A Tree and Its Fruit

33 ‘Either make the tree good, and its fruit good; or make the tree bad, and its fruit bad; for the tree is known by its fruit. ³⁴You brood of vipers! How can you speak good things, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. ³⁵The good person brings good things out of a good treasure, and the evil person brings evil things out of an evil treasure. ³⁶I tell you, on the day of judgement you will have to give an account for every careless word you utter; ³⁷for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.’ <!– 38 –>

The Sign of Jonah

38 Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to him, ‘Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.’ ³⁹But he answered them, ‘An evil and adulterous generation asks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. ⁴⁰For just as Jonah was for three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so for three days and three nights the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth. ⁴¹The people of Nineveh will rise up at the judgement with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the proclamation of Jonah, and see, something greater than Jonah is here! ⁴²The queen of the South will rise up at the judgement with this generation and condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to listen to the wisdom of Solomon, and see, something greater than Solomon is here!

Jesus is clear that we either are good trees that produce good fruit or bad trees that produce bad fruit.  It is all a matter of what lies in our heart.  What treasure do we store up in our heart?  Good treasure or poison? Jesus even says that we will be judged by every careless word that comes from our mouths.  That should make us pause before we pour forth the poison that lies in our heart. Jesus is not kidding around here.  Life with God is serious business.

Jay

St. Paul’s Episcopal Church

Vestry Meeting Minutes

April 16, 2012

Vestry Present: Con Cave, Randy Dean, Charlie Herron, Bob Jameson, John McKinley, Dave Nealy, Anthony Peters, Mary Ann Stout.

Vestry Absent: Michael O’Neill, Treva Tarpley, Jack Vaughn, Hal Yungmeyer.

Others Attending: Todd Dougan (Clerk).

A regular meeting of St. Paul’s Vestry was held April 16, 2012 and called to order at 7:05 p.m. by Randy Dean.  Randy led the Vestry in prayer.

1. Approval of Minutes of Last Meeting

The minutes of the March 19, 2012 meeting were approved unanimously on a motion by John McKinley duly seconded.

1. Treasurer’s Report and Finance Committee

Bob Jameson referred to the financial statements for March in the Vestry book and noted that income was ahead of budget due to some pre-payment of pledges.

1. Rector’s Report

There was no Rector’s report.

1. Deacon’s Report

There was no Deacon’s report.

1. Sr. Warden’s Report

Randy Dean reported that the Vestry received a “thank you” from Peter Borg on behalf of Osman Hope for its share of the Christmas Bazaar income.

1. Jr. Warden’s Report

Hal Yungmeyer was not present, so Randy Dean reported that concerns had been expressed about the current exterminator and that an individual had proposed providing service at $75 per month with a 10% discount for an annual payment.  A motion to give Hal Yungmeyer authority to proceed if he wishes was approved unanimously on a motion by Bob Jameson duly seconded. Randy relayed Hal’s report: that the freezer had been repaired, the parking lot light had been repaired by AEP at the City’s cost, that fire alarm duct detectors had been installed at a cost of $1,500, and that the mulch had been provided at a slightly higher cost of $750.  Future costs may include gutter repair $1,500, Day School floor cleaning/waxing $1,500, and the plexiglass cover on the stained glass.

1. Committee Reports

Ad Hoc Office – Randy Dean reported that he had tentatively applied to the Diocese for an additional $30,000 opportunity fund loan for cash needs prior to pledge payments being made. John McKinley reported that $22,895 had been received on $45,826 of pledges received from 39 giving units.  John also noted that the committee would meet on April 17. Approval for the application for the additional $30,000 opportunity fund loan was made unanimously on a motion by Bob Jameson duly seconded.

Communication – Dave Nealy reported that postcards were ready for the dinner dance on April 28, that the committee was working on a spiritually focused quarterly newsletter, that a congregational questionnaire was to be sent out, and that the web buddies program continues.

1. Old Business

There was no old business.

1. New Business

Mary Ann Stout asked that a special service bulletin for funerals be considered.  Randy will speak with Fr. Jay about this.

1. Blessing and Dismissal

The meeting concluded with the Lord’s Prayer and was adjourned at 8:00 p.m.

Respectfully submitted, Todd Dougan, Vestry Clerk

St Paul’s Day School Board of Directors Meeting

[No Minutes to Report]

NOTES FROM OUR JUNE, 2012 CALENDAR

The choir will begin their summer schedule of rehearsals at 9:45 a.m. each Sunday morning beginning June 3.

The Youth Pilgrimage to New York begins Thursday, June 7– Wednesday, June 13.

