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The four scripture lessons that we read on Sunday mornings come from what is known as the Lectionary. These are the same lessons read by many different denominations. It is split up into three years – A, B, and C. The point is to read as much of the gospels as possible within that three year cycle, with an emphasis on Matthew, Mark, and Luke.
The only exception to this is our current year, A. During Lent, we hear some of the great stories about Jesus from the Gospel of John. Beginning the second Sunday in Lent, the gospels are fairly lengthy, as they tell of Jesus’ interactions with some of the most interesting people in the New Testament: Nicodemus, the Samaritan woman at the well, the healing of the man born blind, the raising of Lazarus.
John’s gospel is the latest of all four gospels, written about 60 to 90 years after the Ascension of Jesus. By that time in the Church’s history, Christianity was separate from Judaism and the Church was being persecuted. John is trying very hard to develop a theology of Jesus in which he is clearly the Messiah sent from God as well as the Son of God – as John calls Jesus, “the Word made flesh.”
While it seems odd that, after all that time, there are lengthy memories of Jesus’ interaction with people, in particular verbatim conversations, these discussions contain some of the deepest and most heart warming words of Jesus. Since they are so specific, it is believed that the characters in the stories remained faithful to Jesus and were a part of the community of faith, the Church, after Jesus’ ascension.
Listen carefully to these gospels and you will find yourself in at least one of the stories. Whether you are a seeker (Nicodemus) or a sinner (the woman at well), Jesus has something to say to us today through these gospels. And hearing the voice of Jesus means that we are drawing ever closer to him in our own lives.
Fr. Joseph Krasinski
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Cathedral Grounds Beautification Day! - 9 am | |
Lenten Book Study - After 10 am Service | |
Annual Meeting - After 10 am ervice | |
Choral Evensong with the Anglican Chorale - 5:30 pm | |
Morning and Evening Online Reflection | |
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Begin and end your weekday with online reflections. Reflections feature prayers, readings from Holy Scripture, and contemplative music and are led by clergy from National Cathedral in the morning and from Canterbury Cathedral in the evening. In addition, daily Choral Evensong song by the Canterbury Cathedral Choir is available online. Select the applicable link below for access.
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If you would like to include someone on the Prayer List or add an anniversary or birthday for special prayers, please call the Cathedral office at 305-456-8851, use the 'Contact Us' link on our website, or send an email ...
office@trinitymiami.org
pastoralcare@trinitymiami.org
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Sick - In Recovery
Rev. Winnie Bolle, Domenica Brazzi, Doris Gray, Rev. James Considine, Helen Ebanks, Carol Cunningham, Robert Horton, Dom Spaziani, Jreve Simanelli, Ashley Ramos, Cathy Stahre, President James Carter, Jr.
Sanctuary Candle
To the glory of God and thanksgiving for the Memorial Garden Beautification volunteers
Anglican Cycle of Prayer
The Scottish Episcopal Church
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Birthdays
Lousi Harms
Carmin Medina
Dr. William Hopper
Kathy Reyes
Rev. Grey Maggiano
Lecko Sylvester
Anniversaries
In Memoriam
Owen Taylor
Carey Parish
Donna Greco
Lydia Benjamin
Lula Mae Penny
Luis Alphonso Lofton
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Lenten Book Study Begins Sunday!
Join us every Sunday in Lent after 10 am service. Select the picture to download a free copy of the discussion guide.
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An Ash Wednesday Message From Canon Licia Affer | |
Holy Bible: African American Jubilee Edition
The African American Jubilee Edition of the Bible brings together devotional guides, historical essays, and other material to help readers see the biblical text through the lens of the African American experience. It was largely the vision of Rev. Charles H. Smith, a Baptist minister and civil rights pioneer who served as a director at the American Bible Society in the 1990s. His experience working with communities across the United States led him to see the need for a study Bible that drew attention to the African presence in the Bible’s stories and the Bible’s influence on the Black church. Over a dozen scholars and ministers contributed to the project. This version uses the King James translation.
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Dr. William Hopper, Happy Birthday!
Thank you for your Ministry of Music
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"As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace." - 1 Peter 4:10 |
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These are difficult times and many struggle to make ends meet. When you come on Sundays, please consider bringing one or more items of canned or boxed food. Items to consider include canned goods, peanut butter, packaged cereals, paper products, dish and laundry soaps, boxed dinners, toiletry items, and feminine hygiene products. Remember that we cannot accept expired food or items that need refrigeration.
