Tag: Ronald D. Pogue

Congratulations! Keep Moving.

The Transfiguration of Christ by the hand of Gay Pogue

The official feast day for the Transfiguration of Christ is August 6. Since it is normally not on a Sunday, it doesn't get much attention. However, the planners of the Sunday lectionary have placed the Transfiguration on the Last Sunday After the Epiphany each year. You can read Luke's account here.

Peter, James, and John were with Jesus on the mountaintop when they saw this itinerant rabbi in a whole new light. It was one of the most powerful and numinous of all the manifestations of Jesus as the Messiah. They heard the voice of God confirming the divine nature and mission of the Only Begotten.

The appearance of Moses the Lawgiver and Elijah the Prophet assure us that Jesus was the One who had come to fulfill the Law and the Prophets. It was as if Moses and Elijah were passing their ministries on to Jesus the Messiah for him to complete.

Peter's suggestion that they build dwellings and take up residence in the experience reminds us of our tendency to want to stop the procession. When something wonderful happens, we feel as if it can't get any better than this and we want to preserve everything just the way it is. But Jesus had to come down from the mountain, respond to human need, and face the cross. Mountaintop experiences have their place. But there is always more to be done in the mission to which we are called.

I once heard about a university commencement in which the president's lapel microphone remained on as he was presenting the diplomas to the graduates, broadcasting his voice as he said to each one of them, "Congratulations! Keep moving."

Perhaps that is a message for us when we have an epiphany, a mountaintop experience. It is an important and wonderful thing, but not an end in itself. We draw inspiration and derive courage from it and we keep moving toward new opportunities God is preparing for us to walk in. "Congratulations! Keep moving."

I'll see you in Church!

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

February 28, 2019
Nurturing the Most Important Relationship of All

Think of the most important relationships in your life. Who are the people who matter to you and to whom you matter? How do you nurture those relationships? Do you routinely show up for meals with them? Do you communicate with them? Do you celebrate special occasions with them? Do you check in with them on a regular basis? Do you go out of your way for them? Do you feel a sense of responsibility to them? Do you delight in their company? Do you lavish gifts upon them to express your devotion? Do you tell them what they mean to you? What would your life be like without them? Do you ever take them for granted? Would it bother you if you drifted apart.

Does your relationship with God matter as much? How do you nurture your relationship with God?

One of the consistent themes of the Bible is God’s desire for a relationship with us. God went searching for Adam in the Garden of Eden. God appeared to Abraham and made a covenant with him. The first two commandments God gave to Moses on the mountain have to do with putting God first. God in Christ said, “Follow me” to some strangers and formed them into a community of friends and disciples. They and their successors called to others to follow Christ and join that community, the Church, where we continue to work on that relationship today.

God wants to be first in our lives and promises to transform all other relationships. In an attempt to express the primacy of our relationship with God, the faithful do things like give the first tenth of their treasure to God and worship on the first day of the week. Because God matters, we show up for meals, communicate, celebrate special occasions, check in regularly, go out of our way, feel a sense of responsibility, delight in God’s company, lavish gifts upon God, and express what God means to us through prayers and praises. Life would not be the same without God and we don’t ever want to take God for granted.

God matters to us. But even more important is the message that we matter to God! Of all God’s creatures, human beings come first. We are the apple of God’s eye. Because this relationship is so important to God, God shows up for meals, communicates with us, celebrates special occasions with us, goes out of the way for us, feels a sense of responsibility toward us, delights in our company, lavishes gifts upon us, and tells us we are beloved. We matter to God and God never takes us for granted.

St. Augustine of Hippo prayed, “Thou hast made us for thyself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in thee.” We were created with a desire to live in relationship with our Creator as well as our neighbors. As we approach the Season of Lent, I pray that we will make a new resolve to open ourselves more fully to that relationship. This 19th Century hymn echoes Augustine's prayer. Take a moment to listen to this a capella rendition by Danny Byrum.

I sought the Lord, and afterward I knew
he moved my soul to seek him, seeking me.
It was not I that found, O Savior true;
no, I was found of thee.