Fr Jay is on vacation Thursday, June 7—11. Fr. Harry Shaefer will join us as celebrant and preacher on Sunday, June 10. Welcome Fr. Shaefer.

Pre-General Convention meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, June 13 6:00—7:30 p.m. at St. Paul’s, Kingsport. The meeting will take place in Berndt Hall.

There will be the baptism of Anniston Margaret Herron on Sunday, June 17 at the 10:15 a.m. service. The proud parents are Christian Lianne and Chuck Herron. The grandparents are Charlie and Susan Herron.

St. Paul’s vestry will meet Monday, June 18 at 7:00 p.m. in Berndt Hall.

Holy Eucharist on Wednesday, June 6,13, and 20 at 9:00 a.m.

There will be no Wednesday 9:00 a. m. service on June 27!

Staff meeting Wednesday, June 20 at 3:00 p.m.

June 25—July 4 Fr. Jay on vacation.

Wednesday, July 4 Holy Eucharist at 9:00 a.m. has been cancelled.

Fr Jay will begin an Inquirer’s Class in July. This class will take place after the 10:15 a.m. service each Sunday. In you are interested in the class, please speak with Fr. Jay to receive more details.

We have relocated the shrubbery needed for the new office building from our present office site.  If you would like any of the shrubs that are left around the perimeter of the office building we are vacating, please help yourself.

The purpose of this quarterly publication is to include meditations and other thoughtful writings that link Christian beliefs to our daily lives and actions. Articles may include thoughts on a Biblical passage, on a Christian (or related) book or film, on liturgical words or music, and so forth. Further, we hope to “report” on what we do within our church, and reflect on their Christian purpose.

A limited number of copies of Living in Christ will be made available for pick-up at the church, with a suggested donation to cover printing costs. It will also be made available on our website for anyone who missed the hard-copy availability or simply wishes to read an electronic version.

Although we are recruiting volunteer “staff writers” for one-year terms, we also welcome any other contributions for any single publication. If you are interested in more information about our different “staff” roles, please send an inquiry to Alison Barton at webmaster@saint-pauls.org. We would love to have you on board our LIC team!

If you would like to make a one-time contribution (that is, not commit to a one-year term but instead write at-will), please note a couple of simple rules:

• If you wish to make an announcement, it must be in “article” form. Please include a “why” to the information – as in, “Why are we doing this as a congregation?”
• Please be sure your article is submitted by the deadline. Submissions are to Alison Barton at webmaster@saint-pauls.org. If you are concerned about spelling/punctuation, etc., Alison is happy to assist with editing!

At-will articles are always welcome. We also welcome photos to include with the publication; most will be printed in black and white, so color contrast would be a bonus.

Our first deadline for submissions will be June 15, 2012 for our July edition. Please prayerfully consider making a written contribution – and reading with interest what we pull together in July!

The Communications Committee

Learn more and/or find this information again, on our website’s new Living in Christ page (located under “Learn”): http://stpaulskingsport.org/christian-education/living-in-christ/

Future deadlines:

For October edition: September 15, 2012

For January edition: January 15, 2012 (will be printed late in month to accommodate holidays)

Unformatted version of the weekly mailer can be found below:

St Paul’s Episcopal Church – Kingsport, TN

Community Bulletin Board

May 25, 2012

As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he got up and followed him.

10 And as he sat at dinner^* in the house, many tax-collectors and sinners came and were sitting^* with him and his disciples. ¹¹When the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, ‘Why does your teacher eat with tax-collectors and sinners?’ ¹²But when he heard this, he said, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. ¹³Go and learn what this means, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.’ <!– 14 –>

14 Then the disciples of John came to him, saying, ‘Why do we and the Pharisees fast often,^* but your disciples do not fast?’ ¹⁵And Jesus said to them, ‘The wedding-guests cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. ¹⁶No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old cloak, for the patch pulls away from the cloak, and a worse tear is made. ¹⁷Neither is new wine put into old wineskins; otherwise, the skins burst, and the wine is spilled, and the skins are destroyed; but new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved.’

Jesus just should have kept better company.  But that is the beauty of Jesus.  He welcomes all:  tax collectors (who worked for the hated Romans) and sinners–and you and me. 