Gift Card Ministry
The LGBT ministry has organized an on-going Gift Card collection drive to aid in the purchase of perishable food items for food pantry recipients. Our Sacristan - Roberto Soto - personally distributes these cards on a weekly basis. To continue to help this cause or if you or someone you know could benefit from this ministry, please contact Roberto Soto at:
Trinity Cathedral, c/o Roberto Soto
464 N.E. 16th Street, Miami, FL 33132
(787) 586-8262 or via email probosoto@hotmail.com
Names of donors and recipients will remain confidential
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February 26, 2023
First Sunday in Lent
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Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7; Psalm 32; Romans 5:12-19; Matthew 4:1-11
Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7
As we approach the narrative of creation and sin found in Genesis, chapters 2 and 3, it is important to keep in mind the context of this passage within the book of Genesis itself. Genesis 2-3 represents a separate creation story from Genesis 1 and, therefore, a distinct theological viewpoint and purpose (if you’d like to compare the different creation stories, read both Genesis 1 and 2, taking note of the different “timelines” of creation). Immediately prior to this text is the separate creation narrative of Genesis 1 and the beginning of the Genesis 2 narrative in which Adam (which is a Hebrew word representing humankind, more than a proper name) is made from the adamah, the soil of the ground. The Hebrew of this text shows us the deep connection between the name Adam and the soil, a connection maintained in English with human and humus. Immediately following this text are the consequences of Adam and Eve’s decision to eat of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge.
A close reading of this text, along with the passage that follows, reveals a somewhat unexpected (and potentially troubling) revelation: the serpent never lies to Eve. In his craftiness, the serpent says that humans will “be like God, knowing good and evil.” Just a handful of verses later in chapter 3, verse 22, God says “the humans have become like one of us, knowing good and evil.” This means that Adam and Eve were not necessarily deceived by the serpent but offered a temptation that each of us encounters at some point or another: to seek to become like God rather than embrace our dependence on God.
- Having reflected on this passage, how would you describe Adam and Eve’s decision? How would you describe the serpent?
- In what ways does the sin of trying to “be like God” still affect our lives? What are some contemporary examples of trying to “be like God”?
Psalm 32
Like all of the psalms, Psalm 32 contains extremely visceral, concrete language to describe spiritual realities. The psalmist describes the experience of keeping sins silent as the wasting away of the body. When reading Hebrew poetry like the Psalms, keeping an eye to physical imagery can give us an insight into the embodied spirituality intrinsic to the Old Testament. For example, the word most commonly translated as “soul” in the English translations of the Psalms, nefesh, literally means “throat” in Hebrew. The rawness of Hebrew poetry, as exemplified by the Psalms, takes us into a world where our souls are in our throats and our spirits are not separated from our experience.
In this psalm, we encounter a primary theme of repentance (literally turning away from sin) and the effect that keeping our mistakes hidden can have on us. In so many ways, we know well the damage that failing to acknowledge our shortcomings can have on ourselves, our neighbors, and the world around us. Take, for example, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in post-Apartheid South Africa as a real, lived expression of this psalm. Telling the truth about our sins alone cannot fix them, but it is necessary for us to heal and grow into the love and salvation freely offered to us by God.
- Have you ever made a mistake, but been unable to admit to it?
- Have you ever admitted to a mistake out loud? How did you feel afterwards?
- How might we learn to be honest about our faults as a church and a society without letting these faults paralyze us with guilt? Might this psalm give us encouragement?
Romans 5:12-19
In this passage, we find two primary theological subjects: 1) the “free gift” of grace and 2) justification through righteousness. In English, the words “free gift” appear five times in this passage. However, in Greek, Paul bounces back and forth between two different words that have both been translated as “free gift”: charisma and dorea. The latter is used almost exclusively in the New Testament to describe a spiritual gift from God. The former, which may sound familiar to us, describes the power and grace of God’s Spirit moving in our lives. This is where we get the word “charisma,” a trait of someone with exceptional passion, and the word “charism,” a person or community’s clear sense of call to a particular ministry or spiritual gift. In either case, both words describe a similar reality: the grace of God is truly a gift. Gifts cannot (and should not) be earned, but rather accepted and enjoyed.
