Saturday, October 26, 2013

The Feast of Dedication: Church, churches, the difference & the relationship


It has become, once again, fashionable for some people to denigrate the building and maintaining of churches. The argument tends to go something like this:

“Jesus didn’t build any churches, and he didn’t command his followers to do so. He was a rebel and didn’t participate in the cult of building-worship during his own time. Churches were built only after Emperor Constantine, and that marked the end of real Christianity in most places until the modern House Church movement.”

Aside from intellectual arrogance and the enormous problems with the argument’s factual basis (Jesus cannot be forced into the mold of “rebel” like a First Century James Dean and did, in fact, participate in the worship of God in the Temple, and early Christianity—when conditions permitted—used dedicated worship spaces and built churches before Constantine), there is another problem: it simply doesn’t square with Scripture.

The Scriptures do not set up an antimony between buildings and faith. They do set up a clear distinction between Church as building and Church as Body. The Scriptures understand the Church as a body, a community, a race drawn from every tribe and nation. They do not understand the Church as a building. However, the New Testament does use building language for this Body and invites us to do so as well.

In 1Peter 2:1-10, and also in 1 Corinthians 3:9-17, we see very clearly that the language of Temple and building is to be applied to the Christian Church. It is a spiritual architecture that is being spoken of, and Christians are called individually to live out this architecture.

But that is far more easily said than done. The “lone ranger” Christian is doomed to fail. Ours is a corporate faith, and Christ commanded us to share in a common life in order to be his disciples. Christians from the beginning have gathered together for worship, instruction, and fellowship—forming liturgical communities grouped around the Eucharist from the start. When conditions permitted, they built churches for the Church to assemble in and for the Body to receive nourishment.

These buildings were both related to and distinct from the stories of holy places and temples that preceded them. They were understood as places of special significance and given considerable care and attention, like their ancient sacred ancestors: but in the case of the Church, they were holy places not because of the stones used to build them, but because of the Life celebrated within those stone walls. The difference may seem subtle, but it is essential.

Authentic Christianity has no qualms about asserting the holiness of Creation, and using that Creation in loving and faithful ways to honor God and the Communion of Saints and sinners that makes up the Church now and until the end of the Ages. It also is very desirous of using those church structures to minister the Gospel in creative and holy ways; for as St. Augustine reminds us in the sermon below, this Temple is still being built. It is an unfinished structure, awaiting the unique and essential contribution of each new member.

But an authentic Christianity is also deeply aware that these holy places, consecrated to God, are there first and foremost for the Body of Christ—the living stones in a living Temple—to gather, be fed, and sent forth to live and share the Gospel of Jesus Christ as a pilgrim people, setting our sights on no earthly city, but on the City of God. It is the experience of that Heavenly Citizenship which we know and enjoy each time we enter into one of the Church’s places of earthly worship—access to the Mystery of God and salvation by Divine grace and using the things of this world to point beyond the world.

It is for this unique intersection, this extraordinary hostelry of God’s mercy that we give thanks each year on this occasion. And we do so completely in the spirit of the ancient and undivided Faith of the Apostolic Church, and completely to the Glory of God. Amen.


From a sermon by Saint Augustine, bishop
(Sermon 336,1,6: PL 38 [edit. 1861]. 1471-1472, 1475)

The building and dedication of God's house within us

We are gathered together to celebrate the dedication of a house of prayer. This is our house of prayer, but we too are a house of God. If we are a house of God, its construction goes on in time so that it may be dedicated at the end of time. The house, in its construction, involves hard work, while its dedication is an occasion for rejoicing.

What was done when this church was being built is similar to what is done when believers are built up into Christ. When they first come to believe they are like timber and stone taken from woods and mountains. In their instruction, baptism and formation they are , so to speak, shaped, leveled and smoothed by the hands of carpenters and craftsmen.

But Christians do not make a house of God until they are one in charity. The timber and stone must fit together in an orderly plan, must be joined in perfect harmony, must give each other the support as it were of love, or no one would enter the building. When you see the stones and beams of a building holding together securely, you enter the building with an easy mind; you are not afraid of its falling down in ruins.

