Today is the 22nd Sunday after Pentecost. Readings for today: Haggai 1:15b-2:9 Psalm 145:1-5, 18-22 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17 Luke 20:27-38 The Collect of the Day: O God, whose blessed Son came into the world that he might destroy the works of the devil and make us children of God and heirs of eternal life: Grant that, having this hope, we may purify ourselves as he is pure; that, when he comes again with power and great glory, we may be made like him in his eternal and glorious kingdom; where he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen

One of the little remarks that teachers used on a report card when I was in elementary school was “There’s room for improvement.” Almost every child had either the same remark, or something similar. I am sure that this was a widely-used phrase, and rightfully so. For, within this remark is an abiding hope that each teacher had for a little kid. There is always a room to grow. I once served on the board of Heathwood Hall Episcopal School in Columbia, South Carolina. One of the extra-curricular activities for the students was to visit another country during the Winterim break. Several years after I had resigned from the board, I received an email from one of my friends who organizes these trips, and invited me to join them on a trip to Ghana. I took them up on the offer and went with them to serve in a community that I had never visited before. These junior and senior students would wake up at 5:00 a.m., walk to a farm, cut grass and shrubs, make garden beds, and rake some of the weeds. We would then leave the farm around 7:00 a.m., when the African sun would begin to burn mercilessly. We would then walk back to the residence where we were lodging, take a shower, and then have the kids go to a local primary school where they could teach. One child of the many seemed older than most. You could tell from his appearance that he was far older than all the kids in the school and, in fact, for his grade. In a conversation with the head teacher of the school, one of the chaperones from South Carolina asked, "How come this particular student looks a lot older than the rest?" The headteacher responded thus: "Don’t worry about this boy. He’s here because his mother wants him to be here. I don’t see anything good coming out of him." That was truly a shocker to me! His response was unlike any that I have ever heard from any teacher before. That is not to say there aren’t worse cases, but at least a teacher maintains some hope, however infinitesimal, that something good might come out of a student because there’s always room to grow; more than that, there exist infinite possibilities in each child. A lot has happened over these past two years that I have been privileged to serve here at Christ Church. The energy, enthusiasm, and pride that often vibrates from our parishioners is often overwhelming. Last Saturday's Christ Church Auction is a classic example. Your kindness and generosity led us in raising over thirty thousand dollars ($30,000.00) to support our common life. That was incredible. I am incredibly thankful to every single member of our parish who contributed, in ways both great and small, in order to make this year’s auction a huge success. Last year we made a little over twenty-seven thousand dollars ($27,000.00), and this year’s margin reminds me that there’s always room to grow. In my view, every opportunity for reflection is equally an opportunity for growth. And as I reflect on the many ways in which I am grateful for each one of you, and for the opportunity to serve you, I am also reminded of a unique privilege. It is one borne out of humility, and which is an essential part of every relationship. Part of my growth process, then, is to be able to apologize for actions and inactions on my part. The Prayer Book frames it this way: things done, and left undone. I believe, in my heart of hearts, that there’s no way that none of you has taken umbrage over an action or inaction on my part; that is why I can offer an apology. Part of our growth process is a reflection of the human condition - it is never static, there is always room to grow, and growing takes the form of looking back with gratitude over many blessings, and sorrow over many wrongs. More than anything else, it is the courage to admit our own fallibilities, and to inspire hope in others. On Sunday, November 10th we will gather together at 9:30 a.m. to worship, give thanks, break bread, elect a new Vestry and reflect on our common life over the past year. Annual Meetings are special occasions to make ourselves accountable to one another. It is also a time to explore the many rooms we have yet to grow. Added to the specialness of Sunday is our In-Gathering of Pledges on this same day. Your