Merry Christmas From Drell’s Descants

Isaiah 9:2-9, from Anglicanism’s greatest contribution to Christianity, the King James Bible:

2: The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.
3: Thou hast multiplied the nation, and not increased the joy: they joy before thee according to the joy in harvest, and as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.
4: For thou hast broken the yoke of his burden, and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, as in the day of Midian.
5: For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire.
6: For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counseller, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
7: Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

Indeed, the Lord of Hosts has performed this, and is performing it, and will perform it. Christ is still coming into the world, even 2000 years later, to establish His Kingdom. May His government and peace increase. Amen. BLD

An Advent/Christmas Message From Bishop MacPherson

Saturday evening, December 20, 2008

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

As we share this weekend in the Fourth Sunday of Advent, my prayer is that this has truly been a season of spiritual preparation for each of you. Hopefully this has not been a time that has been lost in the busy preparation that normally precedes Christmas, and usually found amidst tinsel and crowded shopping centres.

Advent is a time of special preparation, and it should carry for each of us an emphasis on the coming of Christ, and our preparation for that great day when he will come again. In keeping with this are those moments during which we can look at ourselves, our relationship with Jesus, and focus on the gift God has given to each of us — the gift of His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.

As we enter into these last days before Christmas, may our hearts and minds focus on the unfolding story of this gift, the story that begins with a word from the Angel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary, “You shall conceive and bear a son, and you shall give him the name Jesus.” (Luke 1:31) It continues with his birth, his growing up, and his life as an adult — teaching, healing, being rejected, his death, his resurrection.

This story goes on today, and as we gather in our respective places to share20in the celebration of the Christ Mass, we’re doing more than merely rejoicing in the birth of a child. We’re celebrating God’s gift — his love. A love that will never give up on us, a love that reaches out to us, a love that became visible when Jesus was born in Bethlehem. This love never ends. “O come, let us adore him!”

With best wishes and prayers for a blessed Christmas, I remain

Faithfully in anticipation of the Newborn King,

+Bruce MacPherson

The Rt. Rev’d D. Bruce MacPherson
Bishop of Western Louisiana

A Thought Or Two About Christmas And Other Stuff

Sometimes I have a revelatory moment. In the point too late in the season to do much about it, I’ve decided to revamp how I handle Christmas and I’ve decided to take more of a three day weekend (Cursillo, Kairos, etc.) approach to it.

Being supposedly too busy, I’ve abandoned sending Christmas cards, you know, the ones with the cute pictures of the kids on them or the letter you write to all your friends to tell them how you are doing. The office handles those professional cards I need to send. But, next year, I am going to hand write letters to friends and family far away, just simply telling them I am praying for them during the Christmas season.

Next, I’m no longer buying frivolous gift shoppy type presents. Most are pretty cheap and useless. I am now only going to buy stuff that people really need or will find at least very useful, with an aim toward use on a day to day basis, or, in keeping with the three wise men, at least something they will use at some point in their lives. I have already done this for this Christmas, and I feel very good about the gifts I have gotten family and friends. It also seems to me that, during hard economic times, this is probably a good approach for the giver and the receiver of the gifts.

Christmas, it seems to me, is about how Jesus Christ came to earth to redeem the fallen creation of God, and to give people something they really needed – salvation and forgiveness. I am going to try to give things people need this Christmas.

On the downside of things, my usual Saturday before Christmas service project is out the window. For the last twelve years, I’ve delivered food to shut ins from the Shepherd Center here in town. This year, the staff handled the deliveries during working hours. I did take the gifts we bought and the food my parents bought for the family we adopted for Christmas to the Shepherd Center yesterday morning before work, but it just isn’t the same as delivering them in person. I realize that the receivers of these gifts may have been made uncomfortable by the presence of strangers, and that Christmas, to be Christ like, has to be far more about my giving than about me getting warm fuzzies because I gave. However, the deliveries I used to do also gave me a sense of thankfulness and some much needed perspective during the season of buying two tons of crap from Wal-Mart and the mall. I am glad to reflect on this and remember, and I was glad at least my oldest child, Sarah, got to go with me last year. It was indeed eye opening for her.

I had the most insane week last week. I still can’t describe the mayhem of what occurred in my law practice. I’m over it now, I feel okay, but wow. I went to be at 9 p.m. last night and woke up at 8 a.m. I was definitely tired. I do have to go into work today and meet a client to file a Chapter 11 case, the second this month. After Christmas, the Chapter 11 filings will be much worse. The two cases I am filing now would have waited until after the new year, but the lenders forced the issue. I’m still drowning in other work as well.

The Wal-Mart in town sold gas yesterday for $1.19 a gallon. I was happy to fill up for $1.32 (with my Kroger 10 cent discount) on Thursday; it took $21.50 to fill my empty Camry. The Wal-Mart started out at $1.29 a gallon yesterday morning and then dropped another 10 cents in the afternoon. I don’t get it. I don’t know if it was some sort of thank you for spending every last dime you have at Wal-Mart and here is some gas to get home, or what.

As of today, Carrie and I have only two gifts left to get, that being for a dirty Santa deal we’re doing with the folks in our generation of the family. It has to be forty dollars per gift to achieve an ideal of “gifts that don’t suck” per the pre-agreed upon rules. It is nice not to be totally stressed out. The firm gave us our Christmas bonuses on Monday, which made shopping something that happened over the course of a week rather than a one day deal. Much better. Next year, of course, since I’ll be a partner, I won’t get a “bonus” until after Christmas, so 2009 will mean planning ahead and saving for Christmas. It should be interesting.

The blogosphere is in trouble now

As an early Christmas present, I got a Blackjack 2 and installed a browser called Skyfire. Pretty cool, and I can now blog from my cellphone, albiet slowly.

