Category: From the Interim Dean

  • One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism

    Cross of NailsThis will reach you on the eve of The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. This annual observance always begins on January 18, the Confession of St. Peter, and continues until January 25, the Conversion of St. Paul.

    Once we thought Christian unity meant all Christians should be organized into one big church. Today’s approach is summed up in a Latin phrase, “In necessariis unitas, in dubiis libertas, in omnibus caritas” commonly translated as "unity in necessary things; liberty in doubtful things; charity in all things." The phrase has often been attributed to 4th century bishop St. Augustine of Hippo, but has also been attributed to 17th century Croatian Bishop Marco Antonio de Dominis and English author and Puritan Richard Baxter of the same era. Regardless of who said it, it is worthy of contemplation as we pray and work for Christian unity.

    I wish other groups of Christians could know the kind of unity that exists in The Cathedral Church of St. Andrew – an inviting, unity of heart, mind, and purpose that is in contrast to the day-to-day conflicts that plague us. It is not a unity based on agreement in everything, but is similar to what St. Paul described in a message he sent to the Ephesians, “I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all” (Eph. 4:1-6)

    Coventry RuinsPerhaps there is some way it can be exported. Let me tell you about a place that did just that.

    On November 14, 1940, much of the City of Coventry, England was reduced to rubble by German bombs. The Cathedral Church of St. Michael and All Angels, at the heart of the city, burned with it. In the terrible aftermath that followed, Provost Howard wrote the words ‘Father forgive’ on the smoke-blackened wall of the sanctuary. Two of the charred beams that had fallen in the shape of a cross Father Forgivewere set on the altar and three of the medieval nails were bound into the shape of a cross. The people of Coventry found the grace to overcome the anger they felt toward their enemies who destroyed their Cathedral and almost destroyed their entire city. 

    After the war, they decided to share that grace with others. Crosses of Nails were presented to Kiel, Dresden, and Berlin, cities shattered by Allied bombing.  Out of those ashes grew a trust and partnership between Coventry and the German cities. The Community of the Cross of Nails came into being. There are now 160 Cross of Nails Centres around the world, all emanating from this early, courageous vision, and all working for peace and reconciliation within their own communities and countries. The Cross of Nails has become a powerful and inspirational symbol of reconciliation and peace. It should come as no surprise that our own St. Andrew’s Cathedral is listed among the Friends of the Community of the Cross of Nails. Coventry Altar Cross

    The original Cross of Nails is now incorporated in the cross on the Coventry Cathedral High  Altar. The twisted arms of the High Altar cross symbolize the charred timbers from the roof of the original Cathedral, which were made into a cross to replace the original High Altar cross. The nails and twisted arms also symbolize Christ's suffering on the original Cross.

    SAC Chapel Cross of NailsAs a Friend, St. Andrew's also has a Cross of Nails. It is above the Chapel Altar. Give thanks to God for our unity and pray that we will be a light to others who seek oneness in Christ. Every shining example of a community of Christians living into the oneness for which our Savior prayed is part of the answer to his prayer "that they all might be one" and all prayers for unity among all God's children.

     

    I'll see you in Church!

    Ron Short Blue Sig Cropped

     

     

     

     

    The Very Reverend Ronald D. Pogue
    Interim Dean
    St. Andrew’s Cathedral
    Jackson, Mississippi

     

  • Remember Who You Are!

    Icon1-Baptism-of-Our-Lord-01-Projection-Clip-Art-600x600Sunday is the Feast of the Baptism of Christ. It is one of the days in the liturgical calendar when we renew the Baptismal Covenant. We do that from time to time so that we can remember that we are God’s beloved sons and daughters whom God has invited to live in a covenant relationship. A covenant relationship is one in which each party is bound to remain in relationship even when the other does not live up to the promises of the covenant. The most important thing to remember about our covenant relationship with God is that God always remains faithful to us, even when we are unfaithful to God. God is always there, calling us back into that unique relationship.

    I suppose the most impressive thing about this God of ours is the fact that, instead of sitting upon a throne, aloof and disinterested in the affairs of the people God has created, our God has chosen to enter into a covenant with us. This is a difficult thing for some to believe. I even find myself sometimes asking, when I sense my own unfaithfulness and that of the world around me, “What's a nice God like you doing in a covenant like this?”

