Into this world, this demented inn

Into this world,

this demented inn,

in which there is absolutely no room for him at all,

Christ has come uninvited.

But because he cannot be at home in it,

because he is out of place in it,

and yet he must be in it,

his place is with those others for whom there is no room.

His place is with those who do not belong,

who are rejected by power because they are regarded as weak,

those who are discredited,

who are denied the status of persons,

tortured,

excommunicated.

With those for whom there is no room,

Christ is present in this world.

Thomas Merton 

(from Raids on the Unspeakable)

A time like this

It was a time like this

of fear & lust for power,

license & greed and blight –

and yet the Prince of bliss came into the darkest hour

in quiet & silent light.

- Madeleine L'Engle

Merry Christmas!

May Almighty God, who sent his Son to take our nature upon him, bless you in this holy season, scatter the darkness of sin, and brighten your heart with the light of his holiness. Amen.

May God, who sent his angels to proclaim the glad news of the Savior’s birth, fill you with joy, and make you heralds of the Gospel. Amen.

May God, who in the Word made flesh joined heaven to earth and earth to heaven, give you his peace and favor. Amen.

And the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be upon you and remain with you for ever. Amen.

The Rev. Peter M. Carey Christmas Eve Sermon 25 December 2017

The Rev. Peter M. Carey

Christmas Eve Sermon

24 December 2017

May Almighty God, who sent his Son to take our nature upon him, bless you in this holy season, scatter the darkness of sin, and brighten your heart with the light of his holiness. Amen.

May God, who sent his angels to proclaim the glad news of the Savior’s birth, fill you with joy, and make you heralds of the Gospel. Amen.

May God, who in the Word made flesh joined heaven to earth and earth to heaven, give you his peace and favor. Amen.

The scene painted in our minds eye depicted by St. Luke is a powerful one.  The scene we have imagined many times on this blessed evening as we recount the story of Jesus birth.  In the midst of an occupied land, with the threat of Imperial power, a mother and a father bring a baby into the world, a vulnerable trio in the midst of this place.  Not in an Inn, but rather out in the manger, the shed, the barn, instead of nurses or doctors or midwives or doulas, they are surrounded by animals.  Of course the visitors who arrive are equally unlikely, shepherds from the fields with their sheep, and a retinue of the heavenly host of angels, and finally, most improbably they receive visitors from the East.  An incredible and shocking scene.  The hope for the world swaddled in bands of cloth in a barn, in the midst of the troubles and challenges of the world - in the midst of this place - JOY -  in the midst of this time - HOPE - in the midst of these visitors - LOVE.  

The first creche was created by St. Francis of Assisi, who thought that this would be a wonderful way to retell the story of the Birth of Jesus, and also help people to see and experience the story in a real and tangible way.  The goal was not to highlight mere sentimentality, but rather to make clear the reality of the Incarnation, the real way that God became human, and that this incarnation was not a one-time moment, but because of the nativity of Jesus, and his presence among us, the incarnation is a present reality for all time.  

We sing, “Love came down at Christmas”, and this love was not merely for those who witnessed the birth of Jesus those two thousand years ago, but also for us here today, and everyday.  God’s love was so full, so powerful, so overflowing that the love poured out here among us.  While Francis is often solely remembered for his love of animals, he was deeply orthodox and grounded in his understanding of the incarnation, of Emmanuel, “God with us.”

As we consider the Incarnation on this rich and holy night, we might also adopt the mind of Mary, who “pondered these things in her heart.”  These profound and wonderful words give us a model of response to the events surrounding Jesus birth.  Ponder them, consider them, pray on them, hold them gently, allow your heart to enter into the overflowing love of God, sit with this moment, and ponder it.  

The first creche must have been an amazing thing to experience, can you imagine the good folks of Assisi happening upon this birth scene of Jesus, and not merely as a painting on a church wall, but in tangible, three-dimensional form.  Happening upon the nativity scene in the crowded streets of Assisi must have been shocking and surprising, not unlike the birth of Jesus itself.  

If you have ever visited a life-size nativity scene, or if you have ever played a role in a Christmas Pageant, you might have experienced the powerful sense of this story.  I, myself, have played several roles in Christmas Pageants over the years.  Beginning as a donkey with a smelly papier-mache mask over my head, I was terrified that I would make a mistake - and, I believe it was my first time being up in front of people in church.  Through the years, I was a shepherd, a magi, Joseph, and finally a narrator, the voice of Luke, telling the story from the lectern as it came to life in that church nave.  How about you, where do you imagine yourself in the scene?

