Brother Fire

Jesus said to his disciples: “You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil. When someone strikes you on your right cheek, turn the other one to him as well. If anyone wants to go to law with you over your tunic, hand him your cloak as well. Should anyone press you into service for one mile, go with him for two miles. Give to the one who asks of you, and do not turn your back on one who wants to borrow.” Matthew 5:38-42 This is pretty self explanatory. If someone asks for a dollar....give them two. Or do we think Jesus is just kidding? Why do we think it's okay to refuse aid to others? Why do we justify our withholding by categorizing people into two categories: the deserving and undeserving? Jesus doesn't qualify about giving to those who ask. He just says, "Give to the one who asks of you, and do not turn your back on one who wants to borrow." Plain and simple. Yet I know...

This is probably one of the best lessons on "what is missional" that I've seen. You will find it to be a gift. It's worth the hour view.

Clearly I've been absent from my blog for quite a few weeks. It's been somewhat of a...well...I don't know how to describe this period of time. I thought I had well-laid plans and a strong sense of what my future was going to look like. And sure enough, God threw a monkey wrench into the works. I hate when God changes things just when I think I have everything worked-out. For quite sometime I imagined that I would begin my ministry as a priest by building a Catholic Community on Long Island, New York. In addition, I thought that I would continue working for Catholic Charities -- providing services and housing for homeless folks who live with a disability. I figured that after I gained community-building experience and the community was well-established, I would consider immigrating south to Virginia Beach, VA or Charlotte, NC where there are existing United American Catholic Church ministries that could use my help. However, as the saying goes: "While I make pl...

I have tried to live a missional life as long as I can remember. I think that I've tried to live a missional life longer than I've known what it means to live a missional life. Some might say that I live an alternative lifestyle. Others might say that I've made some poor decisions when choosing the direction of my life: "Don't go into the helping professions -- you'll never make any money." And one of my favorite comments: "If you got paid for half the volunteer work you've done, you'd be rich!" I see these observations as a sure sign that I'm living missionally. When I say that I live a missional life, it means that I live as though I've been sent to proclaim the Word not only through traditional means (i.e. leading a faith community), but rather living the Gospel in my life's work by modeling Christian living in my day-to-day activities, living the Great Commission -- Missio Dei, everyday! To me, missional is not a technique...

I love being Catholic. I especially love being a progressive, Independent Catholic. I'm at a synod meeting of our li'l denomination (the United American Catholic Church) and I am so proud of the work that we do. I am reading a couple of different books that talk about what many hate about church -- specifically about the mixed message of churches who talk about mission but don't DO mission. We are a church of doers! My hope is that I can plant, build and grow a church of doers. By the way, the picture above is (from left to right): Bishop Anthony Hash, Father Christopher Ross, myself and Father Tom Shortell.

I have worked for Catholic Charities here on Long Island for a number of years -- developing housing for people at risk of homelessness and living with HIV/AIDS, as well as other disabilities including mental illness and substance abuse. I am proud of "my program" -- the S pecial Needs Housing Program, and I am proud of the good work that we do. I am especially proud of another program at Catholic Charities that I believe is truly an example of putting faith into action everyday. The Teaching Family Home Program is a community-based, structured residential treatment program for children and adolescents age five to 17. The program provides individualized treatment and care to children who suffer from serious emotional disturbances. Currently there are five homes in operation in Nassau and Suffolk counties (Long Island, NY), and more are in development. Typically, there are four children and/or adolescents living with a specially trained married couple (teaching parents) and th...

One of the true traits of a missional community is one that reaches out to "the nations" as opposed to one that relies on attraction. What about the Taize community? Is this a missional community? Here is a link to an introductory video about Taize.

As I study for the priesthood and discern my future ministry, I can't help but wonder: will I be able to effectively harness my calling toward building a missional church in the independent sacramental movement? I feel called to build a church who's mission is first and foremost consistent with the great commission (Matthew 28: 18-20) and seeks to bring the Gospel to all the Nations; a church that puts faith in action, not one that passively waits for the masses to enter her doors. Often the term 'missional church' is described vaguely. I like the way Mark Powell describes it in this video. Can an ISM church truly be a missional church? I think so. Peace.

A couple of months ago, I participated in the daunting task of counting the un-sheltered homeless here on Long Island . Every year a coalition of service-providers work together to track people who do not have housing: folks who are living "on the streets," in the woods, under bridges & over-passes, abandoned buildings, or any other location where someone could stay without being accosted. What makes this task especially difficult is that the homeless on Long Island are seemingly invisible. Long Island is an automobile driven suburb that has a lacking public transportation system. In neighboring New York City , most of the residents depend on the subway and buses to get around -- and the homeless are clearly visible as they seek shelter in the bus terminals and subway stations. However the general population on Long Island doesn't see Long Island ’s homeless from the driver's seats of their SUVs. Most of those who do not have a home live in abandoned ...

