our work in social and cultural advocacy and just action is

The Adult Christian Formation Opportunity at Christ Episcopal Church Matagorda has prioritized the bullets from the Bishop’s list and we are working through them one at a time as a part of our exercises to be better able to share the faith.

The group chose 3rd : “• our work in social and cultural advocacy and just action is:”

Try for yourself--

Complete the following:

(extra credit for short answers using only terms a seeker would understand in their ordinary every-day sense.)

"This unique Episcopal witness is articulated through the words of our Baptismal Covenant:"

• our work in social and cultural advocacy and just action is:

The reference materials consulted were:

Celebrant Will you persevere in resisting evil, and, whenever you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord?

People I will, with God’s help

Celebrant Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?

People I will, with God’s help. BCP 304

 &

Q. What is the ministry of the laity?

A. The ministry of lay persons is to represent Christ and his Church; to bear witness to him wherever they may be and, according to the gifts given them, to carry on Christ’s work of reconciliation in the world; and to take their place in the life, worship, and governance of the Church. BCP 855

The Class identified the three themes of the statement as:

social advocacy – Calling independent and disconnected people into Community.

cultural advocacy – Calling all Communities to reflect God’s grace.

just action – Turning thought and talk into deeds.

We recognized first that human groupings are not inherently virtuous. Street Gangs and Lynch Mobs are technically “social” but are not worthy of our advocacy as Christians.

The gathering of people into community must therefore be centered on a virtuous core. The Church of Jesus Christ, sustained by The Holy Spirit is the best choice of a virtuous core to gather people into community.

All human communities, even the Church, will be in need of continuous reconciliation and reform to counteract the entropic forces of human brokenness and sin. No community is so virtuous as to be exempt from this, and no community – not even Street Gangs and Lynch Mobs -- is so corrupt that Christ cannot redeem the members.

We identified the greatest enemy to both Social and Cultural Advocacy as intimidation. When we see the right, but hesitate to speak the right and do the right, we fail. Intimidation was recognized as a species of Fear, which is the absence of Faith.

The hardest component of Just Action is not knowing what is Just or knowing when action is called for, the hardest part is overcoming intimidation and Just Acting!

So our answer was:

• our work in social and cultural advocacy and just action is:

• v  We must call all persons (especially those unlike ourselves) to gather before the Cross of Christ.
• v  We must work, again and again, to turn every community in which we find ourselves toward the Cross.
• v  We must stand to our Faith and reject fear in order to be ready to engage boldly in Just Action.

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St. Joseph's Cross Sermon Notes

Begin at the Beginning. This is Torah:

 ¹³ If a man takes a wife and, after sleeping with her, dislikes her ¹⁴ and slanders her and gives her a bad name, saying, “I married this woman, but when I approached her, I did not find proof of her virginity,” ¹⁵ then the young woman’s father and mother shall bring to the town elders at the gate proof that she was a virgin. ¹⁶ Her father will say to the elders, “I gave my daughter in marriage to this man, but he dislikes her. ¹⁷ Now he has slandered her and said, ‘I did not find your daughter to be a virgin.’ But here is the proof of my daughter’s virginity.” Then her parents shall display the cloth before the elders of the town, ¹⁸ and the elders shall take the man and punish him. ¹⁹ They shall fine him a hundred shekels^[b] of silver and give them to the young woman’s father, because this man has given an Israelite virgin a bad name. She shall continue to be his wife; he must not divorce her as long as he lives.

 ²⁰ If, however, the charge is true and no proof of the young woman’s virginity can be found, ²¹ she shall be brought to the door of her father’s house and there the men of her town shall stone her to death. She has done an outrageous thing in Israel by being promiscuous while still in her father’s house. You must purge the evil from among you.

 ²² If a man is found sleeping with another man’s wife, both the man who slept with her and the woman must die. You must purge the evil from Israel.

 ²³ If a man happens to meet in a town a virgin pledged to be married and he sleeps with her, ²⁴ you shall take both of them to the gate of that town and stone them to death—the young woman because she was in a town and did not scream for help, and the man because he violated another man’s wife. You must purge the evil from among you.

 ²⁵ But if out in the country a man happens to meet a young woman pledged to be married and rapes her, only the man who has done this shall die. ²⁶ Do nothing to the woman; she has committed no sin deserving death. This case is like that of someone who attacks and murders a neighbor, ²⁷ for the man found the young woman out in the country, and though the betrothed woman screamed, there was no one to rescue her.

 ²⁸ If a man happens to meet a virgin who is not pledged to be married and rapes her and they are discovered, ²⁹ he shall pay her father fifty shekels^[c] of silver. He must marry the young woman, for he has violated her. He can never divorce her as long as he lives.

 ³⁰ A man is not to marry his father’s wife; he must not dishonor his father’s bed.^[d] 

Joseph got an Angel.

Mary got an Angel.

The guys down at the lumberyard didn't get any Angels. 

The women washing at the stream didn't either.

Yes, gossip had already been invented.

For 9 long months God hid the glory under a blanket of shame and derision. 

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Our particular gift for reconciliation and peace is:

The Adult Christian Formation Opportunity at Christ Episcopal Church Matagorda has prioritized the bullets from the Bishop’s list and we are working through them one at a time as a part of our exercises to be better able to share the faith.

The group chose 2nd : “• our particular gift for reconciliation and peace is:”

Try for yourself--

Complete the following:

(extra credit for short answers using only terms a seeker would understand in their ordinary every-day sense.)

"This unique Episcopal witness is articulated through the words of our Baptismal Covenant:"

• our particular gift for reconciliation and peace is:

The reference materials consulted were:

• v  A General Confession p 360 BCP
• v  The Reconciliation of a Penitent p 446 BCP
• v  Q. What is required of us when we come to the Eucharist?
• A.   It is required that we should examine our lives, repent of our sins, and be in love and charity with all people. p 860 BCP

The Class identified the two themes of the statement as:

Reconciliation – the healing of the relationship between human and God.

Peace – the healing of relationships between humans.

These two were seen as being essential characteristics of a single truth.

Just as the single truth of “coin” cannot exist without both “heads” and “tails”, so it is not possible to have a healthy relationship with God while remaining intentionally broken with humans, nor is it possible to have healthy human relationships apart from God.

The truth of this integration, and its vital importance to our existence, were born out by the unity of Confession and Peace in our preparation to receive the Holy Eucharist.

We also discussed the perceived difference between how Christian Denominations view sin and judgment.

Several reported that the Episcopal Church is viewed by other denominations as “Non-Judgmental” or “doesn’t believe in sin”.

The class refuted that in the strongest possible terms.

Instead it was out consensus that TEC is, if anything, “All-Judgmental” in the sense that, being aware of our own sins and need for rescue, we are therefore kinder and more understanding of our fellow sinners (a/k/a EVERYBODY).

So our answer was:

• our particular gift for reconciliation and peace is:

• v  That we cannot be reconciled to God without making peace with people.
• v  We cannot make peace with people unless we are reconciled to God.
• v  We cannot accomplish either on our own, God’s grace is required.
• v  Our work of reconciliation and peace is never finished for any of us, because our sin continually intrudes, so the work is the work of everyone, for all of our lives.

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