Tony Bouwmeester

By: Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester.
One Sunday in July I asked the congregation at Church, “Have you bought your fifty million dollar lottery tickets yet.” Some looked surprised, some looked horrified I would ask such a thing in church, and others just laughed. No one admitted that they had actually purchased a ticket.
Be honest. Did you ever find yourself daydreaming about winning such a large amount? My fantasy goes something like this: pay-off my sons debts, put away a fund for each of the grand children’s college education, sock away some more for retirement, and then start giving it away. In any case, it feels nice to dream about such financial security but it is not reality.
Well, such daydreams seem harmless enough, harmless until you read the gospel lesson for that particular Sunday that is. In that lesson we are confronted with Jesus’ Parable of the Rich Fool which goes like this, “The land of a rich man produced abundantly. And he thought to himself, ‘What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?’ Then he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, ‘Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.’ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God.” Talk about spoiling our fun! Do you notice the similarity between the kind of daydream we can have over riches and the rich fool in the parable?
I can fool myself into thinking that I’m different from the rich fool by telling myself that I’m not greedy: “Look how much I would plan to give away, after all.” That’s what I would tell myself. But this is playing myself as the fool. For I am the same as that rich fool in one very important aspect: When I daydream, and talk to myself! I enter into a monologue, metaphorically speaking, telling myself that I must build larger barns. In essence I think am following my own desires. Anthropology by the way tells us that our desires are learned from others.
Humans are not solitary creatures. We are meant to live our lives in dialogue with God and others. That’s how life began in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve, as the story begins, live in a land that has brought forth plentifully, just like the rich man’s farm. But theirs is a paradise because they also — at the outset of the story, anyway — have the right dialogue partner: God, the one who created them. God is depicted as regularly strolling in the garden with them, talking with them. And God has apparently placed only one restriction on their desires: out of this abundant garden, there is only one tree at the center from which they are not to eat. Everything is fine as long as God their Creator remains their main dialogue partner, the one from whom they gain their desires. And that is the key here: that they follow the desires of God, the one who had created them in perfect love.
But, of course, we know the story, and that’s not how things remain. Paradise is lost. The serpent — a fellow creature, the craftiest one in the garden — becomes Eve’s dialogue partner. And he convinces her that the forbidden fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden is desirable. Eve listens to the desire of the serpent. And then Eve convinces Adam…well, you know the rest of the story. Having listened to their fellow creatures desire above their Creator, they no longer had God as their primary dialogue partner — and so they no longer found themselves living in paradise but in the sphere of spiritual death.
Eve chose listening to the serpent, and Adam to Eve, fellow creatures listening first to each other, rather than listening to God, their creator. The most basic result is they enter into rivalry against God; the serpent convinces the man and woman that they will know what God knows, that they can be in control of their own lives. In other words, since they are in charge of their own lives they can talk to themselves. And that rivalry with God eventually turns into violence against each other, dialogue becomes monologue until, one day, Cain murders his brother Abel. By this time paradise is long gone and lost.
Now compare God’s words to the rich fool in Jesus’ parable with the words of Christ to the criminal next to him on the cross. They are similar situations in that both men are about to die. To the rich man, God says “Fool!” To the criminal on the cross, Christ says, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” Paradise! That’s what we have lost ever since Adam and Eve chose to listen to the serpent ahead of God! And it is to this criminal that Jesus promises Paradise, today! Please take note: a rich man blessed with abundance and a criminal condemned to death. One is called a fool and the other promised Paradise.
These three stories lay out a choice for us, and the prize is Paradise. We can continue to make the same choices as Adam, Eve and the Rich Fool. We can listen to Madison Avenue and watch the Joneses down the street, or get caught up in lotto-mania. In other words, we can get caught up in rivalrous desires because we follow the desires of other creatures more than we do the Creator. We can choose the wrong dialogue partner in life — other people, ourselves — and the murderous desire breaks out all around us, sometimes even within us.
Or we can make the choice of that criminal next to Jesus and choose to follow him. Yes, it’s never too late to choose the right dialogue partner. Even as he died on the cross, that criminal who hung next to Jesus chose to open his life to God through Christ who perfectly lived his life in dialogue with God. He became Jesus’ disciple, even at that late hour. And immediately he was in Paradise. Why? Because Jesus is the one who can change our fantasy into reality, putting our monologue driven lives back into dialogue with God.
Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester serves as Pastor to the Anglican Parish of Long Point Bay Canada.

By: Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester.
When I was twelve years old, and growing up in the Netherlands, I became infatuated and fell in love with a girl my age in the neighborhood. I was too bashful and did not have the nerve to tell her that I liked her, something like the story of Charlie Brown and the little redheaded girl.
However, what did happen is that my parents figured out my romantic notions. Soon my father took me aside and said not to get too serious about her because, “Her parents buy bread from the wrong baker.” To understand this saying you need to know that our village had four bakers and four different Church denominations. At ripe old age of twelve I experienced a head on collision with the tragedy of the divided Church.
In the gospel of John we find that Jesus prays to the Father for the unity of the believers. His desire is, “That they may all be one; even as you Father, Are in Me and I in You, that they may also be in Us, so that the world may believe that You have sent Me” (John 17:21). Jesus said this prayer for the benefit of those who would believe in Him through the word preached by the disciples. Is this kind of unity possible, and if so, how can this happen? Can it be found in the Bible itself?
The unity Jesus prays for I believe can be found in the book of Acts. After Jesus’ ascension the Apostles and others are assembled in the upper room. And Luke reports that, “These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer.” This is approximately fifty days after Jesus had risen from the grave and had appeared to the disciples in that same upper room on the first Sunday after Good Friday. I think it is safe to say that at that first appearance the disciples were in turmoil and definitely not all of one mind. In fact in the days prior to the crucifixion there was a lot of competition, between the disciples, for places of honour in the Kingdom to be inaugurated by Jesus. We need to ask what might have happened in those fifty days from the resurrection to Pentecost.
The gospel of John describes that first appearance in chapter twenty. John reports that the disciples are behind locked doors and afraid. Suddenly Jesus stands in their midst and says, “Peace be with you.” He then breaths on them and says, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” Note that the Holy Spirit was not given on Pentecost, but with a gentle breath, on that first Sunday after the resurrection; that same Holy Spirit filled them with power fifty days later at Pentecost, the day they were all together and of one mind.
After Jesus gives them the Holy Spirit He says, “If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any they have been retained” (John 20:19-23). To me this is the most important, and least understood, principle based on Jesus’ sayings in all of Christianity. The word retain here literally means, “Holding on to something for your own Use.” It is the best description available to describe how we hold on to grudges. If we do not forgive others we think we hold them hostage by our behavior. The truth of unforgiveness is that it turns into a grudge and has the potential of damaging the person holding the grudge. This can spill over into the community leading to gossip, distrust, and discontent. As a result the unity of the community will be lost. At worst it can become an all against one or an all against each other situation.
As we have seen, during their time with Jesus, the disciples were not at one with each other. There was strong competition amongst them for the best place at Jesus’ right or left hand in the kingdom. However, according to the book of Acts, fifty days after the resurrection we find those same disciples all of one mind in that same upper room. We need to ask what might have happened in the mean time. Scripture does not tell us but I believe it is safe to conclude that a lot of forgiveness and reconciliation has taken place between them. Discord was turned into concord, the opportunity for the Holy Spirit to become fully alive and fill them was opened, and the Church was born.
The Church is often metaphorically referred to as, “The body of Christ.” That body becomes especially visible here on earth when its members partake in the sharing of Holy Communion, where they are said to become one in Jesus Christ. I long for the day when not just all members of a denomination become of one mind but all denominations together will do so. I believe that through forgiveness and reconciliation all could become of one mind, and no one would be buying bread from the wrong baker. Truly then the body of Christ would be visible here on earth. Is it Possible? Humanly speaking not likely, but with God all things are possible. One day there will be a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem where no temple or church steeple will be found (Revelation chapter 21).
Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester serves as Pastor to the Anglican Parish of Long Point Bay, Ontario, Canada.

By: Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester.