Not merely seeing the scene on a screen or on the wall of a church, but experiencing the scene in such a way that there might be a place for you in the manger.  Where might you be standing?  Perhaps a lowly animal, though humble, still very nearby the baby.  There is room for you there.  

Perhaps a visiting shepherd, straight from work, dirty, hungry, smelly, and yet, there is room for you as well.  

Perhaps a guest at the inn, leaving the inn for a walk, and hearing noises, you walk around back where you see a most amazing sight, animals, shepherds, a man, a woman, a baby in a manger.  What is this?  There is room for you, too.  

Perhaps you are from far away, and you are a person of science, of facts, not faith, of observation, not imagination.  But here you are, incredibly.   There is room for you.  There is room for all of us, and, amazingly, even though there is room for us, there is room for us to welcome more.  We each have a front seat in the theater, a courtside seat to see the event, there is a prime seat for you, and there are seats for us all.  We sit, we experience the Joy, the Hope, the Love, which has come alive.  There is room for all to sit and ponder.  There are no turf wars while pondering.  There is no resentment over who sits where.  There is no jealousy but only welcome and hospitality.  We may pray, “Where two or three are gathered in his name, he will be in the midst of us,” but in the midst of the Lord, there is room for all.   As we ponder, as we worship, we are one with one another.  In the light of the Love of God we are enlivened by one another, we are made whole through one another while Christ is among us, and within us.  

Grant, O God, that your holy and life-giving Spirit may so move every human heart, that barriers which divide us may crumble, suspicions disappear, and hatreds cease; that our divisions being healed, we may live in justice and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Annunciation

Pour your grace into our hearts, O Lord, that we who have known the incarnation of your Son Jesus Christ, announced by an angel to the Virgin Mary, may by his cross and passion be brought to the glory of his resurrection; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Movement toward full incarnation

Every time you close another door--be it the door of immediate satisfaction, the door of distracting entertainment, the door of busyness, the door of guilt and worry, or the door of self-rejection--you commit yourself to go deeper into your heart and thus deeper into the heart of God.

This is a movement toward full incarnation. It leads you to become what you already are--a child of God; it lets you embody more and more the truth of your being; it makes you claim the God within you.

Henri Nouwen ~ The Inner Voice of Love

In the spiritual garden of our lives

In the spiritual garden of our lives

by Charles LaFond
“Tenemos” is a Greek word originally referring to the cultivated land that wrapped around the temple – a set-aside bit of holy garden one had to cross in order to enter the temple. The tenemos was like the moat that wraps around a castle. Our senses, touch, sight, and hearing are that same tenemos – that same temple-garden, which is the gateway from physical life to the spiritual world within and around us.

One day I was walking near the pond of my New Hampshire writing retreat, Blackwater Bluff, and there was a heavy mist on the ground clinging close to the tall grasses and bright yellow wild orchids. The mist was only a few feet high. I sat down so as to be engulfed in the mist – it was like entering a moist, foggy world where vision was nearly impossible – and mysterious. Then I stood up and my head pushed back up into the clarity above the mist, and I could see shapes and colors and beauty again at a long distance. Suddenly I began to understand the spiritual life not as something we attain, way out in front of us, like some reward for self-discipline or heavenly peace; nor the finish line of a race. Rather, I began to understand what the early Christian Celtic mystics were saying about the spiritual life and the physical life being parallel – one atop the other, and each within reach.

The Celtic priests referred to heaven as being a foot above one’s reach. Our Roman Christian heritage has trained us that, like the altar in our great cathedral, the HOLY is way, way, way up there, way beyond the floor where we are allowed to sit, way up those great steps, up past that rood screen, past the choir stalls, past the altar rail (designed as a barrier) and way up around the “high altar” where only priests may roam in cassocks. But that is a lie. 

Read it all HERE at Episcopal Cafe or at the Daily Sip, a ministry of St John’s Cathedral in Denver, CO 

Go deeper

Every time you close another door--be it the door of immediate satisfaction, the door of distracting entertainment, the door of busyness, the door of guilt and worry, or the door of self-rejection--you commit yourself to go deeper into your heart and thus deeper into the heart of God.


This is a movement toward full incarnation. It leads you to become what you already are--a child of God; it lets you embody more and more the truth of your being; it makes you claim the God within you.


Henri Nouwen ~ The Inner Voice of Love

The first Christmas Sermon

John Chrysostom's Christmas Sermon from AD 387

Timeless and wonderful!