pledges help support our common life, and provide us with the tools to transform lives in our community and beyond. Indeed, your generous contributions to Christ Church help us to provide more than enough means to encourage, to motivate, and to shepherd people in creating rooms for their individual spiritual growth. In my sermon last Sunday, I made a point that “An authentic life isn’t a perfect life, but it is a life of blessedness and gratitude. One who lives an authentic life is the author of his or her own life. He or she writes their own script, and that script always leaves a room for growth.” Indeed, one of the practices of Ignatian Spirituality is the Daily Examen: becoming aware of God’s presence, reviewing your day with gratitude, asking for guidance and looking ahead to the morrow. And guess what? We can only look ahead with hope because we know we have another chance at growth. Remember, there’s always a room for growth, and to discover this truth is in itself liberating and life-giving. Like my teacher and many others used to write - and I believe still do - there’s always room for improvement. Give yourself a room to grow. ~Manny

Today is All Saints' Day (observed). Readings for today: Daniel 7:1-3,15-18 Psalm 149 Ephesians 1:11-23 Luke 6:20-31 The Collect of the Day: Almighty God, you have knit together your elect in one communion and fellowship in the mystical body of your Son Christ our Lord: Give us grace so to follow your blessed saints in all virtuous and godly living, that we may come to those ineffable joys that you have prepared for those who truly love you; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen. Father Manny's sermon for today is available for reading by clicking here.

We have been working our way through the gospel of Luke. A few weeks ago we read the gospel story about the Mustard Seed - if only our faith was as small as the mustard seed. The story's text invites us to ponder on the inherent potential of our faith, the amazingly far-reaching capability of faith. The point is, you and I can do extraordinary things not because we have a mountain of faith but simply because we have any at all. And that is actually what makes all the difference in our lives. Think about the gospel story of that little boy with five loaves and two fish. There was no way this little boy ever thought that his meager supply was going to be the basis upon which a miracle would be wrought, and no way did he ever thought that his paltry rations could hold such potential. The gift in this little boy’s gift was his desire to offer up the small supplies he had. Small an action, we may say, but a huge difference, we would admit. The other gift I find in the story is that a growth mindset can imagine possibilities and instill belief that you, I, Christ Church, and everything round about us are capable of growth and change. We only need to take that small action. I'm sure that you have also had the benefit of a small action making a big difference in your life. Last Sunday, I listened to Linda Burton, our preacher and Adult Forum presenter (If you missed her presentation last week, please join us on Sunday at 9:30 a.m. in Old Brick for the second session). I asked myself, "What small action has made a big difference in my life? What small action has made a big difference in your life?" Mine were too many to number, but I realized that at each step of my young life there were many people who were more than willing to take the small steps… not necessarily steps of providing material needs, but rather in believing in me - if I should take the boy’s five loaves and two fish, something good might come out of it. I often tell a story about walking into All Saints Episcopal Church, in Atlanta, Georgia on a cold Sunday morning, and introducing myself to The Reverend Geoffrey Hoare after that day's worship. I still remember sitting in his office and jumping at the opportunity of joining his staff for a $500.00 monthly stipend. At that time, I had never been paid that much money in my entire life. My stipend was more than enough for me to even send some to my mother back in Ghana. I have no idea what led me to that church, but I bear testimony to the fact that Providence doesn’t disappoint. Providence leads us, even when paths may appear unclear to us. Providence ultimately leads us to paths of living water... paths where we can find life. Like you, I am a beneficiary of God’s unbridled compassion. And I ask myself, "What if Reverend Hoare had not welcomed me? What if he had not lived the gospel of embracing the stranger? What if he had rejected my five loaves and two fish as being insignificant? More to the point, what if he had failed to see the Mustard Seed that sat in me and which I represented?" The gift in his gift to me