Jesus Heals the Possessed Man

The appointed Gospel for the Daily Prayer of the Church comes from the Gospel according to Luke;

 

Then they arrived at the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. As he stepped out on land, a man of the city who had demons met him. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he did not live in a house but in the tombs. When he saw Jesus, he fell down before him and shouted at the top of his voice, ‘What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me’— for Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many times it had seized him; he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the wilds.) Jesus then asked him, ‘What is your name?’ He said, ‘Legion’; for many demons had entered him. They begged him not to order them to go back into the abyss.

 

Now there on the hillside a large herd of swine was feeding; and the demons begged Jesus to let them enter these. So he gave them permission. Then the demons came out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.

 

When the swineherds saw what had happened, they ran off and told it in the city and in the country. Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. Those who had seen it told them how the one who had been possessed by demons had been healed. Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them; for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned. The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him; but Jesus sent him away, saying, ‘Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.’ So he went away, proclaiming throughout the city how much Jesus had done for him. (Lk. 8:26-39).

 

Jesus heals the man possessed by many demons and he asks him to go and tell others.  Even today, there are many possessed by demons; the evil of addictions and abusive relationships, just to name a few.  Jesus offers that same healing today.  He can free us from the evil which gets a foothold in our lives.  If you are possessed, ask Jesus to drive away all of the evil which has a hold on your life and keeps you from being the beautiful creation that God intends you to be. 

 

As a side note, there is an interplay between “Legion” which in the Greek is λεγεών meaning a division of the Roman army, numbering about 6,000 infantry with additional cavalry; hence: a very large number.  The demon in fact responds that they are many.  The demons then beg Jesus to send them into a herd of swine feeding by the hillside.  Now the swine did not belong to the Jewish people since eating pork was prohibited by Jewish law; therefore, the swine probably belonged to the Romans who were occupying the land. 

 

Let us pray:  O blessed Lord, you ministered to all who came to you: Look with compassion upon all who through addiction have lost their health and freedom. Restore to them the assurance of your unfailing mercy; remove from them the fears that beset them; strengthen them in the work of their recovery; and to those who care for them, give patient understanding and persevering love. Amen.

 

CALENDAR REMINDERS

 

Seaside Seniors will meet this Thursday from 11 AM to 1 PM in Sutton Hall.  The theme is Halloween, All Hallows Eve. 

 

Trick-or-treat at St. Augustine.  Please bring candy for our annual trick-or-treat for the neighborhood on All Hallows Eve (Halloween) on 31 October 2014 from 6 PM to 9 PM.

 

We will continue with our Adult Christian Education series, Islam in Focus, on Sunday, 18 October at 11 AM.

 

Please remember everyone on our Prayer List, especially Matt, the Putmans’ nephew and Godson.

 

Your servant in Christ,

 

Fr. Chester J. Makowski+

St. Augustine of Hippo Episcopal Church

Galveston, Texas 77550

All Kinds of Soil

In today’s Gospel selection for the Daily Prayer of the Church we hear the familiar story of the sower and the seed from Luke’s Gospel.  My guess is that at different points in our lives, you and I are rocky soil, sometimes we’re thorns and at other times, we are good soil.  No matter what our soil condition is, God generously plants and replants over and over again:

 

Soon afterwards he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. The twelve were with him, as well as some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them* out of their resources.

 

When a great crowd gathered and people from town after town came to him, he said in a parable: ‘A sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell on the path and was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. Some fell on the rock; and as it grew up, it withered for lack of moisture. Some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew with it and choked it. Some fell into good soil, and when it grew, it produced a hundredfold.’ As he said this, he called out, ‘Let anyone with ears to hear listen!’

 

Then his disciples asked him what this parable meant. He said, ‘To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God; but to others I speak in parables, so that “looking they may not perceive, and listening they may not understand.”

 

‘Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. The ones on the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. The ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe only for a while and in a time of testing fall away. As for what fell among the thorns, these are the ones who hear; but as they go on their way, they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. But as for that in the good soil, these are the ones who, when they hear the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patient endurance.  (Lk. 8:1-15).

 

God was very patient with Israel. No matter how many times they messed us, and they did because they had ears but did not listen, God was always there to bring them back.  In Jesus, God himself finally became one of us and one with us to plant the seed of reconciliation.  For some of us, it takes a little time for that seed to take root.  Today, be thankful that God is patient with each one of us so that we can bear fruit with patient endurance.

 

Let us pray:  Gracious God we thank you for your patience with us as we blunder through life at times.  We thank you for your Son, Jesus, who gave his very life so that we might live.  Send your Holy Spirit to open our ears to your word so that we may let it grow and bear fruit in our lives.  Amen.

 

CALENDAR REMINDERS

 

The 6^th Annual Art Show, “Let There Be Light,” continues this week ending this weekend. Please be there for this event which reaches out to the community. 