In the Pulitzer Prize winning book, “Empire of Illusion” Author Chris Hedges laments that we are living in a culture of illusion. He notes, “Blind faith in illusion is our culture’s secular version of being born again. Corporate media control nearly everything we read, watch, or hear. The corporate media imposes a bland uniformity opinion. It diverts us with trivia, celebrity gossip, and so-called reality shows, not to speak of all day news channels with endless repeats of what they want us to believe among a sprinkling of actual news. Hedges says, “They encourage us to bow down before the cult of self. To confront these illusions, to puncture their mendacity by exposing the callousness and cruelty of the corporate state, signals a loss of faith. It is to become an apostate. The culture of illusion, one of happy thoughts, manipulated emotions, and trust in the beneficence of power, means we sing along with the chorus or are instantly disposed from view like the losers of a reality show.”
We live in the age of the computer, the amazing machine, capable of boggling the mind with information overload on almost anything. But wait there is an even more amazing computer available to us, one so amazing that it is capable of thousands of thoughts a day, and capable of solving problems even while we are asleep. It is called the brain. Did you know that inside the skull of our head there is more information stored than in all seventeen million volumes of the library of congress? That is pretty amazing for a little machine, made of just three pounds of flesh.
Much of the whole thought process remains a mystery to scientists and psychologists. But one thing is not a mystery about the mind. How we think is going to affect how we live. The same adage that applies to the computer applies to the brain, “Garbage in-garbage out.”
If Hedges is right that we are living in an empire of illusion then we are in need of a revival of the mind. In hospital before surgeons are about to do surgery they scrub their hands over and over. Why? Because no one wants that surgery performed until the surgeon’s hands are clean. As Christians we have a ministry to perform. And just like the surgeon who needs clean hands for surgery we need to have clean minds.
Listen to what Romans 12:2 says; “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” How are we transformed, by the renewing of our mind? By the revival of our mind. That is how we are transformed. We need not conform to the world. We must be transformed. Our thought life must be different
When I attended school and university I was taught many things. I was taught that I should think critically. What I was not given was a method I could use to do this. My question then is, “Is there a method we can use that leads to clear and accurate thinking?”
Saint Paul gives us such a method in Philippians chapter four verse eight as he says, “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things” Like a filter we can install on a computer to keep unwanted material out so Saint Paul gives us a filter to keep our minds clear and healthy. How do we do this?
Some years ago the then Prime Minister Trudeau was asked if he was in favour of abortion. His answer was, “I am in favour of abortion if the life of the mother is in danger.” The next day the headlines in the papers read, “Prime Minister is in favour of abortion.” Buried deep in the body of the article was the rest of the statement that is, “If the life of the mother is in danger.” The headline was an outright lie. Taken into the filter of Saint Paul asking, “Is this true?” We would register somewhere in the brain, “This is an outright lie.” In other words we should ask this question about everything we read see or hear and register the answer on the brain to attain clarity of thinking.
We don’t stop there. Saint Paul gives us eight different categories in the filter. Next if the answer is yes this is true, then ask is it noble, right, pure, or lovely? If the answer is affirmative then asks is it admirable, excellent or praiseworthy? Then Saint Paul says, “if so, on these things think.”
When we recognize that we are living in an “Empire of Illusion” it is blatantly clear that we are engaged in spiritual warfare. Paul in fact talks about our minds as the battleground for spiritual warfare. He says in Second Corinthians 10:5, We take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. Could you imagine if we took every thought captive? If we take the thousands of thoughts we have in a day multiplied by thousands of Christians, then there are millions of thoughts in one day taken captive for Christ. If that happened we would not only have a revival of our own mind, but there would be a corporate revival that could eliminate the Empire of Illusion.
Paul not only calls for a revival of the mind, but he moves from the thoughts of the mind into action. Paul uses his own life as an example. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me-put it into practice. Paul followed the example of Jesus and he is calling others to follow his example of following Christ.
What are the results of having thoughts that honor God, and putting them into action? . Paul tells us; “The God of Peace will be with you.” The result of a pure mind is that we will experience the presence of God. It will be the end of the Empire of Illusion and the God of peace will be with us.
Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester serves as a Pastor in the Anglican Parish of Long Point Bay, Ontario Canada.

By: Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester.