is the joy of serving here, today, at Christ Church. Small action, big difference. Brother Lawrence, a Seventeenth Century French monk, wrote these wise words in his book The Practice of the Presence of God... “We ought not to be weary of doing little things for the love of God, who regards not the greatness of the work, but the love with which it is performed." That love is always present in the little things we do. I’d like to reiterate the point in the Parable of the Mustard Seed, where a small action – the sowing of a small seed – led to the growth of a large plant. And more than that, this plant becomes life-giving for other creatures of God. I hope you believe like I do, that your gift is always life-giving for all of God’s creation. In 1926, Dr. James Allan Francis preached a sermon called One Solitary Life, in which he used the incarnation of Jesus to illustrate how one solitary life had a massive impact: ‘Here is a man who was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman. He grew up in another village. He worked in a carpenter shop until He was thirty. Then for three years He was an itinerant preacher. While still a young man, the tide of popular opinion turned against him. He was nailed upon a cross between two thieves. Long centuries have come and gone but all the armies that ever marched, all the navies that were ever built; all the parliaments that ever sat and all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of humans upon this earth as powerfully as has that one solitary life.’ Small things, big difference. We are presently in the middle of our Stewardship Campaign for 2020. And as many of you know, Christ Church doesn’t have the benefit of other Episcopal churches which rely on endowments to fund their Ministry responsibilities. We entirely rely on YOU, our faithful parishioners, to support our ministries during any given season. Two of the important tasks that we want to accomplish next year are to hire a Youth Minister to lead the formation of our deserving youth, and a Parish Ministries Coordinator to lead us in planning and organizing our common life. These things, too, can happen if small acts come together with the hope of making a big difference. Christ Church's In-Gathering Sunday is next week on November 10th. That Sunday is also our Annual Meeting. It is my strong belief that gathering together in front of our altar with our mutual gifts will be the ultimate expression of a small action with the potential for a big impact, and a big difference. Like Brother Lawrence, it is also my prayer that you will learn to value small actions and pursue them with love, recognizing that by doing so you are following in the footsteps and teachings of the Christ who first gave himself to us as a small child, and who makes all the big difference in our lives. ~Manny

This is the Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost. Readings for today: Joel 2:23-32 Psalm 65 2 Timothy 4:6-8,16-18 Luke 18:9-14 The Collect of the Day: Almighty and everlasting God, increase in us the gifts of faith, hope, and charity; and, that we may obtain what you promise, make us love what you command; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. The sermon for today was given by Linda Burton, author of the book Gratitude Heals: A Journal for Inspiration and Guidance. You can stream or download an audio recording of her sermon below.

I have some memories of my life at eleven years old. They aren’t any significant events worth reporting, but they were fond memories of life lived under the shadow of two parents who didn’t live together. I don’t remember being engaged in any life-transforming activity, but there’s one story that I remember very well. I must have been about eleven or twelve years old. I was walking on my way to church to serve as an acolyte on a Sunday morning. As I walked, I overheard rumors of a coup d’état in Ghana. I remember becoming so distressed about it that I inquired from a gentleman that I saw walking on the same road, but going in the opposite direction. I asked from him if he’s heard about the coup d’état, and if it was true. He asked if I had any issue with it. I responded that I thought it was becoming a little too much. The man simply looked at me, shook his head, and walked off. I wonder what he thought about an eleven or twelve-year-old boy becoming distressed over a coup d’état. This past week, we lost Representative Elijah Cummings - an icon of Maryland and of national politics. He served diligently in the United States House of Representatives. There are many in our community of faith who agreed with his politics and many who did not agree, but that is beside the point. We celebrate him for offering his life in service to all, and for the transformative change that was