Thou didst reach forth thy hand and mine enfold;
I walked and sank not on the storm-vexed sea.
'Twas not so much that I on thee took hold,
as thou, dear Lord, on me.

I find, I walk, I love, but oh, the whole
of love is but my answer, Lord, to thee!
For thou wert long beforehand with my soul;
always thou lovedst me.

I’ll see you in Church!

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

February 21, 2019
Every Member Has a Ministry!

The Calling of Andrew Window

The Feast of the Epiphany celebrates the manifestation of Jesus as the Messiah to the gentile world. In the season following the feast, we are reminded of various ways he manifested his messianic role – miracles, healing, preaching, teaching, and calling people to follow him.

He spent time with those who responded to his call, forming them into a community, equipping them to continue his messianic work in the world. Each follower of Jesus was given gifts for this work. Some were placed in positions of leadership to provide the formative experiences for others in the generations that followed. In this way, the community of followers of Jesus, the Church, is strategically ordered to advance his mission from generation to generation.

Writing to the followers of Jesus in the city of Ephesus in the first few years after Jesus ascended into heaven, St. Paul wrote of this way of ensuring the future of Christian mission:

“But each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift. The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ” (Ephesians 4:7, 11-13).

Notice that the “work of ministry” is entrusted to “the saints.” Who are the saints? The saints are the members of Christ’s Church, the followers of Jesus. Our Episcopal catechism expresses it this way, “The Church carries out is mission through the ministry of all its members” (BCP, p. 855).

Larger congregations, like ours, have several members of the clergy and a number of staff members. It is easy to see the clergy and staff as the ones who carry out the Church’s mission. Sometimes even the clergy and staff begin to see it that way. However, when that happens, the saints are deprived of their missional opportunities. It is our responsibility to help each member discover his or her gifts and discern ways in which Christ wants those gifts to be used, with God's help, in the ongoing mission of Jesus Christ.

Some are called to serve primarily within the life of the Church. Others are called to ministries out in the world at our doorstep. Many are called to do both! Christ calls each of us to be engaged in his mission. Every member has a ministry! Vibrant, fruitful churches are filled with people who believe that and exercise their ministries to the glory of God, thereby building up the Church in pursuit of Christ’s mission.

So, during this season when we recall those whom Christ called to follow him during his earthly ministry, we reclaim and reaffirm our own vocations. Where are you called to serve Christ in his Church? If you know, your clergy and staff are here to assist you and support you. And, if you are not sure, we are here to help you find a ministry that is right for you.

Tomorrow, I will send out a message announcing this year’s engagement campaign, “I Will, With God’s Help.” Building on last year’s campaign, we are hoping once again to have strong participation in this effort to engage everyone in the ministries of St. Andrew’s Cathedral. There is a long list of possibilities in the survey we have prepared. Please watch for the email. When it arrives, I invite you, in the name of Jesus Christ, to take some time to review the opportunities and respond to the call to serve in one or more ways.

By responding to your vocation, your call, you give us the privilege of fulfilling ours! Please let us hear from you.

The Collect for the Sixth Sunday After the Epiphany is a good prayer to offer while you are considering your call to serve.

O God, the strength of all who put their trust in you: Mercifully accept our prayers; and because in our weakness we can do nothing good without you, give us the help of your grace, that in keeping your commandments we may please you both in will and deed; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

I’ll see you in Church!

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

February 14, 2019
Networking

Next Sunday's gospel is Luke 5:1-11. It is the story of Jesus' encounter with Simon, James, and John on the shore of Lake Gennesaret (the Sea of Galilee). You might want to read the story here to refresh your memory of their miraculous catch of fish and how Jesus told them they would be catching people.

The Greek word zogron, which means “catching,” was commonly used of teachers: they “caught” their students and brought them new life. I remember an occasion at dinner with friends when my wife, Gay, who was a high school English teacher, was talking about a new data projector she had been issued by her school. It was a somewhat novel thing at that time. She explained how she could project a movie on an entire classroom wall for the students to watch and she described their response to a movie she wanted them to see. One of our dinner companions exclaimed, “You caught them!” That is what Jesus means when he says to Simon, James, and John, “don't be afraid; from now on you will be catching people.”

