This Sunday we welcome Pastor Steve Adkison to St. Mary's for a 10 o'clock service of Morning Prayer. This is part of an effort on the part of both our national churches to enter into more experience and dialogue as to how our two traditions can find common ground for worship and mission. It comes directly out of the local dialogue, which for our Diocese is headed by Bishop William Franklin. Fr. Charles will be at the Shelter Island Presbyterian Church, at the same time, for their 10 o'clock service. He will celebrate the Eucharist in St. Mary's at 8:00 AM. The Eucharist's readings are below.

The Profile of Pastor Steve that appeared in the 2021 Reporter

Pastor Steve's sermon topic for this "Rose", Gaudete Sunday in Advent will be "Restoring Joy" and these are the Scriptures for Morning Prayer:

Psalm 51:10-12

10 

Create in me a clean heart, O God,

    and put a new and right[a] spirit within me.

11 

Do not cast me away from your presence,

    and do not take your holy spirit from me.

12 

Restore to me the joy of your salvation,

    and sustain in me a willing[b] spirit.

John 15:5-11

5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. 6 Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you abide in me and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become[a] my disciples. 9 As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. 10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. 11 I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.

Our Brigham Window, The Vine and Branches

Advent Collection for the Church of St. Francis, (Iglesia San Francisco), in Riverhead

We will once again take up a collection for the Episcopal Congregation in Riverhead. Several of our congregations on the East End donate toys and so the need is for groceries. With the funds you donate we purchase vouchers to be used at the Gala Supermarket in Riverhead. This is where most shop for traditional holiday foods. As their de facto Priest in Charge I can attest to the difficulties that many hourly agricultural workers face in the winter. There will be a tin, up front near the votive candles and the tree, where you can deposit cash or checks. Please note in the memo line on the checks "St. Francis"

The Ecumenical Advent Retreat Day, on Wednesday December 11th, at Cor Maria Retreat House in Sag Harbor was a great success. The food, the place the interaction! So much so that we may do another in Lent! Here's pics of most of the crew and the gourmet spread for lunch!

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Eucharistic Readings and Reflection

The Collect

Stir up your power, O Lord, and with great might come among us; and, because we are sorely hindered by our sins, let your bountiful grace and mercy speedily help and deliver us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory, now and for ever. Amen.

Old Testament

Zephaniah 3:14-20

Sing aloud, O daughter Zion;

shout, O Israel!

Rejoice and exult with all your heart,

O daughter Jerusalem!

The Lord has taken away the judgments against you,

he has turned away your enemies.

The king of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst;

you shall fear disaster no more.

On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:

Do not fear, O Zion;

do not let your hands grow weak.

The Lord, your God, is in your midst,

a warrior who gives victory;

he will rejoice over you with gladness,

he will renew you in his love;

he will exult over you with loud singing

as on a day of festival.

I will remove disaster from you,

so that you will not bear reproach for it.

I will deal with all your oppressors

at that time.

And I will save the lame

and gather the outcast,

and I will change their shame into praise

and renown in all the earth.

At that time I will bring you home,

at the time when I gather you;

for I will make you renowned and praised

among all the peoples of the earth,

when I restore your fortunes

before your eyes, says the Lord.

The Response

Canticle 9  Page 86, BCP

The First Song of Isaiah    Ecce Deus

Isaiah 12:2-6

Surely, it is God who saves me; *

I will trust in him and not be afraid.

For the Lord is my stronghold and my sure defense, *

and he will be my Savior.

Therefore, you shall draw water with rejoicing *

from the springs of salvation.

And on that day you shall say, *

Give thanks to the Lord and call upon his Name;

Make his deeds known among the peoples; *

see that they remember that his Name is exalted.

Sing the praises of the Lord, for he has done great things, *

and this is known in all the world.

Cry aloud, inhabitants of Zion, ring out your joy, *

for the great one in the midst of you is the Holy One of Israel.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *

as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

The New Testament

Philippians 4:4-7

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Discussion Discussion from St Mark's Episcopal Church

Link to Fr. Plant's video/homily/study on this Sunday's Gospel

The Gospel

Luke 3:7-18

John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our ancestor'; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."

And the crowds asked him, "What then should we do?" In reply he said to them, "Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise." Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, "Teacher, what should we do?" He said to them, "Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you." Soldiers also asked him, "And we, what should we do?" He said to them, "Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages."

As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, John answered all of them by saying, "I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire."

So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people.

Some Reflections

 What Must I Do?

What must be the first step of the self upon this road to perfect union with the Absolute?  Clearly, a getting rid of all those elements of normal experience which are not in harmony with reality: of illusion, evil, imperfection of every kind.  … A literal and deliberate getting out of the cave must be for every mystic, as it was for Plato’s prisoners, the first step in the individual hunt for reality. … Primarily, then, the self must be purged of all that stands between it and goodness: putting on the character of reality instead of the character of illusion or “sin.” It longs ardently to do this from the first moment in which it sees itself in the all-revealing radiance of the Uncreated Light.

-Evelyn Underhill, 1875-1941 Mysticism  p.198-199

The Advent mystery is the beginning of the end of all in us that is not yet Christ.

-Thomas Merton 1915-1968

Therefore I say: In every gift, in every work, we ought to learn to look toward God, and we should not allow ourselves to be satisfied or be detained by any thing. Whatever our way of life may be, we must not cease to progress; this has been true for everyone, however far he may have advanced. Above all else, we should always be preparing ourselves, always renewing ourselves to receive God's gifts.

-Meister Eckhart 1260-1327

Quoted from Ordinary Graces: Christian Teachings on the Interior Life

True repentance, then, is not an expression of fear, self-hate or of a neurotic sense of guilt, but an ordinary , simple, natural way of loving God. It is a meeting with God, who has loved us infinitely, whom we love and whose beauty and perfection we long to see, from whom we are separated by sin. True repentance, holy repentance, is the way of love. It is only possible when we stand before the face of God and are moved "out of our minds," beyond the confines of our little narrow selves, by our longing for him.

-Irma Zaleski

The Way of Repentance, Novalis/Continuum 1999

The man who knows his sins is greater than one who raises a dead man by his prayer. .... He who sighs and grieves within himself for an hour is greater than one who teaches the entire universe. He who knows his own weakness is greater than one who sees angels. ... He who follows Christ, alone and contrite, is greater than one who enjoys the favor of crowds in the churches.

-St. Isaac the Syrian, d.circa 700,

(Discourse 34)

Since we ourselves are human beings, we must set before others the meal of kindness no matter why they need it – whether because they are widows, orphans, or exiles; or because they are brutalized by masters, crushed by rulers, dehumanized by tax-collectors, bloodied by robbers, or victimized by the insatiate greed of thieves, be it through confiscation of property or ship-wreck. All such people are equally deserving of mercy, and they look to us for their needs just as we look to God for ours.

-Gregory of Nazianzus d.389

 oration14, On the Love of the Poor, quoted from J. Robert Wright, Readings for the Daily Office from the Early Church

Our ego is the agent that does not allow the bundle of desires, drives, and needs in us to come to resolution. That is precisely how it shores up in us such a profound dependency on this world. …

… The process wherein the ego ceases to forget God is the same as the one wherein it begins to forget itself.

-Dorothee Soelle

The Silent Cry: Mysticism and Resistance (2001)