Christ the Lord wants to come in to us and dwell in us. Like a good builder he says: A new commandment I give you: love one another. He says: I give you a commandment. He means: Before, you were not engaged in building a house for me, but you lay in ruins. Therefore, to be raised up from your former state of ruin you must love one another.

Dear brethren, remember that this house is still in process of being built in the whole world: this is the promise of prophecy. When God's house was being built after the Exile, it was prophesied, in the words of a psalm: Sing a new song to the Lord; sing to the Lord, all the earth. For a new song our Lord speaks of a new commandment. A new song implies a new inspiration of love. To sing is a sign of love. The singer of this new song is full of the warmth of God's love.

The work we see complete in this building is physical; it should find its spiritual counterpart in your hearts. We see here the finished product of stone and wood; so too your lives should reveal the handiwork of God's grace.

Let us then offer our thanksgiving above all to the Lord our God, from whom every best and perfect gift comes. Let us praise his goodness with our whole hearts. He it was who inspired in his faithful people the will to build this house of prayer; he stirred up their desire and gave them his help. He awakened enthusiasm among those who were at first unconvinced, and guided to a successful conclusion the efforts of men of good will. So God, who gives to those of good will both the desire and the accomplishment of the things that belong to him, is the one who began this work, the one who has brought it to completion.


Collect at the Feast of Dedication

Almighty God, to whose glory we celebrate the dedication of this house of prayer: We give you thanks for the fellowship of those who have worshiped in this place, and we pray that all who seek you here may find you, and be filled with your joy and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen.

Thursday, October 24, 2013

A Prayer after receiving Holy Communion




This prayer, traditionally ascribed to St. Basil of Caesarea (c. AD 329-379), is one of the great prayers/meditations for use after having received the Holy Mysteries of Christ. It deftly makes its way through the meaning of the Eucharist both as a participation in Christ's life now and in the future, orienting us towards the Kingdom of God of which the Eucharist is both first-fruits and promise of a fuller harvest. Together with the Post-Communion prayer in the liturgy, it is an effective expression of gratitude for sharing in Body and Blood of Christ and a guide to the Church's belief about the meaning of this Sacrament.

The prayer also recalls that what we receive in the liturgy is to be lived out in holy lives every day...something essential to a holistic, non-hypocritical faith. The Holy Communion both challenges us and gives us the grace to live that challenge. Note, too, that the prayer is both an "I" and a "We" prayer--effectively expressing both the corporate and individual nature of Christian life.

This prayer may be said immediately after the Dismissal at the Eucharist's conclusion, or at a time later in the day following worship.


O Master Christ God, King of the ages and Creator of all things, I thank You for all the good things which You have bestowed upon me, and for the communion of Your most pure and life creating Mysteries. I pray You, therefore, O Good One and Lover of mankind: Keep me under Your protection and in the shadow of Your wings; and grant me, even until my last breath, to partake worthily, with a pure conscience, of Your Holy Things, for the remission of sins and life eternal. For Your are the Bread of life, the Source of holiness, the Giver of good things; and unto You do we send up glory, together with the Father and the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.



Friday, October 11, 2013

A Litany for Fridays



A Litany of the Passion
[Especially suitable for Fridays, during the “Three Hours” beginning at Noon]

Lord, have mercy
  Christ, have mercy
Lord, have mercy

Christ, hear us.
  Christ, graciously hear us.

God the Father of heaven,
  Have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world,
  Have mercy on us.
God the Holy Spirit,
  Have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God,
  Have mercy on us.

