Anno Domini 2025 August 7

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Thursday, 7 August, in the year of our Lord 2025. The scheduled services are as-follows:

• Thursday (today): 6:30 PM (Holy Name of Jesus), BCP Lecture, Holy Communion, Soup & Study.
• Friday: 9:00 AM, Mass, Blessed John Mason Neale, Confessor, with Gregorian Canon.
  Immediately following, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, Holy Communion.
  Immediately following, vestry meeting.
• Sunday: 8:30 AM, Mass, Trinity VIII.
  10:00 AM, Mass, Saint Lawrence, Deacon & Martyr, Commemorate Trinity VIII.
  12:30 PM, Good Shepherd Parish holds their services.

As you will have read, there is an ad hoc vestry meeting this Saturday. With the Synod that we are hosting merely a month-away, it seems prudent to insure that we've made all due preparations; thus, the meeting. Additionally, there will be a meeting for all Synod volunteers on Saturday, 6 September, at 10:00 AM.

I'm certain that the announcement of 'Good Shepherd using our facilities caught many off-guard. Truth be told, I only received their request for aid the Friday before; they had been seeking, and failed to find, alternate housing for their services, and reached-out to me at the eleventh hour. In situations such as those, there is only one correct response in the sight of our Lord, and so, the decision was made.

However, quick decisions and changes do not always allow for proper planning. As-such, rather than shortening our coffee-hour, after the 10:00 Mass, we will simply close the doors betwixt the Parish Hall and the Nave, at 12:30 PM. This will leave our Sabbath routine unchanged, whilst we still offer aid to our Brothers and Sisters in Christ.

As has been noted in recent sermons and classes, Anglicanism is now in a greater state of flux, perhaps than it has ever been. We can anticipate these circumstances, and must acknowledge that these waves have already reached our shores, over the last few years, and will continue to do so. The single most important aspect is this ~ the preservation our Parish, before- and above all. Entire jurisdictions have come-and-gone, but Saint Matthew's has- and will remain. As it has been written, so shall it be! I remain

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Rector, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2025 August 2

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Saturday, 2 August, in the year of our Lord 2025. There are important scheduling issues below, please be sure to read! The scheduled services are as-follows:

• Sunday (tomorrow): 8:30 AM, Deacon's Liturgy, Trinity VII.
  10:00 AM, Mass, Trinity VII, Commemorate S. Nicodemus, Confessor.
  12:00 PM, building in-use by Good Shepherd Anglican Church.
• Monday: 10:00 AM, Mass, S. Dominic, Confessor.
• Tuesday: 5:30 PM, Mass, S. Oswald, King and Martyr.
  6:30 PM, Rosary and Evensong.
• Wednesday: 12:10 PM, Mass, Feast of the Transfiguration.
• Thursday: 6:30 PM, Lecture, Holy Communion, Supper and Study.
• Friday: 9:00 AM, Mass, Blessed John Mason Neale, Confessor, with the Gregorian Canon.
  Immediately following, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, Mass, S. John Vianney, Confessor.
• Sunday: 8:30 & 10:00 AM, Mass, S. Lawrence, Deacon & Martyr, Commemorate Trinity VIII.
  12:00 PM, building in-use by Good Shepherd Anglican Church.

PLEASE NOTE! As a result of circumstances beyond their control, Good Shepherd Parish (a conservative congregation within the ACNA) found themselves in need of a place to hold their services for the next two weeks. Deacon Raynes, who I've known for some years, reached-out to me to see if Saint Matthew's could help, as they'd been unable to find an alternate location. I told him that we'd be delighted to help, and established a schedule whereby we could do so.

THE COFFEE HOUR AFTER THE 10:00 MASS MUST END AT NOON, SHARP, FOR THE NEXT TWO WEEKS! We will continue to hold our services at their regular times ~ that schedule will not be affected. In-order that 'Good Shepherd might hold their services as-early in the day as-possible, I've given them permission to begin at 12:30 PM. We will clear the building by 12:00 PM, so that they may begin to enter, and set-up for their services.

When I was in Warrenton, many Moons-ago, I arranged a similar circumstance. There was a Sryian-Antiochian Western-Rite Orthodox Church there, who was suddenly in-need of a temporary meeting-place. They eventually went on to build a lovely parish of their own (S. Patrick's), but, for a time, we supported them in their journey.

The National Synod for the CAC will be hosted by us; it will run from the Ninth through the Twelfth of September (Tuesday evening through Friday morning). There will be a vestry meeting one-week from today, on 9 August, at 10:00 AM, to insure that we are on-pace in our preparations. As-always, members of the parish are always welcome to attend ~ further, you've likely already been asked for your support of the 'Synod. If not, and if you're itching for an opportunity to help, please consult myself or Charlotte Haden.

The Parish Directory has been updated, and will soon be distributed. We've added a number of names since the last edition, praise God! I remain

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Rector, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2025 July 15

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Tuesday, 15 July, in the year of our Lord 2025. Sunday, 15 July, AD 2012, was the first day that I said the Mass at Saint Matthew's. Thus, thirteen years have come and gone, since that day.

Pepper was with me, for that first visit. I'd had him about a month, at that time. He has since gone to his reward. Let us be thankful for all of the good that we've done over these years, and thoughtful about the good that we may yet do, in the years to come. The scheduled services are as-follows:

• Tuesday (today): 5:30 PM, Mass, Translation of S. Swithun.
  6:30 PM, Sung Evensong.
• Wednesday: 12:10 PM, Mass, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel.
• Thursday: 6:30 PM, Lecture on the Prayer Book Ordinal, with Holy Communion.
  Immediately following, Soup & Supper, study of the Gospel according to Saint Luke.
• Friday: 9:00 AM, Mass, S. Camillus of Lellis, Confessor, using the Gregorian Canon.
  Immediately following, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, Holy Communion, S. Vincent de Paul, Confessor.
• Sunday: 8:30 AM, Mass, Trinity V.
  10:00 AM, Mass, Trinity V, Comm. S. Margaret of Antioch.

A week from this-coming Sunday, 27 July, we will have the monthly Parish Brunch at Schooner's Grill, a few miles North on Warwick Blvd. from the Parish. We will leave here after the 10:00 Mass has concluded.

A topic that I've had in-mind for a bit is the manner in which we receive Holy Communion ~ the mechanics of it. The first step involves receiving the Host, or the Bread. There are only two ways to do this; in the hand, or on the tongue. If you wish to receive it in the hand, extend your hand before you, as you're at the Altar Rail. You may kneel or stand there, as you're best able. Kneeling is the best choice, but if one is physically unable to kneel, standing is perfectly acceptable.

You should always place your right hand over your left, palm up. Reception into the left hand is not appropriate. This derives from millennia of the right being considered stronger, thus proper, and the left as being weaker, thus questionable, among other associations.