A Homily for the Third Sunday of Easter, Cycle A Gospel: Luke 24 The Easter season is an exciting time for me. Not just the Triduum, or Easter Sunday…but the whole 50-days of the season. And I think it’s because it not only honors the day of Jesus resurrection, but also the birth of the church and the whole of Christianity. The season is really about who we are as Catholics. This Gospel story of the two disciples who walk to Emmaus is a wonderful metaphor of our faith journey together – especially as Independent Catholics. Imagine what these two disciples were thinking and how they were feeling as they began their journey. They started their walk from Jerusalem on Easter Sunday. They were feeling discouraged and depressed for they had so much hope in Jesus. After all, he was to save Israel . However, they saw their Lord unjustly tried and put to death. And to make matters worse, now his body was missing! Their hopes were dashed. They were dejected and los...

A flow of pictures from many missional areas set to Leeland's Tears of the Saints.

I think that Rev. Lainie has become one of my favorite bloggers! This was originally posted on her blog . Top Ten Missional Bee-Attitudes 10. Be Grateful: The opportunity to participate in God’s story is an awesome privilege. Be grateful for all that he calls you to do for the sake of the Kingdom. 9. Be Useful: People who channel their skills and abilities into something productive are appreciated and welcomed by others. This is true in almost all contexts, no matter what personal foibles you have. Trust me on this. 8. Be Trustworthy: Keep confidences and commitments. Let your “yes mean yes” and “no mean no”. (James 5:12) 7. Be Observant: Look for opportunities to be of service. Look for opportunities for missional interactions. Look for needs to be met. Examine cultural contexts closely to discover ways in which the gospel can be presented. 6. Be Real: People can spot a poser from a mile away. You can and should be yourself even as you work to learn and und...

Rev. Lainie shared an experience in a recent post of a lonely man who randomly asked her for dinner outside a restaurant. Her empathy for this man and insight into the issue of male loneliness is admirable. I believe that she is on to something when she suggested that there may be an opportunity for a missional approach in assisting men who face loneliness. There's no doubt that men have a difficult time with social and emotional loneliness. Men tend to deal with many emotional issues in an unhealthy way -- either by ignoring or avoiding the problem, or acting out in an inappropriate manner. John Mark Ministries shares a story of a pastor who took a wrong turn in his journey of dealing with loneliness. His story is not uncommon. The real problem is not a new one. Men tend not to seek help. Men avoid sharing problems on an emotional level especially with other men. Men usually invest most, if not all of their emotional energy into one significant relationship and if that ...

10. Be very annoyed that some people belong to religions other than your own. Express this annoyance freely. 9. Don’t bother becoming a “regular” at local businesses. Just shop/dine/get- your-clothes-drycleaned at whatever place has the best sales that week. If, by some unfortunate coincidence, you do become a regular at a local business, don’t get to know the owner, employees, or other patrons. 8. Fixate on the quality of your missional targets: Focus on the local Unitarian Universalist minister, Mormon bishop, and Wiccan high priestess (who also owns your town’s only occult bookstore). Don’t give a second thought to that rather ordinary looking lady who you see every morning on the train. She doesn’t have a large enough sphere of influence. 7. If you see a problem in your community, don’t bother to check out what other organizations or individuals are doing about it. Just start your own project: You’ll get a lot more accomplished if you are in charge! 6. Don’t waste yo...

A homily by Don Pratt Sunday, October 7, 2007 -- 27 th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Cycle C) Readings : First Reading : Habakkuk 1:2-3; 2:2-4 Psalm: Psalm 95 Second Reading : Second Timothy 1:6-8, 13-14 Gospel: Luke 17:5-10 Just preceding today’s Gospel Reading from Luke 17, Jesus had just warned his disciples about the dangers of sinning against others, or causing others to sin, and that they must forgive those who sin against them – unconditionally – no matter how many times they cause harm and ask for forgiveness. What a tall order! We know in our own experience how difficult that can be. The apostles responded with a request of Jesus, “Increase our faith.” I imagine that this is a common request. Many of us in our prayer lives ask that we be better Christians; we ask that our faith in God become stronger. And often we make the mistake in believing that in order for this to happen we must do dramatic things. That our lives must change s...