Palm Sunday

As great as this week's news has been, a thousand years from now who will remember the Pope’s visit to Cuba? Not likely. Every year for almost 2,000 years we have remembered and celebrated Jesus’ last visit to Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. All around the world today people in churches are celebrating Christ riding in, like a conquering king, on the back of a donkey, to the shouts of hosannas and the waving of palms. Why is this event so important that it is recorded in all four Gospels?

We find an answer to that question about the significance and importance of Palm Sunday by noting that in John’s Gospel it’s recorded that the people “took palm branches and went out to meet him”. Why does John specifically mention palm branches whereas the other gospels just say branches were cut down and waved and laid on the road? Maybe the other writers assumed a certain knowledge of what kind of trees were around at that time and John who wrote later needed to be more specific to make a point. But John being John, he usually has a reason for why he adds information that others don’t and this is no different.

The palm leaves of Palm Sunday have a connection with the past and a connection with the future.

First looking to the past. A special festival date was the Day of Atonement. The people of Israel would acknowledge that their sin had severely affected their lives especially their relationship with God and with one another. The High Priest would bring in two goats, one to sacrifice, and on the other he placed the sins of the people and then drove the goat out into the desert taking with it all the evil of the people. Then they would celebrate the Feast of the Tents and remembered how God had brought them through the desert where they had lived for 40 years in tents. This remembering was to be a time of great celebration and thanksgiving. In Leviticus God says, “On that day take some of the best fruit from your trees, take palm branches and limbs from leafy trees, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days” (Leviticus 23:40).

The great temple of Jerusalem was decorated with palms and palm fronds carved into its pillars and covered with gold. Palms came to symbolize the strength, the victory, the ability to overcome all things, the deliverance, the forgiveness and renewal that only comes from God. The temple was the place where God and people met together, where sins were forgiven, and where people came to celebrate the greatness of God.

Now to look to the future. We are transported to heaven and given a glimpse of what is happening there. The writer says, “I saw a vast crowd …. standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothed in white and held palm branches in their hands. And they were shouting with a mighty shout, ‘Salvation belongs to our God on the throne and from the Lamb!’” (Revelation 7:9-10). The Lamb is Jesus and the people gathered around him are you and me and all those who have been given the victory over sin and death through trusting in Jesus. We have something to shout about and wave palms of victory. He is the one who enabled us to come through the trials and troubles and failings of this life. Jesus is our Saviour and worthy of our praise and thanks.

Prayer Ministry of MSJ

March, 2012

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

In July, 2011 +Fredrick G. Fick, Father General of Missionary Society of St John (MSJ) established a community of Brothers and Sisters within the society. Two Brothers took first vows at that time and were sent back to their home parishes to teach, to minister to the sick and the poor and to pray. It is concerning the area of prayer that I write. We need your help. The Lord has led us to expand the walls of the prayer tent and reach out to the MSJ Community and the Missionary Dioceses of All Saints.

We pray daily for the society, the dioceses and the Anglican Church in general but we would like to enter into prayer for the specific needs of our brothers and sisters in the wider community by offering prayers of intercession and special intentions for those who desire such prayer. We would be most blessed to pray for your needs as we pray our Daily Office.

Should you wish to contact us for your prayer needs or perhaps you would like to partner with us in prayer please contact Br Lynn at praymsj (at) yahoo.com .

Please forward this letter to those members, parishioners and family members of MSJ/MDAS.

Peace and All Good,

Br Lynn E. Jenkins, MSJ

“If we pray, we will believe; if we believe, we will love; if we love, we will serve.” MT

Prayer Petitions For Lent II, Year B

In faith, let us pray to the Lord, saying….

Lord, in your mercy,

Hear our prayer.

You are God Almighty,

The one who provides his people with a beautiful inheritance.

Keep us from turning aside to other hopes,

For apart from you we have no good thing.

Help us to know the security of your joy-filled presence,

That our lives might be marked by hopeful gratitude.

We give glory to you, O-Lord-Who-Provides,

And we praise you for graciously giving us all things,

Fully convinced that nothing will separate us from your love.

We ask that You would sustain us this week,

And we trust that you are present with us every day.

Give us a hunger for your word,

And help us to make space to listen to you.

We confess our need for you:

For your wisdom and guidance,

For your protection and provision,

For your help and comfort.

In every area of our lives we need you, Lord,

And we ask that you would be our daily portion.

Lord, you know us through and through.

Look in the deep places of our beings, and create in us clean hearts.

Give us a right abhorrence for our own sins.

Help us to be alert and self-controlled,

That we may flee the snares of our enemy.

Reveal areas of unconfessed sin,

And give us godly sorrow that leads to repentance.

Show us where we have withheld forgiveness,

And, because of your great mercy, grant us grace to forgive others.

Deliver us from evil, Merciful Father,

And sustain us with your gracious and bountiful Spirit.

Ash Wednesday

Press Release

We Have Seen God's Glory

II Peter 1:

16 For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty. 17 For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such an utterance as this was made to Him by the Majestic Glory, “This is My beloved Son with whom I am well-pleased”— 18 and we ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain.