~The Rev. Peter M. Carey

BEHOLD a new and wondrous mystery. My ears resound to the Shepherd’s song, piping no soft melody, but chanting full forth a heavenly hymn.  The Angels sing.  The Archangels blend their voice in harmony.  The Cherubim hymn their joyful praise.  The Seraphim exalt His glory.  All join to praise this holy feast, beholding the Godhead here on earth, and man in heaven.  He Who is above, now for our redemption dwells here below; and he that was lowly is by divine mercy raised.

Bethlehem this day resembles heaven; hearing from the stars the singing of angelic voices; and in place of the sun, enfolds within itself on every side, the Sun of justice.  And ask not how: for where God wills, the order of nature yields.  For He willed, He had the power, He descended, He redeemed; all things yielded in obedience to God.  This day He Who is, is Born; and He Who is, becomes what He was not.  For when He was God, He became man; yet not departing from the Godhead that is His.  Nor yet by any loss of divinity became He man, nor through increase became He God from man; but being the Word He became flesh, His nature, because of impassability, remaining unchanged.

And so the kings have come, and they have seen the heavenly King that has come upon the earth, not bringing with Him Angels, nor Archangels, nor Thrones, nor Dominations, nor Powers, nor Principalities, but, treading a new and solitary path, He has come forth from a spotless womb.

Since this heavenly birth cannot be described, neither does His coming amongst us in these days permit of too curious scrutiny.  Though I know that a Virgin this day gave birth, and I believe that God was begotten before all time, yet the manner of this generation I have learned to venerate in silence and I accept that this is not to be probed too curiously with wordy speech.  For with God we look not for the order of nature, but rest our faith in the power of Him who works.

What shall I say to you; what shall I tell you? I behold a Mother who has brought forth; I see a Child come to this light by birth.  The manner of His conception I cannot comprehend.

Nature here rested, while the Will of God labored. O ineffable grace!  The Only Begotten, Who is before all ages, Who cannot be touched or be perceived, Who is simple, without body, has now put on my body, that is visible and liable to corruption.  For what reason?  That coming amongst us he may teach us, and teaching, lead us by the hand to the things that men cannot see.  For since men believe that the eyes are more trustworthy than the ears, they doubt of that which they do not see, and so He has deigned to show Himself in bodily presence, that He may remove all doubt.

Christ, finding the holy body and soul of the Virgin, builds for Himself a living temple, and as He had willed, formed there a man from the Virgin; and, putting Him on, this day came forth; unashamed of the lowliness of our nature’.  For it was to Him no lowering to put on what He Himself had made.  Let that handiwork be forever glorified, which became the cloak of its own Creator.  For as in the first creation of flesh, man could not be made before the clay had come into His hand, so neither could this corruptible body be glorified, until it had first become the garment of its Maker.

What shall I say!  And how shall I describe this Birth to you?  For this wonder fills me with astonishment.  The Ancient of days has become an infant.  He Who sits upon the sublime and heavenly Throne, now lies in a manger.  And He Who cannot be touched, Who is simple, without complexity, and incorporeal, now lies subject to the hands of men.  He Who has broken the bonds of sinners, is now bound by an infants bands.  But He has decreed that ignominy shall become honor, infamy be clothed with glory, and total humiliation the measure of His Goodness.

For this He assumed my body, that I may become capable of His Word; taking my flesh, He gives me His spirit; and so He bestowing and I receiving, He prepares for me the treasure of Life.  He takes my flesh, to sanctify me; He gives me His Spirit, that He may save me.

Come, then, let us observe the Feast. Truly wondrous is the whole chronicle of the Nativity.  For this day the ancient slavery is ended, the devil confounded, the demons take to flight, the power of death is broken, paradise is unlocked, the curse is taken away, sin is removed from us, error driven out, truth has been brought back, the speech of kindliness diffused, and spreads on every side, a heavenly way of life has been ‘in planted on the earth, angels communicate with men without fear, and men now hold speech with angels.

Why is this?  Because God is now on earth, and man in heaven; on every side all things commingle. He became Flesh.  He did not become God.  He was God.  Wherefore He became flesh, so that He Whom heaven did not contain, a manger would this day receive. He was placed in a manger, so that He, by whom all things arc nourished, may receive an infant’s food from His Virgin Mother.  So, the Father of all ages, as an infant at the breast, nestles in the virginal arms, that the Magi may more easily see Him.  Since this day the Magi too have come, and made a beginning of withstanding tyranny; and the heavens give glory, as the Lord is revealed by a star.

To Him, then, Who out of confusion has wrought a clear path, to Christ, to the Father, and to the Holy Ghost, we offer all praise, now and for ever.  Amen.

for the reminder, hat tip to Tony Jones 

Merry (Orthodox) Christmas!!

