Pastor’s Blog

Where are the loving Christians?

by

Saint Francis Parish and Outreach has been working tirelessly to bring a voice of compassion, love, social justice, and radical inclusion to the CSRA for almost 21 years now. We are routinely asked why more people don’t come to our church. And I don’t have the answer to that question.

I would like to think that people in our community are loving, accepting, affirming, and inclusive in their love for their neighbors. However, I find it very disheartening to see churches that teach radical exclusion, hatred, abuse, and condemnation full to the brim while churches like Saint Francis remain empty on Sunday.

I won’t lie to you, there are Sundays where I sit and hold back the tears as I sit before Jesus in the tabernacle. We have dedicated our lives to helping those most marginalized in our community: the homeless, the poor, the LGBTQIA+, women, and people of color. It has been our founding principle to stand up against injustice and abuse. We continue to work to make a difference in our community by joining with others to stand against oppression, stigma, racism, and bigotry.

Where are those who want to help with this ministry? Where are those who aim to live the Gospel message of inclusion and love?

We have so many things planned as we move into fall and the Christmas season. We have our Blessing of the Pets on Sunday, October 6th during Mass at 3:00 PM. We are planning our annual Blue Christmas Service in December. And who can forget our Christmas Midnight Mass!

I am pleading with you this week, come visit us this Sunday at 3:00 PM at 557 Greene Street in Augusta, Georgia. Come see an entirely different way to be Catholic. Come experience the beauty of the Metropolitan Community Church of Our Redeemer that graciously lets us use their space for worship. And come to support the living Gospel!

Make Saint Francis Parish and Outreach your new church home!

Pax et Bonum,

Bishop Greer

Our command to help others

by

We have seen the situation play out in churches repeatedly throughout the years. People who claim to be Christians fighting with each other over who is the best Christian. They play a game with their faith, seeing it as something that one must work to be better than their fellow Christians.

Sadly, this is not a new situation. Jesus had to confront this type of spiritual abuse among his own disciples. They were caught by Jesus arguing about who was the greatest disciple. And Jesus confronted this argument in a unique way.

Jesus tells the disciples that if they want to be the first in the kingdom of God, they must first be the last. They must be like a little child. In other words, they had to be humble and put others before themselves.

Saint Francis of Assisi would spread that same message 1200 years later. He would remind his followers that to be first, you had to put everyone ahead of you. He went as far as to tell his brothers that they needed to be last when it came to getting their food and eating. They should make sure others were fed first.

These brothers, later called friars, would make this a central part of their daily lives. Here at Saint Francis Parish and Outreach, we are a Franciscan parish focused on putting those most in need ahead of ourselves.

I am asked a lot why we ask for so much help to feed the homeless and poor. My answer is simple: Jesus told us to, and Saint Francis commanded us to. So, we work diligently to help as many people as we can.

We ask you to help for two reasons: 1) the task is too great for one person to do alone, and 2) we are giving you the opportunity to live the message of the Gospel. This is your chance to be part of a movement bigger than yourself, to help those most in need of love and support.

I know you get tired of hearing about it, but your support helps us and you. It helps the poor and homeless in the CSRA. And sending a donation to our parish helps to keep us actively helping those who need our help most.

I hope you will come to worship with us this Sunday, either in person or online. And that you will consider signing up for reoccurring donations to our outreaches and parish.

Pax et Bonum,

Bishop Greer

Faith without works is dead

by

Faith without works is dead. That is the message of this Sunday’s second reading. We live in a world where most Christians believe that all they need to be a good Christian is to have faith.

Don’t misunderstand what I am saying. Faith is a critical part of our religious and spiritual walk. However, if you have faith only then you are missing the most critical part. Saint James tells us that faith comes through our works.

Without the work we do to help those around us, our faith is stagnated and dead. One of the great messages of Jesus was to help those in most need around us. We are called to help the homeless, the orphan, the widow, and the marginalized.

When we abandon those works, we show that we have little or no faith in the teachings of Jesus. It is time for the church to stop trying to set up an earthly kingdom for Jesus and to start following his teachings. It is time we work to help others and to be a force for good in our world.

If the church focused on work that helps the communities we live in, then we would see a dramatic decrease in homelessness, poverty, and hunger. We would see many people abandon their hatred and anger and start showing love to one another.

Now is the time to make this change. Won’t you join us?

Pax et Bonum,

Bishop Greer

Treat everyone the same

by

Our readings this weekend remind us that we are to care for all people equally and not show favoritism to those who are rich. We are called upon to treat everyone with love and respect. It is a very important message for today’s church, but one very few are willing to listen to.

Isaiah and Mark remind us that God, thru his son Jesus, will come to heal those most in need of help. Those who are downtrodden and abused. Those who are in most need of being treated as human. This is the message we have lost as Christians.

You see, everyone is a child of the Divine. No one you meet is without a spark of the Divine within them. So when you treat others as less than yourself, you are treating the Divine (God) as being less than yourself.

This is your call to re-evaluate your life and how you approach those around you. It is time for Christians to stop giving into the lures of the world, to stop giving in to the hate and bigotry around them, and to work to follow the teachings of our Lord.

To remind you of the reading from Joshua two weeks ago, who will you serve? As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!

I hope to see you Sunday!

Pax et Bonum,

Bishop Greer

Walking the walk

by

Far too often, Christians today talk a good talk but fail to live the Gospel message. We see this all around us, with more and more Christians expecting religious purity rather than being concerned with their own spirituality. They expect so many people in society to live by their rules when it comes to spirituality but cannot live up to those same standards.

Saint Paul reminds us to be doers of the word, not just hearers. Jesus reminds us that all too often people honor God with their lips, but their hearts are far from God. These are hard messages to stomach. Many people have chosen to go to churches that happily tell them what they want to hear, not what they need to hear.