Where is God when disaster strikes? This is a common question that cannot be logically answered. According to a poll by Believenet.org the majority of believers polled answered, “Although I believe in God, the supernatural has nothing to do with any specific natural disaster. Only eight percent said that disasters are a form of punishment. Personally I grew up with the latter, and whenever anything serious happened to me I was always told, “That is your punishment for the things you have done.”
In the last few years it seems our world has experienced more natural disasters than normal. Given the Tsunami, then Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma an earthquake in Pakistan and the recent earthquake in Haiti where close to 200,000 lives have been lost, the question keeps surfacing: “Where is God in the midst of all these disasters?”
Some people point to Luke’s Gospel where Jesus says, “There will be signs in the sun, the moon and the stars, and on earth nations will be in dismay, perplexed by the roaring of the sea and waves. People will die of fright in anticipation of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. But when these signs begin to happen, stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand” (Luke 22: 25-28).
This passage seems to point towards the end of time or the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. As Christians we do believe in the Second Coming of Christ. Yet we need to remember what Jesus himself said about the end times: “But of that day or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mark 13:32). So if even Jesus could not know when the world will pass away and a new heaven and a new earth will begin, we need to be very cautious in interpreting natural disasters as some great cosmic sign or punishment.
I find myself leaning to the majority of believers polled, God does not send natural disasters to punish us. Some would argue that God did send natural disasters to punish people. To those I would say, “You are free to believe your interpretation, but remember scientific knowledge in biblical times was not what it is today.” I for one need look no further than purely physical forces to understand the tragedy. There is no further historic meaning to the cause of the disaster than in the case of an earthquake the movement of tectonic plates. Natural forces neither intentionally protect nor harm us.
In Matthew 28:20 Jesus offers us these final word, ”Behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.” Therefore, in all these terrible events of nature where so much property and human life is lost, God is with us. Jesus will not and has not abandoned us. He is suffering with us in the midst of these great tragedies. We are not alone. This is the beginning of our hope.
We actually live on a dangerous planet. Natural disasters remind us that our life on this earth can be very short, and we need to be ready for death whenever it comes. Our lives need to be focused on God and his almighty loving ways. We cannot postpone our day of repentance until it is more convenient. It is best to respond today to the call of love so that today we can be assured of our redemption and forgiveness.
However this is not where our faith reaction should stop. Out of death comes life! That is what the resurrection of Jesus and our faith in Him teaches us.
In these disasters our world is given many invitations to respond in love to the needs of the victims who are also most often the poor. Disasters remind us that we have brothers and sisters who live in every land. As children of God with a common Father, we are invited to act as a family to relieve the pain of those afflicted.
These disasters are not something that God has done. God hasn’t picked out a certain group of people in a certain area of the world and said: “I am going to punish them.” The world has certain imperfections built into the natural order, and we have to live with them. The issue isn’t the question, “Why did God do this to us?” but, “How do we human beings care for one another’?” If we want to find God in the midst of a disaster, the place to look is not in the tragedy but in the response.
Frederick Buechner wrote, “If you want to know the kind of person you are as distinct from the kind of person you like to think you are, keep an eye on where your feet carry you. If our insides lead us to higher ground, then we need look no further to find God. God is as near as our own heartbeat.”
Returning to our original question, “Where is God is these disasters?” I find the answer, God is found among those who suffer, and with us in the way we respond to alleviate the suffering.
Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester serves as Pastor to the Anglican Parish of Long Point Bay Ontario Canada.

Prayer for peace, Christmas 2009.

Lord Jesus, you have the words,
That lead to peace.
Our hearts fear,
That leads to war.
Speak to our hearts Lord Jesus.
Words that lead to fear,
Fear that leads to peace.
Amen.

By Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester.
In the Christmas story, and throughout the ministry of Jesus, there is a consistent and powerful message that, if heeded, leads to peace on earth. As the story unfolds the first words spoken by angels, and later in His ministry by Jesus himself are, “Fear not, do not be afraid.”