When we encounter the topic of righteousness in scripture, it is common to imagine the inner spiritual landscape of a person or people group. In many of our contexts, righteousness is thought of as personal moral excellence, which is certainly an element of righteousness. However, whenever we encounter this term in the scriptures (both Hebrew and Greek), it almost always has a dual meaning: a righteousness that is justice and a justice that is righteousness. In the ancient mindset, social justice required personal righteousness and true personal righteousness required a real and active concern for others, especially the poor and the oppressed. So, the “justification” in verses 16 and 18 could just as easily be read as “justice-ification.” Remembering this can help us avoid drifting into a view of Paul as a theoretical theologian calling us only to personal righteousness but rather into a real, incarnated justice-righteousness.
- What is the best gift you’ve ever received?
- When you receive a gift, how do you feel? A need for reciprocity? A sense of being cared for?
- How might thinking of the Holy Spirit as a gift change or enrich our shared life as the Church?
Matthew 4:1-11
In this passage, we get to experience Matthew’s take on Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness by the Tempter (I’ve chosen to capitalize this as a way to provide a name for this character while avoiding the rightfully loaded term “devil”). Each of the four gospels has a particular take on the person of Jesus the Christ and, therefore, a particular theological viewpoint about Jesus’s ministry, personality, and purpose. Matthew’s gospel represents a Jesus who is deeply rooted in Torah and expressed his Messianic power primarily through authoritative interpretation of Torah. Matthew’s Jesus, then, is able to criticize the Pharisees and scribes not because he is diametrically opposed to them but because he is the fullest expression of their love of and devotion to the Torah, which in Hebrew literally means “instruction.” Matthew’s Jesus is primarily concerned with the maintenance of Torah while inviting Gentiles into its full expression.
We see this Torah-guided Jesus most clearly in this text in his responses to the Tempter. While the Tempter does use scriptural references in his first two temptations to bread and miraculous base-jumping, Jesus uses scripture to respond to all three of the temptations. What’s more, Jesus quotes exclusively from the book of Deuteronomy, seen before, during, and after his day as a book that epitomizes the Torah. In this passage, we see a Jesus who has fully embraced and embodied his Jewish identity in order to respond to the temptations and struggles that will be ever-present in his ministry: power for power’s sake.
- In our own day, how might we follow this Jewish Jesus in building strong habits of spiritual groundedness?
- What practices or resources in our tradition can come to our aid when we are presented with our own temptations to apathy, prejudice, and animosity?
This Bible study was written by Anthony Suggs, a seminarian at the Seminary of the Southwest.
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The Rt. Rev. Samuel David Ferguson - Consecrated June 24, 1885
Black Bishops in The Episcopal Church
1874 - Present
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episcopal church.org
Over the past 145 years there have been 50 Black Bishops consecrated in The Episcopal Church. These Bishops hail from the African Diaspora, as well as Africa. The African Diaspora includes those people of African descent living throughout the world in the United States, the Caribbean, Central America and other countries.
All Bishops are assigned a number by the Secretary of the House of Bishops according to their date of consecration. Bishop James Theodore Holly was the first Black Episcopal Bishop consecrated November 8, 1874, first Bishop of Haiti, number 106a.
People of African descent have a long proud heritage in The Episcopal Church. The following biographical sketches of the Black Episcopal Bishops provide a framework for the role that Black Bishops have played in the community in general and The Episcopal Church in particular.
Read More ...
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The Rt. Rev. James Theodore Holly
Feast Day: March 13
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episcopal archives.org
Born in Washington, D.C. as a descendent of free slaves, Holly was baptized and confirmed a Roman Catholic. His early years were spent in D.C. and Brooklyn where he connected with Frederick Douglass and other black abolitionists. After a dispute over the ordination of black clergy, Holly left the Catholic Church and joined the Episcopal Church in 1851. As an Episcopalian, Holly attended the first National Emigration Convention as a delegate and was selected commissioner for the newly formed National Emigration Board. Under the auspices of this office, he traveled to Haiti in order to negotiate an emigration treaty. While there, he explored the possibility of establishing a mission for the Episcopal Church. Upon Holly’s return to the United States, he requested that he be sent to Haiti to serve as a missionary, a request denied by the Board of Missions of the Episcopal Church.
Learn more ...