    As God's covenant promises were declared and established in the Baptism of Jesus – so God’s covenant promises are declared in our Baptism. In our Baptism we, like our Messiah who has gone before us, are anointed and our identity as God's children is established. Through Baptism we become members of God's family and are ordained to the priesthood of believers.

    Whenever Baptism is administered, it is a sign of God's action and God's intentions toward us. God gets involved with us in a covenant relationship because God desires to be in fellowship with us and wants to work in and through us toward the fulfillment of our lives and the life of all creation. Who we are determines what we do, how we respond to the world and all the people and events of life.

    Carl Sandburg once told a group of students at a Harvard commencement, “you need the spirit of Lincoln, who in the divided house of his day knew what to do because he knew who he was.” To be taught that we are children of God and to define ourselves in that way changes what we do with our lives. It is news we can embrace or resist. The fruit of our lives reveals which we are doing.

    In Baptism we are marked as Christian disciples and heirs of God's grace. Few of us can actually remember our Baptism – its precise details. But we can remember that we are Baptized just as we can remember that we are born. In remembering our Baptism, we get back in touch with who we really are, God's children, called and set apart for a special purpose. We renew the covenant God has established with us so that there may be a renewal of forgiveness, faith, and ministry in our task as God’s own beloved people.

    In Alex Haley's book, Roots, there is a memorable scene the night the slave, Kunte Kinte, drove his master to a ball at the big plantation house. Kunta Kinte heard the music from inside the house, music from the white folk's dance. He parked the buggy and settled down to wait out the long night of his master's revelry. While he sat in the buggy, he heard other music coming from the slave's quarters, the little cabins behind the big house. It was different music, music with a different rhythm. He felt himself carried down the path toward those cabins. There he found a man playing African music, his music which he remembered hearing in Africa as a child – the music he had almost forgotten. Kunta Kinte found that the man was from his section of Africa. They talked excitedly, in his native language, of home and the things of home.

    That night, Kunta Kinte went home changed. He lay upon the dirt floor of his little cabin and wept. Weeping in sadness that he had almost forgotten, weeping in joy that he had at last remembered. The terrifying, degrading experience of slavery had almost obliterated his memory of who he was. But the music had helped him remember.

    This is a parable about Baptism. It is a parable about how easy it is to forget who we are and whose we are. So the Church is here to remind us, to remind one another, that our freedom has been bought with a price, that someone greater than us has named us and claimed us, seeks us and loves us, with only one good reason in mind – to love us for all eternity. Whenever we see the water poured and each time we feast on the bread and wine of the Eucharist, let us renew the Baptismal Covenant, which we, from time to time, have broken. Each time someone is brought to these holy waters, let us remember our Baptism and be thankful. And each time we step back into the mission field at the Church’s doorstep, let us remember that we are beloved of God so that we can share that blessing with others.

    I once had a small piece of one-way glass on my desk with an inscription that said, “Lord, make my life a window for your light to shine through and a mirror to reflect your love to all I meet.” That is exactly what God hopes will come of my Baptism, and yours as well.

    Father in heaven, who at the baptism of Jesus in the River
    Jordan proclaimed him your beloved Son and anointed him
    with the Holy Spirit: Grant that all who are baptized into his
    Name may keep the covenant they have made, and boldly
    confess him as Lord and Savior; who with you and the Holy
    Spirit lives and reigns, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.

    I’ll see you in Church!

    Ron Short Blue Sig Cropped

                                                                                                                   

     

     

     

    The Very Reverend Ronald D. Pogue
    Interim Dean
    St. Andrew’s Cathedral
    Jackson, Mississippi

     

     

  • Thinking About the New Year

    As I approach the New Year, I am reminded of the words of the writer of the Letter to the Hebrews, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith…” (Hebrews 12:1-2a NRSV). 

    A lot of people who have gone before me have helped me and inspired me to reach this point in my pilgrimage. They have cheered me on and still do. The journey continues into the future. Jesus Christ, the pioneer who set out before me is the One who calls me forward toward fulfillment. I'll lay aside the weights and all that clings to me and slows me down so that I can run with perseverance. At such a moment in his life a half-century ago, Malcolm Boyd asked, "Are you running with me, Jesus?"

    I've thought about that prayer for a long time and have decided that it is a good one to offer every now and then. If he's not running with me, I may be on the wrong track!