That, and with the quick post feature on the dashboard of wordpress, this little post was pretty easy.

You Won’t Just Save A Life, You’ll Save A Lifestyle

LSU In The Snow

Weird.

One for the Mousetalker

+ABC Won’t Block Or Bless New Province

Read it all at George Conger’s place.

Interesting, to say the least. So all the Primates will be at the spring Primates Meeting.

A Word to Bruce Garner, Elizabeth Kaeton, and Other Assorted Liberals Who Read This Blog

I stand, where I stand, until the Lord calls me from it. My misery or my happiness is not an issue. His will is. I have called upon the Lord to show me the path and help me to walk it. There is a difference between knowing the path and walking the path. I am walking the path, having to call on the Lord at every fork in the road. I know not where it leads; there are no hard and fast deadlines in time, but there is a hard and fast faith to which I cling.

If the Lord calls me to question most heartily the path you would lead the Episcopal Church down, so be it. If I am to be a witness against you, yours, and your agenda, so be it. If I, a cradle Episcopalian, stand against you who joined the church out of rebellion to your former churches, then that is my role. You have taken the freedom Anglicanism provides to a Christian and gone wacko with it. If you were a cradle Episcopalian (and I just have no explanation for Susan Russell), you might understand this. There were always bounds to that freedom; I pity you were never taught this, that what cannot be proved by scripture cannot be a part of the Church. There is still a valuable place for Anglican Christianity in the world. If TEC chooses to forfeit it, may others take up its cause, for it is worthy.

In other words, people need Jesus, not the Jesus seminar.

I wish I could say I wish peace upon your houses. But I wish Jesus upon your houses, despite the complications that brings.

Brad Drell

UPDATE TO THIS POST: My references to being a cradle Episcopalian have nothing to do with be haughty or proud, for I know the parable of the vineyard workers all too well and know that the Lord favors none by the timing of their arrival into the Kingdom or His service. However, I honestly feel that many join the Episcopal Church because of dissatisfaction with the particular denomination in which they were raised, and they have taken the inquiry and the freedom of Anglicanism that welcomed them in the first place and have turned it on its head. Those of us that suffered through the old style confirmation classes with tests and what not learned those boundaries that always defined Anglicanism. Frankly, not much of that is taught anymore in confirmation classes. Thus, when people see liberal orthodoxy as a pre-requisite or ordination or leadership in the church, incorporate labyrinths, non-Christian liturgy or liturgical elements in their churches, or change the words of the principal Sunday service from those that appear in the Book of Common Prayer (because the point of the BCP is that we are all supposed to use it, together), they have missed the point of Anglicanism as a strain of Christianity altogether. I am extremely sad because of this. Also, what makes me even more sad is that so many of my liberal “friends” tell me I should just get lost and go elsewhere with people that agree with me in disagreeing with them on same sex issues and the authority of scripture. What Anglicanism believes about these things has to be congruent with the Anglican formularies, and when it comes to same sex blessings, congruent with what scripture teaches. Otherwise, it isn’t Anglicanism any more. I am sad because I am an Anglican, that is how I do church, my personal theology, and from where my spiritual roots have always been nourished. But, because I believe what Anglicans have always believed, I am supposed to leave the Episcopal Church so I can be happier? I think that is a pretty superficial definition of happiness. The other point I make is that TEC will lose the mantle of Anglicanism in the United States if it rejects the covenant, and, well, I hope someone, and maybe that is ACNA, will take up the mantle.

My Thoughts On Anglican Church of North America

My thoughts on this topic are fairly simple. May their number, influence, and territory increase. I will be most interested to see what Bible believing Anglicans in North America can accomplish now that they are freed from the bonds of TEC. I also think the Anglican Communion should recognize them as a Province under the Gamaliel principle. ACNA has ostensibly brought together most of the continuing Anglican churches under one roof.

Of course, this development will mean GC2009 will pull out all the stops. Unfortunately, ACNA’s recognition by the Anglican Communion will not be dependent on its faithfulness to Anglicanism, but money. ACNA will need to find a way to replace the funds lost from TEC as it walks apart.

I hate to be the one with the mercenary attitude in the Anglican blogosphere. However, this is the reality of the situation, as sad as it is.

I would hope after GC2009 Western Louisiana would wake up and realize we need to leave TEC, together, as a family. Reforming TEC is a futile effort at best. I’ve been to General Convention as a deputy, and I know what I am talking about. I am going one more time, to press for the Anglican Covenant, knowing that it will fail, and I will be a witness to this failure and the effort put into attempting to obtain its passage. I will share this with the Diocese upon my return, and they can make the collective decision on what they will do.

But, as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. Joshua 24:15. At the end of 2009, my terms as deputy and member of the standing committee will both be up. That means I will not stay in a TEC that rejects the Anglican covenant as they proudly deride other Christians and claim enlightenment from their own knowledge rather than from the Lord. I will not stay in a TEC whose leadership spouts old heresies and claims this is some new thing. I pray that Western Louisiana will wake up; realize what is going on, and take action.

I am hopeful, but not certain, that Western Louisiana will ultimately do the right thing. This uncertainty mostly stems from the financial bondage under which our clergy are held. I do not judge them; for I know not these chains of my retirement, my insurance, my chances of future gainful employment, being dependent on TEC. I don’t know what I would do if I were to face poverty or bankruptcy as a clergyperson due to my faith. One thing is for certain – I call on all my readers, particularly in Western Louisiana, to pray for our clergy in the coming months.

Some of my readers had emailed asking why I hadn’t posted on the new province as of yet; well, here it is, and I’m betting this post will provoke some interesting comments on the new Anglican Church of North America and Western Louisiana’s future.