Just into my third week now at CEC, I want to thank you all for the warm and enthusiastic welcome. I look forward to getting to know you and learning more about your concerns, your ministries, and how I can support you in your faith journey. Some of you may not be familiar with what specifically a deacon does, so I wanted to offer a brief explanation. A deacon serves as the bridge between the Church and the world - empowering others in serving the needs of the world, especially the underprivileged, those in need and those on the margins. In our Diocese of Maryland Manual for the Diaconate, Bishop Sutton states that “the central role of the Deacon is to send the Church out, individually and collectively, to do God’s work in the world. In their role as ‘community organizers,’ Deacons hold up the needs of the world while they encourage and guide the People of God to live out their baptismal promises, transforming the world through works of mercy and justice.” But wait! You’re already doing that here at CEC, in your many thriving outreach and pastoral care ministries. True, indeed. And my role is to work with you and engage as appropriate to remove barriers, provide guidance, and facilitate progress. A few notes about a deacon’s duties: Deacons are ordained to a separate, distinct and equal order of ministry. We serve under the authority of the bishop and are normally assigned to a congregation for a three-year term. As a vocational deacon, I am not on my way to priesthood. I’ve been called to the diaconate, and I’ll be a deacon until the day I die. My liturgical duties center on the Table (preparing for the Eucharist), the Word (proclaiming the Gospel), and the Dismissal (sending us forth from the church out into the world). I may also perform “other duties, as requested” to support Father Manny in shepherding the congregation. I’ll also be preaching about once a month. My diaconal focus areas cross a broad range of ministries - primarily outreach, pastoral care, and social justice. Many vocational deacons hold a secular job. In my case, I do work full time. That means I need to carefully balance work, diaconal duties, and family and personal time. I’ll try to be available, if possible, for daytime events and meetings, but sometimes I may have to catch up with ministry leaders later. I think it’s also important to note that all Christians are called to diaconal ministry, as the Diakonia of All Believers. You can read more about this in the joint Association for Episcopal Deacons and Lutheran World Federation statement, Prophetic Diakonia: For the Healing of the World. If you have any questions about what a deacon is or does, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at deacondenise@christchurchcolumbia.org. God’s Peace and Blessings! Deacon Denise

Today is the Ninth Sunday after Pentecost. Readings for today: Isaiah 55:1-5 Psalm 145: 8-9, 15-22 Romans 9:1-5 Matthew 14:13-21 Collect of the Day: O God, the protector of all who trust in you, without whom nothing is strong, nothing is holy: Increase and multiply upon us your mercy; that, with you as our ruler and guide, we may so pass through things temporal, that we lose not the things eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

The year was 1992. Two friends. An agreement. It was a sealed by a handshake, but thrived on integrity - that was how it used to be. A simple handshake between friends was enough testament for a contract - well, the better word would be a covenant. They did not need any legal documentation as evidence of their trust and love, for what truly mattered was a handshake, and for nearly 30 years, when it came time to honor that handshake, he did. I am even surprised that he remembered the handshake - the covenant they made to each other. This is good news all over. For me, the good news is not so much about the money, as wonderful as it may be, but that after all these years, a simple handshake between two friends meant a lot more than money or any material gift we can all dream about. Situations like that test the loyalty and fidelity of friendship and, more importantly, the covenant that we have with another. This is good news. And it is good news precisely because we live in a culture where loyalty is under threat, we live in a culture where friendship no longer commands as much depth as it used to, we live in a culture where covenants are not as much valued as they used to be, and we live in a culture where we many are suspicious about each other, not really sure about the intentions of friends and loved ones. Since this story broke, I have asked myself, "How many of us would have kept the covenant?" The story is also about a promise to share, a simple promise to share the prize of a winning lottery ticket. Would you have willingly called your friend, one whom you made a pact with in 1992 that whoever wins the Powerball lottery will split the money with the other? This is a story of two friends: Thomas Cook and Joe Feeney. Nearly thirty years after making a covenant, and sealing it with a handshake, it happened. Joe called Thomas and broke the news to him. Did Joe hesitate about changing his mind? I do not know, and I do not think so, for people who have a high sense of loyalty and integrity hardly question what they know and believe to be right. And that is good news because we still have people around who value and adhere to the covenant they make. Covenants are sacred. They are built on the trustworthiness of the parties involved. There is no element of force, coercion, or undue influence by one party. This is also good news, because any element of force can invalidate the covenant. If you will recall the beginning stories of the Old Testament, God did not establish a contract with the people of Israel. Theirs was a covenant - one between God and Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and their descendants. It was a covenantal relationship which was premised on God’s trustworthiness, and the fidelity of the people. In the Old Testament reading this past Monday - Joshua 24:16 - Joshua, in his farewell address to the people of Israel, used a stone as a witness to the promises that the people of Israel made. Those promises were meant to reinforce the covenant that they have with God. This is also good news. A few days ago, a friend sent me an article: “Why Sharing Good News Matters.” One of the claims of the article is that even in pre-COVID-19 world, the constant hearing of negative news stories had some detrimental effect on people. That may explain why many people do not watch the news as much any more. The solution, then, is that “…managers should suggest that employees set aside regularly scheduled time to read, share, and discuss positive news stories.” I wouldn’t limit this practice to only employees of an organization; I think it is imperative that we, too, hear good, positive stories like the one between Thomas Cook and Joe Feeney, the story about Rehan Staton - the trash collector who has been accepted into Harvard Law, the story about Christ Church collaborating with Howard County General Hospital to offer free COVID-19 test to 151 people, the story about DreamBuilders doing what they can to help those in need returning to virtual schooling this coming fall and, last but not the least, the arrival of Reverend Denise Schiavone to Christ Church as a Deacon. This, too, is good news. The story of Tom and Joe, in particular, reminds me of the bond of friendship between David and Jonathan. They also had a covenant between them. And that covenant was premised on their love for each other. That covenant was such that although Jonathan knew that he would not succeed his father Saul, but David would, that did not deter him from loving David like himself. He loved David as much as David loved him. To demonstrate his love for David, he gave David the robe that was on him, his sword, his bow, and his belt. This is also good news, for true love is when love is not dependent on selfish or self-centered ends, when love for another person has no intended end, when love’s goal is love itself. 1992 - the year I graduated from high school, and the year of the covenant between Tom and Joe. 2020 - the year Joe upheld the covenant. You may also have some good news about a covenant you had with a friend or a good story of unbridled kindness to share. Remember, each good news or story lifts our spirits up and provides us with another reason to believe in humanity once more. ~Manny