    God, help me stay on the right track in the New Year.

    I’ll see you in Church!

    Ron Short Blue Sig Cropped

     

     

     

     

    The Very Reverend Ronald D. Pogue
    Interim Dean
    St. Andrew’s Cathedral
    Jackson, Mississippi

  • How Can We Name a Love?

    As I sit here contemplating the Christmas message, I am reminded that someone once said "The best way to send a message is to wrap it in a person." That's what God did in sending Jesus to us. In Jesus, the Messiah, we receive the message of God's love for us. In Jesus, God's redemptive work continues to transform lives – not just change them, but transform them.

    In this context, for one to change means to do something different but to be transformed means to become a new creature. In Jesus, God Incarnate, "things which were cast down are being raised up, and things which had grown old are being made new, and all things are being brought to their perfection by him through whom all things were made" (BCP, p. 515).

    That's the message for us this Christmas, and every Christmas. And that's my prayer for you and those whom you love as we join the shepherds at the manger to "see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us" (Luke 2:15).

    These lines from the English hymn writer, Brian Wren, sum it up beautifully:

    How can we name a Love that wakens heart and mind,
    indwelling all we know or think or do or seek or find?
    Within our daily world, in every human face,
    Love's echoes sound and God is found, hid in the commonplace

    So in a hundred names, each day we all can meet
    a presence, sensed and shown at work, at home, or in the street.
    Yet every name we see, shines in a brighter sun:
    In Christ alone is Love full grown and life and hope begun.

    I'll see you in Church!

    Ron Short Blue Sig Cropped

     

     

     

     

    The Very Reverend Ronald D. Pogue
    Interim Dean
    St. Andrew’s Cathedral
    Jackson, Mississippi

     

     

  • An Advent Story

    Advent is a time of preparation. The messages of the Hebrew prophets and of John the Bapitzer tell us that repentance is a necessary element when we are preparing for God’s entrance into our lives. The call to repentance is a call to examine our lives and change directions in ways that open our lives for God to do something new.

    A Christmas CarolAt this time of year, many people turn again to the wonderful Victorian era classic A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. As I read it, A Christmas Carol is really an Advent story. The surly old curmudgeon, Ebenezer Scrooge, lives a miserly existence with his entire being. Then, he is visited in a dream by three Christmas ghosts. He sees his past and then his present. But what is most frightening to him, what shakes him to the core, is the vision of his future. Scrooge awakens to find that nothing has changed. Dickens says, “The bedpost was his own. The bed was his own. The room was his own.” Then Dickens adds, in what might be an Advent text, “Best and happiest of all, the time before him was his own, to make amends in.”

    Scrooge undergoes a radical transformation and becomes an entirely new person. He leaves behind the cold and indifferent miser and becomes generous and compassionate. He seizes the time and becomes what the Bible might call “a new creation.” The world has not changed, but he has!

    It is a heart-warming story. But more than that, it is a hopeful story. It provides us with the hope that we too can have a change of heart and mind when we know we should. John the Baptizer tells us that someone is coming, someone so spectacular that it is not enough simply to hang around waiting for him to arrive. It is time to get ready, to prepare the way, so that when he comes he can walk a straight path right to us.

    That’s what makes the news good! The call to wake up and change directions is filled with the promise that something new is about to happen right before our eyes and in our lives. The time before us is our own “to make amends in” as we prepare room for God to make us new creatures. May this Advent be such a time for you.

    I’ll see you in Church!

    Ron Short Blue Sig Cropped

     

     

     

    The Very Reverend Ronald D. Pogue
    Interim Dean
    St. Andrew’s Cathedral
    Jackson, Mississippi

  • U Turn Only!

    No U TurnYesterday, I took a wrong turn on a street in Jackson. When I got to the next intersection, I was frustrated to see a “No U Turn” sign. After several minutes of wandering around in unfamiliar territory, I finally managed to find my way to my destination.

    It occurs to me that the message of John the Baptist (Luke 3:1-18), which we will be hearing again during Advent, is something like the opposite of a “No U Turn” sign.  John says in no uncertain terms that a U Turn is required. The Greek word metanoiete, which we translate “repent,” means to turn, to go in a different direction, to change perspective. 

