Anglican Christianity Class - Rector's Rambling for December 7, 2025

     Last week we got Advent off to an rough start with a Saturday night, Sunday morning snow storm.  In my 25th Advent here at St. John’s we most often find issues with snow on the 3rd Sunday in Advent.  I am grateful for those who were able to make it last week, especially  those from the city and east side where accumulations were much lower.  Several people contacted me about how nice it was to be able to watch the livestream since they were unable to attend.  The forecast for today gives me hope that we will see a better attendance this week.

Today we are beginning our class on Anglican Christianity.  Using Fr. Louis Tarsitano;s book An Outline of an Anglican Life we will  look into topics such as the church, sin, salvation and grace, the sacraments, the Bible and the Prayer Book.  We have copies of the text book available but you can attend, there will be outlines distributed each week, even if you are not reading the text book.  We are planning on meeting this week and next, and then take off two weeks before resuming January 4th.  We will begin after a short period of socializing at the coffee hour after the 10 AM Service.

Thanks be to God for yesterday’s Advent Tea sponsored by the Daughters of the King here at St. John’s.  Next Sunday evening we are having our 5:30 Service and lighting of the new Garden Tree, with a cookie reception to follow.  Friday the 21st we will have the pre-greening of the church, and on Sunday  we will finish decorating it after the Advent Soup Luncheon after the 10 AM Service.  Mark your calendars.

And of course now is the time to start thinking about who you are inviting for Chirstmas.

 

A new Church year - Rector's Rambling for November 30, 2025

     Welcome to the Church New Year.  Since our Lord has not returned in the past 12 months, we begin once again the cycle of the liturgical calendar, which starts with the season of Advent.

This is not a season of pre-Christmas, although there is an theological aspect of looking at the prophecies foretelling the coming of a Saviour.  I have come to accept that the local radio channels will start playing Christmas Music on November 1, whether I agree or not, and even that some of that music may leak into my house as well.  But theologically the church is not there yet.

We begin the year with what, I am sure I will mention in the sermon, is the observance of the “already and not yet”.  We are looking back at that which has already happened, the fulfillment of God to the people of Israel to send a Saviour.  That Saviour, of course, is Jesus Christ.  We know that God is faithful in fulfilling his promises, and looking back we can see that He has done just that.

Convinced that God is faithful in keeping His promises, we will also be looking at the “not yet” of Jesus’ return in glorious majesty to judge both the quick and the dead (as we say every week in the Nicene Creed).  Jesus is coming back, as He promised, and a part of the Advent observance is making sure that we are both convinced that He is Lord, and more personally that He is our own Lord, and that we are prepared spiritually to meet him.  That means we are striving to be in a “state of grace” by repenting of our sins and seeking to follow Him and live as He would have us live.

So Happy New Year!  Perhaps a resolution or two are in order?  More disciplined about daily prayer, attendance at Church every Sunday unless hindered by illness or only the most urgent matter, attending a Mass during the week or Evening Prayer on Wednesday at St. John’s, reaching out to others to share your love for Our Lord and His Church – these are all great ways to get off to a good start in the new Church year!

 

Discipleship - Rector's Rambling for November 23, 2025

One very important aspect of membership in the Church is what is known as Discipleship.  

The word disciple literally means one who follows.  We are disciples of Jesus Christ.  Although the word apostle is sometimes used as a synonym, apostle means one who is sent.  In the Bible the 12 apostles are also considered disciples of Jesus, but not all disciples are sent out as leaders. We are all called to be followers of Jesus Christ.

When we talk about discipleship in the Church we refer to our continued learning of The Faith, being equipped and built up for mission and ministry.  Baptism and Confirmation are beginning points, not an end point, in our learning.  We must continue to learn in order to be able to live the faith, and to share it. 

How do we do this?  Primarily we do it through worship.  The late Bishop Emrich said “In prayer and worship, which are the means of Grace by which God’s life comes to us, we become what we could not otherwise become.”  We are also transformed from the inside out by the Grace of the Blessed Sacrament and instructed by hearing Scripture read in worship, as well as expounded upon in the sermon.

