is all about.
There is a risk in setting sail and most of the decisions during the journey are exercises in risk-taking.
We all have a secret or not so secret vision of peace, warm soft breezes and never-ending sunshine. Christians call it heaven. The Church is headed there but there’s some sailing to do before we get there. Can we bring ourselves to depend on the advice and direction we receive from the one with the bigger picture? Can we resist grabbing at the wheel every time, from our perspective, we’re not headed in the right direction? Can we all have the faith to know that ultimately, the Maker-of-the-Wind will take us all, including the Ship itself, where we need to go?
This article is a reprise from a past issue of the New Brunswick Anglican. The Very Rev’d Geoffrey Hall is currently Dean of Fredericton.
It's not up to me to tell another what to do. I’ll always have fingers point at me suggesting that I’m the problem. It's only when I decide that I am, in fact, “the problem” or part of the solution that I’ll make a difference. What I can do is share what I do as an effective way of proclaiming the Gospel and being a disciple.
I always had a coin or two for Sunday School offering! Once I started earning my own, I had to connect the dots a bit ... Mum and Dad didn't stick a quarter in my pocket anymore! My first real encounter with a call to giving came during a meeting with a summer supervisor while in divinity studies. Now, paid by the Church I served, my question to my mentor: "How much should I give?" The appropriate answer, "That's between you and the Lord, my friend." Not much help.
Of course, it's different for me as I rely on the Church for my living. Or is it? I'm paid a "fixed income" every month to use as I choose. I "choose" to keep food in the cupboard and fuel in the car, among many, many other things. Holy orders or not, a buck still only goes so far.
Soon after ordination to the transitional diaconate, my income stabilizing a bit, I pretty much set the approach I've taken ever since. I've never regretted it. I give to God out of the first dollars I receive. It is much easier to decide upfront what my financial commitments are going to be. I tithe.
There seems to be a rampant misunderstanding about that word. "tithe" comes from the word "tenth," so it’s a proportion, that proportion being specifically one-tenth part of the whole. I'm regularly confused by those who claim they "tithe 14%!" Isn’t that a tithe and an offering of 4%? Praise the Lord! God has got to be far more joyous about the four percent than the ten. One is the biblical assumed standard, the other a gift. I also habitually make gifts (offerings) at Christmas, Easter, to PWRDF, at times of special need, and to other causes both inside and outside of the Church.
There seems to be a rampant misunderstanding about that word.
Do I give to the Cancer Society and the Alzheimer's Society and others? You bet. I think it's all good and important work and don't mind being part of it in the least. Do I count it an "offering to God" for the proclamation of the Gospel? No, I don't, because it is not. If I were to do that, my commitment to our Lord would be less than my understanding of the biblical expectation. We twist, turn and squeeze that one, making it far more complicated than it need be. Unlike many issues, Holy Scripture is far from vague on this one. The only way I can assure that I own my money and it doesn't own me is to be willing to consistently put the part that belongs to God where it ought to be.
I can't be in a church pew or stand at the Altar on a Sunday and watch the faith community to which I belong and within which I enjoy the blessing of acceptance and membership, struggle with financial realities and challenges while I give some of my first dollars to another cause. My commitment to supporting the proclamation of the Gospel comes from the first of my earnings while other charities, I'm afraid, get some of my last. Its interesting, though, how I always seem to have some for them too.
Does my church giving matter a hoot to my eternal salvation? I don't think so. If I had to buy myself into the good graces of God, I couldn’t begin to afford it. One-tenth plus, however, is a small price in recognition and thanksgiving for the mountain of blessings I enjoy – a healthy number I experience by way of walking the journey of faith, shoulder to shoulder, laugh to laugh and tear to tear, with others also called to be among the ranks of the baptized.
Am I bragging? No way. I could do much more ... but often don't, and I'm seldom very pleased about that. I am convinced that we all need not be ashamed of witnessing to what good is done for God and for others. We need desperately to share the priorities we hold dear. And maybe that's what its really all about? The financial stresses and strains we experience as members of the Body of Christ, the Church would not exist at all if we just got to it, and take a step toward giving sincere and honest witness and encouragement to one another about the what and why of what we do. It's not up to me to recommend, or even suggest for that matter, what someone else should do. The best I can do is share what I do and rest assured it makes a difference.
The old, old story will be told yet again this year. ("Tell me the old, old story") We who have walked the way of the Cross before will hear familiar words ... "Hosanna to the Son of David! ... Father, take this cup from me ... my God, my God why have you forsaken ... it is finished ... He is risen!"