The sense in which the followers of Jesus are called to “catch” people has to do with inclusion in a redemptive, prophetic, community of faith. We are woven into a network. My salvation and yours are connected. My part of Christ’s mission and yours are tied together. When we are called into a relationship with Jesus Christ, we are called into life in Christ's community. We are woven into a network through our Baptism and cast out into the world to “catch” people with the love of God.

Someone has said, “Christianity is more easily caught than taught.” Another person expressed it like this, “We belong before we believe.” Our life and witness as disciples, students, followers of Jesus Christ is not done in isolation either from Jesus or from the community of faith.

The First Baptist Church of Austin, Texas is remarkable for its progressive faith and its architecture. It is one of the few Southern Baptist Churches with the pulpit on the side instead of in the center. A large communion table sits in the center, surrounded by seats. Rising above the table in a recessed area are about four stories of organ pipes. And draped in the opening in front of the pipes are two enormous fish nets. I don't know that I've ever seen a more powerful reminder of the network of disciples Jesus has called to carry on his work in the world.

As we live and grow in our relationship with him and with one another, we are woven into this amazingly strong and reliable net that the Lover of our souls casts out into the world so that his love manifested among us may catch others, draw them in, and give them life. This net really works!

In the next few days, we are going to extend an invitation to become involved in the network of disciples at St. Andrew’s Cathedral. We are hoping some will continue in the places of service in which they are now engaged. Some may feel called to some place of ministry that is new to them. We are also hoping some who have not been involved will respond to the invitation by finding a place of service. Watch for the invitation and let us know how you believe you are called to be woven into this Cathedral net to ensure that it continues to work on behalf of Christ’s mission in the world.

I’ll see you in Church!

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

February 7, 2019
The Message of Love

The season after The Epiphany of Our Lord is one in which we consider our own calling against the backdrop of God's call to those who have gone before us. God’s call is accompanied by gifts that will be needed in order to be who we are called to be and to do what we are called to do. The life of those who are called is to be lived out in the company of others who are also called. Sometimes, as we will see in Sunday's readings regarding Jeremiah, Jesus, and St. Paul, the call is to deliver a message. And, sometimes, that message is one that people would rather not hear.

You would think that a message of love would be one that everybody wants to hear, wouldn’t you? Think of how we like to exalt love. We like to talk about it and sing about it. Of all the things God might want us to tell others about and of all the things we might want to hear about, talk of love seems like the kind of message that ought to be universally welcomed.

However, as we can see from the examples of Jeremiah, Jesus, and St. Paul, you can get run out of town pretty fast for too much talk about love – Love Divine.

The witness of Jeremiah was to call forth the best from God’s people by reminding them of God’s covenant love. His message met with a great deal of rejection. The witness of Jesus and of St. Paul was the same. It is a love that pours itself out for the other, the beloved, without regard for a return on the investment. It feeds the hungry, clothes the naked, shelters the homeless, forgives the offender, and enables us to live with ourselves and others. It is willing to risk an entire relationship if that is what is necessary to tell the truth. And, the first step toward giving this sort of love, Love Divine, is to experience it for ourselves. To be brought face-to-face with the best and the worst that is in us in the presence of the Lover of our Souls.

We may miss the point because we are so self-absorbed. There is a reservoir of love already standing within us. Like the subject of a song about love that was popular a few years ago, we are “looking for love in all the wrong places.”

When we come to the time in our lives where we do see ourselves as we really are, a mixture of beauty and beast, our only salvation is in the realization that God, too, sees both sides of our nature and loves them both. God seeks the transformation of the lower, darker side and the exaltation and maturity of the other. God’s love for us is tough, authentic, just, and unquenchable!

The ongoing expression of God’s desire to love us is the Holy Eucharist. It is also the communion of those who are willing to be open to the giving and receiving of that love.

I'll see you in Church!

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

January 31, 2019
One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism

This 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)

Perhaps 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 were 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.

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.

As 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!

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

January 17, 2019
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!

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

December 27, 2018
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!

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

December 20, 2018
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.

At 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!

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

December 14, 2018
U Turn Only!

Yesterday, 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).

Advent 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!

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

December 6, 2018