    There are countless biblical examples of how God's way is not always the shortest way, or simplest way, or our way.  God even admits it: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:8, 9).  Certainly, God choosing to be born in a barn and die on a cross doesn't seem to me like the best way to establish God's reign. Do you remember when Peter tried to suggest a shortcut to Jesus at Caesarea Philippi? Jesus’ response to Peter was, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling-block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things” (Matthew 16:23).

    ThAdvent is an attitude adjustment time that invites us to step back, turn in a different direction, and get a different perspective that will allow us to receive the amazing news of the Incarnation. Like a required U Turn, Advent directs us to do something that seems counterintuitive in order to get our lives headed in the direction God needs us to follow as our spiritual journey continues. And, for some of us hard-headed and stiff-necked people, the sense of it is in the doing of it.

    I'll see you in Church!

    Ron Short Blue Sig Cropped

     

     

     

     

    The Very Reverend Ron Pogue
    Interim Dean
    St. Andrew's Cathedral
    Jackson, Mississippi

     

  • Why Blue for Advent?

    The Season of Advent Blue Advent Sky

    The word “Advent” is derived from the Latin Adventus, which means “coming” or “arrival.” It is the season of preparation for the celebration of the Birth of Jesus Christ, God’s Messiah. Advent has been observed in the Western churches, since about the fifth century C.E.. Advent begins the liturgical year and includes the time from the fourth Sunday before Christmas, until Christmas Day. The first Sunday of Advent is always the Sunday nearest the feast of St. Andrew the Apostle, November 30th, and always falls between November 27th  and December 3rd.

    The Color for the Season

    For centuries, the season of Advent was observed as a penitential season. Sometimes, it was even referred to as the “Little Lent.” And, following the pattern of Lent, the designation of the four Sundays of the season were Sundays “in” Advent rather than Sundays “of” Advent. Also, as in Lent, the color violet or purple was the seasonal color. 

    During the ecumenical liturgical reforms of the 1960’s and 1970’s, a strong consensus emerged that Advent should be a season of hope and anticipation, rather than penitence. As the new lectionaries were developed, the Sunday readings reflected those themes. The 1979 Book of Common Prayer reflects that emphasis on hope and anticipation.

    Many churches sought a different seasonal color. Liturgical leaders were drawn to the color blue, which was used in the ancient Sarum Rite (Salisbury, England). In subsequent years, use of the color blue has become widespread during Advent. Blue symbolizes hope, confidence, anticipation and expectation, all adjectives that describe the season of Advent.

    The Advent Wreath Candles

    Advent Blue CandlesUse of the Advent Wreath entered our observance of the season during the last century. The wreath consists of four candles, one of which is lighted on each of the four Advent Sundays. As the days grow shorter and the nights grow longer, we light more candles until we celebrate the birth of the Light of the World on December 25, symbolized by a larger white candle in the center of the wreath.

    When purple or violet was the seasonal color, that was the choice of color for the hangings, vestments, and Advent Wreath candles. However, rose, a lighter shade of purple, was often used on the third Sunday. Rose was thought to be representative of a less penitential theme for that Sunday, on which the first word of the Introit was “Rejoice.” Now that Advent is no longer observed as a primarily penitential season, the candles, like the hangings and vestments, are blue and there is no need for a rose candle to suggest that we  “lighten up.”

    I invite you to take time in this season of Advent to prepare your heart and mind in new ways for the news of the birth of Jesus Christ, God With Us. When you see the color blue in the Cathedral, or anywhere for that matter, may it trigger in you a reminder that God’s Messiah is always moving in our direction to assure us that we are beloved, to foster hope for a brighter future, and to lead us to “walk safely in the glory of God” (Baruch 5:7).

    I’ll see you in Church!

    Ron Short Blue Sig Cropped

     

     

     

     

    The Very Reverend Ron Pogue
    Interim Dean
    St. Andrew's Cathedral
    Jackson, Mississippi

     

  • It is good for us to gather around the table.

    Many of us have just spent some time gathered around the table with families and close friends for a Thanksgiving feast. This may be a teachable moment, when we can connect the dots that form a picture of family life and family identity.
     
    Families seem busier now than when I was a child. It's easy to understand, particularly with more two-career households, more activities for children and youth, and significant shifts in cultural values. When something has to give, family meals may fall by the wayside. And yet, family meals are not only a time for strengthening family ties and keeping track of your children's lives, they can actually lead to better physical and mental health for your children and for the entire family.
     