 

Blessing of the Animals for the Feast of St. Francis will be Saturday the 11^th of October at 10 AM on the front lawn by the cross.

 

We will continue with our Adult Christian Education series, Islam in Focus, on Sunday, 12 October at 11 AM.

 

Trick-or-treat at St. Augustine.  Please bring candy for our annual trick-or-treat for the neighborhood on All Hallows Eve (Halloween) on 31 October 2014.

 

Please remember everyone on our Prayer List, especially Matt, the Putmans’ nephew and Godson.

 

Your servant in Christ,

 

Fr. Chester J. Makowski+

St. Augustine of Hippo Episcopal Church

Galveston, Texas 77550

We Owe a Great Debt

On this Thursday, the appointed Gospel reading for the Church’s Daily Prayer comes from Luke where we read about a woman, sin and forgiveness:

 

One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee’s house and took his place at the table. And a woman in the city, who was a sinner, having learned that he was eating in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster jar of ointment. She stood behind him at his feet, weeping, and began to bathe his feet with her tears and to dry them with her hair. Then she continued kissing his feet and anointing them with the ointment. Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, ‘If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what kind of woman this is who is touching him—that she is a sinner.’ Jesus spoke up and said to him, ‘Simon, I have something to say to you.’ ‘Teacher,’ he replied, ‘speak.’ ‘A certain creditor had two debtors; one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they could not pay, he cancelled the debts for both of them. Now which of them will love him more?’ Simon answered, ‘I suppose the one for whom he cancelled the greater debt.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘You have judged rightly.’ Then turning towards the woman, he said to Simon, ‘Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has bathed my feet with her tears and dried them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Therefore, I tell you, her sins, which were many, have been forgiven; hence she has shown great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little.’ Then he said to her, ‘Your sins are forgiven.’ But those who were at the table with him began to say among themselves, ‘Who is this who even forgives sins?’ And he said to the woman, ‘Your faith has saved you; go in peace.’  (Lk. 7:36-50).

 

Just like the woman in today’s reading, those of us who have sinned greatly can appreciate the depth and value of God’s forgiveness and the lengths God goes to show us his love.  Although the Pharisees understand the intellectual notion of forgiveness as is demonstrated by their response to Jesus’ parable able cancelling the great debt, they fail to see how they are debtors, or even the need for forgiveness.  May each of us be ever mindful of God’s forgiveness, and our need for it.

 

Let us pray: Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you  in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen.

 

CALENDAR REMINDERS

 

The 6^th Annual Art Show, “Let There Be Light,” continues this week ending this weekend. Please be there for this event which reaches out to the community. 

 

Blessing of the Animals for the Feast of St. Francis will be Saturday the 11^th of October at 10 AM on the front lawn by the cross.

 

We will continue with our Adult Christian Education series, Islam in Focus, on Sunday, 12 October at 11 AM.

 

Trick-or-treat at St. Augustine.  Please bring candy for our annual trick-or-treat for the neighborhood on All Hallows Eve (Halloween) on 31 October 2014.

 

Please remember everyone on our Prayer List.

 

Your servant in Christ,

 

Fr. Chester J. Makowski+

St. Augustine of Hippo Episcopal Church

Galveston, Texas 77550

The Lord Hears the Cry of the Poor

The Old Testament reading appointed for today is taken from one of the social justice prophets, Micah, who wrote:

 

Alas for those who devise wickedness and evil deeds on their beds! When the morning dawns, they perform it, because it is in their power. They covet fields, and seize them; houses, and take them away; they oppress householder and house, people and their inheritance.  Therefore, thus says the Lord: Now, I am devising against this family an evil from which you cannot remove your necks; and you shall not walk haughtily, for it will be an evil time.  On that day they shall take up a taunt-song against you, and wail with bitter lamentation, and say, ‘We are utterly ruined; the Lord alters the inheritance of my people; how he removes it from me! Among our captors he parcels out our fields.’ Therefore you will have no one to cast the line by lot in the assembly of the Lord.

 

‘Do not preach’—thus they preach—‘one should not preach of such things; disgrace will not overtake us.’ Should this be said, O house of Jacob? Is the Lord’s patience exhausted? Are these his doings? Do not my words do good to one who walks uprightly?  But you rise up against my people as an enemy; you strip the robe from the peaceful, from those who pass by trustingly with no thought of war. The women of my people you drive out from their pleasant houses; from their young children you take away my glory for ever. Arise and go; for this is no place to rest, because of uncleanness that destroys with a grievous destruction. If someone were to go about uttering empty falsehoods, saying, ‘I will preach to you of wine and strong drink’, such a one would be the preacher for this people!