Collect:
Most gracious God, whose servant James Theodore Holly labored to build a church in which all might be free: Grant that we might overcome our prejudice, and honor those whom thou dost call from every family, language, people, and nation; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
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Weekly Bulletin Insert
Life Transformed - Week 1
February 26, 2023
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episcopal church.org
The Way of Love in Lent
The journey through Lent into Easter is a journey with Jesus. We are baptized into his life, self-giving, and death; then, we rise in hope to life transformed. This Lent, communities are invited to walk with Jesus in his Way of Love and into the experience of transformed life. Together, we will reflect anew on the loving actions of God as recounted in the Easter Vigil readings. Together, we will walk through the depths of salvation history into the fullness of redemption. Throughout Lent, come along with us as we explore Life Transformed: The Way of Love in Lent, produced by Hillary Raining and Jenifer Gamber. You can find resources mentioned below at iam.ec/lifetransformed or by scanning the QR code.
Week 1
Sunday, February 26
Today’s Practice: Watch the Rev. Dr. Hillary Raining’s video at iam.ec/lifetransformed for Week 1. The topic is based on the practice “Turn” and is titled, “Dead to Sin, Alive in Christ”.
Read: Romans 6:3-11
Monday, February 27
Today’s Prompt: Who has taught you to live a Jesus-filled life? Who have you taught?
Read: “So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day.” – 2 Corinthians 4:16
Tuesday, February 28
Today’s Prompt: Go for a walk today and pray with your feet, each step with intention.
Read: “Many peoples shall come and say, ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.’” – Isaiah 2:3a
Wednesday, March 1
Today’s Prompt: How can you build pauses into the day to reflect on the work of the Spirit?
Read: “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.” – John 15:5
Thursday, March 2
Today’s Prompt: What is most meaningful to you in worship?
Read: Book of Common Prayer, p. 281
Friday, March 3
Today’s Prompt: Where can you go and intentionally provide kindness?
Read: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” – Matthew 5:4
Saturday, March 4
Today’s Prompt: Notice the pattern of your breathing. Pray for awareness of blessings.
Read: “Then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” – Jer. 6:16
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Provinces invited to name saints for inclusion on new worldwide Anglican Communion calendar
episcopal news service
Does your local Episcopal church celebrate the feast day of Hannah Grier Coome on Feb. 9 or Rota Waitoa on May 22? Likely not, since those church saints are venerated by the Anglican provinces of Canada and Aotearoa, respectively, and are not included on The Episcopal Church’s official calendar of saints.
Episcopalians, however, in addition to celebrating their own saints, will be able to learn about and celebrate historical religious figures from across the Anglican Communion under a plan endorsed this week by the Anglican Consultative Council. All 42 Anglican provinces, including The Episcopal Church, will be invited to submit names and biographies to be included in a worldwide Anglican Communion calendar.
At the 18th ACC meeting, taking place Feb. 12-19 in Accra, Ghana, members also accepted a report scrutinizing localized experiments with “virtual” Eucharist during the pandemic, and they discussed the Anglican Communion’s commitments to fighting climate change and raising up Indigenous voices.
Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby spoke in favor of the plan for an Anglican Communion calendar on Feb. 16, saying it was a “very timely” proposal, since discussions are taking place in his own province of England about how to “make our calendar more diverse.”
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Episcopal Relief & Development Partners with the ACT Alliance to Support Earthquake Survivors in Syria
episcopal news service
Episcopal Relief & Development is partnering with Action by Churches Together (ACT Alliance) to provide emergency relief to people affected by the 7.8- and 7.5-magnitude earthquakes in Türkiye (Turkey) and Syria. Working through the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) and other local organizations, the ACT Alliance is providing shelter, supplies and support to families and local hospitals.
More than 39,000 people have been killed in Türkiye (Turkey) and Syria following the earthquakes and thousands of buildings have been destroyed or deemed unusable. Cold weather combined with rain and snow has complicated conditions for those without shelter. In Syria, an estimated 10.9 million people have been affected and up to 5.3 million may have lost their homes.
MECC is responding in Syria by sheltering 10,000 families in open-air or structurally sound facilities; providing survivors with hot meals, blankets, medicine and trauma support; supplying body bags and other necessities to hospitals; and helping children return to school to bring more stability. Additionally, local organizations are providing winterization and hygiene kits, cash transfers and emotional support for people in Syria.