Jay

Now this I affirm and insist on in the Lord: you must no longer live as the Gentiles live, in the futility of their minds. ¹⁸They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of their ignorance and hardness of heart. ¹⁹They have lost all sensitivity and have abandoned themselves to licentiousness, greedy to practise every kind of impurity. ²⁰That is not the way you learned Christ! ²¹For surely you have heard about him and were taught in him, as truth is in Jesus. ²²You were taught to put away your former way of life, your old self, corrupt and deluded by its lusts, ²³and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, ²⁴and to clothe yourselves with the new self, created according to the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

There is nothing new under the sun.  I would suggest that as in the author’s day, we live in a pagan society lost in its attitude and appetites.  And we are called to live apart from that popular culture.  It permeates everything we do, entertainment particularly.  The author of Ephesians, whoever he was, calls us to live lives separate from our very fallen culture and to live lives where we “put away your former way of life, your old self, corrupt and deluded by its lusts, ²³and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, ²⁴and to clothe yourselves with the new self, created according to the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”

Which world do you live in? That of the pagans or that of Christ?  It really does matter.

Jay

And after getting into a boat he crossed the water and came to his own town. <!– 2 –>

2 And just then some people were carrying a paralysed man lying on a bed. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.’ ³Then some of the scribes said to themselves, ‘This man is blaspheming.’ ⁴But Jesus, perceiving their thoughts, said, ‘Why do you think evil in your hearts? ⁵For which is easier, to say, “Your sins are forgiven”, or to say, “Stand up and walk”? ⁶But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins’—he then said to the paralytic—‘Stand up, take your bed and go to your home.’ ⁷And he stood up and went to his home. ⁸When the crowds saw it, they were filled with awe, and they glorified God, who had given such authority to human beings.

If you know your bible well you will remember this story in the Markan form where those carrying the man have to dig through the roof to lower the paralytic down to Jesus.  Matthew simplifies the story to just the basics. 

The scandal of the story is that Jesus presumes to forgive a man’s sin, something only God can do.  He knew it as did his enemies.  Then to prove that he has the authority to do this he heals the paralytic.

Is this proof enough for his enemies?  No.  Miracles are only pointers to who Jesus is open to his message in the first place.  The crowds get it, at least for the time being.  Would we?

Jay

When he came to the other side, to the country of the Gadarenes,^* two demoniacs coming out of the tombs met him. They were so fierce that no one could pass that way. ²⁹Suddenly they shouted, ‘What have you to do with us, Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?’ ³⁰Now a large herd of swine was feeding at some distance from them. ³¹The demons begged him, ‘If you cast us out, send us into the herd of swine.’ ³²And he said to them, ‘Go!’ So they came out and entered the swine; and suddenly, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and perished in the water. ³³The swineherds ran off, and on going into the town, they told the whole story about what had happened to the demoniacs. ³⁴Then the whole town came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their neighbourhood.

Matthew is the most traditionally Jewish of all the gospels.  It was written to a group of people trying to stay within the confines of Israel and still follow Jesus. And the gentiles were the enemy.  Yet Matthew again narrates Jesus coming to the aid of these two other gentiles who were not just gentiles but were unclean because of their demon possession.  Again the message is clear.  Jesus’ love transcends all political and social barriers.  And we need to be very careful about deciding whom Jesus loves and whom he does not.

Jay

Please come and celebrate with us and stay an enjoy the picnic that will follow the 10:15 service.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Deacon Chris

5 When he entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, appealing to him ⁶and saying, ‘Lord, my servant is lying at home paralysed, in terrible distress.’ ⁷And he said to him, ‘I will come and cure him.’ ⁸The centurion answered, ‘Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; but only speak the word, and my servant will be healed. ⁹For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to one, “Go”, and he goes, and to another, “Come”, and he comes, and to my slave, “Do this”, and the slave does it.’ ¹⁰When Jesus heard him, he was amazed and said to those who followed him, ‘Truly I tell you, in no one^* in Israel have I found such faith. ¹¹I tell you, many will come from east and west and will eat with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, ¹²while the heirs of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ ¹³And to the centurion Jesus said, ‘Go; let it be done for you according to your faith.’ And the servant was healed in that hour.

14 When Jesus entered Peter’s house, he saw his mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever; ¹⁵he touched her hand, and the fever left her, and she got up and began to serve him. ¹⁶That evening they brought to him many who were possessed by demons; and he cast out the spirits with a word, and cured all who were sick. ¹⁷This was to fulfil what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah, ‘He took our infirmities and bore our diseases.’

The thing to remember in today’s lesson is that the centurion would have been a hated man, a leader of the Roman occupation of the holy land.  He would have not been welcomed by most Jews in any way, yet Jesus not only welcomes him and heals his servant, he praises him for his great faith.  We need to be careful in assuming we know who Jesus loves and whom he does not love!  His love breaks all social barriers and other barriers we construct between the “good” people and the “bad” people.  Jesus sees the person behind all these constructs.

Jay