As many of you will already know, earlier this week a severe earthquake struck southeast Turkey, killing thousands of people and devastating a large portion of Turkey and northern Syria. This earthquake was followed by a second earthquake nine hours later, and several aftershocks.
The other day I was praying Morning Prayer and came to the recitation of the Apostles’ Creed. As is often the case with those regular and well-known words, something jumped out at me: “I believe… in the forgiveness of sins.”
But do I? So many of us assent to this verbally but live something very different practically.
A couple of weeks ago I encouraged us to approach this new year with the attitude, “Speak, Lord, for your servant hears.” That all sounds great, you might think, but how do I listen? How do I hear from the Lord? For that, there is a central source and a necessary attitude or habit.
And the Lord called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy. Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down, and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant hears.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
I Samuel 3:8-9, ESV
While Christmas is—and ought to be—a joy-filled time of year, it can also be a source of anxiety, grief, and even fear for many among us. For those of you burdened with fear, I want to assure you that Jesus Christ is the antidote to that fear—that the gift God gives us on Christmas is a reminder that we are not alone. He has come to dwell among us.
Watch the Anglican Bishop of Pittsburgh's Christmas address, below.
But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he has made glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.
Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz: “Ask a sign of the Lord your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.” But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test.” And he said, “Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also? Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good.
The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad;
the desert shall rejoice and blossom like the crocus;
it shall blossom abundantly
and rejoice with joy and singing.
The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it,
the majesty of Carmel and Sharon.
They shall see the glory of the Lord,
the majesty of our God.
Strengthen the weak hands,
The wolf shall dwell with the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat,
And the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together;
and a little child shall lead them.
The cow and the bear shall graze;
their young shall lie down together;
and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra,
The following is the script from Bishop Alex Cameron's sermon at the Convention Eucharist on November 5, 2022. The service was also live-streamed and can be viewed below.
