Mailout for 4 December 2022 (Advent 2, Year A)

Dear People of God

This parish, like most others, has a heavy reliance on the generous work of our many volunteers who clean the churches, run raffles and quiz days, fashion parades, parish lunches, run the Op Shop, teach SRE in school, lead worship in music, song and prayer, do home deliveries of relief parcels, open their homes for study groups and, most importantly, pray for those in need and for the world in which we are set. The Market Days are one example of this. They don’t just happen and once again we publicly thank those who organise, take bookings for stalls, set up and put away, supervise parking and allocation of sites, resolve the occasional dispute about site access….. Your work is deeply appreciated.

These fund-raising events also provide an excellent opportunity for us to be PRESENT in our community. We are not a secret society, even though it may seem like that at times, and we need to explore new avenues to promote the faith.

Youth Worker Expression of Interest. We have received encouraging feedback from the Diocese for this application and now need to work with the parishes of Morpeth and Raymond Terrace, with whom we made the joint submission, to refine the application. It is a “work in progress”.

January arrangements. I will be taking leave in January and have arranged for the one Sunday service (9am at Beresfield) to be taken by Mthr Beatrice Pate, who is well-known to many in the parish. Deacon Gail will provide cover for pastoral calls. The Parish Office will be closed for the period.

I remind you that Bishop Sonia will be visiting the parish on 18 December, when she will administer the Sacrament of Confirmation to Charlotte Winkler, Hannah Green, and Mathew and Melissa Munzenberger.

I also remind you of the “Giving Tree” in both churches. After next Sunday the gifts placed under it for distribution via Samaritans will be collected to delivery to the Samaritans Foundation

Finally: here a link to the latest Diocesan “Encounter” magazine which you may care to read. https://hubs.ly/Q01tHjdj0

Grace and peace

Fr George

gmainprize@bigpond.com 0410 586 119

Propers for Advent 2

Sentence

The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe the good news.

Collect

God of all peoples, whose servant John came baptising and calling for repentance: help us to hear his voice of judgement, that we may also rejoice in his word of promise, and be found pure and blameless in that glorious Day when Christ comes to rule to earth as Prince of Peace; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen

Readings

Isaiah 11:1-10 The peaceful kingdom

Psalm 72:1-7, 18-21 A prayer for guidance and support

Romans 15:4-13 The Gospel for both Jews and Gentiles

Matthew 3:1-12 The proclamation of John the Baptist

Sermon (Fr George)

The second candle on the Advent Wreath, which we lit today, is traditionally known as the candle of Peace (Hope, Peace, Joy and Love being the four of the Advent season, the fifth, the central white candle, being the one we save until Christmas.)

All of our readings speak in some way of the longing for peace: OK, John is sort of issuing threats to many of the Pharisees and Sadducees – you don’t call them “brood of vipers” as a welcoming greeting and except to get a friendly “hello” in return!

But what do we mean by peace? Is it simply a lack of armed confrontation? Neville Chamberlain famously returned from Germany in 1938 waving a piece of paper and declaring that this was the promise of “peace in our time” and look what happened next. Vladimir Putin insisted that his intentions towards Ukraine were entirely peaceful, even as the troops were massing on the border preparing to invade within days.

There’s a prayer for peace that runs “grant us your peace in our hearts, in our homes, in our nations and in the world”, suggesting the order in which peace comes. And of course our traditional blessing starts with “The Peace of God, which is beyond all understanding, keep your hearts and minds….”

We refer to Jesus as “the Prince of Peace” but he was also saying that he came not to bring peace but a sword; that people would be divided, brother against brother and parent against child. How do we square that? The portion of St Matthew’s Gospel which we have just heard is followed soon after by what we know as the Beatitudes which, having referred to the peacemakers who will be called children of God, goes on to speak of those who are persecuted for righteousness sake and describes as blessed those who are reviled and persecuted for Jesus’ sake (Mtt 5:9et seq) The path to the peace of the kingdom of heaven is not going to be a bed of roses!

So what exactly is peace? For what are we praying are we praying when we pray, in all sincerity, for the people of Ukraine, Syria, Myanmar, and indeed half of the world. Are we merely hoping for cessation of armed conflict, or do we have in mind that peace which is the result of justice, mutual respect and integrity? Cessation of armed conflict is a piece of cake when it comes to the other conditions!

Conflict is deeply ingrained in our cultures. At best it is healthy, respectful competition but at worst it is suppression of dissent by the holders of the instruments of power to the disadvantage of the powerless. It not just in “other countries” that we see abuse of power: if we look at ourselves we see some pretty ugly examples. We are all, to some extent, guilty of power manipulation ourselves, whether it is in politics, industrial relations, domestic relationships and, especially, in our relationships with our churches, including local congregations! We institutionalise conflict in our very electoral system, particularly when we fail to respect the integrity of another person’s political convictions. Just look at the behaviour of people in what should be a shining example of respect and toleration: our own national Parliament!

Peace begins with our attitudes and acceptance of conscientious difference. It also involves the struggle for justice and integrity in our ingrained attitudes and behaviour. Did you feel offended by some of Fr Rod Bower’s signs outside the church at Gosford which received so much publicity and if so was it because they questioned the integrity or honesty of some of your beliefs? If so, how did you respond?

Peace is hard work! It begins around the dinner table at home, it starts in the schoolyard, it requires us to listen closely to what another person is saying and to have a respectful conversation, it seeks to understand how and why another person believes as they do. You’ve heard me say that the Anglican ethos is, or should be, to respect the differences and celebrate the diversity, and sometimes that is really hard work. Peace is really hard work. Living an authentic Christian faith is hard work. Jesus never promised us a rose garden!

Shortly we are going to stand and say “We are the Body of Christ: the peace of the Lord be always with you”. We don’t just say it: we are challenged to live it.

God grant us to live the peace of Christ in our hearts and in our homes, in our nations and in the world.

Amen

Intercessions

Owing to a glitch somewhere in the system, the Intercessions prepared by Dawn Holland, having left her computer have failed to arrive on mine. However the hard copy of them is on the lectern at Beresfield, where she will lead our prayers.

Our prayer cycle includes the Anglican Communion cycle for the Province of Central Africa, the Church of Tanzania, the Australian Diocese of Canberra-Goulburn. In our diocese our Bishops, the Parish of The Peninsula (Woy Woy), and the ministries of Samaritans and Cursillo. In our parish our clergy, Servers and Sacristans, and in our community the Salvation Army.

The anniversary of death of Samuel John Hamilton

Saints and Commemorations of the Week 4-10 December

6 Nicholas of Myra, bishop and philanthropist (d.342)

7 Ambrose of Milan, bishop and teacher (d.397)

8 Concepetion of the Blessed Virgin Mary