    Studies in recent years have concluded that family meals are a central feature in better nutrition, mental health, academic achievement, vocabulary, parenting, and family life in general. Many of us can recall how we learned the story of our family and came to an understanding of our place in that family while sitting at the table with our families.
     
    Have you noticed that as the trend away from family dining has increased, worship patterns on Sundays have also changed? I suspect the same factors that make it more difficult to gather the family around the dinner table also make it more difficult for Christians to gather around the Holy Table. I invite you to consider that the health and well-being of the Church is impacted by regular worship in ways that are similar to ways our families are impacted by regular family meals. When God calls us together to recall the family story and share in the family meal, we are nourished and formed as Christians. We remember who and whose we are.
     
    Maybe the adage, "The Family That Prays Together Stays Together," is not so trite after all. I do understand that many people do not have good memories of family and home. Many have not found the church family all that wonderful either. However, there is universal hunger for a sense of belonging and identity that we might call "family feeling." Those who have found surrogate families will tell you how much it means. Those who have returned to their church families or found new ones will tell you how it has impacted their spiritual journey.
     
    Now is a good time to pause and reflect on the busyness of our lives and consider what valuable times with our families and our church family have been crowded out. If we are too busy to gather around the table – at home or at church – maybe we are just too busy for our own good and the good of those whose lives are closely linked with ours. At home and at church, we need that time together
     
    I'll see you in Church!

    Ron Short Blue Sig Cropped

     

     

     

     

    The Very Reverend Ron Pogue
    Interim Dean
    St. Andrew's Cathedral
    Jackson, Mississippi

     

  • Thanksgiving 2018

    Our Thanksgiving Day service at Saint Andrew's Cathedral will be at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, November 22. If you are in the vicinity, please attend. Come as you are, bring family, friends, or neighbors to this beautiful, inspiring place dedicated to the glory of our bountiful Creator.

    Also, I want to encourage you to make your meal a true feast of Thanksgiving for those who gather with you around the table. The Book of Common Prayer of The Episcopal Church provides many resources to help us join together in expressing our gratitude to God on our national day of thanksgiving. Our Hymnal also is filled with words and music to express our gratitude. I commend these worship resources to you and pray that you and those you love will enjoy a truly Happy Thanksgiving!

    The Collect for Thanksgiving Day

    Almighty and gracious Father, we give you thanks for the fruits of the earth in their season and for the labors of those who harvest them. Make us, we pray, faithful stewards of your great bounty, for the provision of our necessities and the relief of all who are in need, to the glory of your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

    Prayers for Our Country

    Almighty God, you have given us this good land for our heritage: We humbly beseech you that we may always prove ourselves a people mindful of your favor and glad to do your will. Bless our land with honorable industry, sound learning, and pure manners. Save us from violence, discord, and confusion; from pride and arrogance, and from every evil way. Defend our liberties, and fashion into one united people the multitudes brought here out of many kindreds and tongues. Endue with the spirit of wisdom those to whom in your Name we entrust the authority of government, that there may be justice and peace at home, and that, through obedience to your law, we may show forth your praise among the nations of the earth. In the time of prosperity, fill our hearts with thankfulness, and in the day of trouble, suffer not our trust in you to fail; all which we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

    Lord God Almighty, you have made all the peoples of the earth for your glory, to serve you in freedom and in peace: Give to the people of our country a zeal for justice and the strength of forbearance, that we may use our liberty in accordance with your gracious will; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

    A Litany of Thanksgiving

    Let us give thanks to God our Father for all his gifts so freely bestowed upon us.

    For the beauty and wonder of your creation, in earth and sky and sea.

    We thank you, Lord.

    For all that is gracious in the lives of men and women, revealing the image of Christ,

    We thank you, Lord.

    For our daily food and drink, our homes and families, and our friends,

    We thank you, Lord.

    For minds to think, and hearts to love, and hands to serve,

    We thank you, Lord.

    For health and strength to work, and leisure to rest and play,

    We thank you, Lord.

    For the brave and courageous, who are patient in suffering and faithful in adversity,

    We thank you, Lord.

    For all valiant seekers after truth, liberty, and justice,

    We thank you, Lord.