Someone told me years ago that if you do not look at Holy Scripture through the lens of love, you miss the entire message. I find myself these days asking myself “Where is the Love?” just like in the song by the Black Eyed Peas. So many people live their lives angry, hateful, and abusive to all those around them. They hold so many grudges against the people around them that they find themselves alone.

This past week, I failed in that message myself. I was given a chance to show those around me grace, and I failed. Someone left me a note telling me to please mow my lawn. Rather than show them love and grace, I became angry, and I took my neighbors to task. I failed to walk the walk. And I have plenty of people to ask for forgiveness from.

But that just goes to show you that even I have room to grow. I, too, must walk the walk and not just preach a good sermon. Far too often, my sermons are being preached to me too.

I hope that this week we can all focus on walking the path of the Christ. And I hope you will join me at Saint Francis Parish walking that walk. Because it helps to have that support of your fellow human beings on this journey called life.

Pax et Bonum,

Bishop Greer

Who will you serve?

by

We come to the ultimate end of the Bread of Life discourse in the Gospel of Saint John. Jesus telling his followers that he is the Bread of Life caused many of them to leave his teachings behind and return to their old lives.

In Joshua, the people of Israel are given the same choice: return to the gods of their ancestors or follow the God that had led them out of Egypt. The people of Israel chose that day to follow the God that led them through the desert.

We have the same choice today. We can choose to follow the path of Jesus the Christ, or we can follow the path of greed, suffering, and violence that our society is so entrenched in. Many Christians today have given in to the latter and serve the destructive voices of society.  

I, for one, strive to follow the path of Jesus the Christ. I chose to eat the Bread of Life every Sunday in the Holy Eucharist. And I strive to live my life in peace and love. Jesus taught us to care for the least among us, to show love to our neighbors, and to be a friend to those who are outcast.

Today is the day to make a choice. Follow the path of Jesus the Christ, or continue down this destructive path that society offers us.

Who will you serve today?

Pax et Bonum,

Bishop Greer

Come receive the Bread of Life

by

This Sunday we are called to follow the path of wisdom to the Bread of Life that Jesus offers us. It is a hard message for many people to accept, but one that is more important today than ever before.

So many people live in utter foolishness, being tossed about by every wind and wave that comes our way. It is very easy to do given that we are hit by so many conflicting messages. Those messages come from the news, social media and even our pulpits.

It is so hard to find what we are supposed to believe. That is why the message of the Gospel, and the readings, is so very essential today.

Wisdom is sought through our study and meditation on the Holy Scriptures. The strength to follow that wisdom is given us in the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. In it Jesus gives us the grace and wisdom to handle those things that are sent our way by the world.

It is also wise in these days to not forsake the fellowship of one another. That is why we consistently offer mass every Sunday whether anyone is there or not. We give everyone an opportunity to come before Jesus present in the Blessed Sacrament.

I hope you will come this Sunday and receive the Bread of Life!

Pax et Bonum,

Bishop Greer

Rest and eat to be healed

by

Elijah was depressed and downtrodden. In that state, he sat down under a tree and was fed by an Angel. In his moment of despair, he found the strength to go on by resting and eating.

Jesus reminds us that he is the true bread from heaven. Through that bread we find life eternal. We also find strength to go on.

As someone who has battled depression and despair on many occasions, it helps to be reminded that sometimes I just need to rest and eat. Not just physical rest and food, but spiritual rest and spiritual food. I must spend time in meditation and reflection on the Word (Jesus) and the sacraments he provides to give us strength and grace.

In doing this, I can also set aside all the bad things that Saint Paul says we need to do away with in order to not grieve the Holy Spirit. When we let bitterness and anger, hatred and bigotry to fill our hearts, we greatly grieve the Holy Spirit.

This week, let us remember to take time to pray and meditate on the Word, to rest and be fed in order that we may strengthen the good virtues of the Holy Spirit that live in us.

Pax et Bonum,

Bishop Greer

What is Old Catholic?

by

As with every major feast of the church, I have received a number of phone calls asking about Mass times. They always ask what the difference is between Old Catholic and Roman Catholic. So I thought I would dedicate this week’s posting to discussing those differences.

What are the major differences between Old Catholic and Roman Catholic?

The major differences between our churches are in how we live our faith. For example, we allow our clergy to get married and have families. Our church ordains women to the all ranks of the clergy. We welcome LGBT individuals to participate fully in the life of the church, including seeking Holy Orders if they feel called to the priesthood or diaconate. Our churches practice an open communion which means that anyone can receive communion at our Mass. If you have been divorced, you too can receive communion.

Are you under the Pope?

No. While we respect the Bishop of Rome (often called the Pope), we are not under his authority. Old Catholics were granted autonomy from Rome in 1122. As such, we are a separate Catholic church with our own unique history.

Since you are not under the Pope, how can you still be Catholic?

That is a very good question! The term Catholic means universal. All Catholic churches hold to several universal truths that make them Catholic. One of those truths is the Holy Eucharist. All Catholic Churches participate in the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist in one way or another. They have a defined leadership of clergy in Apostolic Succession. This means they can trace their linage of Bishops all the way back to the early church. And all Catholic Churches uphold the one of the three major creeds of faith: the Nicene, Apostles, or Athanasian Creeds. As Old Catholics we hold all three of these major points!

What is your liturgy like?

If you have ever gone to a Roman Catholic or Episcopalian church for Mass, you will find that our liturgy is very familiar. Our liturgy has many of the same elements that those liturgies have.

At Saint Francis Old Catholic Church we strive to practice radical love. We welcome everyone and turn no one away from our church. It is our hope that you will find a home where you can be you. And along the way, we hope that you will find a deeper connection to the Divine.

So won’t you join us and experience a different way to be Catholic?