Once the Host rests upon your palm, you've two choices. The most common is to extend your tongue, and draw the host into your mouth thereby ~ the moistened tip of your tongue will adhere to the host. The other is to wait for the Clergy to approach, at which point he will pick-up the host, dip it into the Chalice (intinction), and place it upon the tip of your tongue.

At no time is it appropriate to handle the host. Once the host is in your hand, do not pick it up with your other hand, and place it in your mouth. This is the Body of our Lord, and should never be handled; on those occasions when it must be, only hands blessed for that purpose (Clergy) should do so.

If you've chosen to receive the Host on the tongue, from the Clergy, you will next receive the precious Blood, from the Chalice. The best choice is to place your hands upon the Altar Rail, and to let the Clergy tip the Cup to your lips, that you may receive the Sacrament. If you feel the need to steady the Chalice, grasp the base of the Chalice, and tip it towards your mouth, using the Clergy's hand as the fulcrum for the motion of the cup. At no time should your hand ever touch the actual bowl, or Cup, that contains the precious Blood. Again, this is reserved for Clergy hands.

These, then, are the simple rules for the manual Reception of the Body and Blood of our Lord, Jesus, the Christ. The Eastern Church employs other rules, which are more restrictive, and yet likely more appropriate, for this greatest of all mysteries. I remain

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Rector, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2025 June 9

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Monday, 9 June, in the year of our Lord 2025. The scheduled services are as-follows:

• Tuesday (tomorrow): 5:30 PM, Mass, Tuesday in Whitsuntide.
  6:30 PM: Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, Evensong.
• Wednesday: 12:10 PM, Mass, Ember Wednesday in Whitsuntide.
• Thursday: 8:00 AM, Morning Prayer, Thursday in Whitsuntide, breakfast to follow.
  6:30 PM, Mass, Thursday in Whitsuntide, Soup & Study to follow.
• Friday: 9:00 AM, Mass, Ember Friday in Whitsuntide, with the Gregorian Canon.
  Immediately following, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, Holy Communion, Ember Saturday in Whitsuntide.
• Sunday: 8:30 & 10:00 AM, Mass, Trinity Sunday.

The dates for the upcoming Synod of the CAC have been expanded by the Archbishop. It will now run from the 9th ~ 12th of September, this year. Hopefully, by the end of this week, a finalised version of the Agenda will be published.

In less than a week, we will have exhausted the brief Seasons of Holy Church that exist betwixt Easter and Trinity Sunday. As the first half of the Church year (commencing upon Advent I) is devoted to the life of our Lord, the second (commencing on Trinity Sunday) is largely focussed on the life and ways of Holy Church. If it can be said that difficulties arise in the discussion of either of these areas, said difficulties will far-and-away more often concern the Church, which is shot-through with humans, and their flaws.

It has become very apparent that Anglicanism (indeed perhaps all of Christendome, but let us speak of those things we best know) is in a greater period of flux, of turmoil, than it has ever been during my lifetime. Conversations with Brother Clergy, both near and far, across numerous jurisdictions, support this observation, along with their own. When I began my studies for Holy Orders, over three decades past, it was often whispered that a half-dozen or so requiems would remove the walls of division from American Anglicanism, paving the way for the unity that was hoped-for by the faithful at Saint Louis, and later at Denver. All of those requiems have come-and-gone, yet here we remain, as-scattered, if not moreso, than ever.

There is much cause for despair in all of this. There are two points that remain salient, however. The first is that, per our sister Churches in the Orthodox East, despair itself is a sin. To allow oneself to enter this state is to implicitly deny the power of the Holy Ghost to not only resolve all things, but to resolve them for the good. Inasmuch as our Lord Himself gives the only Unforgivable Sin as the denial of the Holy Ghost, this would seem a very bad place to approach, much-less to tread.

The second is that despite all of the sin and corruption we've sporadically seen in the leadership of these Anglican churches, the individual parishes have soldiered-on. They have always been the strength and support of our Movement. They will continue to be so.

Pray for your Parish. Pray for your parochial Clergy. Pray for all of the grace, and growth, and love that can fall upon the foregoing. Work and pray to preserve your spiritual home, that God may preserve you, in that great hour of His Son's return. I remain

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Rector, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2025 May 13

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Tuesday, 13 May, in the year of our Lord 2025. The scheduled services are as-follows:

• Tuesday (today): NO SERVICES. 
• Wednesday: 12:10 PM, Mass, S. Pachomius, Abbot.
• Thursday: 6:30 PM, brief services. followed by Holy Communion, and Soup and Study.
• Friday: 9:00 AM, Mass, S. Simon Stock, Confessor, with the Gregorian Canon.
  10:00 AM, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, Holy Communion.
• Sunday: 8:30 AM, Deacon's Liturgy, Easter IV.
  10:00 AM, Mass, Easter IV.

SERVICES ARE CANCELLED TONIGHT, Tuesday, 13 May. The last weather report that I saw indicated worsening conditions during the time that we would be holding services. The schedule will resume tomorrow, Wednesday, 14 May, with the usual Noon Service.

Although it is still some way off, we must bear in-mind that we will be hosting the National Synod for the CAC. The will run from Thursday, 11 September, into Saturday, 13 September, of this year ~ so about four months from now. We will need to provide several meals, meeting space, and material support for the liturgies and other services that will be held. Inasmuch as this is far from our first rodeo, no difficulties are anticipated, but we will need volunteers, especially when it comes to food 'prep and serving. Further information will soon be forthcoming.

As a quick glance at the schedule of services will tell you, we are still in the Season of Easter ~ Eastertide to Anglicans. Eastertide essentially comes to a close with the Feast of the Ascension of our Lord, per the Scriptural narrative. The Octave, or eight day celebration of this Feast, is quickly followed by Whitsuntide, known by non-Anglicans as the Feast and Season of Pentecost.

Whitsuntide is a contraction of White Sunday. This was, especially in the medieval Church, the second-most common day of the year for Baptisms, following Holy Saturday, also known as Easter Even. On White Sunday, the villagers would take one of their annual or semi-annual baths, and parade through the streets dressed in white, on their way to the Church, or Cathedral, to receive their Baptism.

Whitsuntide ends just in-time for Trinitytide to begin. Just as the first half of the Christian year, which commences with Advent I, concerns itself with the life of our Lord, the second half ~ pretty-much fully consumed by Trinitytide ~, commencing on Trinity I, teaches us the life of Holy Church, and her Teachings. Thus, in a little-over a month, we will transition-into the great, green Season ~ the liturgical colour appropriate to both Trinitytide, and Epiphanytide. For your liturgi-trivia of the day, the first two Sundays of Trinitytide are actually not green, but white. Trinity I always falls within the Octave of the Feast of Corpus Christi, whilst Trinity II falls within the Octave of the Nativity of S. John Baptist, making both of these days 'White' Sundays.

Hence, the beauty and the Glory of the Kalendar of Holy Church. It is, perhaps, the single greatest teaching tool that we have, and one of the most over-looked. Follow it, as it inexorably leads you to our Lord, His Church, and your own Salvation.