The Angel Gabriel appeared to Zachariah to tell him that his barren wife Elizabeth would bear a child. The angel’s message was that this child would become John the Baptist and would prepare the way for the coming of the Christ. When confronted with this message Zachariah was both unbelieving and afraid. The first and most memorable thing that the angel said to Zachariah was “Fear not. Don’t be Afraid!” (Luke 1:11-19)
When Mary was met by the Angel Gabriel to tell her of the news of a miracle that would happen in her life, the first thing that was said was “Don’t be afraid.” (Luke 1:26-35)
When the shepherds were unexpectedly confronted by a multitude of angels on the hillside outside Bethlehem they were scared beyond belief. In the words of the gospel writer Luke, “They were sore afraid!” Yet, the first words spoken to them were “Don’t be afraid!” (Luke 2: 1-14)
When his disciples were faced with difficult situations and began to experience anxiety, Jesus himself said , “Fear not. Don’t be afraid.” (Luke 5: 1-11).
What is fear? It is the emotion we feel when we are aware of some sort of threat. Closely related to fear is anxiety. Fear is what we feel toward something we can identify, anxiety is unfocused, a sense of general apprehension about something that resists identification. Fear and anxiety hardly need further definition, because you and I well know what they are from personal experience. Early in life, we may have been afraid of monsters hiding under our beds. As life went on, we learned to fear many things, both real and imagined. To be honest we never totally escape our fear and we generally fear most that which we think has power over us.
The story is told about Nikita Khrushchev of a speech he was delivering that was highly critical of his predecessor, Josef Stalin. In the middle of his diatribe against Stalin, someone from the audience shouted, “You were one of Stalin’s colleagues. Why didn’t you stop him?” Khrushchev roared, “Who said that?” And nobody said a word. An agonizing silence filled the room. Nobody dared move a muscle. Then, in a quiet voice, Khrushchev said, “Now you know why.”
Herod commanded the same absolute power of a Khrushchev or a Stalin, and he ruled through the force of fear. But Herod himself was filled with fear at the thought of losing his power. And so was the entire royal city.
In the story of that first Christmas all the characters were told not to be afraid. Yet, the first Christmas was filled with fear. In fact there are two kinds of fear in the story. Herod feared losing his power, his wealth, his prestige, and his position. This is the kind of fear that leads to violence and war.
The shepherds, Zechariah, Joseph and Mary felt a different fear. Part of their fear signaled their sense of profound awe from being in the presence of God. This is the kind of fear that ultimately leads to peace.
Being fearless doesn’t mean ignoring problems and situations rather it means facing these with the assurance that comes through faith. It means facing problems and situations with the willingness to act in a spirit of joy and hopefulness. It means facing these situations with the peacefulness that comes from knowing we are loved and are capable of sharing that love.
On Christmas Eve as we look at the manger in Bethlehem, we are reminded that Jesus came in a gentle, humble way. His birth is one that cannot and should not be feared. His birth tells us we have value in God’s sight, and God loves us more than we can imagine. Nothing can separate us from that love.
On that first Christmas, God demonstrated his love for us by becoming one of us. The Christ child lived and moved among us with the simple, consistent message that we need not be afraid of God’s presence with us. Because of that presence we can act in faith, hope, joy, and love, no longer living in fear of loosing our power, but rather freely giving away that power towards the realization of peace on earth.
The Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester serves as Pastor to the Anglican Parish of Long Point Bay Ontario Canada.

By: Rev Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester.
According to the Christian Calendar we have once again entered the season of Advent. The season of Advent is a time of preparation for the coming (Latin adventus) of Christ. We usually think of this as preparing for the church’s remembrance of the coming of Christ in the birth of Jesus, celebrated in the feast of Christmas. Essentially in this view we look backward and celebrate what has already happened. However, another ancient theme in the Advent season is preparing for the coming of Christ at the end of time, thus looking forward to the “second” coming in which the present created order will be deconstructed and reconstructed into the realized Reign of God. The reality is we live by faith in the meantime between these two.
The season of Advent looks back, to a time before the birth of Christ, to show us how the people of God learned hope in ancient often troubled times. And then the season of Advent looks forward, far beyond the birth of Christ, to the true object of our faith, the King who comes to conquer the darkness, restore creation, and establish his Kingdom forever. We see in the stories of ancient Israel and in the writings of the prophets a world very much like our own a world of people rebelling against God and finding themselves lost in darkness again and again. The prophets also show how God has a plan, not only for his people Israel, but for the whole world–a plan that extends beyond the birth of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem. Saint Mark for instance clearly states that his writing is, “The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God.” The coming of the Messiah then, at a remarkable moment of peace in the ancient world, was not the completion of God’s plan. Nevertheless, it was the turning point, the critical sign that assures us that there is reason to hope.
