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Bishop Paul's Page22 January 2012 At last we can put the festivities behind us and start focusing on our regular lives. We can put to the back of our mind all thoughts of partying, over-indulgence and finding the best deals in the New Year sales. For a few, thoughts will turn to their faith and how they can improve upon years past. Matthew 16:18 states: "You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church." In Greek, the word for rock is petra, which means a large, massive stone. The word used for Simon's new name is different; it's Petros, which means a little stone, a pebble. As Greek scholars admit, the words petros and petra were synonyms in first century Greek. They meant "small stone" and "large rock" in some ancient Greek poetry centuries before the time of Christ, but that distinction had disappeared from the language by the time Matthew's Gospel was rendered in Greek. The difference in meaning can only be found in Attic Greek, but the New Testament was written in Koine Greek-an entirely different dialect. In Koine Greek, both petros and petra simply meant "rock." If Jesus had wanted to call Simon a small stone, the Greek lithos would have been used. So, as we begin 2012 consider whether you plan on being a rock or just another pebble on the beach of life. Blessings,
4 December 2011 I think it's safe to say that when the Son of God was born, Mary and Joseph were not on the PPO plan. For surely if they were the nativity would have occurred in a comfortable warm room with all the amenities. Instead, the Son of God was born in the humblest of all venues, a stable. So what can we learn from this? I think that it allows and encourages us to focus upon what was really happening and not on the hoopla of a distracting event. In Jesus' case, that was the census; in ours what gifts are on sale and the whole office and family party cycle. Too often we are distracted from the real meaning of Christmas by the bright lights and offers of self indulgent eating habits. While we fawn at towering spruces and a cornucopia of foods, we give little thought that the Son of God was fighting for space and ultimately his very survival with farm animals in a crowded stable. Somehow it seems so wrong to over-indulge and over-spend. Blessings,
28 November 2011 It's that time of the year again..."Thanksmas"; that now combination holiday dedicated to our most primal drives: sloth, gluttony and the love of a great deal. We are bombarded with advertising showing happy families sharing the joy of being together and giving each other that "must have" item that will surely change our lives… Not a word about the real reason for the season. In scripture we often see the use of darkness to illustrate evil and of light to exemplify all that is good. I think we can perhaps see and understand an alternate meaning behind "Black Friday". I feel we can take comfort in knowing that we can all enjoy a "White Christmas" regardless of snowfall. My closest friends know I love the occasional cigar and I feel drawn this season to smoke those cigars with the "Its a boy" label on them. My plan is to give them out this year with abandon and when asked the reason for my celebration a simple explanation: I am indeed celebrating the birth of a son...the Son of God. Blessings,
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