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Rector, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2025 May 6

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Tuesday, 6 May, in the year of our Lord 2025. The scheduled services are as-follows:

• Tuesday (today): 5:30 PM, Mass, S.  John before the Latin Gate.
  6:30 PM, Holy Rosary, followed by Evensong.
• Wednesday: 12:10 PM, Mass, Patronage of S.  Joseph.
• Thursday: 8:00 AM, men's Morning Prayer & Breakfast.
  6:30 PM, services, followed by Soup & Study.
• Friday: 9:00 AM, Mass, Gregory of Nazianzus.
  10:00 AM, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, Holy Communion.
• Sunday: 8:30 & 10:00 AM, Mass, Easter III.

Well, the High, Holy Days are largely now behind us. In a matter of weeks, Trinitytide, the long, Green Season, will commence, and we shall be firmly ensconced in the second-half of our Christian Year, which addresses the life and nature of Holy Church, having passed-out of the first half, which holds the life of our Lord as its chief focus. Thus, Time goes marching-on, into the distance.

For the foreseeable future, nothing unusual appears on the horizon of the Kalendar. We shall tread the usual rounds, 'til September, when we will host the General Synod for the CAC, the dates of which are the Eleventh through the Thirteenth of that month. After that, we will once-more slip-into both the holidays- and Holy Days that occupy the end of the civil Calendar.

We've many assets here, at Saint Matthew's, up-to and including daily access to the most blessed sacrament, virtually every day of the year. Be sober, be vigilant, for your adversary walketh about like a roaring, seeking whom he may devour. I remain

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Pastor, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2025, Maunday Thursday (April 17)

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Maundy Thursday, the beginning of the Great Triduum of Holy Mother, the Church. It is also 17 April, in the year of our Lord 2025. The services are as-follows:

The Thursday of the Lord's Supper, Commonly Called Maundy Thursday (today): 6:30 PM, Mass of the day, with the S. Luke Passion; the Procession to the Altar of Repose; the Stripping of the High Altar; the Maundy (foot-washing); Tenebrae of Good Friday.

Good Friday: 12:10 PM (Noon), Mass of the Catechumens with the S. John Passion; the Solemn Collects; The Veneration of the Cross; The Mass of the Presanctified; silence in the Church until 3:00 PM for prayer and reflection.

The Holy Sabbath of Holy Week, Commonly Called Holy Saturday or Easter Even: 8:00 PM, opening Scriptural readings; the Blessing of the New Fire and the Paschal Candle; The Prophecies (of the Sarum usage); the Blessing of the Baptismal Font; the Mass of Easter Even, being the First Mass of Easter.

The Sunday of the Resurrection, Commonly Called Easter Day: 8:30 AM, the Holy Eucharist from the Book of Common Prayer.
10:00 AM, Mass from the Anglican Missal.

Despite the beautiful, sunny skies outside, we begin today the Darkest of Seasons in our Christian year, the holy Triduum, that being the three days prior to the Day of the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus, the Christ. Today the Altar is stripped, removing all trace of the grace of our Lord from our midst, as the crosses and icons have already been covered. Today, the Clergy, remembering their role as Altar Christus, wash the feet of the assembled laity. Today, we read the Office of Shadows (Tenebrae) as our last act of the day. Reckoning time in the Jewish system, one day ends, and another begins, at sunset, not Midnight, as we conceive of it. Thus, tonight at Sunset begins Good Friday, which is why we will say the Tenebrae for Good Friday. Tenebrae for Maundy Thursday, had we said it, would have been last-night.

Inasmuch as nothing may be Blessed or Consecrated during the holy Triduum, a single Priest's Host is Consecrated on Thursday, for the Mass of the Presanctified on Good Friday. Only the Priest will Receive on that day, as a reminder that our Lord has died and gone away from us, taking with Him His Grace. On this Darkest of days, we are reminded that we killed Him, the point driven-home by our inability to receive Him, and His salvation.

After the the Liturgy of the day has concluded, the Church is left open, so that anyone who wishes may come and sit silently. This is an opportunity for prayer, reflection, and meditation. The Church is usually closed at Three o'Clock.

Holy Saturday is the culmination of everything that has been said or done throughout Pre Lent, Great Lent, Passiontide, and Holy Week. In simplest form, we are brought out of the Darkness, and into His Light, at every step of the way, in every Ceremony, Rite, and Liturgy of this night. Please join us, this-evening, as we begin the greatest of journeys, the final travel and travails, of the greatest story ever lived. I remain

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Pastor, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2025 April 5

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Saturday, 5 April, in the year of our Lord 2025. The scheduled services are as-follows:

• Sunday: (tomorrow): 8:30 & 10:00 AM, Mass, Passion Sunday (Lent V).
• Monday: 10:00 AM, Mass, Monday in Passiontide.
• Tuesday: 5:30 PM, Mass, Tuesday in Passiontide.
  6:30 PM, Sung Evensong.
• Wednesday: 12:10 PM, Mass, Wednesday in Passiontide.
• Thursday: 8:00 AM, men's monthly Morning Prayer & Breakfast.
  6:30 PM, Mass, Thursday in Passiontide, Soup and Study.
• Friday: 9:00 AM, Sung Mass, Compassion of the BVM, with Gregorian Canon.
  Immediately following; Stations of the Cross, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, Holy Communion, Saturday in Passiontide.
• Sunday: 8:30 & 10:00 AM, Mass, Palm Sunday.

Tomorrow afternoon, at 4:00, the Susan and Joseph Graif foundation will host a concert of silent movie accompaniment, and a showing (with said musical enrichment) of My Best Girl, a film starring Mary Pickford. Joe was our interim organist at S. Matthew's, before Michael Gibson joined us. I will be attending the concert, and encourage everyone in the Parish to do so as-well.

I thought that I might mention a few of the peculiarities attached to having a Bishop in one's Parish. Customarily, when the Bishop recesses from the Altar and through the nave, he gives Apostolic Blessings, alternating from side-to-side of the center aisle. As he passes, those who are able genuflect, and make the sign of the Cross as he faces and blesses them.

During the Blessings given by the Bishop from the Altar, the Bishop makes the sign of the Cross three times ~ center, his right, and his left. Again, for those who make the sign of the Cross as a regular part of their worship, you wait for the Bishop to make the sign over you, before you make your sign in-response. Thus, the center blessing is typically for the choir and servers ~ anyone who is in-service at or near the Altar. The right-blessing is for those sitting on the Gospel side of the nave; that on the left for those on the Epistle side.