During Advent many churches use readings from scripture that foretell end-times the so-called apocalyptic writings. The apocalyptic literature of the Bible, which includes most notably Daniel, the thirteenth chapter of Mark, and the Book of Revelation, exists in the popular consciousness as a sort of hitchhiker’s guide to the end times. The writings are chock-full of predictions of the historical events that will lead to the end of human history. Given the highly metaphorical language the writers use, the specifics can be difficult to pin down, but that ambiguity only feeds speculation.
According to Wikkipedia Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins have written more than a dozen novels imagining the events described in the Book of Revelation. The so-called Left Behind Series is made up of 16 best-selling novels dealing with Christian dispensationalist End Times: pretribulation, premillennial, Christian eschatological viewpoints of the end of the world. Now there is a mouthful. I lack the space to explain all of these terms. Furthermore I am more of a panendtheologist (I really made that word up) meaning in the end it will all pan out and God will prevail.
Whole web sites dealing with the rapture have sprung up. On raptureready.com one can find end-times resources like the Prophetic Top 10—current events that suggest the imminent end of the world. It contains “Left Behind Letters” supposedly penned by those who anticipate being taken up in the Rapture to help those who will be left behind. And all this based on the popularity of about sixteen fictional novels.
Jesus clearly states in Mark 13:5-7, “see to it that no one misleads you…. When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be frightened; those things must take place; but that is not yet the end.” I believe that those who mislead us are prominent in scaring us to death with end time preaching and writing of novels.
The Gospel of Mark was written during times of upheaval. The temple at Jerusalem had been destroyed. Times were desperate for Christians. The word gospel means good news. Mark was writing good news for those in despair in his time and later in ours. What we need to look for is the good news embedded in the bad news of apocalyptic writing. The real purpose of apocalyptic literature is not to foretell the future, but to encourage faithfulness and patience in a troubled present time.
The good news is that the end has not yet come. Those who say that we are living in the end times are misleading us. We live in the meantime between the resurrection and the Second Coming of Christ. Our job is not trying to figure out when the end will come but to preach and share the gospel making the offer of salvation trough Jesus Christ to the entire world.
Advent is a time of hope, contemplation and decision. The focus is that Jesus has come and will come again. This same Jesus said that, “The Gospel must first be preached to all the nations” before the terrible tings of the apocalyptic writings will take place. He commanded his disciples to do so and I believe expects nothing less from his followers in this mean time.
Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester serves as a Pastor to the Anglican parish of Long Point Bay.

By: Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester.
Some years ago when visiting a relative in the Netherlands I found myself surrounded by some of my relative’s family who seemed ill at ease with me, would not talk to me, and basically ignored me. In the course of their conversation I overheard them speak about a person from the next village, only two kilometers away. My relative’s mother in law asked, “Who is that?” When the person was named she simply replied, “Oh-well-that’s-a-stranger.” I suddenly understood that in this rural town if you where not from here, no matter if you lived but two or thousands of kilometers away, you were viewed with suspicion as a stranger.
At the time of this November issue we find ourselves in the midst of hospitality and entertaining isues, beginning with the Thanksgiving Meal, and preparations for Christmas and New years celebrations fully in the planning stage. We might ask, “In the light of Christianity, what is really the difference between hospitality and entertaining?”
Entertaining is often a matter of anxiety for people. It has much to do with how we think others perceive us. We ask, “What flowers are appropriate for the occasion? Is that a fish fork or a salad fork or what?” We look to etiquette books to tell us, or listen to the wisdom of “Miss Manners” who reminds us that entertaining and hospitality is foremost, “A matter of character, a giving of yourself and your attention.” It could drive me to the point of taking a holiday from the holidays.
The practice of hospitality is something scripture expects us to do in our life rather than at certain times of the year. Saint Paul writes in Romans chapter twelve, “Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.” In Saint Paul’s time, and that of the New Testament, there were no such things as hotels or motels. The only “hotels” around were brothels. So one of the first practices that the early church set up was the practice of hospitality so that those in the Christian community who traveled, whether for business, or for the purpose of preaching and spreading the gospel would have safe places to stay.
