St. Aidan's Anglican Church, Kansas City - weekly talks

Fr. David explores the tension between the first and final coming of Christ into the world. Unless he reaches our hearts in his first coming, we cannot long for his final coming.

Come, Lord Jesus.

Bishop Stewart Ruch shares a passionate word from Acts 2 on the five marks of the historic Church. With the coming of the Holy Spirit, the early Christians devoted themselves to five distinctives of the Kingdom of God. May the Lord continue to renew our hearts in like manner.

Our Bishop calls us to be fully 1) Scriptural; 2) Sacramental; 3) Spirit anointed; 4) Salvific; and, 5) Sharing with the needy.

The message concludes with the sacrament of Confirmation. Bishop Stewart lays his hands in prayer on three members of St. Aidan's.

The first advent of Jesus inaugurated the age of Jubilee, a period between the first and second advent of Christ where redemption and liberation from the crippling powers of darkness are experienced. The Jubilee Age is rooted in the nature of the Father, pure love, grace, generosity. The sermon on the mount's overall theme is Jubilee.

The Jubilee is especially directed toward the interest of the poor, the disadvantaged and the oppressed. Jesus proclaims good news to the poor, Luke 4:18f. and then describes how Jubilee works. By the Spirit of the Lord's power, liberty to captives, sight to the blind, freedom to the oppressed all display the "year of the Lord's favor."

Until the end of this age, the Church is called to enact the spirit of Jubilee, by proclaiming and demonstrating the Gospel to the poor and oppressed. This is the ongoing mission of Jesus in the world.

The liturgical year takes us through the Scripture’s account of the life of Jesus and the life of His Church, his Body.

The Liturgy and the calendar of fast and feast days draw our lives around the life of Jesus. All reality is centered in Jesus ... who holds all things together by the Word of his power.

The sanctification of time

Genesis 2:1

By the 7th day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the 7th day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the 7th day and sanctified it (made it holy), because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.

In the coming of Jesus, in his incarnation, life, crucifixion, resurrection, ascension and sending of the Holy Spirit, the curse of sin and death within the cosmos was reversed. In Christ, time no longer is pointed towards death but eternal life. Death reigned in Adam, now life reigns in Christ, the second Adam (Romans 512-21).

The Church in worship through liturgical calendar is a means of redeeming time, blessing time, reclaiming it for its intended purpose before sin and death entered the world. In Christ, time is forever altered and centered in him. The celebration of the Eucharist is the way in which time is sanctified. All reality is rooted in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the origin of all the created order. Through him all things were made.

For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen (Rom 11:36).

The Gospel was meant to be not only heard, but tasted, smelled, seen and touched within liturgical worship. The ancient Church employed all of their Jewish heritage from Tabernacle and Temple to show extravagant honor of our Lord Jesus Christ.

We explore the Biblical and historical foundations of liturgical worship and briefly discuss the use and meaning of candles, oil lamps, incense and icons.

Worship is an embodied practice of one's entire self - spirit, soul and body. We explore how we offer our bodies in liturgical worship as a full expression of Love for God - all one's heart, soul, mind and strength.

We walk through the Eucharistic liturgy, noting where and why we do the following: (1) we enter worship, dipping our finger in the blessed waters of the baptismal font and the sign of the cross, reaffirming our baptism, (2) elsewhere the sign of the cross is made (3) we bow before the cross, altar & Gospel Book. Next week, we will continue exploring more.

As Jesus was lift up on the Cross to draw all humanity unto him, so the Church, his body, is to be lifted up. As Jesus is the sacrament of the Father, so the Church is the sacrament of Jesus. If you've seen us you've seen Jesus is the call.

Ephesians 3 - Through the Church, the manifold wisdom of God is displayed to the invisible realm. This Church is not merely earthbound, but the composite of the earthly and heavenly redeemed - the Church of the Firstborn (Hebrews 12:21f).

The unity and diversity of the Church, His Body, is sourced within the Holy Trinity. If one doesn't begin with God, any community building is destined for failure. We must tend to the unity of the Spirit, a gift to be maintained and not manufactured. Ultimately, if our life is not in Christ there is no life at all. Christ is Risen!

The opening of Europe by St. Paul’s apostolic mission leads us to our patron, St. Aidan. We have a deep affinity with St. Aidan and his apostolic work in the northern region of England. Early Celtic Christianity was alive throughout the British Isles for centuries before St. Augustine of Canterbury came ashore in 597 A.D. Early in the formation of our community, we sensed a calling to honor St. Aidan as our patron. The theme of this talk is inspired from the simple word and deed of Jesus in Mark 7: Ephphatha! Be Opened!