 

I will surely gather all of you, O Jacob, I will gather the survivors of Israel; I will set them together like sheep in a fold, like a flock in its pasture; it will resound with people. The one who breaks out will go up before them; they will break through and pass the gate, going out by it. Their king will pass on before them, the Lord at their head. (Micah 2:1-13).

 

Micah came to tell of God’s concern for those who were oppressed by the rich and powerful who “covet fields, and seize them; houses, and take them away; they oppress householder and house, people and their inheritance.”  Of those who oppress the poor, Micah tells them that they rise up against God’s people as an enemy taking away from them family and home.  God will not tolerate such behavior because everyone, including the poor, are made in God’s likeness and image.  To do that to the poor is to do that to their Creator.

 

Things have not really changed since the time of Micah, and he is a prophetic voice for us today in all parts of the world.  God is concerned for all people; God demands that everyone be treated justly and not to be stripped of what little they may have in the name of greed.  God calls for a just world where everyone should enjoy the fruit of their labors with human dignity.

 

Let us pray:  Grant, O God, that your holy and life-giving Spirit may so move every human heart that barriers which divide us may crumble, suspicions disappear, and hatreds cease; that our divisions being healed, we may live in justice and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

CALENDAR REMINDERS

 

The 6^th Annual Art Show, “Let There Be Light,” continues this week ending this weekend. Please be there for this event which reaches out to the community. 

 

Blessing of the Animals for the Feast of St. Francis will be Saturday the 11^th of October at 10 AM on the front lawn by the cross.

 

We will continue with our Adult Christian Education series, Islam in Focus, on Sunday, 12 October at 11 AM.

 

Trick-or-treat at St. Augustine.  Please bring candy for our annual trick-or-treat for the neighborhood on All Hallows Eve (Halloween) on 31 October 2014.

 

Please remember everyone on our Prayer List.

 

Your servant in Christ,

 

Fr. Chester J. Makowski+

St. Augustine of Hippo Episcopal Church

Galveston, Texas 77550

The Chief Organizer of Lutheranis​m in America, Henry Melchior Muhlenberg

Today the Church recalls the life and ministry of Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, the chief organizer of Lutheranism in America.  James Kiefer writes:

 

He was born in Einbeck, Germany, in 1711, and studied at Goettingen and at Halle. Lutherans in America at that time were found in a few scattered communities, of various national backgrounds, with no central organization, and with a grave danger of factionalism. Several congregations wrote to Halle University, asking for a pastor to take charge. Hermann Francke, a Lutheran leader of the Pietist movement at Halle, chose Muhlenberg and sent him to America. He arrived in Charleston on 23 September 1742. He was soon accorded widespread recognition by Lutheran churches, German, Swedish, and others, as the senior Lutheran pastor in America. He set the tone for the Lutheran community in what was to be the United States, and almost all Lutheran Churches in America today use liturgies which are developed from the one that he proposed for American use. His plans for local church government, presented to congregations that had been accustomed to a great deal of government control, eased the transition to the “free church” model, and form the basis for plans of local church government in American Lutheran churches today.

 

Let us pray:  Loving God, Shepherd of your people, we thank you for the ministry of Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, who left his native land to care for the German and Scandinavian pioneers in North America; and we pray that, following the teaching and example of his life, we may grow into the full stature of Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

 

CALENDAR REMINDERS

 

The 6^th Annual Art Show, “Let There Be Light,” continues this week ending this weekend. Please be there for this event which reaches out to the community. 

 

Blessing of the Animals for the Feast of St. Francis will be Saturday the 11^th of October at 10 AM on the front lawn by the cross.

 

We will continue with our Adult Christian Education series, Islam in Focus, on Sunday, 12 October at 11 AM.

 

Trick-or-treat at St. Augustine.  Please bring candy for our annual trick-or-treat for the neighborhood on All Hallows Eve (Halloween) on 31 October 2014.

 

Please remember everyone on our Prayer List.

 

Your servant in Christ,

 

Fr. Chester J. Makowski+

St. Augustine of Hippo Episcopal Church

Galveston, Texas 77550

Conversion: A Lifetime Process

In today’s Epistle, we hear Paul’s account of his conversion as he retells it to the Jewish people:

 

Paul Defends Himself

Just as Paul was about to be brought into the barracks, he said to the tribune, ‘May I say something to you?’ The tribune replied, ‘Do you know Greek? Then you are not the Egyptian who recently stirred up a revolt and led the four thousand assassins out into the wilderness?’ Paul replied, ‘I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of an important city; I beg you, let me speak to the people.’ When he had given him permission, Paul stood on the steps and motioned to the people for silence; and when there was a great hush, he addressed them in the Hebrew^* language, saying: ‘Brothers and fathers, listen to the defense that I now make before you.’ When they heard him addressing them in Hebrew, they became even more quiet. Then he said: ‘I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, educated strictly according to our ancestral law, being zealous for God, just as all of you are today. I persecuted this Way up to the point of death by binding both men and women and putting them in prison, as the high priest and the whole council of elders can testify about me. From them I also received letters to the brothers in Damascus, and I went there in order to bind those who were there and to bring them back to Jerusalem for punishment.