Of course today things are different. When people travel, they much more often take a hotel, they are safe, and they don’t inconvenience others. Still the scriptures repeatedly tell us to practice hospitality to one another. A good definition of hospitality given by Rev. Bill Versteeg might be, “The divine gift of grace to share with others our home, our lives, our personal space and resources without communicating a need for performance or an expectation of return.”
Versteeg goes on to say it should be obvious that, “This hospitality includes sharing our home, lives, personal space and resources, such as a room, food, or time.” However, one of the first characteristics of good hospitality is that it does not communicate a need for performance. By that he means that the person we welcome into our home does not have to be a great guest, a great conversationalist, or the life of a party. Some times we invite people over because they can perform socially very well. They have class. They have good character. They are intelligent. They are attractive. But if we invite people over with the subtle motivations of socializing in an upwardly mobile way, or for the purposes of personal entertainment and gain, we are expecting some kind of performance and return from them. Good hospitality accepts people into our home no matter what their social or conversational skills are. Regardless of their performance, they are still very welcome. Acts of hospitality, like all acts of true love, are gifts that are given without an expectation of return.
Fred Cradock writes, “The final work of God’s grace is to make us gracious.” If that is so, then the task of hospitality may not be so much our doing something for the furtherance of, but rather, doing nothing to hinder God’s grace to have its way. Henry Nouwen in, “the Wounded healer” writes, “We all know that we feel far more welcomed if our hosts do not focus on their own issues, but with a natural welcoming ability, they focus their interest on our lives.” Hospitality is the gifted ability to focus our attention on our guests. Hospitality does not have to do with how we arrange the table or even what we put on the table for that belongs to the realm of entertainment. Hospitality is simply being at the table and receiving another person as gift from God to us. May many such gifts come our way in the festive time at hand.
Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester serves as Pastor to the Anglican Parish of Long Point Bay Ontario Canada.

By: Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester
Modern story telling methodology begins with an introduction and ends with a summary. The story itself is developed with everything in between. The most important parts for the reader to understand the story are found in the introduction and the summary. This is usually not so in biblical narrative. Often the most important information to understand the story is found at the center of the story, or sandwiched between two stories. This is the case with Jesus’ questions about His identity, found in the Gospel of Mark.
Let’s listen in on the questions and answers provided: “Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, “Who do people say I am? They replied, ‘Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.’ ‘But what about you?’ he asked. ‘Who do you say I am?’ Peter answered, ‘You are the Christ.’ Jesus warned them not to tell anyone about him. He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. ‘Get behind me, Satan!’ he said. ‘You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of the world’” (Mark 8:27-33).
In turn this story is sandwiched between two other stories, the healing of a blind man, and the transfiguration of Jesus. We must ask ourselves, “What at this important junction in the Gospel is Mark telling us?”
I believe Mark is telling us that we must, “See Jesus” in an entirely different light from who we think He is. We must be healed of the blindness of what we want to see, and see instead who Jesus really is in the bright light of the transfiguration.
Peter in his answer to, “Who do you say that I am” answers correctly saying, “You are the Christ.” However Peter is not clearly seeing who Jesus is; he is still seeing what he wants to see rather than accepting who Jesus is. When Jesus began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again Peter objected. Peter took Him aside and said, “Surely that’s not the way the Christ needs to live. Let me tell you what we do expect.” Many an atheist has accused us believers of doing the same thing and thereby creating God in our own image.
Jesus in turn rebukes Peter and says, “Get behind me, Satan! You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.” Dr. Harvard Stephens, Jr. comments, “Peter is able to confess a profound truth: “You are the Christ. You are the Messiah.” Peter uses the right title, but he has trouble accepting its full implication. Jesus has to confront him, even rebuke him, and demand that Peter recognize the danger of his confusion. Get behind me, Satan! These are some of the strongest words in all of scripture spoken to a man we know Jesus loved with all his heart. The work of the kingdom of God is this serious, and everyone who is baptized into Christ has to learn to lead, follow, or get out of the way.