Bro. Nathan Reports

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2012

Geita Report #1

Sunrise over Geita.

Dear Friends,

Praise the Lord! I arrived safely in Geita, Tanzania on Sunday,

February 5^th.

It turned out to be an interesting journey for me. In New York

I was informed that my flights connecting through Instanbul

were not possible because of a huge snowstorm there.

A very kind agent worked diligently to find a flight through

London, England instead. I spent a day in central London

checking out some famous sights. Although I arrived in

Dar es Salaam much later than expected, God took care of me.

After getting through customs, money exchanged,

tickets confirmed, and into the waiting room --

I had not even sat down, when my flight to Mwanza

was called to begin boarding! God’s timing is perfect!

I was met in Mwanza by Pastor Damson, my interpreter

from last year. What a joy to be reunited with my dear

Christian brother! Saturday was a day for me to rest up

and to wander around the streets remembering sights

and sounds from last year’s trip. Sunday, I attended the

Anglican Cathedral and had a nice visit afterwards with

a missionary couple from Canada. Later that day,

Bishop Kwangu and Pastor Damson escorted me to Geita.

Along the way, we stopped off in Sengerama to visit

Capt. Nestor, a retired priest who has assisted our

teaching ministry for the past several years. The

highlight of this visit was meeting his 104 year old mother.

Monday was spent sitting under the shade trees

at church getting to know some students and discussing

plans. Tuesday I was asked to attend a regional pastor’s

meeting in Sengerama with Pastor Mathias of Christ

the King Anglican Church (my host church). While

there, I was given opportunity to speak to about

25 pastors for 30 – 40 minutes. I decided to share a

message of encouragement from Hebrews 13, which

I had read that morning for my daily Bible reading.

It was a very long day for me. I had gotten up for an

early morning walk to watch the sunrise, and we arrived

home long after dark.

I have twenty church leaders in my class, five of

whom are ladies. Some are from local churches and

others have come by bicycle from as far as 80 km away.

I have been able to complete the first course, “Introduction

to Preaching”, in just two long days because the students

have been very attentive and diligent.

The person I thought would be interpreting for me was

not able to come, so I have a young man, Reuben, assisting

me this week. He is a fine Christian man from a village

near Geita who has been a school teacher and is taking some

classes at a university in Mwanza. My host family lives on

the edge of Geita on the uphill side, giving me a fine view

of this city of 120,000 people. The red dirt roads, green fields,

bright flowers and sunlight make for an incredibly beautiful sight

to wake up to each morning. I often think, how come I am so

blessed be allowed to come here. God is so good to give

me the opportunity to experience the love of my beautiful

Christian brothers and sisters here in Tanzania. I have taken

a few photos, but it is no use trying to capture the warm

hospitality and incredible smiles. You would just have to

come experience it for yourself.

Until next week,

May the peace of Christ be with you,

Brother Nathan

Freezing in front of the Big Ben and Parliament building.

Getting to know the students

Pastor's meeting at St. John's Church.

Some students -- "Joshua, Meshack, Naftali"

This one has two ladies in it - "Godwin, Cresencia, Liberatha"

My host's house has the red roof.

St Valentine

Saint Valentine baptizing Saint Lucilla by Jacopo Bassano

The various stories and histories of St Valentine are quite likely stitched together and may be done so from the lives of more than one historical individual. The histories and stories are fascinating. To learn more about St Valentine and February 14th, likely the day of martyrdom of at least one of the ancient church's Valentines, follow this link:

Saint Valentine

From Lutheran Satire (one of our favorite sites)

Creeds Are Bad

Bro Nathan Dunlap Heads To Tanzania

Dear Friends,

Today, Wednesday, February 1st, is the Big Day we have all been looking forward to in great anticipation! Months of preparation have taken place to organize everything on both sides of the ocean. I am leaving from Louisville, KY at 6AM this morning; and will be leaving New York City at 11PM tonight for an overnight flight to Istanbul, Turkey. I expect to arrive in Mwanza on Friday and in Geita sometime on Saturday,

February 4th. Bro Nathan MSJ

PFC (Robert) Andrew Lemmon U.S.Army

Andrew Lemmon recently graduated from boot camp at Ft. Jackson, S.C. and it now taking his advanced training. Andrew is the son of proud parents, Fr. Bob and Mary Lemmon, of Liberty, Kentucky, where Fr Bob serves as vicar of Christ the King Anglican Church.

Almighty God, we commend to your gracious care and
keeping all the men and women of our armed forces at home
and abroad. Defend them day by day with your heavenly
grace; strengthen them in their trials and temptations; give
them courage to face the perils which beset them; and grant
them a sense of your abiding presence wherever they may be;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Book of Common Prayer

Forward In Christ Magazine

One of an MSJ's monthly pleasures is receiving a copy of Forward In Christ, the official teaching magazine of Forward In Faith. If you haven't yet subscribed, we highly recommend that you do. www.forwardinchrist.org

Forward In Faith Assembly July 11-13, 2012

The registration form is located here: registration_2012.pdf

Epiphany- Christ For The Nations

At Epiphany the Church celebrates the manifestation of the Son of God as the Savior and Messiah. The adoration of the Christ child by magi from the East represents the welcoming of the Good News of salvation by all nations.