Holy Week and Easter is a roller coaster of emotion. Lent, the journey from Ashes to Easter, now turns to the shorter one from the Sunday of Palms to the Day of Resurrection. The highs and lows are all part of the story of the redemption of humanity. Easter assures us that even though we die, God gives life. Even though we don't always make the choices best for ourselves and others, God and his mercy endures. Even though the shadows fall and darkness settles, the sun rises again and dawn breaks anew.
It is not by accident that the Church celebrates the mystery of Resurrection near the end of the longest, most trying season of the year. Perhaps Easter celebration this year will have been influenced by what has been an entire year of trying times! The Church year serves to illustrate the seasons of our life. Following a long harsh winter comes spring and the budding of the new. Christians are reminded that the dimming eye and the aged hand are not signs of the end, rather only the nearing of a fantastic transformation from this life into the next. In worship the promise of eternal life rang clearly through prayerful Lenten days this year. Soon, we celebrate the outcome of our trials in bright sunshine and the warming days of Easter.
Join this year in walking the way of the Cross in worship events that have been important to Christian believers throughout the world and through the ages. A schedule is below. If you’re not yet comfortable or unable to join us in person, visit The Cathedral YouTube Channel as we try to provide as many opportunities there as possible. If you wish to make Easter Communion at home, please contact the Cathedral Office.
Wishes for a blessed Easter to you and those whom you love.
Sincerely yours,
Geoffrey Hall (The Very Rev'd)
Dean of Fredericton
Holy Week and Easter 2021 Christ Church Cathedral, Fredericton NB
The Holy Eucharist on 03 April is the first of Easter
Passion/Palm Sunday (28 March 2021) 8:00 a.m. Liturgy of the Palms and Holy Eucharist 10:30 a.m. Liturgy of the Palms, Dramatic Passion and Holy Eucharist
In-person worship at the Cathedral will resume and Memorial Hall will reopen to the public. Office hours are 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon, Monday to Friday.
Pandemic precautions outlined in the latest revision of the Cathedral Pandemic Operational Plan (20 January 2021) will be followed. These include:
Worship gatherings are limited to 50 individuals
Meetings are limited to 25 individuals
2 metres of physical distance between bubbles is required
Face masks are mandatoryindoors and out at all times (with an exception for “performers or officiants whose activities require vocalization” while maintaining 4 metres of physical distance between bubbles)
Please note that during the Orange Level, we are strongly encouraged to limit contact outside of single household bubbles, especially in confined spaces. Please continue to pray for those who are at risk and those providing care and helping to keep us safe.
Worship reservations
With current limits of individuals, worship reservations are required. Reserve online by visiting Cathedral Signups by 8:00 p.m. on the previous day. Telephone reservations are needed in real time (not by voicemail). If reserving by telephone, please contact the Cathedral Office (506) 450-8500 during office hours, 9:00 a.m. - 12 noon, Monday to Friday.
You'll note that as of midnight tonight (Tuesday) the Province of New Brunswick announced that Zone 3 (Fredericton Region) is being moved to the Red Level of pandemic restriction.
Dr. Jennifer Russell, the province's chief medical officer of health, says Zones 1, 2, and 3 – Moncton, Saint John, and Fredericton -- will move to the red phase as of midnight on Tuesday. Zone 4 will also remain in the red phase, meaning more than half of the province will be in the highest level of pandemic restrictions.CTV News
We continue to pray for all in leadership and especially for those who work in the health care professions. Remember also those who will feel the impact of these restrictions. Reach out to and communicate with others in safe ways and let's move through these current challenges with the knowledge that the Holy One is with us, that there is light and that this crisis will end.
What does the Red Level of Alert mean for us?
1. The Red Alert Level does not permit public, in-person worship. Holy Eucharist tomorrow (Wednesday at 10:00 a.m.) and Sunday at 8:00 and 10:30 a.m. are cancelled. We will live stream from the Cathedral beginning at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, 24 January (the Third Sunday after Epiphany). Visit our YouTube Channel. 10:30 a.m. Sunday worship will continue as a live stream until the level of alert changes. If you know of someone who does not receive e-mail, please communicate this information to them as best you can.
3. Please note that during both the Red and Orange Alert Levels, visitations at hospital are not possible, with the exception of special circumstances. Returning to the yellow level will make visits possible again with restrictions. At all times It is important that you let us know if you or a family member is or is going to be admitted to hospital. The hospital no longer routinely shares information about patients with the clergy or our hospital visitors.