 

Paul Tells of His Conversion

‘While I was on my way and approaching Damascus, about noon a great light from heaven suddenly shone about me. I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” I answered, “Who are you, Lord?” Then he said to me, “I am Jesus of Nazareth whom you are persecuting.” Now those who were with me saw the light but did not hear the voice of the one who was speaking to me. I asked, “What am I to do, Lord?” The Lord said to me, “Get up and go to Damascus; there you will be told everything that has been assigned to you to do.” Since I could not see because of the brightness of that light, those who were with me took my hand and led me to Damascus.

 

‘A certain Ananias, who was a devout man according to the law and well spoken of by all the Jews living there, came to me; and standing beside me, he said, “Brother Saul, regain your sight!” In that very hour I regained my sight and saw him. Then he said, “The God of our ancestors has chosen you to know his will, to see the Righteous One and to hear his own voice; for you will be his witness to all the world of what you have seen and heard. And now why do you delay? Get up, be baptized, and have your sins washed away, calling on his name.”  (Acts 21:37-22:16).

 

What a transformation! From persecuting Jesus’ followers to standing before the authorities answering for being a follower of Jesus.  It was a complete turn around.  How many of  us who profess to be followers of Jesus can truly say that our lives have been turned around?  For most of us the transformation is unlike Paul’s; rather, it is a transformation that occurs daily over a life time.

 

Let us pray:  Gracious God, you sent your Son to free us from sin and death and to reconcile us to you.  May the Holy Spirit be ever with us transforming us more and more into the image of your Son.  Amen.

 

CALENDAR REMINDERS

 

The 6^th Annual Art Show, “Let There Be Light,” begins this Saturday with the award of the prizes.  Please be there for this event which reaches out to the community.  It will run the entire week.

 

Blessing of the Animals for the Feast of St. Francis will be Saturday the 11^th of October at 10 AM on the front lawn by the cross.

 

We will continue with our Adult Christian Education series, Islam in Focus, on Sunday, 12 October at 11 AM.

 

Please remember everyone on our Prayer List.

 

Your servant in Christ,

 

Fr. Chester J. Makowski+

St. Augustine of Hippo Episcopal Church

Galveston, Texas 77550

Sabbath--R​est, Healing and Restoratio​n

The appointed Gospel reading for the Daily Prayer of the Church comes from Luke where we read about Jesus healing on the Sabbath:

 

One sabbath while Jesus was going through the cornfields, his disciples plucked some heads of grain, rubbed them in their hands, and ate them. But some of the Pharisees said, ‘Why are you doing what is not lawful on the sabbath?’ Jesus answered, ‘Have you not read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He entered the house of God and took and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and gave some to his companions?’ Then he said to them, ‘The Son of Man is lord of the sabbath.’

 

On another sabbath he entered the synagogue and taught, and there was a man there whose right hand was withered. The scribes and the Pharisees watched him to see whether he would cure on the sabbath, so that they might find an accusation against him. Even though he knew what they were thinking, he said to the man who had the withered hand, ‘Come and stand here.’ He got up and stood there. Then Jesus said to them, ‘I ask you, is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the sabbath, to save life or to destroy it?’ After looking around at all of them, he said to him, ‘Stretch out your hand.’ He did so, and his hand was restored. But they were filled with fury and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.  (Lk. 6:1-11).

 

Not only is the Sabbath about worship, it is also about rest. Rest is about healing and restoration.  The Pharisees forgot that.  Jesus reminds them of it when he heals and restores the man with the withered hand.  We need to be reminded of that as well.  All of us need time to be healed and to be restored.  We must practice the Sabbath.

 

Let us pray: O God, Creator of heaven and earth:  Grant that, as the crucified body of your dear Son was laid in the tomb and rested on this holy Sabbath, so we may await with him the coming of the third day, and rise with him to newness of life; who now lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

 

CALENDAR REMINDERS

 

The 6^th Annual Art Show, “Let There Be Light,” begins this Saturday with the award of the prizes.  Please be there for this event which reaches out to the community.  It will run the entire week.

 

Blessing of the Animals for the Feast of St. Francis will be Saturday the 11^th of October at 10 AM on the front lawn by the cross.

 

We will continue with our Adult Christian Education series, Islam in Focus, on Sunday, 12 October at 11 AM.

 

Please remember everyone on our Prayer List.

 

Your servant in Christ,

 

Fr. Chester J. Makowski+

St. Augustine of Hippo Episcopal Church

Galveston, Texas 77550