Tag: Religion

Everyone Can Find True Love

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Whether you go to the grocery for milk or to the pharmacy for a prescription, you won’t be able to avoid Valentine’s Day merchandise in the form of balloons, candy hearts, and cards. Ah, yes, a holiday devoted to idealized romantic love. What could be more heartwarming?

church churches lehigh valley

Yet, as wonderful as romantic love may be it is only one form of love – and an often fragile and volatile one at that. To be fully realized, romantic love depends on the one we love loving us in return. If that doesn’t happen, you may find yourself tolerating or enduring Valentine’s Day rather than celebrating it.

The unconditional love of God spoken of in the Bible is something quite different. God’s love is the most stable of loves. We cannot earn it, buy it, or lose it. God loves everyone. Those who are humble and honest enough with themselves to accept their need for God’s love can experience it in the core of their being as they come to know the presence of God/Christ/Holy Spirit within them. Before he died Jesus prayed:

… The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

(John 17: 20-23)

Once we have encountered God and accepted (really accept in our hearts, as well as our heads) the truth that God loves us unconditionally, we are free to accept and love ourselves in the same way. Such love also propels us beyond ourselves and compels us to love others without conditions.

Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another. (1 John 4: 8-10)

The experience of God’s unconditional love and sharing of that love is the essence of Moravian Bishop Zinzendorf’s “Religion of the Heart.” This vibrant, powerful, life-giving faith fueled the explosive growth of the 18th century Moravian Church and is reflected in the lyrics of the church’s traditional hymns.

Long before the time of the Renewed Moravian Church, such love motivated a priest to give his life for the sake of his sisters and brothers in Christ. His “crime” was officiating at Christian marriages, celebrating Holy Communion and otherwise serving his congregation.

According to tradition, St. Valentine was killed by Roman authorities on February 14th. Certainly, as he went to his death he would have recalled Christ’s words “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

Lord of the harvest

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harvestIn an age before supermarkets and seed catalogs the harvest season could be an anxious time of year. The quantity and quality of the harvest often determined the fate not only of individuals, but also of entire communities. A succession of failed harvests brought famine and death while good harvests provided adequate food to sustain the community over the winter and quality seed for planting the following Spring’s crop. Jesus’ hearers would have been acutely aware of all this as they listened to his parable.

“The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. So the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, “Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?’ He answered, “An enemy has done this.’ The slaves said to him, “Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ But he replied, “No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.” (Matthew 13: 26-30)

The weeds in question are most probably darnel – a toxic plant which resembles wheat. Mixing darnel in with the wheat crop was an act of indiscriminate agricultural terrorism. Having toxins mixed in one’s flour was bad enough. Having toxic seed mixed with good seed for next season’s sowing was a disaster in the making for the whole community. Sensible farmers purified both land and crop with fire whenever they detected darnel.

Jesus’ parable suggests that God cares for the Kingdom of Heaven in much the same way that a farmer cares for his crops and fields. That which is unholy and evil cannot be permitted to destroy that which is righteous, holy, and good. For imperfect sinners such as ourselves the good news is that God will not render judgment until the harvest is gathered in. There is still time for each person living to choose whether to cultivate weeds or wheat in his or her life. We cannot earn salvation, yet our life choices do matter. In part, we each self-select a destiny as chaff for the fire or wheat for the barn.

“and all were judged according to what they had done. … and anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:13-15)

Happy Thanksgiving,

Pastor Derek

Register now for Shepherd’s Journey

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east hills moravian shepherds journey christmas adventTake your children on an exciting journey back in time to the streets of biblical Bethlehem on the night that Jesus was born!

Your kids will meet the townspeople, bakers, money changers, and more, as they wander the streets in search of the newborn Christ child. They may even discover a small stable as the shepherds did long ago!

While walk-ins are welcome, it is preferable to pre-register your child. Please use the form below to sign up your children and their friends (ages 3 through 3rd grade)!

2013’s Shepherd’s Journey is Sunday, December 15, from 6:30 – 7:45 PM at East Hills Moravian Church.

To register your child, please download this form. Registrations are due by Sunday, December 8.

On The Job Training And Continuing Christian Education For Adults

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christian_educationFollowing the “Great Recession” of 2008-2009 many gained new appreciation for the role continuing education plays in making oneself employable. In today’s marketplace, no one can afford to be a “one trick pony.” The value of on the job training and continuing education has long been acknowledged. What’s new in this job market is that what once was required to thrive, is now required just to survive.