Orthodox Christmas dawned as a nun walked in solitude at the Church of the Nativity in the West Bank town of Bethlehem, where the holiday was celebrated at a Mass earlier that morning. Some Orthodox Christians observe Christmas according to the old Julian calendar. (From the New York Times, Online)

From Advent to the Nativity: On the Way to Bethlehem

As I reflect upon the very short transition from the 4th Sunday of Advent (today) to Christmas Eve (tomorrow), I am living in the midst of Expectation (Advent) as I make the transition to the Incarnation (Christmas). [These feelings have even deeper meaning as we are expecting a child to be born later this winter!]

I was so glad to find that a poet friend of mine who blogs over at poetproph, has posted one of her wonderful and rich poems on her blog.

She writes:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The poem was originally from my book, Annunciations: Poems out of Scripture (Edwin Mellen Poetry Press, 2003). Here is a slightly revised version

On the Way to Bethlehem

The timing could not be worse
But it’s the law. My husband has to go,
Even though I’m well along.
You are lively within me, moving and kicking me.
Your kicking hurts. It wakes me in the night,
Reminds me, as I walk
More and more laboriously,
You are coming soon.

I suppose we are safe enough
After all, it was an angel who came.
Looking back, I have never doubted that.
My husband has been tender, despite my disgrace.
He is sure, too, about the angel.
So I suppose we have no cause to worry.
It’s only my aching back
The sharp pains from your tiny feet,
The smell and press of crowds, and all the delays.

The only thing that matters now, is bearing you safely
Into this messy world
And now even that I cannot control.
I did what I could do, but it’s all left behind.
At home, we had a place prepared for you.
I longed to see you soon.
Then I hoped you would come later, after our return
But now I know for sure that you will be coming
To a place we did not know.

I catch my breath at a sudden squeeze of pain.
My body recognizes the agony,
Already begun.

poetproph: On the Way to Bethlehem

Good things all around us - A day in the life!

The word "Incarnation" is one that we hear as we approach that holiday we call "Christmas," which is also called the Feast of the Incarnation. I realize I am getting ahead of myself as it is only November (however the Christmas decorations are all over the place!), but the concept of "Incarnation" is the recognition that it is our belief as Christians that God became human and dwelt among us. Further, that through the Resurrection, Christ is amidst us and among us and within us -- this is often hard to grasp conceptually. However, we know the beauty of a sunrise, the joy of friends, the satisfaction of a a job well done, a good cup of coffee or tea, and when we begin to turn aside and recognize these good things all around us we are beginning to experience the Incarnation of God in our midst.

One of the true joys of doing ordained ministry in a school setting is that it is so easy to catch people doing good things for one another and it is so wonderful to experience God's presence in chapel services, but also in classrooms, in the Senior lounge, in the cafeteria, at an extra help session, in a musical recital, in a rich conversation .... I hope we can all take a moment and recognize the good things all around us, and take delight in the gift of the Incarnation - Emmanuel, God with us (and not only at Christmas!)

Here is a montage of some of today's moments at school...



Peace be with you,

The Rev. Peter M. Carey

God changes appearances every second

By Nikos Kazantzakis

God changes appearances every second. Blessed is the man who can recognize him in all disguises. One moment he is a glass of fresh water, the next, your son bouncing on your knees or an enchanting woman, or perhaps merely a morning walk.

I guess my question is whether we take the time to give attention to God all around us, in the specific moments of every day. It seems vitally important to take time to unplug ourselves and see God in the sunrise, in a conversation, in a song, in a laugh, in a cry. This sense of noticing God's presence all around us is a sacramental sense that is a so helpful corrective to the crazy-busy ways that we sometimes move through the day. God has given us the gift of presence in rich moments of our days, can we develop the eyes to hear and the ears to hear God's presence? In my understanding, the real gift is that not only has God given us the gift of his presence but has also given us the gift of attention, and the vision to see God.

Thanks be to God for these and many other gifts.

Blessing of the Backpacks...

This morning, I had the great fortune to do a 'blessing of the backpacks' liturgy along with our middle school chaplain for our entire middle school. It was great fun, and a great way to get the year started...we asked for blessing over the water and then asperged (splashed) water on our students and their backpacks. A hat tip goes to my friend Mike who shared a blessing of the backpacks liturgy with me that I adapted for use by a deacon and for middle schoolers.

"...bless these lowly gifts, loving God, that their loyal presence and silent service keep us every mindful of your grace in our lives. May we hold them in care and, following their example, be for one another the reliable friends these tokens are for us. Amen."