These are not do it or-else matters, but they are important means for us to recognise, participate-in, and perpetuate the customs that sustain and inform our faith. A Bishop is, ideally, an heir to the Twelve; a Prince of the Church, the Breath of the Apostles. We celebrate this most important of ministries, the servant of the servants of God, through these small acts of recognition. I remain

His devoted servant,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Pastor, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2025, Lent III (March 23)

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Sunday, Lent III. The scheduled services are as-follows:

• Monday (tomorrow): 10:00 AM, Mass, S. Gabriel, Archangel.
• Tuesday: 5:30 PM, Mass, the Feast of the Annunciation of the BVM.
  6:30 PM, Holy Rosary & Evensong.
• Wednesday: 12:10 PM, Mass, Lenten Feria.
• Thursday: 6:30 PM, Evening Prayer from Family Prayer; Holy Communion, S. John of Damascus, Bishop, Confessor, Doctor. Immediately following, Soup & Study.
• Friday: 9:00 AM, Mass, S. John of Capistrano, Confessor, with Gregorian Canon.
  Immediately following, Stations of the Cross, followed in-turn by Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
  STATIONS BY APPOINTMENT.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, Holy Communion, Lenten Feria.
• Sunday: 8:30 & 10:00 AM, Lent IV, Mothering Sunday.

Inasmuch as we've had no lay-participation in the Friday-evening Stations of the Cross, they will be removed from the schedule. However, as has been the case ever-since we established 'Stations as a regular part of our Lenten devotions, if there is another more-suitable time, let me know, and we can sing them then. They are an important part of our spiritual regimen during Great Lent.

The just-concluded Clericus of the CAC was very informative. Much information was distributed, debated, and prayed-over. The peak of the Clericus was, of-course, the Consecration of The Rev'd Canon David Francis Sokol as the First Bishop-Ordinary of the Diocese of Saint Cuthbert. The fellowship was wonderful, the ceremonial and assemblage moving. We are marching-forward!

Easter Day is now less-than a month-away. Double-down on your devotions, on your sacrifices, on your admissions of guilt, on your preparations for that great and glourious day. Time ever-passes, but is only lost when we fail to make devoted use of it. I remain

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Pastor, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2025 March 1

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Saturday, 1 March, in the year of our Lord 2025. The scheduled service are as-follows:

• Sunday (tomorrow): 8:30 AM, Deacon's Liturgy, Quinquagesima.
  10:00 AM, Mass, Quinquagesima.
• Monday: 10:00 AM, Mass, S. Aelred, Abbot.
• Tuesday: 5:30 PM, SHROVE TUESDAY, pancake Supper ~ last day to bring blessed palms to Church.
• Wednesday: 12:10 & 6:30 PM, ASH WEDNESDAY, The Great Litany, A Penitential Office, the Blessing of the Palms, Mass.
• Thursday: 6:30 PM, SS. Perpetua & Felicity, Sung Evensong, Holy Communion, followed by Supper and Study.
• Friday: 9:00 AM, Mass, S. Thomas Aquinas, using the Gregorian Canon.
  Immediately following, 'Stations of the Cross, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, Holy Communion, S. John of God, Confessor.
• Sunday: 8:30 & 10:00 AM, Mass, Lent I.

BRING YOUR BLESSED PALMS FROM LAST YEAR TOMORROW! I will burn all palms brought-in to use as ashes for Ash Wednesday. Tuesday is the cut-off, as I usually burn the palms on Wednesday morning. However, if you fail to bring your palms in-time for Ash Wednesday, still bring them in, as they will be replaced on Palm Sunday.

As one may see from the foregoing, we've a busy week before us. There will be NO SERVICES on Tuesday, aside from the Pancake Supper. There was a mis-print in last week's 'Post, concerning the times. Servers, cooks, etc. are to be at the Parish no-later than 5:00 PM. Food will begin to be served at 5:30 PM. Food service will cease no-later than 7:00 PM. A small donation to benefit the Altar Guild will be asked.

There will be two services on Ash Wednesday. One will be a Sung Mass, and the other Said ~ otherwise, they will be identical. The evening service is primarily for those who cannot attend in the daytime ~ no excuse to miss Ash Wednesday.

The rest of the week will be per the usual schedule. Do remember, though, that a Lenten Feria is unlike many of the other ferial Fests throughout the year, whereupon the Mass of the preceding Sunday is merely repeated. There is a Mass specific to every day in Lent. Once more, you will have the opportunity to collect them all! I remain

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Pastor, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2025 February 25

Beloved of the Lord:

To-day is Tuesday, 25 February, in the year of our Lord 2025. The scheduled services are as-below:

• Tuesday (today): 6:30 PM, monthly Parish Requiem.
• Wednesday: 12:10 PM, Mass, Feria.
• Thursday: 6:30 PM, Mass, Blessed George Herbert, Priest, followed by Supper and Study.
• Friday: 9:00 AM, Mass, Feria, using the Gregorian Canon.
  Immediately following, Stations of the Cross, and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, Holy Communion, S. David, Bishop & Confessor.
• Sunday: 8:30 AM, Deacon's Liturgy, Quinquagesima.
  10:00 AM, Mass, Quinquagesima.

This-coming week-end is the running of the One City Marathon. Of-course, this is run on a Sunday, and traffic is altered on some streets, most notably Warwick Blvd., for our purposes. More precise information may be found at: Newport News News Flash

One week from today will be Shrove Tuesday, and the attendant Pancake Supper. All men of the Parish are encouraged to participate ~ this meal is our duty to prepare. We will need both cooks and dishwashers, though not too many of the latter, as we use disposable dinnerware, leaving mostly the cooking vessels to scrub.

The day after Shrove Tuesday is, of-course, Ash Wednesday. Please make immediate plans to return ANY and ALL blessed palms from Palm Sunday last to the Parish. I will incinerate them, thereby removing the blessing placed-upon them, that they may receive the blessing of Ashes, and be placed-upon us, and worn throughout Ash Wednesday, signifying ourselves as Christians, for all the world to see. Before retiring on Ash Wednesday, wipe the blessed ashes away with a tissue, place them in a plastic or paper bag, and take them to the Parish, so that they may receive proper disposal.

It is my sad duty to report that we've recently discovered that our own Val Rasieleski, who held a number of important positions in our Parish, before moving to Rhode Island to be nearer to her children and grandchildren, entered the gates of larger life, this-past November. Val served on the Vestry, and was very active with the Altar Guild, among other duties. She will not soon be forgotten in Saint Matthew's.

Val's passing, and the late discovery of it by the Parish, highlights the need for proper end-of-life planning. Each of us should have a packet, folder, or thumb-drive containing the contacts and documents necessary in the event of our passing. The telephone numbers for the Parish, and the Priest, should be included. You should also meet with your Clergy, preferably before any indication of your mortality manifests, and plan your Requiem. As Anglican Catholics, memorial services are discouraged, as the Mass is the only service proper to the ending of a life.

Lastly, in this same packet, copies of your estate planning, including those elements pertaining to the Church, should be placed. In nearly thirty years of Ordained ministry, I've only personally witnessed one instance in which provision for the decedent's Parish were made. Every glorious stone Church, every beautiful edifice, every magnificent organ, was built largely, if not solely provided, through memorial gifts or bequests. It has never ceased to amaze me that our Movement, founded in the attempt to preserve tradition and orthodoxy, has done such a poor job of building the fabric of Holy Church, as did our fathers, who taught us the value of such things. Lent will give us the opportunity to contemplate these, and other, essential matters. I remain

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Pastor, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2025 February 18

Beloved of the Lord:

To-day is Tuesday, 18 February, in the year of our Lord 2025. The scheduled services are as-follows ~ note the term 'scheduled'. Should the weather intervene in our usual schedule, further announcements will be forth-coming.

