Everyday Ethics

To be humble, to be kind.
It is the giving of the peace in your mind.
To a stranger, To a friend
To give in such a way that has no end.
We are Love
We are One
We are how we treat each other when the day is done.
We are Peace
We are War
We are how we treat each other and Nothing More
(Nothing More by Alternate Routes)

How we treat each other speaks to how we live out our everyday ethics.

This article was quite challenging in what it says about those ethics.

A Window Into Everyday Morality via Text Message By BENEDICT CAREY NY TIMES SEPT. 11, 2014

An excerpt:

The survey found no significant differences in moral behavior or judgment between religious people and nonreligious ones.

It did find some evidence to support theories developed in lab experiments. For instance, psychologists describe good deeds as “contagious,” and so it appeared in the new data. People on the receiving end of an act of kindness were about 10 percent more likely than the average person to do something nice themselves later in the day. On the other hand, those who granted that kindness were slightly more likely than average (about 3 percent) to commit a small act of rudeness or dismissiveness later in the same day – granting themselves “moral license” to do so.

Psychologists have also contended that a fundamental difference between the political right and the left is that conservatives tend to think of morality in terms of loyalty and faith, while liberals focus on fairness and liberty. And so it was in the survey. Participants to the right identified more breaches and affirmations of loyalty, and those to left saw more examples of unfair and generous treatment.

I am surprised a bit at what the survey found; but then again as is pointed out, our worldview will also play a role in the contagious good deeds or not.  Much food for thought.

Hunger in America

"An estimated 14.3 percent of American households were food insecure at least some time during the year in 2013, meaning they lacked access to enough food for an active, healthy life for all household members." (USDA: Household Food Security in the United States in 2013)

What can be done to help those who are food insecure?

One way to help those in poverty, is to intervene earlier...

The Way to Beat Poverty By NICHOLAS KRISTOF and SHERYL WuDUNN NY TIMES SEPT. 12, 2014


An excerpt:

James Heckman, a Nobel Prize-winning economist at the University of Chicago, says that our society would be better off taking sums we invest in high school and university and redeploying them to help struggling kids in the first five years of life. We certainly would prefer not to cut education budgets of any kind, but if pressed, we would have to agree that $1 billion spent on home visitation for at-risk young mothers would achieve much more in breaking the poverty cycle than the same sum spent on indirect subsidies collected by for-profit universities.

Second, children’s programs are most successful when they leverage the most important — and difficult — job in the world: parenting. Give parents the tools to nurture their child in infancy and the result will be a more self-confident and resilient person for decades to come. It’s far less expensive to coach parents to support children than to maintain prisons years later.

What does that mean for all of us? We wish more donors would endow not just professorships but also the jobs of nurses who visit at-risk parents; we wish tycoons would seek naming opportunities not only at concert halls and museum wings but also in nursery schools. We need advocates to push federal, state and local governments to invest in the first couple of years of life, to support parents during pregnancy and a child’s earliest years.

Another place to turn: http://feedingamerica.org/how-we-fight-hunger.aspx

As the nation’s leading domestic hunger-relief charity, our nationwide food bank network members supply food to 46 million Americans each year, including 12 million children and 3 million seniors. Feeding America benefits from the unique relationship between local member food banks at the front lines of hunger relief and the central efforts of our national office.

To help in Monroe & Connectciut:

http://www.ctfoodbank.org/

http://www.monroect.org/FoodPantry.aspx

Domestic Violence

Almighty God, our heavenly Father, who set the solitary in families: We commend to your continual care the homes in which your people dwell. Put far from them every root of bitterness, the desire of vainglory, and the pride of life. Fill them with faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness. Knit together in constant affection those who, in holy wedlock, have been made one flesh. Turn the hearts of the parents to the children, and the hearts of the children to the parents; and so enkindle fervent charity among us all, that we may evermore be kindly affectioned one to another; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

This prayer for the family, reminds me that every prayer seeks God's care upon our homes and our families.  Sadly, many families experience violence at the hands & mouths of other family members.

The Huffington Post is doing a series of articles on this subject:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/09/12/why-didnt-you-just-leave-family_n_5805614.html 

It is important that we talk about this and shed the light that is necessary on such a dark part of our society. But not only talk, but do something about it too! 

Need help? In the U.S., call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) for the National Domestic Violence Hotline.

Looking for help in Monroe?  http://www.cwfefc.org/ - Center for Family Justice (of eastern Fairfield County, Connecticut)


http://shamelesssurvivors.com/ - a website by a survivor of DV

Take Church with you in August

You can use the following as a daily practice with your family or if you are traveling and will miss Sunday worship at church it can be used as your family Sunday worship...