made possible because of it. I am particularly enamored by a story I read in the Washington Post about an eleven-year-old Elijah Cummings. There are two events in that story I’d like to invite us to ponder over. The first, according to the story, is that Elijah and his friends had grown a little too big for a small, shallow swimming pool in which they regularly swam. He recalls that the pool was so small that they had to wait turns to get in. One woman, Mrs. Mitchell, suggested to Elijah and his friends that there was a better, Olympic-size swimming pool in which they could swim. The only problem with her suggestion about this Olympic-size swimming pool - which was a public swimming pool - was that it was public in name only. In August of 1962, Elijah and his friends would walk to the swimming pool and jump in. You can only imagine the response of people who thought that Elijah and his friends were undeserving to be swimming in a public swimming pool. According to the Post, “Crowds of angry white residents, sometimes numbering one thousand, according to newspaper coverage at the time, surrounded them. They held signs saying “Keep Our Pool Germ Free” and “White People Have Rights Too.” Elijah remembers that these people were adults who called these boys “…every name you can imagine, everything but a child of God.” Representative Cummings remembers a mob surrounding the pool one day. They were only held back by a line of police with K-9 dogs, while he and his friends enjoyed the water. Some of these people were so angry that they threw all kinds of objects over the police officers’ heads, one of which hit the eleven-year-old in the face, cutting his eyebrow and leaving an indelible scar. This marked for him the struggle he had to contend with in his effort to change public attitude. In my sermon last Sunday, I made the point that there’s an indomitable spirit which sits in each of us, and that this spirit doesn’t quit in its pursuit of justice. As an eleven-year-old boy, Elijah knew that something was wrong with the picture, and that not even an angry mob would deter him from his pursuit of justice - of swimming in the bigger pool like everyone else. I have no idea what each of us was doing at 11 years old, but it is likely that we were more concerned about thriving than simply living. The second part of the story happened about thirty years after eleven-year-old Elijah and his friends integrated a public pool. Elijah recalls a man who approached him after a campaign event and apologized to him. With surprise, Elijah asked, "What are you apologizing for?" The man responded, “I was one of them people back then in 1962 who was throwing the bottles and the rocks and the stones. And I’m sorry.” To this, Elijah responded, "Apology accepted." It is telling that this man, after so many years, remembered the eleven-year-old Elijah, but not only that, he remembered his own actions and felt the need to apologize. Remember, there’s an indomitable spirit which not only fights for justice, but also pursues what is right. The courage it took for the gentleman to apologize, and Elijah's courage to accept the apology, remind me of Lorraine Hansberry's play, A Raisin in the Sun. A young man comes home to see his family after he has lost all the money that would have given them a future, destroying their hopes. His sister calls him every despicable name imaginable. After she curses out her brother, the mother speaks and says, "I thought I told you to forgive him." "Forgive him? There's nothing left to forgive," she responded. "There is always something left to love," says the mother, "and if you haven't learned that, you haven't learned anything. When do you think it's time to love and forgive somebody? When they've done good? When they've made you proud? The time to love somebody is when they are at their lowest because the world done whipped them so." A smaller world says that we have to sort out who we should love and who is not worthy of our love, let alone God's love. But there is always something left to love - always, always. Do not live in a smaller world than God has given to you! At eleven years old, Elijah refused to swim in a smaller pool, and so can you. ~Manny. The above photo and a retrospective of Rep. Elijah Cummings can be found here.

This is the Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost. Readings for today: Jeremiah 31:27-34 Psalm 119:97-104 2 Timothy 3:14-4:5 Luke 18:1-8 The Collect of the Day: Almighty and everlasting God, in Christ you have revealed your glory among the nations: Preserve the works of your mercy, that your Church throughout the world may persevere with steadfast faith in the confession of your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. Father Manny's Sermon for today can be read here.