• Tuesday (today): 5:30 PM, Mass, S. Bernadette of Lourdes.
  Immediately following, Evensong.
• Wednesday: 12:10 PM, Mass, Feria,
• Thursday: 6:30 PM, Mass, Feria, followed-by Supper & Study.
• Friday: 9:00 AM, Mass, Feria, using the Gregorian Canon.
  Immediately following, Stations of the Cross, Veneration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, Holy Communion, S. Joseph of Arimathea.
• Sunday: 8:30 & 10:00 AM, Mass, Sexagesima.

As-referenced above, the weather is threatening to once more interfere with our Service Schedule. Though the specifics vary minute-to-minute, the general circumstances have remained constant, in-that snow is expected sometime on Wednesday (tomorrow), continuing into the early-morning hours of Thursday. Based on what is currently being supposed, I see no reason to worry about- or change our Wednesday schedule (Mass at Noon plus ten minutes). An e-mail will be distributed on Thursday, concerning the services for that evening.

Healing is, perhaps, the most common miracle performed by our Lord. At some point in our lives, every one of us needs healing, either physical, or spiritual, or both. Perfect healing is only available from God.

Healing by God never comes but that prayer ~ supplication ~ precedes it. We must seek it out, whether from God the Father, God the Son, or God the Holy Ghost. Even in those Scriptural instances when Our Lord is petitioned directly by someone literally in-front of him, those requests are but prayers delivered in-person, so-to-speak.

As is the case in every area of prayer, we may ask the Saints to pray on our behalf, but we do not ask them to heal us. We simply ask that they offer prayers from the might of their sanctity for the self-same healing that we seek. Over the ages, certain diseases have been assigned to specific Saints ... Saint Blasius for throats, for-example, whose Feast and blessing we recently celebrated.

Speaking of Saint Blasius, of whom we may request prayers for healing for any ailments, not simply throats, his blessing may be sought and given at any time, not only on his Feast. Indeed, we gave it twice in the week of his Feast, for those who could not attend on the very day. I've long-considered appending the usual healing service to the end of every Mass at Saint Matthew's. This blessing only takes a few minutes to distribute to an entire 'rail of supplicants, so no great interference to our usual order- or length of service.

Think and pray over this. It could be done every day, or on select days, as part of a fixed schedule. Let me know what you think, and I'll institute this service, as a regular part of our schedule, in the near-future.

As a last thought, it must be noted that, whilst at the rail, you may ask for the blessing for someone who is not in-attendance, but requires healing, nevertheless. The prayer is said over you, and the holy oil applied to you, as you act as a surrogate for the one needing the blessing. Some have argued against this practice, but far better to err in the over-extension of Christ's mercy, than in the guarding of it, or so I have believed, and preached. I remain

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Pastor, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2025 February 1

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Saturday, 1 February, in the year of our Lord 2025. The scheduled services are as-follows:

• Sunday (tomorrow): 8:30 AM, Deacon's Liturgy, Purification of the BVM. 10:00 AM, Mass, Purification of the BVM.
• Monday: 10:00 AM, Mass, S. Blasius, Bishop & Martyr.
• Tuesday: 5:30 PM, Mass, Gilbert of Sempringham, Abbot.
  6:30 PM, Holy Rosary & Evensong.
• Wednesday: 12:10 PM, Mass, S. Agatha, Virgin & Martyr.
• Thursday: 6:30 PM, Mass, S. Titus, Bishop & Confessor, followed by Supper & Study.
• Friday: 9:00 AM, Mass, S. Romuald, Abbot, with the Gregorian Canon.
  Immediately following, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, Holy Communion, S. John of Matha, Confessor.
• Sunday: 8:30 & 10:00 AM, Mass, Epiphany V.

As you read above, the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary will be the Feast at both Sunday services. This is one of the two Marian Feasts listed as days of Obligation in the Book of Common Prayer. For we Anglicans, it is also known as Candlemas, when the candles to be used in the Church are blessed, before being used.

It has been the custom for some years at Saint Matthew's that I drive to NOVA, and get all of the candles that we will use over the coming year. They are then Blessed on Candlemas, that all things may be done decently, and in-order. This year, Candlemas falls on a Sunday ~ it is a Feast of Obligation in the Church, meaning that the faithful are required to attend, which will be made easier this year, as it falls on the Sabbath.

The Feast commemorates the Purification of the BVM, and the presentation of Christ in the Temple which took place forty days after His birth, as the Jewish Law required. It was kept locally at Jerusalem from circa 350 on 14 February and later on 2 February. In 542 the Emperor Justinian ordered its Observance at Constantinople as a thanksgiving for the cessation of the plague, and it thence spread throughout the East, where it was called "The Meeting", i.e. of Christ with Simeon. Somewhat later, it began to be widely kept in the West.

The blessing of candles is now the distinctive rite on this day in the West. Beeswax candles, which are blessed, distributed, and lit whilst the Nunc Dimittis is sung, are carried in a procession commemorating entrance of Christ, the 'True Light' into the Temple. As it has been done in time-past, so do we now, at Saint Matthew's.

On Monday, we will observe the Feast of Saint Blasius. This is ~ for us ~ always accompanied by the blessing of throats. Given the season, and the state of things in the World, I hope to see many joining us to receive these gifts ~ the Holy Sacrament, and a Blessing against illness. I remain

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Pastor, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2025 January 25

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Saturday, 25 January, in the year of our Lord 2025. The scheduled services are as-follows:

• Sunday (tomorrow): 8:30 & 10:00  AM , Mass, Epiphany III. Parish Brunch after the 10:00 Mass, at Uno's Pizzaria, in Kiln Creek.
• Monday: 10:00  AM, Mass, S. John Chrysostom, Bishop, Confessor, Doctor.
• Tuesday: NO SERVICES.
• Wednesday: 12:10  PM, Sext (Noonday Prayers).
• Thursday: 6:30  PM, Mass, Blessed Charles Stuart, King & Martyr. Soup and Supper to follow.
• Friday: 9:00  AM, Mass, S. John Bosco, Confessor, with Gregorian Canon.
  Immediately following, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00  AM, Holy Communion, S. Ignatius, Bishop & Martyr.
• Sunday: 8:30 & 10:00  AM, Mass, Purification of the BVM.

Tomorrow, after the Ten o'clock Mass, there will be no coffee-hour. Instead, we will depart the Parish for our monthly Parish Brunch. It will be held at Uno's Pizzaria and Grill in the Kiln Creek Shopping Center. We've been there a number of times; join us for a good meal and good fellowship.

