The Rev. Robert Lundquist XVI after Pentecost 9/4/05 St Paul’s, Ft Collins

Pastoral Letter from Bishop Robert O’Neill, 9/2/05 http://www.coloradodiocese.org/News/bishoppastoral20050902.html

You’ve heard from the Bishop. You’ve seen the news.

How do we comprehend the devastation on the Gulf Coast? How do we make sense of it?

I heard a BBC commentator on the radio last night reference the 4 horsemen of the apocalypse being present at the Superdome: war (violence), famine, pestilence, and death [Revelation 6:1-8]. It’s a chilling image – I pray it’s not the final one with which we are left.

As Christians our hearts break – God’s heart breaks as well. We ask, “What can we do?” At least one member of our congregation, a nurse practitioner, leaves for Baton Rouge tomorrow. I’ve received email suggestions – could we take a 2^nd offering this morning? Could we “adopt” a family? I had an offer this morning of a furnished condo, ready to house an evacuee family…

Paul writing to the Romans: “Don’t lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve God. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints, extend hospitality to strangers.” Sounds like marching orders to me, especially in this tragic moment.

Both Paul and Jesus (in Matthew) assume they are addressing a community in this morning’s scripture readings. Neither speaks as if addressing a mere collection of individuals who declare, “It’s just me and my God.”

No, each faces a community, complete with the challenges and joys that accompany such. Each stands before a community that acts together in Jesus’ name.

“Contribute to the needs of the saints,” says Paul. I can’t help but smile – what song is more associated with New Orleans than, “When the saints go marching in”?

I have a strong sense of community, of sacrificial giving, of extending even our broken hearts when we rise up and declare, “Lord, I want to be in that number when the saints go marching in.”

God bless you in your prayers, your hope, your patience, your generosity and your hospitality! God is there with the people affected by Hurricane Katrina; Christ is in their midst. Thank God for the Spirit that fills us with the hunger to help!

Amen.

A Parish For All People!