Quotes from Thomas Merton...

I ran across these two quotes from Thomas Merton, one (on the God's Politics Blog) that speaks to me as we try to settle into our new home, search for cheap furniture, try to resurrect the yard, unpack boxes, play with our children, put food on the table, and begin also to work. The mountaintop experiences are not where I am now, but I am striving (with some greater and some lesser success) to see God's hands at work all around me ... even, and especially, in the "everyday" moments in which God is (of course) already present....


Better just to smell a flower in the garden...than to have an unauthentic experience of a much higher value. Better to honestly enjoy the sunshine or some light reading than to claim to be in contact with something that one is not in contact with at all.

- Thomas Merton
Quoted in Essential Monastic Wisdom, by Hugh Feiss


The other quote I ran across on the Inward/Outward Blog from the Church of Our Saviour, risking for the gospel, and living the gospel as NEW, BRAND NEW!




The Gospel is handed down from generation to generation but it must reach each one of us brand new, or not at all. If it is merely “tradition” and not news, it has not been preached or not heard - it is not Gospel…. If there is no risk in revelation, if there is no fear in it, if there is no challenge in it, if it is not a word which creates whole new worlds, and new beings, if it does not call into existence a new creature, our new self, then religion is dead and God is dead.

Source: Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander

Check out Laura's Blog: My Quotidian Mysteries !!!

After doing a little surfing around on Facebook, I realized that my colleague from Seminary, Laura, has a wonderful blog called My Quotidian Mysteries which is just excellent and wonderful. You can see the first post in her blog here. She has a deep sense of God's work in the everyday, and her blog reflects this sensibility.

Quotidian - (adj.) everyday, ordinary, commonplace
the space where mothers often dwell and out of which great mysteries emerge

Here is her first post (from April, 2007) for a little taste of her reflections:

"Two months after my daughter was born, I read a terrific book by Kathleen Norris entitled "The Quotidian Mysteries." In it she argues that the hum-drum aspects of life are avenues into the incarnational reality of Christ. Laundry can be a spiritual discipline if you have the eyes to see it. I've been lurking in "mommy blogs" lately, and I've been really impressed with the women that write them who are living faithful, often uncelebrated lives. These are my quotidian sisters, and this blog is one more contribution to the quotidian mysteries of which we partake: nap schedules, food preparation, laundry, lonely times, confusing times, joyful times; developmental milestones and setbacks; marriage ups and downs. I loaned the book to a friend on Tuesday who loved it and loaned her copy to someone else. She needed another read. Hopefully I'll see it again. In the meantime, I'll press on with today's mysteries."

Do check out her blog, Laura is great, and this blog is also quite wonderful. She is headed to Qatar with her husband (who works for the State Department) and young daughter. I imagine her reflections and thoughts will become even deeper and broader in coming weeks and months.

My Quotidian Mysteries Blog at http://myquotidianmysteries.blogspot.com/

New York City, Chopping Wood, Carrying Water

Riverside Park,...NYC...just a beautiful place.

We arrived today and my wife began her program at Columbia. I had the great pleasure of walking around with my two boys and also checking out some of the amazing sights and sites of New York City. It is exhausting to be watching two kids under 5, but also exhilarating and a tremendous blessing. As a person who grew up in the woods of Vermont, I still am surprised at the trees and nature that can be found in cities. I give great thanks to the visionaries who set aside these areas, and also great thanks to those who continue to maintain these oases in the midst of concrete and steel.

There is an eastern proverb which I believe is either Taoist or Buddhist in origin that says:

"Before enlightenment, chopping wood, carrying water....
after enlightenment, chopping wood, carrying water."

Essentially, even after profound spiritual and mystical experiences our lives remain enmeshed in the everyday. For me, my ordination to the diaconate was a mountaintop experience, and I have had a few of these deeply connecting spiritual experiences. However, I have learned that these experiences are deep, yet do not last forever in their intensity. I know now that I cannot remain on the mountaintop forever, and there is much "chopping wood," and "carrying water" to be done. It seems that a key goal is to find a way to have these seemingly mundane tasks become enlivened and deepened. In the Christian framework, we believe in the Incarnation, that God really became human, as Joan Osborne* asks, "What if God was one of us...?"

Well, that is what we, as Christians, believe, that God became one of us, and is here among us, between us, within us even today. So even our "chopping wood," "carrying water," "changing diapers," "finding snacks," and "playing in the playground," are all enlivened and deepened through the work of the Spirit.


*Shout out to CB for the reminder that it was Joan Osborne and not Alanis Morisette that sang this song!!! (Thanks!!)