But we have to take the opportunity to further our discipleship by learning the Scriptures through individual study as well as corporate study.  A bible through the year course, such as those offered through podcasts, are a great start!  The Daughters of the King have a regular bible study and in the new calendar year we will restart our Sunday Bible Study.

Also, starting December 7 will be offering a class An Outline of an Anglican Life, on Sundays after the 10 AM Service (and a bit of coffee hour). This 8 week course is an expansion of the Catechism and the Offices of Instruction found in the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  Class dates are December 7 and 14, then January 4 through February 8.  If you are going to be away for some of the dates we can make a video of that lecture available to those absent that day.  PLEASE SIGN UP so we have enough books prepared for the class! 

  

166 years and counting - Rector's Rambling for November 16, 2025

     November 17th is the 166th Anniversary of the dedication of the Chapel of St. John’s in what was then the rural outskirts, outside of the City of Detroit.

It is hard for us to fathom that when the chapel, and then the church, were constructed, this was out in the country.  Our founder, Henry Porter Baldwin, purchased this land to build a church – it was an apple orchard at the time!  Future Governor/Senator Baldwin had built his country estate house where I-75 is located across Woodward Avenue.  He surmised that Detroit would grow in this direction and he wanted the Episcopal Church to be planted here for those already living out in the country, and those to come soon thereafter.

The book Fifty Years of St. John’s Church (1909) records for us:

The cornerstone was laid by Bishop McCroskey on Tuesday afternoon, April 19, 1859, with nine other clergy present. … And now the Chapel was nearing completion.  Two meetings were held in the Sunday School room of St. Paul’s and one in the unfinished Chapel, “to practice in congregational singing,” on which very rightly great stress was laid; and on Thursday morning, November 17, 1859, the congregation assembled for the first time for their common worship, on the occasion of the Consecration of St. John’s Chapel.  With the Bishop and the Rector were twelve other clergy. … At Evening Prayer the same day, the Rector ministered the first Baptism in the parish, to Louis Alden Grelling (see photo above of the original parish register).

By the time the chapel opened it was already too small.  Two weeks later the Vestry voted: Resolved that in view of the fact that every seat in the Chapel is already rented, and that there is a large demand for additional seats, it is desirable that efforts should be made for the immediate erection of a Church seating about one thousand persons.

 

Unselfing of ourselves - Rector's Rambling for November 9, 2025

     Last week I wrote about becoming a saint.  And in my sermon I mentioned several other saints: like Paschal Baylon, Charles Borromeo, and Mother Theresa. All of them came from different backgrounds and starting points in the spiritual life, and all of them are considered saints in the church even though they all had different temperaments and gifts at the end of their earthly life.

Being a saint does not mean we become some sort of mind-numbed robot.  We become saints in many unique ways just as we start out our lives with unique attributes.  Some of these God uses for our greater sanctification, others God strips away so that other gifts from Him can come to the forefront and be used by Him.

Despite the many differences, however, there are things that the saints, holy people in general, do share in common.

Fr. Fredrick Faber, a friend and compatriot of St. John Henry Newman, and author of the great hymn Faith of our fathers! living still, writes in his book All for Jesus:

“I do not mean to say we can easily be equal to saints.  No!  But what I say is that the ways in which they loved God and served the interests of Jesus are easily in our power, if we choose to adopt them.  In a word, while the saints differ in almost everything else, here are three things in which they all agree: eagerness for the glory of God; touchiness about the interests of Jesus; and anxiety for the salvation of souls.”

Are we striving for their attributes in our lives?  Putting aside our own self-interests in order to glorify God, promoting the interests of Jesus, and working to bring others to Him?  Rather than focusing on self we need to instead, as Jesus says, deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Him (see Matthew 16:24).

      modified from a rambling from 11/10/2019