I will briefly be out of the Parish, this week. I make an annual trip to procure the candles that we burn throughout our liturgical year. The cost of the fuel is actually less than the freight, and we don't suffer any breakage when we pick the shipment up ourselves. There will be no services on Tuesday, but I'll be back in-time for the Mass, Meal and Study, on Thursday evening.

To my memory, since we began the daily Mass in AD 2017, we've never gone three consecutive days without services. Even when I'm on-vacation, Deacon Collins and Mr. Elsnau make certain that we never go more than a single day without a service of some-sort. I suspect that we could have met on Thursday, but some parishioners still had some doubts about driving. There were no Feasts of Obligation on the missed days, hence no need to force the issue of attendance.

Oftentimes the suggestion is made to say one's Morning- or Evening Office, on those days when we've no corporate services in the Parish. I fear that the 'Offices are largely forgotten, on the part of the laity of the Church. As Anglican Clergy, we are required to say our Daily Offices every day, without exception. At Saint Matthew's, we say one of the 'Offices at-least once-per-month, and usually more often than that, simply to give the faithful an opportunity to remember and recite these cornerstone prayers of the Anglican tradition.

It is noteworthy that these prayer services require no Clergy. Even when Clergy are present, and the prayer of Absolution is pronounced, the Clergy are to make the Sign of the Cross over themselves, and not over the people. The only prayer that requires modification in the absence of Clergy is the short form of the prayer of Absolution found in the Evening Office, which requires the substitution of 'our' for 'your' when there is neither Priest nor Bishop present.

Additionally, the 'Offices must be said, be spoken-aloud, whether in the Parish or at-home. They are never to be read silently. They must be given voice  ~ they must be living prayers, not merely rote exercises, done in-silence. Whether you are alone, as we Clergy often are, or in a group, or in the Parish, this rule ever applies.

The 'Offices, as we now know them, were compiled by Archbishop Cranmer, for eventual inclusion in the AD 1549 Book of Common Prayer. He condensed two of the Morning Offices and three of the 'Evening from the Medieval Monastic Tradition of the eight Hours of daily prayer practiced by the Brothers. Thus, from the limitless spiritual well that are the Religious Houses, we have these majestic Offices. Honour the past, and pray in the present, for the future. I remain

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Pastor, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2025 January 18

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Saturday, 18 January, in the year of our Lord 2025. The scheduled services are as-follows:

• Sunday (tomorrow): 8:30  AM, Deacon's Liturgy, Epiphany II.
  10:00  AM, Mass, Epiphany II.
• Monday: 10:00  AM, Mass, Saints Fabian & Sebastian, Martyrs.
• Tuesday: 6:30  PM, monthly Parish Requiem.
• Wednesday: 12:10  PM, Mass, S. Vincent of Saragossa, Martyr.
• Thursday: 6:30  PM, Mass, Saint Raymond of Pennaforte, Confessor, Soup & Study to follow.
• Friday: 9:00  AM, Mass, Saint Timothy, Bishop & Martyr, with the Gregorian Canon.
  Immediately following, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00  AM, Holy Communion, Conversion of Saint Paul.
• Sunday: 8:30 & 10:00  AM, Mass, Epiphany III.

The next few weeks will be quiet, per the Kalendar  ~ a nice respite. However, three weeks from tomorrow, we will begin Pre-Lent, with Septuagesima Sunday. This seems awfully quick, though it isn't, really, as we will have Celebrated five of the potential six Sundays in Epiphanytide. Time marches-on....

One week from tomorrow, we will have the monthly Parish Brunch. After the Ten o'Clock Mass on that day (26 January), we will depart the Parish, and meet at Uno's Pizzaria, in Kiln Creek. We've been there a number of times, and it has always been a positive experience.

Jurisdiction-wise, the next gathering will be a Clericus, in Florida, at S. Martin's Parish, where Canon Sokol is the Rector. It will run over parts of four days, beginning with meetings on Wednesday, 19 March, and ending before Noon on Saturday, 22 March. The final event, on Saturday morning, will be a most joyous one, as Canon Sokol will be Consecrated a Bishop on that day. This will complete our efforts to build a solid base to support the future growth for which we pray, as we will then have Episcopal coverage for the entire South, from Florida to Virginia, and across to Oklahoma.

As I'm certain everyone is aware, I was Consecrated Bishop on 21 December, Ember Saturday in Advent, and the Feast of Saint Thomas, Apostle and Martyr. To-date, my Episcopal responsibilities have not interfered with Parish life, nor do I expect them to do so, in the immediate future. As the Convocation of Anglican Churches grows, that will change. Even then, however, Saint Matthew's will remain a clear priority for me.

Last Sunday was held the Annual Parish Meeting, which was a marvel, in several regards. Everyone who has served on the Vestry has heard me say that I dislike meetings, as a rule, and that the more quickly they can be completed the better. I've always striven to keep the 'Annual Meeting to thirty minutes, or less. I've come very close, but, previously, have never met that goal. This time the meeting was opened, fully conducted, and closed, in nineteen minutes! Let us fervently pray that this pattern continues.

Of business, the financial report for the year just-ended, and the proposed budget for the coming year, were the chief items. AD 2024 was a very good year for the Parish. We had an excellent report on income, and we added a number of new, voting members. The reports were accepted, and the budget was passed. The full minutes will be posted on the bulletin board.

In a recent 'Weekly Post, prayer was discussed. Clearly, by the successes of last year, many of you are praying for Saint Matthew's. Our first priority, as a family in God, must always be to pray for our Parish. This year, I would ask that you also, as often as possible, pray for the CAC. We have done all that we may to build the superstructure. Now, please, pray that the people will come. I remain

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Pastor, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2025 January 8

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Wednesday, 8 January, in the year of our Lord 2025. SAFETY NOTICE ~ there is a small, white sedan, parked behind the Parish, close to the building, not in a parking-space. Leaving-out the long tale, the owner is scheduled to pick it up by Friday. I only mention it so that no one will go zipping-about the building, not expecting it to be there. The scheduled services are as-follows.

• Wednesday (today): 12:10 PM, Mass, Of the Octave of the Epiphany.
• Thursday: 8:00 AM, men's monthly Morning Prayer, breakfast to follow.
  6:30 PM, Mass, Of the Octave, Supper and Study to follow.
• Friday: 9:00 AM, Mass, Of the Octave.
  Immediately following, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, administration of the Blessed Sacrament, NO MASS.
  Immediately following, vestry meeting.
• Sunday: ONE MASS, 10:00 AM, Epiphany I.
  Followed immediately by the Annual Parish Meeting, in the Nave.
  Followed immediately by a potluck in the Parish Hall.

Yes, that time of year has come again ~ the Annual Parish Meeting is hard upon us. Fortunately, there are no weighty matters before us; thus, we should be able to have a blissfully short session, followed by a leisurely luncheon. As-per usual, there will be only one Mass this Sunday. The meeting and potluck will follow.

