Fully Alive in God

M. Campbell-Langdell+ All Santos, Oxnard Joseph, a shepherd, Marc Chagall (wikipaintings.org) (Is. 62:6-12, Ps. 97, Titus 3:4-7, Luke 2:  [1-7] 8-20) A very popular film this last month was “Catching Fire,” the second in the Hunger Games series.  Por todo el país el mes pasado mucha gente vio la segunda película de los Hunger Games , “Catching Fire.” Si hubo violencia, que trato de evitar, pero para mí lo que me atrae es el desarrollo de los caracteres.  What is really fascinating in the series is to see the characters develop.  They start off as kids from the very margins of society, and then something crazy happens, they win this big “hunger games” event in a way no one has done before.  Ellos ganan el evento de los “hunger games” en una manera que nunca ha pasado antes porque la protagonista está dispuesta a sacrificarse a sí misma.  After their victory, they are thrust into the center of activity through their success, and exposed to fame and fortune.  But they never l

M. Campbell-Langdell All Santos, Oxnard from sgmradio.com (Is. 9:2-7, Ps. 96, Tit. 2:11-14, Luke 2:1-14) Buenas noches. Good evening.  Estaba haciendo ejercicio el otro día y sucedió que yo estaba escuchando, entre otras canciones, canciones de rock Cristiano.  Working out the other day, I realized that among the music I was listening to was some Christian rock.  But the songs would have worked for most of the Christian year except for Christmas.  Me puse a pensar porque es que solo escuchamos las canciones de Navidad durante esta época del a ñ o.  And I began to think, why do we only listen to Christmas songs (by and large) during Christmas season, whereas other Christian songs can largely be sung year-round?  Si piensan bien, la mayoría de las otras canciones si se pueden cantar todo el a ñ o.  Pero las canciones de Navidad son bien específicas.  Well the answer that came to my mind was this: it is just the beginning.  Porque es solo el principio. Every birth is a mirac

(From:  http://lemonandraspberry.com/2013/05/a-seed-of-inspiration-animal-vegetable-miracle/ ) M. Campbell-Langdell All Santos, Oxnard Advent 3A, 12.15.13 (Isaiah 35:1–10; Magnificat; James 5:7–10; Matthew 11:2–11) “Be patient, therefore, beloved, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious crop from the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains. You also must be patient. Strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near (James 5:7-8 NRSV).” Patience.  Since moving to Oxnard, I have learned a bit more about farming and growing things.  I have learned from Reyna and the folks at our community garden.  I’m still no expert, but I do get the impression that growing things takes a whole lot of hard work and patience.  A couple of months ago, I listened to the audiobook version of Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: Our Year of Seasonal Eating. It is about how her family lived for a year largely o

M. Campbell-Langdell All Santos, Oxnard (From:  http://lemonandraspberry.com/2013/05/a-seed-of-inspiration-animal-vegetable-miracle/ ) (Isaías 35:1–10; Cántico 8; Santiago 5:7–10; Mateo 11:2–11) “Pero ustedes, hermanos, tengan paciencia hasta que el Señor venga. El campesino que espera recoger la preciosa cosecha, tiene que aguardar con paciencia las temporadas de lluvia. Ustedes también tengan paciencia y manténganse firmes, porque muy pronto volverá el Señor (Santiago 5:7-8 DHH).” Paciencia.  En mudar a Oxnard, he aprendido un poquito más sobre crecer plantas y lo que hacen los granjeros y jardineros.  He aprendido un poco de Reyna y de nuestra gente en el jardín comunitario.  Y he visto una cosa.  Toma mucho trabajo y toma mucha paciencia.   Growing things is an endeavor that takes a lot of patience and hard work! Hace un par de meses, leí un libro de Barbara Kingsolver que se llama Animal, Vegetable, Miracle y es sobre un a ñ o en que la autora y su familia crece

M. Campbell-Langdell All Santos, Oxnard pandas seem good practicers of "beginner's mind" (Isaiah 11:1–10; Ps. 72:1–7, 18–19; Romans 15:4–13; Mat. 3:1–12) (Song—World Youth Day: “The Wolf Shall Lie Down with the Lamb”) Something about innocence in this passage from Isaiah takes your breath away.  We hear about animals that are in their nature predator and prey, and their relationship shifts to playmates.  Innocence is restored. One might say this image is not realistic, that it is, in a sense, magical.  But it gives us a vision of the goodness of God and, to follow on last week’s message, the peace that Jesus’ justice brings. Some of you will have heard one of my favorite bible quotations: we must be “wise as serpents and innocent as doves (Matt 10:16).” There is something in today’s readings that speaks to that concept.  We must be wise as serpents, knowing the difficulties of the world.  But we must not be the crafty brood of vipers with an angle in ever

M. Campbell-Langdell All Santos, Oxnard pandas parecen buenos practicadores de "beginner's mind" (Isaías 11:1–10; Salmo 72:1–7, 18–19; Romanos 15:4–13; Mateo 3:1–12) (First part of Song—World Youth Day: “The Wolf Shall Lie Down with the Lamb”) Hay algo de la inocencia en esta lectura de Isaías—que los animales que suelen ser enemigos se convierten en amigos.  There is such an innocence in this reading from Isaiah—animals that were once predator and prey being at peace, and even playing! Terror y las realidades del mundo natural se conviertan en un juego de niños. Uno puede decir que esta visión no está realista, que esta de una manera pensamiento mágico.  Pero es una visión del reino de Dios, para seguir el tema de la semana pasada, del reino de paz que Jesús va a inaugurar.  Algunos de Ustedes me han escuchado decir una de mis favoritas frases de la Biblia: tenemos que ser “astutos como serpientes, aunque también sencillos como palomas (Mateo 10:16 DHH).