The current health crisis has effectively prevented many people from going about their regular activities, and although helping people in need has also proven to be more challenging, it is still very much needed. DreamBuilders, one of Christ Church's outreach ministries, has developed a new way to help the community. Although they've had to cancel one of their regular activities - an annual trip that's used to help rebuild homes for those in need - their energies and talents are currently being used to build desks for students who might need a place to study while attending school at home this next academic year. A need that didn't widely exist in past years has now become a necessity for most, and DreamBuilders are stepping up to provide a hand-built sanctuary of study for those in the Howard County area who need them. Outreach in action... thank you, DreamBuilders! Watch the video below for the story: To learn more about DreamBuilders, or to volunteer or donate, please visit www.dreambuildersmd.org, and to learn about Christ Church's other Outreach ministries, email us at outreach@christchurchcolumbia.org

CONVERSATIONS ON RACE a multi-week discussion series begins this Wednesday, July 29th at 7:30 p.m. The past several months have seen an uptick in the racial tensions within our country, and within the world. As a community of faith - and more than that, a very diverse community of faith - our task in dealing with issues of and about race will be to tell our individual and communal stories with the ultimate goal of seeking healing, reconciliation, and deeper community building within our church and beyond. We have an emerging ministry within our church, a ministry with the sole mission of leading us on the paths of racial reconciliation. This ministry's offering will be comprised of seminars, workshops, and book discussions, among others. We are thankful that The Reverend Canon Christine McCloud, Canon for Mission of the Diocese of Maryland, has offered to lead the first two online seminars. Our first session takes place on July 29th, and the second occurs one week later on August 5th - both at 7:30 p.m. Upcoming gathering dates will be announced on our website and social media pages. If you would like to join us for this Zoom discussion series, sign up for our weekly Gatherings email by emailing us at info@christchurchcolumbia.org and you'll then receive the links in an email each week, as well as details about Christ Church's other in-person and virtual gatherings and services.

Today is the Eighth Sunday after Pentecost. Readings for today: 1 Kings 3:5-12 Psalm 119:129-136 Romans 8:26-39 Matthew 13:31-33,44-52 Collect of the Day: O God, the protector of all who trust in you, without whom nothing is strong, nothing is holy: Increase and multiply upon us your mercy; that, with you as our ruler and guide, we may so pass through things temporal, that we lose not the things eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