An Annual Christmas Tradition

Christmas Program At Saint John

click on photos to enlarge

The Sunday School of St John the Apostle Anglican Church presented their Christmas program this morning at the 10 am eucharist. This writer found the script to be one of the most imaginative he has seen in many years. The students did a magnificent job in presenting the story, "Sleepover At The Stable". Contemporary Drama Service

Christmas Music As It Should Be

Oh Come All Ye Faithful- King's College Choir

St. Nicholas

Long before marketing created Santa Claus, there really was a St. Nicholas. The church celebrates his feast day on December 6th.
To his beloved memory.

The photos above come from Miss Jan's (the bishop's wife) collection of St Nicholas figures.
To read more about the real St. Nicholas.

Hope Anglican Oscoda Receives Title To Building

Fr. Thomas Anderson along with Karen Rademacher, President,

and Dot Bissell, VP/Sec of Hope Ev. Lutheran Church

Fr Thomas Anderson, vicar of Hope Anglican, Oscoda, MI rejoices to announce that the parish has received title to the historic church building originally built as the home of Hope Swedish Lutheran church. Hope Anglican extends it's thanks to Hope Lutheran for making this purchase possible and all their generosity. Fr Tom also expresses his thankfulness to all who have donated of their time and treasure to make this day a reality.

The Christmas Rush

‎

"It might be easy to run away to a monastery, away from the commercialization, the hectic hustle, the demanding family responsibilities of Christmas-time. Then we would have a holy Christmas. But we would forget the lesson of the Incarnation, of the enfleshing of God—the lesson that we who are followers of Jesus do not run from the secular; rather we try to transform it. It is our mission to make holy the secular aspects of Christmas just as the early Christians baptized the Christmas tree. And we do this by being holy people—kind, patient, generous, loving, laughing people—no matter how maddening is the Christmas rush…" (Fr. Andrew Greeley)

Note: While appreciating Fr Andrew Greeley as either a sociologist or as a spokesman for the catholic faith is not always as easy task, this quote does speak to our times. Ed.

Advent Begins New Church Year

The word Advent derives from the Latin word meaning coming. The Lord is coming. We may reflect that every year at this time we celebrate his coming , so that in a sense we can lose the feeling of expectancy and joyful anticipation, because at the end of the season, everything seems to return to pretty much the same routine. If that is the case, then our preparation may have been lacking and we have therefore been robbed of much of the true meaning of this season.

During Advent we recall the history of God's people and reflect on how the prophecies and promises of the Old Testament were fulfilled. This gives us a background for the present. Today we can reflect on the past track record of God and so begin to understand what it means to us now for the sake of what is to come, in our own future and that of our world.

© Liguori Publications Excerpt from Advent - A Quality Storecupboard The Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer

Thanksgiving Proclamation

Proclamation of Thanksgiving

Washington, D.C.
October 3, 1863

This is the proclamation which set the precedent for America's national day of Thanksgiving. During his administration, President Lincoln issued many orders similar to this. For example, on November 28, 1861, he ordered government departments closed for a local day of thanksgiving.

Sarah Josepha Hale, a 74-year-old magazine editor, wrote a letter to Lincoln on September 28, 1863, urging him to have the "day of our annual Thanksgiving made a National and fixed Union Festival." She explained, "You may have observed that, for some years past, there has been an increasing interest felt in our land to have the Thanksgiving held on the same day, in all the States; it now needs National recognition and authoritive fixation, only, to become permanently, an American custom and institution."

Prior to this, each state scheduled its own Thanksgiving holiday at different times, mainly in New England and other Northern states. President Lincoln responded to Mrs. Hale's request immediately, unlike several of his predecessors, who ignored her petitions altogether. In her letter to Lincoln she mentioned that she had been advocating a national thanksgiving date for 15 years as the editor of Godey's Lady's Book.

The document below sets apart the last Thursday of November "as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise." According to an April 1, 1864, letter from John Nicolay, one of President Lincoln's secretaries, this document was written by Secretary of State William Seward, and the original was in his handwriting. On October 3, 1863, fellow Cabinet member Gideon Welles recorded in his diary how he complimented Seward on his work. A year later the manuscript was sold to benefit Union troops.

By the President of the United States of America.

A Proclamation.

The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God. In the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign States to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theatre of military conflict; while that theatre has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union. Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defence, have not arrested the plough, the shuttle or the ship; the axe has enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battle-field; and the country, rejoicing in the consiousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom.

No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity and Union.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the United States to be affixed.

Done at the City of Washington, this Third day of October, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, and of the Independence of the Unites States the Eighty-eighth.

By the President: Abraham Lincoln

William H. Seward,
Secretary of State

---

Times Have Changed

These are great. A time in our recent past when the American Government reminded people to be self sufficient , that their "entitlement " was about being active in their own lives. Instead of worrying about what everyone else was doing, what they had, one was encouraged to do something about their own situation. Not only encouraged, but affirmed that it was indeed, their responsibility to care for themselves. Fr. Rusty Matheny

Click on any photo to enlarge