Watch the Cathedral website and your email for updates when they are available.
As referenced in the Dean's Pastoral Letter for Christmas 2020, the true cost of the current pandemic is yet to be calculated. The issue of many in our society attempting to navigate the economic realities should be important to us all. Please pray for those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
On 18 December the Dean of Fredericton signed the letter below addressed to New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs and Minister Wilson.
Re: Support New Brunswick’s Tenants During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Dear Premier Higgs and Minister Wilson,
We, the under-signed non-profit organizations and grassroots advocacy groups working in the areas of
housing, poverty, employment, and human rights, are writing to request government action to offer
support for tenants in New Brunswick during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a group of organizations with
expertise in housing and closely related issues, we are providing the following:
1) a summary of the challenges facing tenants in New Brunswick,
2) a list of pandemic-related recommendations for your consideration, and
3) a discussion of some of the benefits for New Brunswickers that these measures can produce. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, other provinces have offered similar support for tenants and we request that the government of New Brunswick consider doing the same.
The Challenges
As the COVID-19 crisis continues, greater support for tenants in New Brunswick is urgently needed.
Even before the pandemic, tenants in New Brunswick were facing significant challenges. The Canadian
Rental Housing Index 1 shows that 36% of renter households in the province are living in unaffordable
housing, with 14% living in situations of severe unaffordability. At the same time, the New Brunswick
government has reported that across the province vacancy rates dropped while tenant shelter costs
rose 14% between the last two censuses 2. In this same timeframe, the median tenant income increased
by only 11% ($29,769 to $33,226). Homeowners in the province, however, experienced the inverse,
with median income growing by 13.8% ($62,602 to $71,259) and shelter costs by only 9.9%. 3 Simply
put, tenants in the province, as a group, have less of a financial reserve to draw on during periods of
hardship. This hardship is experienced disproportionately by lone female parents, people with
disabilities, and Black and Indigenous people and People of Colour. The pandemic will only continue to
exacerbate these challenges.
In addition to the concerning trends represented by these statistics, anecdotal evidence of a rental
housing crisis is in the news and on social media, with tenants reporting monthly increases in rents of
upwards of 50% at a time, amounting to hundreds of dollars per month. Faced with these new and
unanticipated costs, it is foreseeable that many tenants will be forced to seek lower-priced
accommodations at a time when there is an extreme shortage of affordable rental stock. There is also
the risk that tenant relocation due to dramatic rent increases will require tenants to move out of their
neighbourhoods and further away from their places of employment, thereby disrupting access to their
support networks and necessities such as public transportation and childcare.
While we recognize that average rent and utility costs in New Brunswick may be lower than the national
average in absolute numbers, so too is the average income of New Brunswick tenants. When
compared to the national average, tenants in New Brunswick are spending approximately the same
percentage of their income on rent and utilities and face similar rates of unaffordable housing. 4 Tenants
in New Brunswick, therefore, need support similar to that provided in other jurisdictions.
Our Recommendations
We are calling on the provincial government to immediately implement the following support for
tenants:
1. Introduce a 2% cap on rental increases for existing tenants until a vaccine has been
successfully rolled out and the entire province of New Brunswick has been moved into the
Green Phase.
This will ensure that tenants remain housed at a time of income uncertainty. It will also allow
tenants to budget effectively at a time when New Brunswickers are often forced to miss work
due to symptoms of or risk of exposure to COVID-19.
2. Make this 2% rent cap retroactive to September 1, 2020, and allow tenants to apply any
ensuing rent credits to arrears and/or future rental costs.
3. Re-establish a moratorium on evictions until the entire province returns to the Green Phase.
Since June 1st, 2020, New Brunswickers have been without any kind of eviction protection
despite the economic hardships brought on by COVID-19 and the now well-established
relationship between homelessness and vulnerability to COVID-19. As the second wave of the
virus continues to hit Canada hard as winter begins, it is essential that New Brunswick tenants
have a secure place to live where they can limit contacts, self-isolate if necessary, and maintain
their health and well-being as we weather this crisis together. A renewed moratorium on
evictions would support public health efforts to stop the spread of COVID-19.
4. Fund a rent bank that provides tenants in financial need with non-repayable grants or interest-
free loans to cover their rent OR implement a rental subsidy program similar to that put in
place by the government of Prince Edward Island at the beginning of the pandemic.