"...get in good trouble, necessary trouble," tweeted Civil Rights icon John Lewis. John passed away last week after sharing 80 good years with us. The majority of those 80 years was spent making noise and making good trouble, necessary trouble. It was the kind of noise for which those who were comfortable with racial injustice considered as trouble-making. But for those who longed for, and whose ancestors have been fighting for transformational change, it was good trouble, necessary trouble. You may wonder if there ever was such a thing as "good trouble". Like many of you, I have gotten into lots of trouble. And none of those was a good trouble because each had some consequences to it. I remember traveling to a different town during recess from boarding school. My mother wasn’t in town; she, herself, had traveled. And so when my friend - who had lived in that town before, and had acquaintances in that town - invited me on this trip, I was over the moon. I went on this trip without seeking permission from my mother. I thought I knew that I would be back before she returned from her trip, but we ended up staying longer than we had planned. And when I returned, my mother was furious and acted very violently towards me. Believe me, that’s a nice way of saying that she beat the crap out of me! Has trouble ever been good? John was beaten more than a few times. John was roughed up more than a few times. John was locked up more than a few times. John knew how to make trouble, necessary trouble. I am not sure where he got the idea of making good and necessary trouble, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he got that idea in the open letter response his mentor, friend, and fellow Civil Rights activist Dr. Martin Luther King wrote to the clergy of Alabama, who had branded him a troublemaker for all the protest in Birmingham. In the Letter From the Birmingham Jail, Dr. King wrote “The answer lies in the fact that there are two types of laws: just and unjust. I would be the first to advocate obeying just laws. One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws. I would agree with St. Augustine that "an unjust law is no law at all.” To make noise is to shed light on an unjust law. To fight an unjust law is to make good trouble, necessary trouble, and John Lewis did exactly that. And for that, I am grateful. As a young boy, he was shaped by the oratory of African-American preachers who constantly awakened his consciousness about the unjust laws and the social strata those laws have produced in places like Troy, Alabama. His experience at Buffalo, New York, which had integrated by then, not only alerted him to the tragedy of life in Troy, Alabama, but it convinced him of the need to transform the unjust systems of racism and Jim Crow which invariably diminished one race - the African American. For those who believed, and thus propagated the myth of White supremacy, John knew that he had to cause some trouble, necessary trouble, if he were to change not minds, but hearts. To change hearts is a little more challenging than to change minds. The mind can evaluate data and make decisions based on that data, but the heart is in a totally different category. To change hearts, you have to constantly remind people, prod, encourage, and motivate. To change hearts, you have to offer more than data or tangibles. I used to travel to North Dakota for Mission Trips with youth from my former parish. The work we did wasn’t about brick and mortar, it was a different kind of ministry, where we were supposed to make friends with our Native American brothers and sisters, hold conversations and share our experience of life in Philadelphia. Each year after the trip, the youth will ask me “Father Manny, what did we come here to do?” The idea of making friends and helping change the narrative of other people appeared as alien to them as the story about Bigfoot. But year-in and out, they would accompany me on these trips, not only to change others with our narratives, but to change our own selves, as well. And so, for the son of sharecroppers who gathered together the family’s chickens to preach to them, the son who yearned to be a preacher, he was keenly aware that human transformation isn’t a day’s work. To change the heart isn’t a week, a month or a year’s worth of work, it has to be an ongoing work. And even in the midst of despair, you constantly have to press on. This was his tweet: “Do not get lost in a sea of despair. Be hopeful, be optimistic. Our struggle is not the struggle of a day, a week, a month, or a year, it is the struggle of a lifetime. Never, ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble." I heard about him when I lived in Atlanta, and I have followed this Troublemaker ever since. His imagination had no limitation. His zeal had no boundaries. His resolve knew no inhibitions. His passion knew no restraint. His quest and strong belief in non-violence was as strong as his desire for racial justice. His faith, which was shaped in the Jim Crow South was fervent, strong, and a sustainable guide. The one thing that gave him pause to be grateful was the breath of the fresh air of justice. A single incident of injustice was one too many, though, and to fight it, he had to make good trouble, necessary trouble. As we mourn his passing, we should be reminded that the battle for racial justice is not over. Although we have made progress, there are still pockets of injustice among us, but guess what? There may be times when we’re tempted to offer excuses as to why we may not have to be as involved in the fight as we should be, but I read somewhere that excuses are what a lazy person offers for what he/she knows they have to be doing. And so I invite you, today, to make some noise. If you believe in racial justice and transformation, then make some noise. And not only that, but make good trouble, for without that necessary trouble, the transformation you wish to see may not ever happen. Go ahead, and make some good trouble. ~Manny

It is our deepest pleasure to welcome The Reverend Denise Schiavone to Christ Church! Reverend Schiavone is a Vocational Deacon who was ordained on June 13th of this year, and she begins at Christ Church this week. You'll soon see her in our livestreams, virtual gatherings, and on our campus during Sunday worship. We are so happy to have her join us, and it is my prayer that you will give her the warmest Christ Church welcome. You can learn a bit more about Deacon Denise at https://www.christchurchcolumbia.org/our-staff

On Monday evenings at 6:00 p.m. this summer, Christ Church hosts a Centering Prayer gathering in Old Brick. Centering Prayer is a form of contemplative prayer that is meditative. It involves opening ourselves to God by listening in silence, and can move us beyond conversation with Jesus and towards communion with Him. Centering Prayer relies on our awareness that the Holy Spirit resides in each one of us. If you'd like more information or have any questions, please let us know. Please know that all social distancing guidelines will be strictly adhered to during this gathering, and masks will be required by all participants. We hope that you will come and take part in this gathering of communal prayer.