    For the communion of saints, in all times and places,

    We thank you, Lord.

    Above all, we give you thanks for the great mercies and promises given to us in Christ Jesus our Lord;

    To him be praise and glory, with you, O Father, and the Holy Spirit, now and for ever. Amen.

     

    Hymn 397 – Now Thank We All Our God 

    DOWNLOAD LYRICS FOR NOW THANK WE ALL OUR GOD

     

    I’ll see you in Church!

    Ron Short Blue Sig Cropped

     

     

     

     

    The Very Reverend Ron Pogue
    Interim Dean
    St. Andrew's Cathedral
    Jackson, Mississippi

     

  • An Epiphany From a Table

     

    We once lived in a rectory that had a beautiful dining table with extensions at each end that could be pulled out from under the top to double the size and seating capacity. The first Thanksgiving with that table, Gay and I were setting up for guests and positioning the extensions so we could seat twelve. After we pulled the extensions out, we noticed that they would not sit flush with the central tabletop because the tongue and slot on each end were not aligned. We immediately decided that at some point the two extensions had been reversed and that, by removing them and putting them in the original positions, we could make the tongues and slots align properly so the top and the extensions would fit perfectly.

    We tried that. It didn’t work because the rails attached to the extensions have to bypass each other under the table and they had to glide through channels that were positioned differently on each side.

    Obviously, we thought, someone had screwed the extensions to the wrong rails. To correct the problem, we would need to remove the screws and return the extensions to the proper rails. Upon closer inspection, it became apparent that the screw holes in the table extensions were not in the same locations on the two rails. So that wouldn’t work either.

    We felt completely defeated, but were not going to be outsmarted by a wooden table.

    Finally, we saw that the tabletop was not fastened to anything. We picked it up, turned it 180º, sat it back down, and moved the extensions into place. With the tongues and slots now in perfect alignment, everything fitted together perfectly. Problem solved!

    There is an epiphany in this incident; Effective problem solving depends upon a reliable understanding of the situation. And, sometimes the challenges in our lives are not so much problems to be solved, as they are situations to be understood. The Bible is full of examples. Here are some examples from the ministry of Jesus.

    There was a man who was born blind. Some Pharisees saw the problem and concluded that his blindness was the result of someone’s sin – either his parents’ sin or his own. Jesus’ response was to say, “His blindness is not the result of sin.” They didn’t understand the situation and that led them to a solution that wrote the blind man off. Jesus, on the other hand, saw the situation from a different point of view. The man needed healing, not condemnation. His problem was an opportunity for God’s compassion to be revealed. So Jesus healed him.

    When Jesus was teaching a huge crowd of people and mealtime was approaching, his disciples decided that the solution to the problem was to send them into the village so they could find some food. They didn’t understand the situation. Jesus did. He said, “You feed them.” They protested that there were only five loaves of bread and two fish. Again, they didn’t understand the situation. Jesus did. He told them to distribute the food. It was another opportunity for divine compassion to be displayed. After everyone was full, there were twelve baskets full of leftovers. Jesus understood that the solution to hunger was to feed people.

    King Herod was threatened when he heard that a new King of the Jews had been born. This new King might try to supplant him. So he ordered his soldiers to kill all the male babies they could find. Mary and Joseph fled into Egypt with the infant Jesus. When Jesus grew up and began his public ministry, there were those who wanted him to be their king. He tried to tell them that his kingdom would be of a different kind. Still, he continued to be a problem for those in positions of power and they tried to solve the problem by putting him to death. They didn’t understand the situation. God understood and the Resurrection was the result.

    We’ve just come through an election season when every candidate had all the solutions to all the problems. In some cases, I had to wonder if what I was hearing was in fact a solution in search of a problem. However, as we will see in the days ahead, few actually understood the situation and, because of that, many problems will remain unsolved. I would have been more inclined to vote for a candidate who admitted being stumped but was honestly committed to seeking understanding before trying to solve a problem.

    Seeking to understand before trying to solve problems is supposed to be a specialty of people of faith. The King James Version puts it this way, “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding” (Proverbs 4:7).

    I’ll see you in Church!

    Ron Short Blue Sig Cropped

     

     

     

     

    The Very Reverend Ron Pogue
    Interim Dean
    St. Andrew's Cathedral
    Jackson, Mississippi