Both Adam - our Director of Music - and I love coffee. I do not know how much coffee Adam drinks in a day, but I generally drink between two or three cups daily. The best day for my coffee binging is Sundays, where I drink close to five cups by the time the two services are over. I am usually not as much bothered about the cup as I am about the coffee - Is it strong or mild? Is it regular or decaf? Is it good, or not so good? In one of his eloquent writings, Dr. Martin Luther King admonishes us to focus on the content of a character and not the color of one’s skin, because it really doesn’t matter what the color of a person is if the content of the character is awful. You may have heard it said that "appearances can be deceptive" and "all that glitters isn't gold." For this reason, then, the invitation is not to be drawn into an appearance-driven hypothesis, but rather to honor oneself with the real gift which lies in the cup - the life, which is coffee. There’s a story of a group of university alumni who, all highly established in their respective careers, got together for a visit with their former professor. The conversation soon turned to complaints about the endless stress of work, and of life in general. Offering his guests coffee, the professor went into the kitchen and soon returned with a large pot of coffee and an eclectic assortment of cups: porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal, some plain, some expensive, some quite exquisite. Quietly, he told them to help themselves to some fresh coffee. When each of his former students had a cup of coffee in hand, the old professor quietly cleared his throat and began to patiently address the small gathering. He said, ''You may have noticed that all of the nicer looking cups were taken up first, leaving behind the plainer and cheaper ones. While it is only natural for you to want only the best for yourselves, this is actually the source of many of your stress-related problems!" He continued: ''Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee. In fact, the cup merely disguises or dresses up what we drink. What each of you really wanted was the coffee, not a cup, and yet you instinctively went for the best cups... Then you began eyeing each other's cups....'' ''Now consider this: Life is the coffee. Jobs, money, and position in society are merely the cups. They are just tools to shape and contain life, and the type of cup we have does not truly define nor change the quality of the life we live. Often, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee that God has provided us. God brews the coffee, but he does not supply the cups. Enjoy your coffee!'' I am sure most of you have by now received your Stewardship Letters and Pledge Cards for the year 2020. Over the past two Sundays, I have shared at worship that Stewardship season is the most exciting time of the year. And it is so because that's the period when we are invited to make some of the difficult and yet grateful decisions regarding our commitment to God. Stewardship season is the time of evaluation, when we are invited to be clear in our minds about the "life within the cup", and whether it is transforming and life-giving. Stewardship season offers us the opportunity to reflect on our own sense of gratitude, to hold up the mirror to our face, and to motivate ourselves with these words: ‘Whatever I keep is all that I have, and whatever I give, God is able to multiply.’ In other words, no gift is ever too large or too small; God is able to make more of whatever I do give. During Bible Study yesterday, we reflected on Hosea 2:14 “Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the wilderness and speak tenderly to her.” In this text, we read of God’s intention to reconstitute the broken relationship with Israel. More importantly, God seeks to do this by speaking tenderly to Israel in no other place than the wilderness. We then invited ourselves to substitute the pronouns in the text with our individual names, and ask ourselves the following: Yes, God is wooing you, and he’s taking you to a place of solitude and naturalness - the place where you are alone with Him - so which of God's tender words do YOU want to hear? I may not be entirely certain about what I, myself, would want to hear, but these are some of the words that I would love to have God speak to me: "The happiest people don't have the best of everything - they just make the best of everything they have...So please remember: Live simply. Love unconditionally. Care deeply. Speak kindly. Give generously. Leave the rest to God. And remember - the richest person is not the one who has the most, but the one who needs the least." My appeal to you during this most exciting time of the year is to consider the gracious ministry that is made possible here at Christ Church, not because of how rich you are, but because you are full of that very coffee, which is life itself. ~Manny.

This is the Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost. Readings for today: 2 Kings 5:1-3, 7-15c Psalm 111 2 Timothy 2:8-15 Luke 17:11-19 The Collect of the Day: Lord, we pray that your grace may always precede and follow us, that we may continually be given to good works; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. Father Manny's Sermon for today can be read here.

This is the Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost. Readings for today: Lamentations 1:1-6 Psalm 137 2 Timothy 1:1-14 Luke 17:5-10 The Collect of the Day: Almighty and everlasting God, you are always more ready to hear than we to pray, and to give more than we either desire or deserve: Pour upon us the abundance of your mercy, forgiving us those things of which our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things for which we are not worthy to ask, except through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ our Savior; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. .