Today is the Seventh Sunday after Pentecost. Readings for today: Isaiah 44:6-8 Psalm 86:11-17 Romans 8:12-25 Matthew 13:24-30,36-43 Collect of the Day: Almighty God, the fountain of all wisdom, you know our necessities before we ask and our ignorance in asking: Have compassion on our weakness, and mercifully give us those things which for our unworthiness we dare not, and for our blindness we cannot ask; through the worthiness of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

The past several months has been excruciatingly painful. Many of you have had to deal with one sad story or another. You look through your windows as seconds roll into minutes, and minutes into hours, and you ask yourself, "What next?" There is this bit of you who was used to the rhythm of life - a busy life, if I may add, a few months ago. But now, everything has changed... everything is now different. You yearn for the old rhythm, and you feel helpless that the old life is slipping right through your fingers and you cannot do anything about it. During this pandemic period, I have had the chance to run, jog, walk, and bike. Sometimes I walk by myself; some other times I'll walk with my son, James. There are also times when I walk while he rides his bike, and there are days when we ride our bikes together. Having the chance to indulge myself in these activities has also given me the opportunity to deeply reflect on what God wants of me, what God desires of me, and what God is calling me to do. More importantly, I have asked myself, not once, but on several occasions, "Who does God want me to be?" One of the blessings of these turbulent times has been the gift of offering Morning and Evening Prayer online. Whenever I lead either Morning or Evening Prayer, I offer a brief devotion or homily. Yesterday, long after the service was over, I reflected on the gospel reading for that day - Matthew 25:31-46 - which is about the separation of the sheep and goats on judgement day. During my time of reflection I was reminded of another story in Matthew 9:1-8; this one is about a paralytic who could not walk, but because he had friends who could walk, those friends carried him on a mat to Jesus. The desire of these friends was to see their paralytic friend walk. It occurred to me that the fact that we can walk does not mean that everyone can walk. The fact that we can run does not mean everyone can run. The fact that we are healthy does not mean everyone is healthy. The fact that we have three square meals a day does not mean everyone has three square meals a day. The fact that we may live in a decent neighborhood does not mean everyone lives in a decent neighborhood. The fact that we are not in shackles does not mean that everyone is free. The truth is that we have the capacity and the ability to be so many things to so many people; we have the power to carry the paralytic to Jesus, but the question is, do we have the desire to do so? Do we desire restoration for the paralytic friend who cannot walk? As I pondered over what God is calling me to be or who God wants me to be, I had an epiphany. It dawned to me that the ultimate offering lies in a deep-seated desire to carry others - friends and strangers, alike - to a place of restoration, refreshment, sustenance, and healing. In a way, it may not be the act itself but rather the desire which precipitates or drives the act. That, to me, is a different way of looking at life. I am thankful for that burning desire within that drives everything. It causes us to look at life very differently - not only from the perspective of being able to walk, but also of being unable to walk, as well. The question then is, "What drives you?" if I may ask. What motivates you? Is it the desire to see your friend walk? Or is it about being indifferent over whether your friend walks or not? Perhaps you may also ponder on what I learned many years ago: lions and sharks are professional hunters, but a lion cannot hunt in the ocean and a shark cannot hunt in the jungle. But the fact that a lion cannot hunt in the ocean does not make it useless, nor does the fact that a shark cannot hunt in the jungle make it useless. Both have their own territory where they can do well, where they can hunt successfully. Which territory brings out the best in you? Is it when you want to feel good? Is it when you want to feel fulfilled? Is it when you want to show off? Or is it when you are driven by a desire akin to the four friends of the paralytic? To be that person God wants us to be, we must have the mindset of those four friends of the paralytic. We must be driven by a strong desire to see our friend walk. It is possible that the four friends knew that our circumstances don’t determine the quality of our lives, but that the manner in which we process those circumstances determines the quality of our lives, and determines whether we have the desire to see life’s inherent beauty. Frederick Langbridge, a poet, wrote this: Two men looked out through prison bars; one saw mud, the other saw the stars. Although both men were in identical circumstances, their perspectives were entirely different. One looked for beauty and found it; the other focused on ugliness and found it. Do you see beauty, even in the midst our pandemic, or are you completely sapped by its negative energy? Do you see the paralytic friend amid the pandemic? What drives you? To be the person God wants us to be would mean recognizing that although a rose may smell better than a tomato, it does not mean the rose can make a better stew. May your prayer be that of the friend who carries those who cannot walk to Christ our Lord. ~Manny