Given these developments it is surprising how few realize that a healthy and growing faith also needs to be nourished through continuous learning. Many adults haven’t engaged in serious Bible study since attending Sunday School as a child. Fewer still have had spiritual formation training or the benefit of a Spiritual Director. On the job faith training is readily available through East Hills’ many programs of ministry, and yet, our Board of Christian Education, Emergency Shelter program, choirs and many other church groups are always looking for volunteers.

There may be nothing new under the sun, but there are ways to look at life through the lens of Scripture which, if not completely new, might at least be new to you. You wouldn’t want to negotiate adult life with only the experience and job skills you had at age thirteen would you? Why then, would you expect an adolescent faith to sustain you as you struggle to balance family and career, raise children, care for your aging parents, or deal with the challenges of aging yourself? Worship is a great place to start your continuing education as a disciple of Jesus Christ, but it should not be your only source of spiritual growth. Start a program of home Bible study – or better – attend an adult Sunday School class or evening Bible study or discussion group.

You may feel hesitant to attend if you have not done so in the past, but take heart. Unlike the job market, where only qualified applicants need apply, God accepts all persons regardless of previous experience or training. As has often been said, “God doesn’t call the equipped; God equips those he calls.” Rest assured there is a place for your gifts, experience, and energy in the ministry of East Hills Moravian Church. Take the initiative and let us know what God is calling you to do!

This fall we invite you to gather at East Hills Moravian Church for worship and adult Sunday School. Learn how to live a life transformed, renewed and blessed by God. Connect with fellow believers in worship and join together in following Christ as we serve others and glorify God through the sharing of our time, talents and financial resources.
See you in church

Easter Sunday and the significance of The Day Of Resurrection

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bethlehem easter service moravianOn Easter morning we gather to hear and respond to familiar affirmations of faith:

“The Lord is risen! The Lord is risen indeed!”

Moravian Easter liturgies speak of a God who so loves humanity so much that he chose to enter a suffering world in the person of Jesus Christ in order to mend our relationship with God, free us from the power of sin, and open the way to eternal life. At the Easter dawn service the congregation responds to such statements of faith with the words: “This we truly believe.”

On Resurrection Sunday, when the band is playing, the choirs are singing, and the church is decked out with daffodils and Easter lilies, it is not hard to affirm Christian faith and attach ourselves to its message of hope. Yet how many of those who gather on Easter Sunday are also willing to walk with Christ through the Garden of Gethsemane, stand with him on the Pavement of Judgment before Pilate, accompany him as he carries the cross on the Via Dolorosa, or stand at the foot of the cross on Good Friday?

In terms of worship, every member of the congregation has the opportunity to experience the last week of Christ’s life prior to his execution by crucifixion during our Holy Week Reading Services. Each night we will take turns reading from the Gospels’ accounts of what Jesus was doing on a particular day or evening. The week comes to a liturgical climax with Maundy Thursday Holy Communion and our Good Friday Tenebrae services.

All evening worship services will be held at 7:00 pm.

In terms of life, every day presents us with many choices to serve God or to serve the world which crucified our Lord. What you decide to do with each day of your life will reveal whether Easter’s affirmation of faith “This we truly believe,” is an accurate expression of personal faith or empty words. Fortunately for all of us, God allows U-turns. No matter how insincere we have been in the past; no matter how unfaithful we may have been in attending worship, in loving our neighbor as ourselves, in keeping God first in our lives, we always have the option of turning towards God.

Must Jesus bear the cross alone,
and all the world go free?
(There’s a cross for everyone
And I know that there’s a cross for me).

No Cross. No Crown.

See you in church,

Pastor Derek

The Paradox of Lent

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“… you are dust and to the dust you shall return.”

(Genesis 3:19b)

Meditating on the reality of human mortality is something most of us prefer to avoid. While we know our days are numbered, we usually manage to distract ourselves from this ever present fact with work, family responsibilities and recreation. Yet the Church has a whole liturgical season dedicated to contemplation of death and to the transience of all human endeavors? Why?

monkey trapThere’s an old story about an ingenious monkey trap. Reportedly, the monkey hunters tie a coconut to a tree, drill a hole in the coconut just large enough for a monkey’s hand to reach in, and place a piece of fruit or a nut inside. The monkey comes and is easily able to reach his hand into the hole to grasp the food. Yet when the monkey closes his fist around his prize he can no longer withdraw his hand from the coconut. The delay provided allows a hunter to aim, shoot, and bag a monkey for dinner.

