"....and Peter"

Alleluia! The Lord has Risen!

As we continue our journey through this Easter season I am inclined to reflect upon the events of the Easter event. In particular St. Peter and his role in the story of salvation and how we might gain a deeper insight into what God is up to through our Lord Jesus Christ's life, death, and resurrection. An insight that I believe can help us grow in our relationship with the risen Lord.

In the sixteenth Chapter of Gospel according to Mark, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome go to the tomb of Jesus. There they discover the stone rolled away from the tomb and upon entering the tomb they are greeted by a young man dressed in a white robe and "they were alarmed." (Who wouldn't be?) They are reassured not to be alarmed and that the one they were seeking had been raised from the dead. "He is risen!" The young man, dressed in white, then tells them to "go, and tell the disciples and Peter, he (Jesus) is going ahead of you to Galilee."

Now it is interesting to me that Peter is not included in the "disciples" designation, but is set apart grammatically with an "and". A wise bishop I know is fond of reminding me that words mean something and in this case I believe the "and" means something important. Think about it for a moment. Peter has , to this point in the story, denied Jesus not once, but three times and is hiding out with the other disciples out of fear. Yet, Peter is specifically to be told where to find Jesus.

How many times have we denied knowing who Jesus is in our lives or, not acknowledging his presence in them? We are not unlike Peter are we? We want to follow Jesus but more often than not are cautious in our accepting him as our Lord and Savior. Yet, we are encouraged by the account of Peter because Jesus wants Peter to be a part of the resurrected community just as he wants each of us to share in that Good News. He desires Peter's presence, his company, his companionship and ours too!

As we move through this glorious season of Easter let us "go to Galilee" to be with Jesus in our own lives. Regardless of what we have done to deny him Jesus still calls us to him. He wants to be with us in this life and in the life to come. Of course, this will come with some expectation of us to be obedient and faithful. A small price to pay for enjoying his company in this life as we prepare to be with God for eternity. Wouldn't you say?

Where is a "Good Samaritan" when you need one?

I have just returned from General Convention 2009 and have been in the process of emotionally unpacking the two week experience. Part of the process has been to reflect on readings from the Holy Scriptures and the Parable of the Good Samaritan edged its way into my heart and mind. I couldn't discern why until I read and prayed about it for thirty minutes or so then it came to me. The Parable of the Good Samaritan is fitting for the state of the Episcopal Church.

As I reflected upon this is occurred to me that over the past thirty years the self-righteous on both sides of the issues which have divided the Episcopal Church during this time continue on their way leaving the Church to languish on the side of the rode. Oh, to be sure, they have their reasons, just ask them, but the reality is the church has been beaten and battered by cries for justice on the one hand, and cries for religious purity on the other. Each has been guilty of , to use a term from Walter Brueggemann, exclusionary absolutism. Where is our Good Samaritan?

I do not have a right answer for this question but I do hope and pray that God will send his servant to us to help us to be healed and restored to wholeness and newness of life. It is clear, given the decline in the Episcopal Church's ASA, membership, and financial resources, what we are doing isn't working and to believe it to be working is a recipe for disaster.

We need a Good Samaritan, the one who will show mercy and what it truly means to love one another.