Jesus, the eternal Wisdom,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, conversing with men,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, hated by the world,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, sold for thirty pieces of silver,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, prostrate in prayer,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, strengthened by an angel,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, agonizing in a bloody sweat,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, betrayed by Judas with a kiss,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, bound by the soldiers,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, forsaken by your disciples,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, before Annas and Caiaphas,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, struck by a servant on the face,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, accused by false witnesses,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, declared worthy of death,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, spit upon in the face,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, blindfolded,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, smitten on the cheek,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, thrice denied by Peter,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, delivered up to Pilate,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, despised and mocked by Herod,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, clothed in a white garment,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, rejected for Barabbas,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, torn by sources,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, bruised for our sins,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, regarded as a leper,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, covered with a purple robe,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, crowned with thorns,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, struck with a reed,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, demanded for crucifixion,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, condemned to death,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, given up to your enemies,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, laden with the Cross,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, led as a lamb to the slaughter,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, stripped of your garments,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, fastened with nails to the Cross,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, wounded for our iniquities,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, praying for your murderers,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, reputed with the wicked,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, blasphemed on the Cross,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, reviled by the malefactor,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, giving Paradise to the thief,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, commending Saint John to your Mother as her son,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, forsaken by your Father,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, given fall and vinegar to drink,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, testifying that all things written concerning you were accomplished
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, commending your spirit into the hands of your Father,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, obedient even unto death,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, pierced with a lance,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, made a propitiation for us,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, taken down from the Cross,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, laid in a sepulcher,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, rising gloriously from the dead,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, ascending into heaven,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, our Advocate with the Father,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, sending down the Holy Spirit,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, exalting your Mother,
  Have mercy on us.
Jesus, who shall come to judge the living and the dead,
  Have mercy on us.

Be merciful,
  Spare us, O Lord.
Be merciful,
  Graciously hear us, O Lord.

From all evil,
  Deliver us, O Jesus.
From all sin,
  Deliver us, O Jesus.
From anger, hatred, and every evil will,
  Deliver us, O Jesus.
From war, famine, and pestilence,
  Deliver us, O Jesus.
From all dangers of mind and body,
  Deliver us, O Jesus.
From everlasting death,
  Deliver us, O Jesus.
Through your most pure conception,
  Deliver us, O Jesus.
Through your miraculous nativity,
  Deliver us, O Jesus.
Through your humble circumcision,
  Deliver us, O Jesus.
Through your baptism and fasting,
  Deliver us, O Jesus.
Through your labors and watchings,
  Deliver us, O Jesus.
Through your cruel scourging and crowning,
  Deliver us, O Jesus.
Through your thirst, and tears, and nakedness,
  Deliver us, O Jesus.
Through your precious death and Cross,
  Deliver us, O Jesus.
Through your glorious resurrection and ascension,
  Deliver us, O Jesus.
Through your sending forth the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete,
  Deliver us, O Jesus.

On the day of judgment, we sinners,
  We beseech you, hear us.
That you would spare us,
  We beseech you, hear us.
That you would pardon us,
  We beseech you, hear us.
That you would bring us to true penance,
  We beseech you, hear us.
That you would pour into our hearts the grace of the Holy Spirit,
  We beseech you, hear us.
That you would defend and propagate your Church,
  We beseech you, hear us.
That you would preserve and increase all societies assembled in your holy Name,
  We beseech you, hear us.
That you would bestow upon us true peace, humility, and charity,
  We beseech you, hear us.
That you would give us perseverance in grace and in your holy service,
  We beseech you, hear us.
That you would deliver us from unclean thoughts, the temptations of the devil, and everlasting damnation,
  We beseech you, hear us.
That you would unite us to the company of your Saints,
  We beseech you, hear us.
That you would graciously hear us,
  We beseech you, hear us.

Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world;
  Spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world;
  Graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world;
  Have mercy on us.
Christ hear us.
  Christ, graciously hear us.
Lord, have mercy.
  Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

Let us pray.

O Lord Jesus Christ, our merciful High Priest, you offered to the Father a pure offering, reconciling sinners to God by your infinite merits of your Passion and Death; give us grace, we pray you, to die to the world, and live to you alone, and finally to depart in peace, through your mercy and in your faith. Who lives and reigns, world without end. Amen.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you, because by your holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.