 St Alban’s Episcopal Church Bolivar, Missouri Saturday July 22, 2023 Feast of Mary Magdalene News from the Vincent’s Church tomorrow  Mary Magdalene: Intimacy: Not Flinching From Knowing by Sr. Joan Chittister (Today is the traditional date that celebrates Mary of Magdala. For centuries the assumption that the woman “out of whom demons were cast” must equate to sexual sins – rather than to suffering of whatever kind – led the church to remember Mary primarily as one who repented and then followed Jesus.That is misguided, but not terrible. Repentance and obedience to Love is part of what all Christians hope to experience, after all.But it isn’t fair to the texts. She is importantly the apostle to the unbelieving apostles!And it IS annoying that only women’s sexual misconduct matters enough to write home about, even if it were true.But. Sister Joan has written something wonderful here – ) Friendship is the linking of spirits. It is a spiritual act, not a social one. It is the finding of the remainder of the self. I am not so sure, then, that we so much find a friend as it is that friendship, the deathless search for the soul for itself, finds us. Then, the memory of Mary Magdalene becomes clear, becomes the bellwether of the real relationship. Mary Magdalene is the woman whom scripture calls by name in a time when women were seldom named in pubic at all. She is, in fact, named fourteen times – more than any other woman in scripture except Mary of Nazareth, the mother of Jesus. She is clearly a very important, and apparently a very wealthy, woman. Most of all, she understood who Jesus was long before anyone else did, and she supported him in his wild, free-ranging, revolutionary approach to life and state and synagogue. She was, it seems, the leader of the group of women, who “supported Jesus out of their own resources.” And she never left his side for the rest of his life. She was there at the beginning of his ministry, and she was there at the end. She was there when they were following him in cheering throngs. And she was there when they were taking his life, dashing it against the stones of synagogue and state, turning on him, jeering at him, shouting for his death, standing by while soldiers poked and prodded him to ignominy. She tended his grave and shouted his dying glory and clung to his soul. She knew him, and she did not flinch from the knowing. The Magdalene factor in friendship is the ability to know everything there is to know about a person, to celebrate their fortunes, to weather their straits, to accompany them in their pain and to be faithful to the end, whatever its grief. The Magdalene factor is intimacy, that unshakeable immersion in the life of the other to the peak of ecstasy, to the depth of hell. The intimacy of truth, the Magdalene factor, is about appreciation, affection, and warmth. It is as important to the married as to the single, the the elderly as to the young. It is about being deeply valued, reverently respected, lovingly tended, and warmly received. It is about more than the present moment, more than the daily routine of partnership; it is about the obscure miracles and the hidden meanings of life. It is about forever.  The Gospel for tomorrow Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 Jesus put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; but when everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appears as well. And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where then did these weeds come from?’ He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The slaves said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ But he said, ‘No; for in gathering the weeds, you would uproot the wheat along with the them. Let them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, ‘Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.” There is more – including the part between 30 and 36 – which we will also read tomorrow – but here is the main story. So is it scary or hopeful? Why do you suppose Jesus told it? How did he hope ordinary people would respond to it?  Visitors Tomorrow Over the next few weeks before my real retirement (remember, we tried this back in 2015!) several people who have been part of St Albans in the past, or who have family members who were, or who are simply curious about you all – will be visiting. Tomorrow, Dick and Thyra Gibson’s daughter, Cathy Gibson-Beltz will be with us from Lincoln, Nebraska. You will remember that a year ago her daughter and family were with us as we baptized her two little grandsons. Since then, Cathy’s husband Steve has died. Please be sure to welcome her – and anyone who comes during these weeks. There WILL again be coffee hour after church from now on. Next Sunday, July 30 Next Sunday will be a double celebration with potluck afterwards: We will celebrate the years we have had with Rocky and Lexi Walker and their little ones, Lindsey and RB. And we will celebrate the ordination of Ryan Williams. He will officiate at the Eucharist and preach for us – Anna and the children will be here as well, of course. Please make every effort to be here to wish both of these families well.  |
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