Fast Food
A disheveled old man sat in a booth of the fast-food joint. As I walked by he asked, “Can you help me?” I kept walking. I ordered my usual but with an extra burger. I paid and started out but stopped to ask the old man, “Hungry? Want a burger?” He looked at the burger…
God’s Message
Nonbelievers who know I’m a deacon sometimes ask what I find valuable or fulfilling about the church. Then, before I can gather my thoughts, they will tell me all the reasons why they don’t go to church. Everyone needs to be heard and I try to be a good listener. When it’s my turn, I…
Ash Wednesday
He told me he’d never been to an Ash Wednesday service before. I asked him if he intended to go forward for ashes. He said “no” and gave me several reasons. None seemed very good to me but I let it go. We listened to the collect, scripture, sermon and then the bidding: “I invite…
Rash Boon
“Rash Boon” is a term from Celtic and Arthurian literature, a promise made without knowing precisely what will be required. A rash boon is an oath that binds for a lifetime, laughable in our modern era. The Knights of the Round Table, Gawain, Lancelot and Percivale, are long gone. Still, to this day, some pledge…
Sobriety
Jim was married to my sister but they divorced and Jim drifted off to Florida. He was always a terrible drinker and, honestly, I didn’t miss him much. I chanced to visit with Jim’s son and I couldn’t help but ask, “Whatever became of your dad? Still drinking, I suppose?” He said, “Well, I guess…
Maria
I was two. We lived in Mallorca, Spain. My parents worked and I spent days with Maria. Maria spoke no English. I learned Spanish. Maria and I wandered the markets, sat in the cool of the church, watched the fishermen mending nets on the quay. The fishermen gave me Spanish words to say … not…
Marked
Men traveled the road looking for work. Sometimes they knocked at the old woman’s door and asked for food. She gave what she had. One day, a hungry man let slip that her fencepost had the hobo’s mark. Her house was ‘good for a handout.’ She went right along feeding the men. Some days she…
Bee Speed (redux)
Bee speed is about two thirds of the speed of a stroll in the park, at which speed we arouse no fear, suspicion or even interest in those around us. At this pace, we can walk through a hostile crowd or a convention of optimists and no one will take note of us. When we…
Dominoes
My father and I played dominoes, a game popular world-wide and certainly in our home. I’ve seen raucous games played for money on the sidewalks of foreign cities but our games were quiet. I tried to interest my sons in dominoes. No luck, competing as I was with Pac-Man and Donkey Kong. I did not…
Tire change
They’d traveled not but four miles when the boy heard the tire whacking against the fender. He pulled the old Ford to the berm. His aunt, lips pursed, sat the back seat. The boy’d not before changed a tire on his own but set about it, unhitching the fender-mount spare, bracing the jack, loosening the…
Did You Know? – Deacon Josh
The Rev. Josh Butler is a Vocational Deacon in the Diocese of Ohio.
It is the deacon who ends the service, dismissing the congregation to go out in the community to serve. In his Deacon’s Dismissal, Josh offers reflections to strengthen and inspire us in our call to service.
