 St Alban’s Episcopal Church Bolivar, Missouri Tuesday, March 8 International Women’s Day Psalm103  Remember Psalm 103? I asked you to pray that psalm last week, and to write, or draw, or photograph your reflections – Here is the first one.(If you are still working on it – it’s not too late! ) “As I read this Psalm, two particular verses stand out to me.“The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed” (6)and “Praise the Lord all his heavenly hosts, you his servants who do his will…” (21) Think about these in the context of today’s news. We SEE God’s servants in action. All over the world countries are banding together and aiding Ukraine during the Russian invasion. Already last week 150,000 Ukrainians were embraced by Polish citizens who have housed them in their own homes and churches. Romanians and others have done the same. Sweden, Norway, Denmark, France, Canada, Portugal, Belgium, UK, so many others, and our own USA have sent aid in so many different ways. The Psalm urges us to praise God for the way God is working to do righteousness and justice right now, through all kinds of human beings, to give relief to the poor and oppressed. We praise God because God’s people, of every religion and from different nations, are joined together to care and protect and demand justice. This is how God does it. We see it; we read it; we hear it; we can’t miss it! Praise the Lord – all you who are his servants!” Minda Cox From Janet Wray: “My not very profound take on Psalm 103 God is love, if only we would listen.” And another word about Psalm 103 from Bridget Buchan, a friend from St. Andrews, in Soham, England -“I’ve been following your advice to read Psalm 103 this week. Verse 4, about being rescued from the pit (it seems to be translated many different ways) has been resounding with the images of people sheltering in basements, subways etc., underground and informing my feeble prayers.”  Stephen King on International Women’s Day “My wife is rightly pissed by headlines like this ‘Stephen King and his wife will donate $1.25 M to New England Historic Genealogical Society. ‘The gift was her original idea, and she has a name, TABITHA KING” A part of her response follows: “…Wife is a relationship or status. It is not an identity. You could have made other choices…Of Stephen. or His Old Lady. Or His ball-and-chain. I have sons. You could have referred to me as Mother-of-Novelists. I have a daughter. But wouldn’t it just be silly to refer to me as Mother-of-Clergy? I’m seventy. I thought I would give you permission, if Of Tabitha predeceases me, to title my obituary, Relick of Stephen King. In the meantime, you might consider the unconscious condescension in your stylebook, and give women their names.” You might have stories – inside and outside of the church – that illustrate your own experience of being ignored, overlooked, dismissed, or disregarded for your female-ness. Take heart. It’s getting better. It really is. In 1960 women didn’t even serve on vestries in Episcopal Churches. Today we have dozens of women bishops. Women are taking their places in every part of contemporary society – YOU are. Here’s a worthy Anglican foremother!   |
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