The Practical Parson

 In the last few months, there has been much debate about ICE and immigration law enforcement in this country.  While there is a lot of high flying emotion and anger on both sides of the debate, it is important to remember first and foremost that we are all of us, human beings; and not deserving of the manner of filth and hatred that is spewing from the mouths and hands of protesters, both in favor and opposition of the enforcement of immigration law.  That being said, it is an extremely interesting paradox in which the American Democratic party and liberal followers find themselves with regard to the immigration enforcement.   After all, not too long ago we had Democratic governors, mayors, and civic leaders who ordered people to remain in their homes; and arrested people who dared violate "quarantine".  Leaders who ordered SWAT raids and violated people's homes in order to ensure that there were no more than 10 people at family gatherings. Police raids on...

 Since there is such a public interest in "Speaking truth to power" among our liberal brethren in the world today, allow me; humble worker in the vineyard of the Lord, to express my own personal testimony of truth to answer.  I have served the church and the people of my community since the day of my ordination as a priest in 2012.  In that time, I have witnessed great good, and great evil; at the hands of conservatives and liberals alike.  As time has passed, I have experienced greater evil and hardship from those who proclaim the supposed Christian virtues of love and understanding; than I ever have from those who hold conservative convictions different than my own.   I have been publicly accosted by people on the left for no other reason than that I am a priest of the church.   I have been publicly humiliated and mocked online by liberal individuals who have sworn to me that they will "destroy" me.  I have been subjected to harassment and ...

 In this festive season of the year, it is more than desirable that those of with means should make some provision for the poor and destitute; or whatever it was the Charles Dickens wrote in "A Christmas Carol".  As a pastor, I am always more than happy to assist with charitable endeavors when they are undertaken in goodwill; however there are trends in "charity" which are increasing in popularity and insanity each year.   The first trend is people making demands of charity.  Not in the sense of people asking for assistance who are truly in need of it, mind you; but those who, when faced with a gift from the heart, turn it aside and demand something else instead.  For example, when you see a person on the street corner with a sign "homeless and hungry, anything will help" and you bring them food; yet they yell at you and demand cash instead.  This is enough to put many people off the idea of giving to those in need; because if your sign you hold claims...

 The presidential election of 2024 is finally over, and we have a new president set to take office in January.  Almost instantaneously, the opposing party and their surrogates began bewailing, bemoaning, blaming, and berating everyone they could imagine as to why their candidate did not win the election.  What has been most disturbing is the pure vitriol, absolute hatred, and lunacy; coming from people who proclaim to be men and women of the cloth.  To hear these ministers of misinformation preach their message of doom, one would presume that the president-elect were the devil incarnate himself; bent on destroying the world and imprisoning/ persecuting all those who disagree with him.  Yet is that the case?  Did not we live 4 years under this same person in a previous administration in virtual peace and prosperity?   The problem that the liberals ideologues in America have, is that they cannot conceive of a peaceable existence wherein they are not...

 Ever since the Enlightenment period of history, purportedly educated men and women have long been on a crusade to break mankind of its religion and faith in those things that are unseen.  We see it in every facet of life around us, the struggle to break mankind of its ability to believe in something that is not of itself; something greater.  The intellectuals try to break us of our faith by telling us that there is no possible way to prove that the things contained in scripture actually happened; though they fail to acknowledge that they themselves cannot prove that they did NOT happen.  They tell us that we should not submit to blind faith, and should always and only trust our own senses; for there lies our freedom from faith and religion.  Perhaps most intriguingly, is the fact that though the liberal intellectual community has pushed this doctrinal concept of "only believe your senses" for generations, the reality of it is actually quite the reverse.  ...

  They say it doesn’t matter who he is or where, They say he comes and brings us only deep despair. They tell me that he’s not the kind we want in our hometown, So it’s best for our interest if we should hunt him down. We tell him he is cursed of all and never shall be free, We take his hopes and dreams and all with happiness and glee.  We tell him he can’t go home, for home he never has, We’ve given it away to a group we call Hamas. We tell him he’s not wanted here, but then not even there, We fill his ears with words of hate and anger and of fear.  We tell him that he’s the cause of all our suffering, And never give him thanks for any good that he may bring. We blame him now, we blame him then, and blame him near and far, We blame him now for everything, this boy who wears that star.  We claim that he is violent, and kills without a cause;  While his mother, sister, father, aunt: were killed by that Hamas.  We claim that all the death is his sole responsi...

Over the past 4 or 5 years, I have sat back from my chapel porch and watched the world go by; as it is wont to do.  I have watched flowers grow, the trees in my garden sprout new branches and fruit, the grapes in my small vineyard grow and produce their first batch of wine.  I have also watched other things around the churchyard which have needed intervention- weeds which needed pulling, peeling paint which needed re-touching, stains on chapel carpeting which needed cleaning.  There has been much that has gone on here, though most of it only noticeable to my own eye as the one who is caretaker of it.  In this, I feel a connection with the eternal Father: who watches over the whole of creation like the great gardener and caretaker of the universe which He is, and I begin to understand the problems of this world through an empathetic place with our Lord. Our world today demands ever-increasing progress: Progress for "rights", progress for technology, progress for moral...