In terms of Liturgical and other forms of corporate prayer, the Anglican tradition is at-least as fine as any other in Christendom, not to mention as ancient. However, as is both my duty and my wont, I must mention, and exhort, private, or personal prayer. A life of faith cannot exist without individual prayer.

Individual prayer may well, and generally should, form a part of our services. In the Mass, along with the prescribed prayers, there is ample opportunity, intentionally provided, and in the People's Anglican Missal, urged, with instructions given, for individual petitions. We may pray for forgiveness of our sins, for a right reception of the Holy Sacrament, for the Clergy offering this Sacrifice for us, for our Parish, that others may discover our Parish, and the Salvation carried within the Sacraments ... the list is virtually endless.

There is no situation wherein we, as Christians, can 'do nothing' for those in serious or dire circumstances ... we may ALWAYS pray for them. One of the most frequently overlooked opportunities for prayer is that of thanksgiving. How often do we pray thanks for our blessings, great or small? How often do we express joy in prayer for the many, many gifts that God gives to us?

Pray for Holy Mother, the Church. Pray for your Parish, your family in God. Pray for others (a large category, from your neighbour to your nation). Lastly, pray for yourself ~ your thanksgivings, your needs, and yes, even your wants. God will hear them all.

Pray without ceasing ~ the hallmark of all great and true followers of the Christ. I remain

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Pastor, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2024 December 31

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Tuesday, 31 December, the final day of the secular calendar, in the year of our Lord 2024. The scheduled services are as-follows:

• Tuesday (today): 5:30 PM, Mass, S. Sylvester, Bishop & Confessor.
  6:30 PM, Evensong.
• Wednesday: 12:10 PM, Sung Mass with incense, the Feast of the Circumcision.
• Thursday: 6:30 PM, Mass, Octave Day of the Feast of S. Stephen, Protodeacon and Protomartyr. 'Followed by Soup & Study.
• Friday: 9:00 AM, Mass, Octave day of S. John, Apostle & Evangelist.
  Immediately following, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, Mass, Octave Day of the Holy Innocents.
• Sunday: 8:30 & 10:00 Am, Mass, Vigil of the Epiphany.

We have not only survived, but done quite well during this particular Season of Holy Days (from which is derived holidays). Of-course, we will very soon plunge-into Epiphanytide, followed even more quickly by Great Lent. Thanks be to God for the Kalendar, which keeps us focussed-upon those things that are needful for our salvation and health.

Speaking of the Kalendar, our 2025 Ordo Kalendars are now for sale. They are still only $15.00; please see Charlotte Haden to get your copy, and those you wish to purchase for gifts ~ they make wonderful tools for the teaching of the Faith.

Our Annual Parish Meeting is just-under two weeks from now. It falls on Sunday, 12 January, in the year of our Lord 2025. On that Sunday, there will be only one Mass, at 10:00 AM. The Parish Meeting will be held in the Nave. Afterwards, we will stroll down the hallway, to the Parish Hall, where we will enjoy another wonderful meal prepared by all y'all.

I repeat again my thanks to the people ~ who are the Parish ~ of Saint Matthew's, not only for the immense and generous aid rendered for- and during my Consecration to the Episcopacy, but also for the love and support rendered to me during the time that I've been both Interim and Rector of Saint Matthew's. This July will mark the Fourteenth Anniversary of my arrival here ... time doth indeed fly.

My Consecration is not mine alone, but belongs as-much to the Parish as it does to me. Without the continual encouragement of a strong and healthy Parish, no man may ever be Consecrated a Bishop, nor should he be, if he cannot do his part to support such a relationship. Congratulations to all of Saint Matthew's, for having done your part in promoting another Heir to the Apostles, to sustain and govern His one, holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. I remain

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Pastor, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2024 December 24

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Tuesday, 24 December, in the year of our Lord 2024. It is also Christ Mass Eve! The scheduled services are as-follows:

• Tuesday (today): 11:00 PM, Midnight Mass (first Mass of Christ Mass).
• Wednesday: 10:00 AM, Sung Mass, Christ Mass Day,
• Pontifical High Mass, from the Throne.
• Thursday: 6:30 PM, Sung Mass, S. Stephen, Proto-Deacon, Proto-Martyr. NO SOUP AND STUDY, MASS ONLY.
• Friday: 9:00 AM, Sung Mass, S. John Evangelist, with Gregorian Canon.
  Immediately following, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, Sung Mass, Holy Innocents.
• Sunday: 8:30 & 10:00 AM, Mass, Christ Mass I. Parish Brunch following 10:00 AM service.

Merry Christ Mass everyone! As-noted above, there are some shifts from our usual schedule. The first Mass of Christ Mass will be celebrated tonight at 11:00 PM, so that the Mass will carry-into the new day. On Thursday, we will celebrate the Feast of S. Stephen, but will not have Soup and Study following. After Thursday, we will return to our usual schedule of services.

As likely all of you know, I was Consecrated a Bishop this past Saturday, 21 December, the Feast of S. Thomas, Apostle and Martyr, and the Winter Embertide Saturday. It was a wonderful service, with a delicious pot-luck following. Archbishop Barton was the Chief Consecrator, with Bishop Brown assisting. The Most Reverend Thomas J. Kleppinger sent Letters Permissory.

I look-forward to seeing all y'all tonight and tomorrow ~ hopefully, some of you will make both services! Our 10:00 AM Mass on Christ Mass Day will be a special event, as we will have sufficient Clergy available to Celebrate a Pontifical High Mass, something seldom seen these days. This has been a beautiful, light-filled Season, and the brightest of all lights, the Light of the World, will be soon with us, and that right soon. I remain

in His praise,

The Rt. Rev'd T. L. Crowder

Pastor, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2024 December 17

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Tuesday, 17 December, in the year of our Lord 2024. The scheduled services are as-follows:

• Tuesday (today): 6:30 PM, Mass, monthly Parish Requiem.
• Wednesday: 12:10 PM, Mass, Ember Wednesday in Advent.
• Thursday: 6:30 PM, Mass, Feria, followed by Soup & Study.
• Friday: NO SERVICES.
  10:00 AM, practice for the Consecration.
  12:00 PM (noon), cleaning and other prep for the Consecration.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, Consecration of the Rector as a Bishop in God's one, holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. Potluck to follow.
• Sunday: 8:30 & 10:00 AM, Mass, Trinity IV.

As-noted above, Friday and Saturday will deviate from the normal schedule. The other days will retain their usual order. Friday morning will see the practice for the Consecration, which will not take two hours, but likely less than that. At Noon, the ladies will prepare and clean the Parish, in-anticipation of the Consecration, to be held the next day, Saturday, at 10:00 AM.

Last week, we discussed some aspects of the Episcopacy. There a few more points that should be addressed. As-with any advancement that expands personal authority, there are pitfalls to being made a Bishop. Even the brief history of the so-called Continuing Movement is replete with stories, generally running 'I knew so-and-so for years, when he was a Priest, and everybody loved him, but then he got the pointy hat, and changed overnight, not for the better.'

