Words 2.27

 Words Twice a Week       2.27

The prayer last week was from Episcopal sources.  Here is a link to a letter from one of the United Methodist Bishops in the Nordic, Baltic and Eurasia “Central Conference”.  It includes these words -

 

Our central conference consists of Nordic, Baltic and Eurasian countries, including Russia and Ukraine. The Christian Church is not nationalistic and our relations with our brothers and sisters in other countries are not limited by nationality or culture. We have deep relations with Methodists in Ukraine and in Russia, and although we are influenced by our culture and the political realities, we must never allow this to hinder or break our unity in Christ. 

 

We stand with the United Methodists in Ukraine in prayer for protection, reconciliation and peace. We pray for pastors, leaders and congregations in the United Methodist Church in Ukraine; may God grant that their witness of reconciliation and peace will bring strength and hope to the Ukrainian people. 

 

We pray for Bishop Eduard Khegay, bishop of both Russia and Ukraine, (there are UM churches in both Moscow and Ukraine! -cw) may God give him the wisdom and grace that he needs in his ministry and leadership under these challenging circumstances.

In the Nordic and Baltic episcopal area, Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania all have borders with Russia, and in addition, Latvia and Lithuania have borders with Belarus. In the Baltic states, in particular, the invasion of Ukraine causes great concern….

I call on all our congregations to pray and fast for reconciliation and peace in the world. May God, in His grace, open our eyes to the things that make for peace, may He protect us all from the escalation and spreading of war, and may we follow Him on His path of truth and peace. 

Ok - 

Some days from the Church Calendar -

Feb 28  Anna Julia Haywood Cooper (August 10, 1858 – February 27, 1964) was an American author, educator, sociologist, speaker, Black liberation activist, and one of the most prominent African-American scholars in United States history.  Born into slavery in 1858, Cooper went on to receive a world-class education and claim power and prestige in academic and social circles. In 1924, she received her PhD in history from the Sorbonne, University of Paris.  Cooper became the fourth African-American woman to earn a doctoral degree. She was also a prominent member of Washington, D.C.'s African-American community and a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.  Cooper made contributions to social science fields, particularly in sociology. Her first book, A Voice from the South: By a Black Woman of the South, is widely acknowledged as one of the first articulations of Black feminism, giving Cooper the often-used title of "the Mother of Black Feminism"

Mar 1  Saint David  -  the patron saint of Wales.  He was a Welsh bishop during the 6th century.  His best-known miracle is said to have taken place when he was preaching in the middle of a large crowd at the Synod of Brefi: the village of Llanddewi Brefi stands on the spot where the ground on which he stood is reputed to have risen up to form a small hill. A white dove, which became his emblem, was seen settling on his shoulder.  He is often depicted standing with a dove on his shoulder.

Also Mar 1 – Shrove Tuesday, Fat Tuesday, Mardi Gras  The day before Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent.  As the last day after Epiphany, I suppose you might want to light a candle or set off fireworks or walk past the lighthouse.  And Let the light from your lighthouse shine on me!  As the day before Lent, you might look at using up the fat and sugar in your kitchen.  (Traditionally folks make pancakes with them.  Biggby’s was handing out free sample donut holes yesterday.  That’s not a bad idea either!)  We still have gift cards from Contrast Coffee, so we are going to get coffee and crepes.  I suppose still take out, even though the mask requirements are lessening.  I saw an interesting piece about a group in New Orleans that was trying to get groups to shift from throwing plastic beads to usable or sustainable “throws”.  

Mar 2   Chad of Mercia  he was a prominent 7th-century Anglo-Saxon churchman, who became abbot of several monasteries, Bishop of the Northumbrians.   In 669, a new Archbishop of Canterbury, Theodore of Tarsus, sent by Pope Vitalian arrived in England. He immediately set off on a tour of the country, tackling abuses of which he had been forewarned. He instructed Chad to step down and Wilfrid to take over.  According to Bede, Theodore was so impressed by Chad's show of humility that he confirmed his ordination as bishop, while insisting he step down from his position. Chad retired gracefully and returned to his post as abbot of Lastingham, leaving Wilfrid as bishop of the Northumbrians at York.  He later was made Bishop of the Mercians and Lindsey People.