Nothing in the material world lasts forever, but that doesn’t keep us from clinging to families, achievements, possessions, and institutions like a monkey grasping fruit in a coconut. Familiar surroundings provide the illusion of security and permanence while the hunter creeps closer each passing day. Some live to a happy old age. Others fall to illness, accidents, natural disasters, or senseless acts of violence. In the end, we all die. Can we escape this “monkey trap”? Christian faith answers, “Yes!”

The spiritual disciplines of Lent – prayer, worship, fasting, and the imposition of ashes – exist to help us let go of our old selves, our old securities and old identities. It is only with open, empty hands that we can hold the hand of God. When we take God’s hand and follow Christ we discover that acceptance of our mortality has paradoxically led us to a new life on earth, followed by eternal life with God in heaven.

“When this perishable body puts on imperishability and this mortal body puts on immortality, then the saying that is written will be fulfilled: Death has been swallowed up in
victory.”

(I Corinthians 15:54)

Lent and death gives way to Easter and life.

See you in church,
Pastor Derek

Have you shared the good news?

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When was the last time you turned on the television, opened a newspaper, or browsed the news on the internet and found yourself overwhelmed by the volume of good news? We live
in a culture seemingly fascinated by the tragic, the divisive, the scandalous, and the
salacious. In such a context, it is well that we remind ourselves that the word “gospel”
literally means “good news.”

Christ calls each of us to be living reminders of the good news he proclaimed during his
earthly ministry. His message is that there is a better way of being human than that which we
so often see described in the news. Through Christ, the world has the possibility of embracing
reconciliation instead of retribution, of discovering what unites us in common humanity,
rather than what divides and isolates us.

One way of witnessing to gospel is for Christians of different races, nations, and
denominations to all partake of Holy Communion on the same day. This is precisely what
many congregations have been doing since 1936, when a number of Presbyterian
congregations in the United States celebrated Holy Communion on the first Sunday of
October and invited other followers of Christ to do the same. From this humble beginning
World Communion Sunday grew into what it is today – a global opportunity to demonstrate
unity in a fragmented world.

On October 7, we join with Christians around the world in celebrating our unity in Christ. We are reminded that in spite of differences of doctrine and creed “There is one body and one Spirit … one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all.” (Ephesians 4: 4-6).
See you in church,
Pastor Derek

Moravian Women’s Sunday Sermon by Reverend Maggie Wellert

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This sermon, written by Reverend Maggie Wellert, was presented on Sunday, November 6, to the East Hills Moravian Church congregation in honor of Moravian Women’s Sunday. It was delivered by East Hills Moravian Church member Nancy Costa.

We’re going to start this morning by playing “Stump the Congregation.” See if you can figure out the source of this quotation:

“Before all things we have first agreed that we will care for one another together in the faith of the Lord Jesus, be established in the righteousness that comes from God, and abiding in love, have hope in the living God. “

For those of you who have been engaged in studying Romans the past few months through Women’s Fellowship, you probably guessed it came right out of Paul’s letter. It sure has all the key words: righteousness, faith, love, hope, living God. It sure could be Paul. But, it isn’t!

Maybe you think it sounds like the Moravian Covenant for Christian Living. It has the same quality, relationship with God that helps us manage our relationships with each other. It sure could be from the MCCL. But it isn’t!

It was written in 1464 by our ancestors in the Unity of the Brethren and is found in a publication entitled “Writing of the Brethren.”1 Here’s another one, this one by Brother Rehor, a founder of the Unity, who wrote this while in prison:

“We are people who have decided once and for all to be guided only by the gospel and the example of our Lord Jesus Christ and his holy apostles in gentleness, humility, patience, and love for our enemies.”2

We are part of a long tradition of recognizing the importance of wrestling with the gospel, wrestling with our God. This call to be a Christian is no easier now than it was in the first century when Paul was discerning this new life with early communities of faith. It is no easier now than it was in the fifteenth century when our ancestors in the Unity struggled with the call to follow Jesus, and what that call meant if they were no longer part of the Roman Catholic communion.