Although this is something of an oversimplification, in my opinion the chief culprit is vanity. We see this in the Priesthood as-well; men mistaking God's gift of an Ordinal Sacrament for an affirmation of their own, personal superiority. God gives the blessing, and, at the man's death it returns to the Father. We, in a sense, borrow it, use it ~ ideally ~ for His glory, and then return it.

It is the same, though magnified, in the Episcopacy. No one deserves to be a Bishop. In His mercy, and through the necessary equipping of His Church, God makes men Bishops. They continue to worship, praise, adore and serve Him, and then they die.

Yet, no matter the character of the Bishop, we must always respect the office. In a similar way to that in which the Holy Ghost, as the breath of God, passed over the waters at the Creation, so too are our modern Bishops the breath of the Apostles, carrying their will to serve and sacrifice for the Father down through the ages. In the best case, they give their all for Holy Mother, the Church. Let us pray that this ever remains the case.

In our Parish, virtually nothing will change as a result of my Elevation. I will still, when here, be functioning as the Rector of Saint Matthew's. Continuing to call me Father is perfectly acceptable for members of the Parish to do. Yes, some of my vestments will change, again not for personal glory, but because I must now, more than ever, show-forth the presence and role of the Episcopacy, and respect it.

This occurrence is, in my mind, as-much a reflection on the Parish as it is on myself. It is an honour for- and to Saint Matthew's. This will be a new time for us, and will bring new adventures. Let's get started! I remain

in His praise,

The Venerable T. L. Crowder

Pastor, Saint Matthew's Parish

Anno Domini 2024 December 10

Beloved of the Lord:

Today is Tuesday, 10 December, in the year of or Lord 2024. The scheduled services are as-follows:

• Tuesday (today): 5:30 PM, Mass, Of the Octave of the Conception of the BVM.
  6:30 PM, Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, Evensong.
• Wednesday: 12:10 PM, Mass, Of the Octave.
• Thursday: 8:00 AM, men's Morning Prayer & Breakfast.
  6:30 PM, Mass, Of the Octave, followed by Soup & Study.
• Friday: 9:00 AM, Mass, S. Lucy, Virgin & Martyr, using the Gregorian Canon.
  Immediately following, Veneration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Saturday: 10:00 AM, Mass, S. Ambrose, Bishop, Confessor, Doctor.
• Sunday: 8:30 & 10:00 AM, Mass, Gaudete Sunday (Advent III)

For the first time in a bit, our weekly schedule follows the normal pattern. Perhaps the fact that this Sunday will be the Rose Sunday for Advent makes it a bit out of the ordinary, but we do see it every year, so not really any sort of variation from the overall Kalendar. Speaking of the Kalendar, our AD 2025 Kalendar has been sent to the printer. We are hopeful that they will be available before the end of this calendar year.

Inasmuch as the Consecration will soon be upon us (Saturday, 21 December, 10:00 AM), it might be fruitful to have a discussion on Bishops, and the Episcopacy (the construct concerning Bishops, just as Priesthood for Priests). Bishops, as we know and recognise them in our time, did not exist in the Apostolic Church. Yes, of-course, there were Bishops, but the modern form and function of them had not yet evolved.

A Bishop ~ from the Greek 'Overseer' ~ in those days was clearly the authority in the Church, having received his mandate from the Apostolic Succession, a truth that has been with us from the earliest time. Yet, the claim that S. Peter was the first Bishop of Rome is overreaching, even if we limit ourselves to the notion of physical territoriality assigned to the episcopacy, as this is, again, a notion that had not yet been born. Even S. Linus, to whom first Bishop of Rome is often assigned by those of us who reject Roman claims for S. Peter on a variety of grounds, fails this test of our understanding that a Bishop is responsible for a geographical region, which we now call a Diocese.

There has never been, nor shall there ever be, a human office that surpasses that of Bishop. One who is even slightly familiar with the topic might now question what about Archbishops, Metropolitans, Popes, and the like? As the early Church began to grow, that suspect seed endemic to all organisations ~ bureaucracy ~ began to be present in Holy Church. Thus, after the idea had become common that a Bishop was assigned to a certain geography, when those geographies became both adjacent and numerous, as in the case of a major urban centre like Rome, someone had to be responsible for overall organisation, settling disputes and the like. Hence, a Metropolitan Bishop, Overseeing, as it were, a metropolis, and the dioceses therein.

Bishops, then, are equal in theological authority and description. Even the Pope, which position has amassed vast authority and power in recent centuries, retains as his essential title Bishop of Rome. The idea of Petrine Centrality ~ that Peter ruled the Apostles, and his successors, the claimed Bishops of Rome, ruled the Church ~ is incredibly new. Archbishop Haverland makes an excellent discussion of this in his book. This notion was the product of Vatican I, one of the Councils of the Church claimed by Rome, but rejected by the Eastern Orthodox and we Anglicans. This council was held in AD 1871.

In our times, we commonly encounter three sorts of Bishops. These are separated by the authority given to them, but, here again, in the higher term, a Bishop is a Bishop is a Bishop. We most usually think of the Bishop Ordinary. This man is assigned the oversight of a Diocese. He it is who visits your parish, Confirms your children, Receives converts, and is the Father in God to your Diocese, your Clergy, and ultimately to you yourself.

A Bishop Coadjutor is a man who has been elected, by a Diocese, to be the immediate and lawful successor of the current Bishop Ordinary. These are elected for a variety of reasons. Regardless, when the current 'Ordinary dies, retires, steps-down, or is otherwise ~ God forbid ~ removed from his Office, the 'Coadjutor, having been previously and duly elected, immediately assumes the position of Bishop Ordinary, without having to call an Electoral Synod.

The last sort currently, commonly encountered, is the Bishop Suffragen. These men are elected to serve as assistants, in those matters which are properly the purview of Bishops. Occasionally, they are elected to assist an Archbishop in his Office and Duties, to represent him in Episcopal matters. I was originally elected as a Bishop Suffragen, to assist Archbishop Barton in his Office, as a member of his staff, until other events intervened, making it necessary that I take the role of a Bishop Ordinary. A 'Suffragen most commonly serves in a Diocese, making parochial visits, Confirming and Receiving, to ease the workload of the 'Ordinary.

Bishops have, from the very first, been both the crown and the conflict in Holy Mother, the Church. They are not conflict by their existence, but by the things up to which they sometimes get. Bishops are men, and, like all human beings, are subject to sinful whims and temptations. Hopefully these are the types of things that are small, and commonplace. Historically, regrettably, some have perpetrated monstrous disasters within and upon Holy Church. As my time approaches to join their number, I beg your prayers, that my works shall all be begun and ended in prayer, and that I shall ever do the will of the Father, and not of mine self, apart from Him. I remain

in His praise,

The Venerable T. L. Crowder

Pastor, Saint Matthew's Parish