Also on Mar 2 – Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent.  When I was growing up, Catholic kids would go to early mass and go around all day with ashes on their foreheads.  Methodists didn’t do ashes, and even when we started to, we went to an evening service, got ashes, and then went home and washed them off before going to bed.  Many people do some kind of Lenten devotions, or read a study book, or give up something.  

Mar 3  John and Charles Wesley.  See below for a little bit on John.  Click the link to learn more about Charles and some of the more than 6,500 hymns he wrote the words for, including Hark the Herald Angels Sing, Christ the Lord Is Risen Today, and O For A Thousand Tongues To Sing, which with one exception has always been the first hymn in Methodist/United Methodist hymnals (excluding the supplemental songbooks and hymnals).  Extra credit question – what was the one exception?

Also on Mar 3 – Katharine Drexell   -  She was an American heiress, philanthropist, religious sister, and educator. She was the second person born in what is now the United States to be canonized as a saint and the first one born a U.S. citizen.  Huh?  Who was the “non-citizen” first?  Seems like we covered that not too long ago.

Mar 5 – Gerasimus of the Jordan  Gerasimus was born into a wealthy family in the province of Lycia, the southern part of Asia Minor, but he left his family wealth and worldly affairs to become a monk. He departed for the region Thebaid in the Egyptian desert, later again returning to his native Lycia. About the middle of 5th century Saint Gerasimus went to Palestine and settled in the wilderness near the Jordan River. There he established a monastery and became known for his righteous life of asceticism and prayer. He is reputed to have attended to the Fourth Ecumenical Council at Chalcedon in 451.  Legend says that his sanctity was such that after he removed a thorn from the paw of a lion, they became life-long companions and the lion died of grief on his grave.

Mar 6  -  William Mayo and Charles Menninger and their sons.  They established medical practices and clinics.

And some days from the world/earth calendar -

Feb 28

+ The first Gulf War  (Desert Shield and then Desert Storm) ends in 1991.  It had lasted a little over half a year and caused over 100,000 civilian casualties.

Mar 1

+ JFK initiated the Peace Corps in 1961

+ Yellowstone was established – the first National Park – in 1872.  We, and many others, were out walking at The Island on Saturday.  Parks are wonderful things.

Mar 2

+ John Wesley died in 1791.  Methodists, United Methodists, Wesleyans trace themselves back to his life and work.  On his deathbed, his last words were “The best of all is, God is with us.”  Because of his charitable nature he died poor, leaving as the result of his life's work 135,000 members and 541 itinerant preachers under the name "Methodist". It has been said that "when John Wesley was carried to his grave, he left behind him a good library of books, a well-worn clergyman's gown" and the Methodist Church.

Mar 3

+ Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata was published in 1802.

+ The Star Spangled Banner (written during the War of 1812) was officially adopted as the National Anthem in 1931.

Mar 4

+ in 1789 the United States Constitution was put into effect.  Thoughts?

Mar 5

+ Patsy Cline died in 1963.  Her first single was “A Church, A Courtroom, Then Goodbye”.  She went to on sing Walking After Midnight, I Fall To Pieces, She’s Got You, and Crazy.  She was killed in a plane crash, along with Cowboy Copas, Hawkshaw Hawkins and manager Randy Hughes.

Mar 6

+ Aspirin was trademarked by Beyer in 1899.  It lost the rights to the trademark between 1918 and 1921 because it failed to prevent other companies from using it.  Oh well...“Take two and call me…”  

+ Fred Craddock died in 2015.  He was a Biblical scholar and preaching professor.  You may not have heard of him, but he is one of my heroes.  He is responsible for the idea that a sermon should not be the preacher telling people “the way it is” but rather the preacher leading the people on a journey of discovery through the text.  He was also a wonderful story-teller.  He encouraged preachers, and everyone, really, to write down one or two things that happened each day, and then wait until a particular story “asked to be included in a particular sermon.

That’s what I got for now…..

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