Service

Say the following together or have one person read it for you.

Open my lips, O Lord, and my mouth shall proclaim your praise.
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
Give me the joy of your saving help again and sustain me with your bountiful Spirit.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. From Psalm 51

Read the Scripture for the week and talk about one or more of the questions for the week.
Be silent for a moment and then either out loud or silently remember the names of the people and things that you are worried about, that you hope for and that you are grateful for.

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name,
thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory
for ever and ever. Amen.

Lord God, almighty and everlasting Father, you have brought us in safety to this new day: Preserve us with your mighty power, that we may not fall into sin, nor be overcome by adversity; and in all we do, direct us to the fulfilling of your purpose; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.


Grant, we beseech you, Almighty God, that the words which we have heard this day with our outward ears, may, through your grace, be so grafted inwardly in our hearts, that they may bring forth in us the fruit of good living, to the honor and praise of your Holy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Weekly Readings

Week of August 3

Matthew 14:13-21 – When Jesus heard about John, he withdrew in a boat to a deserted place by himself. When the crowds learned this, they followed him on foot from the cities. When Jesus arrived and saw a large crowd, he had compassion for them and healed those who were sick. That evening his disciples came and said to him, “This is an isolated place and it’s getting late. Send the crowds away so they can go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” But Jesus said to them, “There’s no need to send them away. You give them something to eat.” They replied, “We have nothing here except five loaves of bread and two fish.” He said, “Bring them here to me.” He ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. He took the five loaves of bread and the two fish and looked up to heaven, blessed them and broke the loaves apart and gave them to his disciples. Then the disciples gave them to the crowds. Everyone ate until they were full, and they filled twelve baskets with the leftovers. About five thousand men plus women and children had eaten.

1. What do you do when you get bad news?
2. What are the times that you want to be by yourself?
3. Have you ever been afraid that you didn’t have enough of something that you need?
4. Can you think of ways that God has blessed you?

Week of August 10

Matthew 14:22-33 – Right then, Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead to the other side of the lake while he dismissed the crowds. When he sent them away, he went up onto a mountain by himself to pray. Evening came and he was alone. Meanwhile, the boat, fighting a strong headwind, was being battered by the waves and was already far away from land. Very early in the morning he came to his disciples, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified and said, “It’s a ghost!” They were so frightened they screamed. Just then Jesus spoke to them, “Be encouraged! It’s me. Don’t be afraid.” Peter replied, “Lord, if it’s you, order me to come to you on the water.” And Jesus said, “Come.” Then Peter got out of the boat and was walking on the water toward Jesus. But when Peter saw the strong wind, he became frightened. As he began to sink, he shouted, “Lord, rescue me!” Jesus immediately reached out and grabbed him, saying, “You man of weak faith! Why did you begin to have doubts?” When they got into the boat, the wind settled down. Then those in the boat worshipped Jesus and said, “You must be God’s Son!”

1. Can you remember times when you were afraid?
2. What does it feel like to be afraid alone? To have someone with you when you are afraid?
3. Have you ever tried something you weren’t sure you could do?

Week of August 17

Matthew 15:21-28 – Jesus went to the regions of Tyre and Sidon. A Canaanite woman from those territories came out and shouted, “Show me mercy, Son of David. My daughter is suffering terribly from demon possession.” But he didn’t respond to her at all. His disciples came and urged him, “Send her away; she keeps shouting out after us.” Jesus replied, “I’ve been sent only to the lost sheep, the people of Israel.” But she knelt before him and said, “Lord, help me.” He replied, “It is not good to take the children’s bread and toss it to dogs.” She replied, “Yes, Lord. But even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall off their master’s table.” Jesus answered. “Woman, you have great faith. It will be just as you wish.” And right then her daughter was healed.”

1. Can you remember anyone who annoyed you? How did you react?
2. Have you ever asked for something you really, really wanted – what was that like?

Week of August 24

Matthew 16:13-16 – Now when Jesus came to the area of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Human One is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.” He said, “And what about you? Who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

1. Who have you heard other people say that Jesus is?
2. Who do you say that Jesus is?

Week of August 31

Matthew 16:24-28 – Jesus said to his disciples, “All who want to come after me must say no to themselves, take up their cross, and follow me. All who want to save their lives will lose them. But all who lose their lives because of me will find them. Why would people gain the whole world but lose their lives? What will people give in exchange for their lives. For the Human One is about to come with the majesty of his Father with his angels. And then he will repay each one for what that person has done. I assure you that some standing here won’t die before they see the Human One coming in his kingdom.