A rent bank will limit rental arrears and forestall evictions for unpaid rent during the pandemic
following the end of any moratorium on evictions. More broadly, a rent bank will support the
provincial government’s stated commitment to “timely access to affordable, safe and adequate
housing options that meet individual needs and promote healthy and inclusive communities.” 5
One model is the BC Rent Bank, with funding provided by the provincial government. 6
We also request that in the new year, before March 31st, 2021, the government take the following
actions:
1. Roll-out the Canada–New Brunswick Housing Benefit that is part of the Canada–New
Brunswick bilateral agreement under the National Housing Strategy.
As part of the National Housing Strategy, “the federal government committed to introducing a
new $4 billion dollar Canada Housing Benefit that would provide affordability support directly to
families and individuals in housing need.” 7 While other provinces have taken the opportunity to
implement housing benefits for low-income renters (e.g. Nova Scotia, Ontario), New Brunswick
has not yet done so. However, there are provisions for the implementation of this benefit for the
2020–2021 fiscal year in the bilateral agreement (see Schedule B). 8
2. Establish a New Brunswick Affordable Housing Commission
The commission will support the implementation of the provincial housing strategy and will
identify and contribute to the establishment of promising practices for the purpose of addressing
housing challenges in the immediate post-COVID-19 context.
The Benefits of Taking Action
Improving support for tenants during the pandemic will serve as both a response to the numerous
financial hardships brought on or exacerbated by the pandemic and will support the continued efforts of
public health to stop the spread of COVID-19 in New Brunswick. Offering tenants greater support will
also safeguard the pre-pandemic work done by government and non-governmental stakeholders alike
on affordable housing, community development, and homelessness 9 from the economic hardships
COVID-19 has caused. Similar measures have been taken by the governments of other small
provinces, such as Nova Scotia, and larger provinces, like Ontario and British Columbia. We therefore
hope that the government of New Brunswick will implement our recommendations as part of its ongoing
commitment to maintaining New Brunswick’s position as a leader in the fight against COVID-19.
Thank you in advance for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Those signing on behalf of community organizations
This has without doubt been one of the more unique years in recent memory. We’ve all sat perched on edge wondering what the current pandemic will mean next. We’ve attempted to respond with wisdom and care while remaining unshaken by unnecessary fear. The fact remains we are not enriched or improved by being overly concerned with our earthly bodies – we are far more than just flesh and blood machines that need to keep physically healthy at all cost. We’re also thinking beings, spiritual beings.
It will be some time before we know the real impact COVID-19 will have on our world: economically, physically and spiritually. In a modern age where many need little, if any excuse not to engage in disciplines that nurture the spirit – attending public worship, studying scripture or acting visibly and materially in support of the relevance of the local church, some are saying that for the church COVID-19 is just another push down an already slippery hill.
Through history it has always been in the midst of the darkness – in the midst of what threatens – that faith speaks. A pealing note sounds as it has for two millennia. The expected one, the one longed for is born in a forsaken little town in a feeding trough because there was no room in the inn. It’s ironic that although not unexpected, the Lord’s coming is total surprise. “Today in the city of David a Saviour has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord!”
We’ll miss corporate singing of carols this year but they can sound loud in our hearts just the same. Join us for worship in person or online, mindful that at the moment, reservations are important as we try to manage pandemic protocols and remain within our allowed capacity. Visiting Cathedral Signups from our website is preferred. If space is available you’ll know right away. Or you may wish to telephone the Cathedral Office 9-12 Monday-Friday.
7:00 p.m. Monday 21 December 2020 Blue Christmas: prayers on the longest night
10:00 a.m. Wednesday 23 December 2020 Holy Eucharist (BCP)
4:00 p.m. Thursday 24 December 2020 Holy Eucharist (contemporary)
8:00 p.m. Thursday 24 December 2020 Come Worship Eucharist
11:00 p.m. Thursday 24 December 2020 Holy Eucharist (traditional)
10:00 a.m. Friday 25 December 2020 Holy Eucharist (traditional)
8:00 a.m. Sunday 27 December 2020 Holy Eucharist (BCP)
10:30 a.m. Sunday 27 December 2020 Come Worship Eucharist
10:00 a.m. Wednesday 30 December 2020 Holy Eucharist (BCP)
11:00 a.m. Friday 01 January 2021 Holy Eucharist with the Bishop (BAS)
May you be filled with the wonder of Mary, the obedience of Joseph, the joy of the angels, the eagerness of the shepherds, the determination of the magi, and the peace of the Christ Child. God’s blessing be with you and yours.