Eventually our Brethren relatives came up with a new way of understanding what is essential for living the gospel in the world. There are two sides to the essentials, the divine and the human. The essentials on God’s side are the grace of God who wills our salvation, the saving work of God in Christ, and the gifts of the Holy Spirit. The essentials that are our human response are quite simply—quite astoundingly—faith, love, and hope.

“The grace of God who wills our salvation, the saving work of God in Christ, and the gifts of the Holy Spirit…”  Paul speaks at length about this amazing grace—the incredible love that God has for us. God’s passion for us is so profound that God chose to become one of us, leaving behind all that makes God, God. Jesus was born to Mary. Through the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus, we become brothers and sisters to Christ and to one another. Because of Christ’s work, we are healed of the brokenness of sin—we are reconciled, justified by grace through faith.

When Christ ascended to heaven, he promised the gift of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit who continues to move among us yet today; granting gifts to build up the church, the community of saints who are gathered to remember the grace, love, and gifts of God, and then scattered to share that same grace, love, and gifts with all of God’s creation; bringing God’s healing into the world.

The human response to all that God offers: faith, love, and hope.

Faith is our ability to trust in God’s grace. This is how we carry out the Great Commandment: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your might. ALL. Hear that fully…God wants our all.

And there is so much that gets in the way: distractions, fears, the voices of the world that call us to follow a different lord and god…not the Lord God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. What is it that challenges you to keep God first in your daily walk? How do you respond to the voices that tempt and allure—to be first, to always win, to always have your way?

Love is taught first by God in Jesus, as if God wanted to say, “this is what love looks like walking around in human form.” What distinguished that walking around love? Jesus was full of compassion, paying attention to the needs and pain, the hunger of those he met daily; taking time to pray and be in touch with God in order to stay focused on his mission; taking time out for dinner with friends; holding children when no one thought children had a place in the center of things. Love looks like Jesus.

After speaking the Great Commandment, Jesus spoke of another commandment like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. That’s precisely what love looks like. And, Jesus wasn’t just talking about the people across the aisle here who look and act like us, who share our values and standards. Jesus was talking about the enemy; the people we don’t like so much; the ones who are annoying, disruptive, who don’t share our values and standards.

How do you respond in love to the many needs that appear at our door steps? Who will feed the hungry? Who will visit the sick? Who will care for the poor and the lonely, offer a word of encouragement to an outsider? How will you love the people sharing this worship space today? Perhaps you can write a card, offer the right hand of fellowship, offer a cup of coffee, or simply listen when another speaks.

Hope…ah, this is the Moravian way of living as declared in the Easter Morning Liturgy. We are Easter people. We audaciously walk to our cemeteries at Easter dawn, even to the grave of the most recently deceased among us, the place where our tears still flow and the wounds are still raw. We stand there and proclaim, death does not have the final word. We are people of hope; we live into the promises of God for the salvation of the entire planet. We will walk the path of love until there is no more pain…because we know that nothing, not even death, can separate us from the love of our God in Jesus Christ.

We live in hope because we daily experience the work of the Holy Spirit in our midst: when we think things have totally fallen apart and we don’t know how to go on, there is this little candlelight that glimmers—an unexpected person shows up to help with the funeral luncheon; a new voice sings with the choir; there are enough turkeys to fill the order for Thanksgiving baskets; that annoying person hugs you in a true spirit of love and you are renewed in your connection.

We live in hope because we live in faith, trusting in the power of God’s love, trusting that we are capable of living out a life of love, in spite of all the voices of hate, in spite of the distractions that threaten to lead us towards envy, loneliness, pain, depression, laziness, or whatever else is threatening you today.

Paul recognized the power of faith, love, and hope in the sacrament of Baptism. Baptism, he proclaims to the Romans, is a symbol of our new life in the Spirit. Our Liturgy for Baptism reflects that reality: called in grace; living in relationship with the Living God; united with Christ through grace and the power of the Holy Spirit; called to a life of faith and willing obedience.

As you wrap yourself around the reality of what God has done—the grace of God, the saving work of God, the gifts of the Holy Spirit—as you ponder this deep love of God for you, consider how you live out the human essentials of faith, love, and hope. Consider how you might renew your commitment to Christ.

 

The Rev. Maggie Wellert

Great Kills Moravian Church

Staten Island, NY

August 9, 2011

1 Rudolf Rican, The History of the Unity of the Brethren, translated by C. Daniel Crews, (Bethlehem PA and Winston-Salem NC: The Moravian Church in America, 1992), 33.

2 Ibid., 30