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Archbishop of Canterbury visits Ashanti King and bestows Cross of Saint Augustine award
anglican communion news service
The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby visited the King of the Ashanti Kingdom (the Asantehene) in Ghana today and thanked him for his “consistent support for the Anglican Church and the nation of Ghana.” The Archbishop presented the Asantehene with a Lambeth Award: The Cross of Saint Augustine, in recognition of his service to the Anglican Communion.
Archbishop Justin and Mrs Caroline Welby travelled to Kumasi for an audience with His Royal Majesty Otumfuo Osei Tutu II at Manhyia Palace, the Asantehene’s official residence, on the eve of the 18th plenary session of the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC-18), which starts in Accra tomorrow.
Archbishop Justin was joined by the Primate of West Africa, Archbishop Cyril Kobina Ben-Smith, the Bishop of Kumasi, Oscar Christian Amoah, as well as Archbishops and Bishops from across the Anglican Church of the Province of West Africa.
After a traditional ceremony of orations and songs, the Archbishop and the King exchanged greetings and spoke of their mutual respect and affection.
Presenting the Cross of Saint Augustine award, Archbishop Justin said His Royal Majesty has “generously provided guidance and support to the Church, which have had a tremendous impact on its growth and development”. He also praised the King’s contribution in areas including sustainable development, education and healthcare.
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Pope Francis: God asks us to love beyond 'the logic of self-interest'
catholic new agency
Instead of acting out of self-interest or convenience, the Lord challenges us to love others in excess “without calculation,” Pope Francis said on Sunday.
Speaking from the window of the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace on Feb. 19, the pope reflected on what it means to “love your enemies,” as Jesus commanded in Sunday’s Gospel.
“Brothers and sisters, the Lord invites us to step out of the logic of self-interest and not to measure love on the scales of calculations and convenience. He invites us not to respond to evil with evil, to dare to do good, to risk in giving, even if we receive little or nothing in return,” he said in his Angelus address.
The pope underlined that this “extraordinary love” has the power to slowly transform conflicts and “heal the wounds of hatred.”
“Jesus’ words challenge us. While we try to remain within the ordinary with utilitarian reasoning, he asks us to open ourselves up to the extraordinary … a freely-given love,” Francis said.
He added: “It is normal for us to love those who love us, and to be friends of those who are friends to us; yet Jesus provokes us by saying: if you act in this way, ‘what more are you doing than others?’”
Pope Francis noted the extraordinary “imbalance of love” in Jesus’ decision to “embrace the cross.”
“God loves us while we are sinners, not because we are good or able to give something back to him,” he said.
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In Kherson, almost 60 children are hiding in the basement of a church
religious information service of ukraine
0 out of these are children aged from 4 months to 1 year. The rest are under 4 years, including children with disabilities who need special care and treatment.
This was announced by the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Lyudmila Denisova, according to TSN.
"We have found a safe place for these children to stay in a region of Ukraine where there are no active military operations. There, pupils of the orphanage will be provided with all the necessary assistance, treatment and care," the Ombudsman said.
Denisova called on all those who can assist in transporting these children not to stand aside and take all possible measures to open and operate the humanitarian corridor.
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'We cannot walk with you unless you repent', African archbishops tell Church of England
religion news service
Conservative Anglican archbishops in Africa are challenging a decision by the Church of England to allow clergy to bless same sex couples’ marriages, warning that the move puts the worldwide Anglican Communion in further jeopardy.
The leaders are reacting to the Feb. 9 vote at the Church of England’s General Synod to permit the offering of prayers and liturgies at civil marriages. The compromise measure included the church’s desire to “lament and repent” its failure “to welcome LGBTQI+ people and for the harm that LGBTQI+ people have experienced — and continue to experience — in churches.”
The church has not changed its doctrine that marriage is a lifelong union between one man and one woman, but the archbishops of Uganda, Kenya and Nigeria are rejecting the decision to bless the unions as contrary to the teaching of the Bible.
The Church of England joined the Episcopal Church of America, the Anglican Church of Canada, the Church in Wales, the Scottish Episcopal Church, the Episcopal Church of Brazil and a few other member churches in recognizing all civil marriages.
The archbishops, who together represent more than 35 million Anglicans, posted their responses to the Church of England’s decision on their diocesan websites.
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Ret. Bishop Leo & Mrs. Frade after Ash Wednesday Service | |
Celebrating Roy David's Baptism | | | | |