Personally, I would never want to be found standing in Jesus’ way. I can’t imagine rebuking the Lord and telling him that his words are false and reckless and misguided. Yet, every time I join my congregation in an act of public confession of our sins, I am acknowledging my own failure to love God with my whole heart and to love my neighbor as myself. I am admitting that left on my own I am not on God’s side, despite my best intentions. I am in bondage to sin and cannot free myself. I am a leader who is often standing in Jesus’ way. I too often create Jesus in my own image; the image I want to see.
There is an opinion in the world about who Jesus is in answer to the question, “Who do people say that I am.” However, All of us need to come to terms with Jesus question, “Who do you say that I am.” We too may answer, “You are the Christ.” We too may have the title right but will we be able to live with the terms of reference? Following His rebuke of Peter Jesus said to the crowds, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” Indeed, He says to us too, “Lead, follow or get out of the way.” Will we have in mind the things of God or of the world?
Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester serves as a Pastor to the Anglican Parish of Long Point Bay Ontario Canada.

By: Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester.
Just this week I read something amazing. Did you know that our brain can store more information than is in the entire library of congress with all its 17 million plus volumes? Psychologists tell us that each person has about ten thousand thoughts per day. And yet, much of the whole thought process remains a mystery to scientists and psychologists. One thing, however, is not a mystery about the mind. How and what we think will profoundly affect our life.
Quite simply put, if we desire to change our life, we must first change what we think about, what we focus our mind upon and what we speak about. This basic truth is the key to all life and peace of mind. As we think, speak and choose, so our life will be. Our thoughts can be creative or destructive for our words have power.
We need to train and discipline our minds to think in certain ways. Saint Paul writes in Philippians 4:8, “Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things…. And the God of peace will be with you.” The opposite to this in computer speak today is, “Garbage in Garbage out.”
In our daily life we are bombarded with half-truths, ambiguous statements, and outright lies. On account of it our minds can become a maelstrom of confusion. Habits of thoughts become automatic, regardless of whether those thoughts are negative or positive and regardless of whether or not they reflect reality. We all have unrealistically negative thoughts from time to time, but when we dwell there, these negative thoughts become habitual and we lose the ability to recognize that they are unrealistic. Wrong unrealistic thinking can easily lead to mood problems such as depression, anxiety, anger, panic, and a host of other problems. The bombardment of bad economic news that reaches us via the media today can easily lead to all of the above. Believe me, it happened to me.
The bursting of the economic bubble was devastating to my investments, as I believe most of us were affected. Being five years away from retirement panic attacks, and sleepless nights soon set in. My thought patterns became virtually uncontrollable and adversely affected my life, and my ability to work effectively. I was thereby forced to enter into cognitive therapy. Would I have shared this with you when it happened? Not on your life: Pastors are supposed to be strong are they not? Recognize the unrealistic thinking and expectation? In hindsight it may have been one of the best things that happened to me in my ministry, experience definitely is the best teacher. The trouble is the experience usually comes two minutes too late.
Cognitive therapists ask questions about five aspects of our life. They are: environment, thoughts, moods, behaviors, and physical reactions. These are all interconnected and changes in anyone of these will influence all of the others. The bad economic news was the environment, which affected my thinking, moods, behavior, and physical reactions leading to full-blown panic attacks.
Now there is a connection between modern cognitive therapy and Saint Paul’s writing in Philippians. There truly is nothing new under the sun. Much of my thinking was blown out of proportion and not true. My therapist thought me to write these thoughts out and analyze them, identifying where these thoughts were coming from, and bring them down to a true reality establishing the environment that put me back on an even keel. Was it easy? Definitely not, it can be painful to face the truth. Was it worth it? Absolutely!
Putting into practice Saint Paul’s saying, ““Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things,” is good cognitive therapy that should be mastered as a way of life. If we question the truth and purity of all that we hear in our waking hours and literally register these things as true or not true in our thought patterns we are practicing cognitive therapy. If our minds are focused on what is true, right, and pure, we will reap the actions, habits, character, and destinies of those thoughts. This way of life with practice can become second nature and lead to a complete change of life for the better of ourselves and the world at large.
Rev. Canon Tony W. Bouwmeester serves as a Pastor to the Anglican Parish of Long Point Bay Ontario Canada.