The World Council of Churches’ Conference on World Mission and Evangelism met in Arusha, Tanzania, in March 2018. From this meeting, the more than 1,000 participants, who were all regularly engaged in mission and evangelism, issued the Arusha Call to Discipleship.
We are called to discern the word of God in a world that communicates many contradictory, false, and confusing messages.
It perhaps goes without saying that the gospel (the “proclamation” of the Church) is but one in a plethora of other messages in the world. That has probably always been so. But with the advent of ever more efficient communication, the possibilities for contradiction, falsification and confusion has been kicked into overdrive. With a finger swipe on a mobile phone, a click on an email send button or posting on social media or a website, the entire world can now hear what I have say in an instant (not that the world is necessarily listening, of course). How do we make sense of the barrage of messages? How do we “discern” what is the word or “a” word from God?
Our own Anglican denomination through the centuries has leaned heavily on a belief in the sufficiency of Holy Scripture and how the word of God informs our living. “Everything necessary to salvation” is contained therein, says Article VI of the Articles of Religion. But what is that word? How do we “discern” it from all the other words, especially in times where personal freedom and human rights seem to be at the top of political and social agendas? Can the Church stay on point? And what is that point anyway?
The series of gospel passages we’ve been reading from the Gospel of Matthew through the latter part of this year have taken us on a wild and challenging ride through the conflict between Jesus and the religious authorities of his day just before Jesus’ passion. Through parable and story Jesus confronts with questions. The Scribes and Pharisees have questions of their own, most designed to entrap or publically discredit him. The religious leaders were not bad people. But soaked in tradition and focused so intently on what living faithfully according to the word (law) of God meant in their opinion, they had lost sight of the goal – relationship with God.
As Christians, at least one of our dilemmas is being faced with the need to be good citizens of the world but also citizens of the Kingdom of God.
As Christians, at least one of our dilemmas is being faced with the need to be good citizens of the world but also citizens of the Kingdom of God. One does not necessarily bring about the other. In ‘The Theology of Hope” German Theologian Jürgen Moltmann offers some analysis of what it means to be Church in society. He identifies three roles: personal, communal and institutional.
Faith in our time is too often considered to be only an individual matter - personal. Being internalized and privatized, faith has become mostly about our feelings, recognized less and less as having any sway in the criticism of social behaviour. Western moral values which have their roots firmly in the Christian tradition have been silenced, deemed to have little worthwhile to say any more. Faith and morality subject to only personal critique is in danger of running off the rails. We’re seeing both. Discernment requires collaboration.
In the communal role the community of the faithful becomes what Moltmann refers to as a “non-worldly phenomenon.” Together we find a way to be human that deters loneliness and isolation and re-establishes what is so often lacking in society – community. The Church provides warmth, belonging and authenticity. Together, seeking the Kingdom of God even in our midst makes the Church a counterbalance in a necessary conversation with society.
The Church is also institution, a word more often than not these days carrying negative connotations. Institutions serve as anchors. One definition is “a stable, valued, recurring pattern of behavior.” When the winds blow, it’s the institutions of society that provide the foundations upon which we can find a firm place to stand – even survive.
Discerning the word of God may have to do with first deciding what we mean by “salvation” since that is at least one purpose of religion. From what do we need to be saved? If in answering we come up empty, we have entirely missed the natural human need for spirituality; the added dimensions of life faith brings; the meaning and value of discipleship and; being part of something bigger than our little selves. God’s word, in the spirit of his Son Jesus, is all around when we have eyes to see. For the Christian, Scripture has been our guide through the ages, “the lamp unto our feet.”
The church is not the word. Pop culture is not the word. The assumptions by which we live and all that we too easily take for granted are not the word. The word is a person named Jesus revealed in “the word.” His invitation is to follow.
He said, “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” Matthew 22:21
Reverential capitalization refers to the practice of capitalizing words referring to the Divine in religious texts. Wikipedia defines it as “capitalizing religious words that refer to deities or divine beings in cases where the words would not otherwise have been capitalized.”
We sometimes like to think of the Church as a ship, fully equipped with a captain or skipper, crew and deck hands. The image is convenient, orderly and easily conceived. If we were to position the Bishop on this church-ship, most of us would see the episcopal officer as the person at the helm, steering the ship. If the ship is going in a difficult direction, it's obviously the skipper’s fault. After all, the one steering must be deciding where we all go. Those who have done any sailing will affirm that, from the deck, the wind seems to blow hardest and the boat leans the most when the bow has been brought into the wind (a tack) and there’s significant distance being covered.