1. What are the things that are most precious to you?
2. What would it mean for you to gain the whole world?
3. What do you think it means that Jesus will repay us for what we have done?

Wine Tasting Prayer

Used at our 7th annual Wine Tasting, adapted from various sources:

Most merciful God, we celebrate with great delight your good gifts this evening. We delight in this community gathered to taste of your bounty. We thank you for this wine before us. The beauty of the color, the aroma, the fragrance, that engages our senses and speaks of your beautiful, fragrant, colorful presence in our lives. We thank you for the food paired with the wine, for all the loving hands that have gone into making this bountiful tasting tonight. Renew us with the beauty of your life, refresh our spirits and souls and fill us with your delightful presence that we may be a fragrant offering of such joy and love to others. Amen.

Challenging Violence - ECW Sermon by Bishop Curry

Bishop Jim Curry gave an outstanding sermon on challenging violence at our ECW Lunchoen on May 1.

You can find it here:  http://www.ctepiscopal.org/News/customer-files/BishopJamesCurrySermon_ECWMay2014.pdf

A small excerpt:

In Connecticut there are well over 1000
Christian Churches – and scores of
synagogues and mosques. And most of them are islands
of good works and faithful
people that are insulated and
isolated from one another.
I know that is true among
Episcopal Churches. If we truly believe in
Jesus Christ - if we
believe that he has
created in himself one new humanity – then we
as his disciples have to act out of the
power which is ours in Christ. We need to
reach out to one another for our common good.

The cross that I wear was made for me by an artist from the country of
Mozambique. It is made out of pieces of
destroyed automatic weapons – AK47’s --- that
were used in their long and bloody civil war. For over twenty years Mozambique has
been at peace. And a great reason for that is
that the churches came
together after the war
to encourage people to turn in
their guns and weapons of war
in exchange for instruments
of production in their new society. Over
the years nearly a million guns have been
collected and destroyed. Mozambican artist
s have taken these destroyed weapons and
made them into art – objects of beauty and imagination. 

This cross tells the story
of our faith. Weapons of war and instruments of
violence have been broken apart and reshaped
into the greatest sign
of peace and hope the
world has ever known. On the cross, God took the worst that we humans can do to one
another – to torture and kill each other – and
in Jesus’ love for us – broke the violence
and reshaped it into the greatest sign of hope and peace for all time.  

In God, with Christ, and in
the power of the Spirit we have the ability to challenge
violence. You and I are people of
the cross of hope and disciples of the Christ who is our
peace and who has broken down all dividing walls. Today, let us renew our common
work to end violence in every community - remembering those who have died
(Marcelina, Ben, Charlotte, Shane, Taijhon
and Torrence and those we name now aloud
or silently) and remembering those who live with
the scars of violence (Takira, Tyrek, the
parents of Hartford, New Haven, Milford and Newtown and so many more). May God
give us strength and courage and singleness of heart to do this work

Forgiveness Challenge

We invite you to join us in the #ForgivenessChallenge. When each of us makes this decision to choose forgiveness instead of choosing to retaliate or to simply hold onto our anger we can change our lives. But when more people make this choice we can have a much greater impact on our communities, our countries and our world. So use the resources here to encourage your friends and acquaintances—perhaps even your enemies—to join the Challenge. Together we can change the world!

With love,
Desmond and Mpho Tutu

Sign up, and starting May 4th you’ll receive a daily inspirational email from the Archbishop and Mpho Tutu, with a link to join their online forgiveness community. Inside, you’ll get:

• Daily exercises to teach you how to forgive anyone for anything.
• Extraordinary stories from ordinary people who have been transformed through forgiving or being forgiven.
• Interviews with the world’s top forgiveness experts, great spiritual leaders, and well-known celebrities, including Alanis Morissette and Arianna Huffington.
• Community support from people just like you who are trying to live a more forgiving life.
• And it’s free!

Go here: http://forgivenesschallenge.com/

“Often when we are suffering from loss or harm of some kind, forgiving can seem too overwhelming, too complicated, to even consider.  How do we forgive if there has been no apology or explanation for why someone has hurt us so? How do we think of forgiving when we feel the person has not done anything to “deserve” our forgiveness? Where do we even start?
Forgiving is not easy, but it is the path to healing.” ~ Desmond Tutu