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ALL ANGELS BY THE SEA
WEEKLY TIDINGS
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The flowers for Sunday, May 11th are given by Laurel and Jeff Vaughn
in honor of their loving Hollywood Mothers.
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Sunday Sermon
If you would like to read Rev. Dave's recent sermons,
please click the link below:
Sermon: Teshuva, 5-4-25
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A Collect for Mother's Day
On this Mother’s Day, we give thanks to God for the divine gift of motherhood in all its diverse forms. Let us pray for all the mothers among us today; for our own mothers, those living and those who have passed away; for the mothers who loved us and the mothers who fell short of loving us fully; for all who hope to be mothers someday and all whose hope to have children has been frustrated; for all mothers who have lost children; for all women and men who have mothered in any way – those who have been our substitute mothers and we who have done so for those in need; and for the earth that bore us and provides us with our sustenance. We pray this in the name of God, our great and loving Mother. Amen.
-The Rev. Leslie Nipps
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We Pray for our People
Shed the light of your healing love on all who are sick in body, mind, or spirit. Bring health and hope to all who suffer, especially: Downs IV, Holden, Barbara, Maria Christine, Caitlin, Dennis, Angie, Amy Jo, Carling, Michael, Ian, Joan, Diana, Anne, Alyssa, Joe, Denise, Zachary and Chris.
We pray for those who receive the care of skilled nursing, especially Timothy, Barbara, and Kim. We pray for those going through cancer treatments and those in remission, especially, Margaret, Downs III, Victoria, Alex, Connie, Douglas, Frank, Gerta, Lauren, TJ, Cara, Valerie, Violet, Joan, Nancy, Julie, George, Denise, Mark and John.
We pray for those in Hospice, especially Jeanne and Regina.
| A BRIDGE BETWEEN ALEX AND DAVE | |
Gallery Artist
The Gallery Artist for May is Zerbe Sodervick. Please stop by and enjoy the work of this talented local artist. Checks should be written to All Angels by the Sea.
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Choir News
Chancel Choir rehearsals are on Thursdays at 10 am.
New members are always welcome! Please feel free to join us!
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Discussion Groups
Men's Discussion Group on Tuesdays
Women's Discussion Group on Wednesdays
10:00am
Next week we are on our regular schedule of the Men's Group on Tuesday and the Women's Group on Wednesday.
Our author for next week, Lauren Jackson, writes that America has searched for, and has not found, an alternative to religion. I'd like to know what you think.
For those in person, I'll have the coffee ready. For those on Zoom, here's the link: https://zoom.us/j/5955701807
To read the article, click the link below:
No Alternative to Religion
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Coffee Hour Hosts Needed
One of the most important things we do is gather after the service for coffee hour. If you are interested in hosting, the sign up sheet is on the Gallery table. If you would like help, sign up and we will find someone to show you how it is done.
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Online Giving
If you would like to give to the offering plate electronically, you can find the online giving link on our All Angels website by clicking the link below:
AllAngelsLBK.org
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Centering Prayer
Centering Prayer invites you to pray with them, every day, at 8 am, wherever you are. When you enter into prayer at 8 am (Eastern), you will know that others are praying at the same time.
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The Leper and the Gossiper
Does it seem like movies and shows on television use more profanity now than in the past? Study after study shows we can definitively (and unfortunately) say “yes” to that question. There’s one word in particular that has shown a substantial increase from 511 times in 1985 to 22,000 times in 2023. During the same time, violent images in movies and television have tripled in content.
Christians share a holy responsibility to partner with God as protectors and healers. That responsibility starts with us protecting and healing ourselves. The Bible instructs us to avoid being influenced by forces that harm. In the first century, people of the Jewish and Christian faith were told not to bring idols from the Romanized world into their home. Teachings of that era instructed the faithful to be careful of the words we use when talking about ourselves and others. Words, in our Abrahamic faith, are to lift up, to find common ground, to express the truth and to worship God. In the 21st century, we should be wary of the negativity we bring into our homes and senses through the media. We are asked to ponder if our words are used for breaking down or for building up.
At first read, the Book of Leviticus (third book of the Bible) seems to be full of archaic purity laws. But a closer read shows Leviticus is helping us to be protectors and healers. This week I read a Levitical teaching about metzora (Hebrew) which is loosely translated as “skin disease”. Two lengthy chapters are dedicated to a hyper-focused detail about the spectrum of dermal infections and the priestly role as healer. Someone with metzora must be cut off from interactions with others until a priest declares the disease to have passed. There is a similar Hebrew word to metzora; it is motzi shem ra – the act of gossip. Metzora is about outer body decay. Motzi shem ra is about spreading decay of the community through gossip, assumptions, lies.
In the Biblical era, Temple priests were a reliable source to declare who was free from skin disease. In the Gospel, Jesus healed some men of metzora and they were required to go to a priest to be declared clean. But what about motzi shem ra? Gossip infects and travels quicker than infection skins diseases and can cause rapid decay of the body of the community. Jesus uses some of the harshest language possible to tell people not to speak poorly of others – to avoid motzi shem ra – and instead to use words wisely to build up the community. Case in point, the trial Jesus was subjected to (that led to his crucifixion) was full of motzi shem ra. The early Church lived into being protectors and healers by avoiding the spread of gossip. Instead, they used words to build up and heal.
The good news is we have eradicated metzora, for the most part, in North America. The bad news? Motzi shem ra still exists. If we are to live into our role as protectors and healers, Jesus reminds us that it starts with the words we use – not to break down but to build up. We need to protect what we take in to know what is true and what is motzi shem ra. And, like our spiritual ancestors, we need to remember to use words to heal and mend ourselves, our homes, and our communities. While media content of the 21st century continues to use more profanity and violent images, we are to do our best to heal and protect ourselves and our community.
- Fr. Dave
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