For whatever reason, I never could draw or paint anything beautiful. I had thought that I loved to, and when I was in middle and high school I would work hard on my drawing and painting during art classes, but they never seemed to be good enough - I barely passed my art classes. I am sure many of you have also tried to draw or paint and subsequently decided to give up on it because you didn’t feel that you have the ability. Alternatively, some of you may have picked it up as a hobby later on in your life, as something to do to pass the time, or express yourself in a new way. Former U.S. President George W. Bush wondered about his own life after public office in this way. Towards the end of his term, he found one activity that intrigued him, which was to take some painting lessons. Those lessons grew into a passion, his painting skills improved quite a bit, and soon he was pleasurably painting for countless hours and days. His paintings usually capture the lives of wounded soldiers, and the proceeds for his work goes to help out veterans. There’s presently an exhibition of his paintings at the Kennedy Center. There’s an incredible freedom that comes with the ability to fashion a thought on a canvas or on a piece of paper. In fact, painting can give life to that thought that sits within you, a thought which has been shaped by an experience. I visited The Louvre in Paris many years ago, and had the unique opportunity of seeing the Mona Lisa. I thought to myself, "How beautiful!" I have since wondered about what an exceptional artist Leonardo Da Vinci was, and I am certain that, of the millions of people who have seen this painting, they are as enchanted by their own beauty as they are about the Mona Lisa. Quite recently, there was a story about Banksy, an anonymous artist whose painting of Chimps in Parliament sold at auction for $12 million. "What is so special about this painting that it would cost that much?" I wondered. There are other paintings that cost significantly more than that. The human expression underlying any form of art can be so powerful and, in fact, any art can fully express all of life’s ambiguities and contradictions. Two other people also come to mind: Vincent Van Gogh, and Emily Zamourka. Vincent Van Gogh, one of the significant people whose work went on to influence Western art, lived a life of poverty and debilitating mental illness. In spite of these, however, he was able to transmute his various hardships into some of the most visionary art humanity has ever produced. One story has been told of Van Gogh setting out on a walk in order to clear his head and his heart after finally splitting up with Sien — the alcoholic prostitute with whom he had fallen in love a year and a half earlier. It was a deeply ambivalent breakup — and Vincent recognized that they couldn’t make each other happy in the long run, although he was deeply attached to Sien and to her children, as was she to him. Seeking to quiet his mind, Van Gogh headed out “to talk to nature for a while.” From this turbulent inner state, he witnessed a violent storm which, paradoxically, reconciled him to his sorrow and helped him rediscover in it the elemental beauty of life. His work, Pine Trees Against An Evening Sky, is a powerful representation of that moment in his life. And perhaps you have heard of Emily Zamourk, an opera sensation who serenaded a subway station in Los Angeles with her impeccable voice. The video, which has since gone viral, catapulted this homeless woman into stardom. Her story provides an insight into a life of a person who is only a paycheck or so away from ending up on the streets - or, in her case, already there. Lots of people are trying to help her in any way possible because they genuinely want to give life to her talent. I wouldn’t be surprised if she gets herself a record deal. I am so happy for her. Emily’s life is on a different kind of canvas, the sort which radiates with life beyond its four corners. Perhaps she'd imagine herself on a canvas, but with a different storyline, one far removed from being on the streets. I have no idea how Van Gogh would paint such a story on a canvas, but we can all imagine ourselves in such a painting. It is quite impressive how we can articulate human beauty, life's ambiguities and contradictions, and life's possibilities on a canvas, or a piece of paper, or a stage. The reality is that people write, paint, compose, and choreograph in attempts at understanding their private motivations and passions. Real life can be inconsistent and unsatisfying — but in art, there’s control. The mess can be made beautiful. You can finish it as you want - perhaps you'll step away to reassess, or maybe tear the whole thing down to start fresh. But the mess can always - always - be made beautiful because it is within our control. ~Manny. image: Pine Trees Against An Evening Sky (detail), by V. Van Gogh