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Rev. Eric Anderson Worship Services

Worship for September 8, 2024

Thank you for joining us for this live stream (or recording, as the case may be) of Sunday worship. May it bless you! You may need to click “Play” to launch the stream, which will be live around 9:50 AM.

Welcome to the live stream of worship from Church of the Holy Cross for Sunday, September 8, 2024. You will find the service outline below, and you may download and print the PDF to follow more easily. 

Worship Service for September 8, 2024 (PDF)Download
Story: Ours, Not Yours (PDF)Download
Sermon: Open to Mercy (PDF)Download
Pastoral Prayer (PDF)Download

Service of Worship September 8, 2024
Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost

Rev. Eric S. Anderson, Pastor

WE GATHER TO WORSHIP GOD

Please note that audio and video of this service are being live streamed on the Internet and will be recorded. The right rear section of the sanctuary will not be captured by any cameras. Please be aware that in other sections you may be visible at times.

Prelude: Prelude (D Major)                                                   Kayleen Yuda

Lighting of the Candles

Ringing of the Bell

Welcome                                                                     Rev. Eric S. Anderson

* Call to Worship: (based on Isaiah 35:4-7)                                        Bob Smith

Leader:         Say to those who are of a fearful heart, “Be strong! Do not fear! Here is your God.”
People:        We await the God of justice and salvation.

Leader:         Those who have closed their eyes to righteousness will find them opened.
People:        Those who have closed their ears to mercy will hear the cries of distress.

Leader:         Then those cast down will dance and leap like the deer.
People:        Those trapped in the silence of grief will raise their voices in joy.

All:     Let us worship God!

* Hymn #540: We Plant a Grain of Mustard Seed (v. 1-4)

* Invocation: (based on Psalm 146)                                                        Bob Smith

We lift our voices to speak the truth of our souls, O God. We praise you in this moment, and we will praise you all our lives long. If we trust in people, even princes, we find no dependable help. The best-laid plans drift away on the breeze. Make us happy in our hope in you, O God: execute justice, feed the hungry, set the prisoners free, gather us all in your loving arms. Together we praise you, O LORD! Amen.

Please be seated

Anthem: Lift Your Voice                                                        Holy Cross Singers

Time with the Children                                                           Rev. Eric S. Anderson

Scripture: James 2:1-17                                                                     Bob Smith
My brothers and sisters, do you with your acts of favoritism really believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ? For if a person with gold rings and in fine clothes comes into your assembly, and if a poor person in dirty clothes also comes in, and if you take notice of the one wearing the fine clothes and say, ‘Have a seat here, please’, while to the one who is poor you say, ‘Stand there’, or, ‘Sit at my feet’, have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters. Has not God chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him? But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you? Is it not they who drag you into court? Is it not they who blaspheme the excellent name that was invoked over you?

 You do well if you really fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ But if you show partiality, you commit sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it. For the one who said, ‘You shall not commit adultery’, also said, ‘You shall not murder.’ Now if you do not commit adultery but if you murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. For judgment will be without mercy to anyone who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill’, and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.

Mark 7:24-37
From there he set out and went away to the region of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. He said to her, ‘Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.’ But she answered him, ‘Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.’ Then he said to her, ‘For saying that, you may go—the demon has left your daughter.’ So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.

 Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they begged him to lay his hand on him. He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue. Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, ‘Ephphatha’, that is, ‘Be opened.’ And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. Then Jesusordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. They were astounded beyond measure, saying, ‘He has done everything well; he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak.’

Sermon: Open to Mercy                                                             Rev. Eric S. Anderson

WE RESPOND IN WORD AND DEED

Pastoral Prayer                                                                  Rev. Eric S. Anderson

Please join me in the Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever and ever. Amen

* Hymn #534: O God of Strength (v. 1-4)

Call to Offering                                                  Bob Smith

“Go in peace; keep warm, and eat your fill.” These are words of care and kindness, but only when they are accompanied by comforting aid. Let your faith be brought to light in this moment as we share our gifts with one another and with God. Whether you share your gift here in the church today, through a gift online, or via an envelope in the mail, let the offering now be received.

Offertory: Fughetta (G Major)                                                   Kayleen Yuda

* Doxology
Praise God from whom all blessings flow,
Praise Him all creatures here below
Praise Him above ye heavenly host
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost – Amen

* Offertory Prayer                                                         Bob Smith

You have kept your word to care for us, O God. In these offerings we fulfill, in part, our word to you. By your grace increase their effect among us and around the world to fulfill the needs of the hungry, homeless, and forlorn. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

* Hymn #537: Christian, Rise and Act Your Creed (v. 1-4)

Announcements                                                                Rev. Eric S. Anderson

Benediction                                                                      Rev. Eric S. Anderson

Postlude: Flourish                                                             Kayleen Yuda

* Please stand if you are able.

Permissions

Prelude in D Major
J.S. Bach
Concordia Publishing Company
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890

We Plant a Grain of Mustard Seed
Text by Mary Bryan Matney, 1990
© 1998, GIA Publications, Inc.
Tune NEW BEGINNINGS by Sally Ann Morris, 1990
© 1998, GIA Publications, Inc.
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890

Lift Your Voice and Rejoice
Victor C. Johnson
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890

O God of Strength
Text by Shepherd Knapp, 1907
Public Domain
Tune WELWYN by Alfred Scott-Gatty, 1900
Public Domain

Fughetta in G Major
Gottlieb Muffat
© 1980 Lorenz
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890

Christian, Rise and Act Your Creed
Text by Francis Albert Rollo Russell, 1893
Public Domain
Tune INNOCENTS, first pub. 1850
Public Domain

Flourish
Stanley E. Saxton
Tune: © 1980 Lorenz Publishing Company
a division of The Lorenz Corporation
(Admin. by Music Services)
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890

Dates to Remember
Today, September 8 – Council Meeting

Announcement

Foodland Give Aloha during the month of September–
Please support Church of the Holy Cross by making a donation at any Foodland or Sack N Save during the month of September. 100% of your gift will go directly to our organization and Foodland will match a portion of your contribution.

Pastor                                                                                  Rev. Eric S. Anderson
Moderator                                                                         Stefan Tanouye
Lay Reader                                                                        Bob Smith
Choir Accompanist                                                        Kanako Okita
Choir Director                                                                 Doug Albertson
Organist                                                                             Kayleen Yuda
Hand Bell Director                                                        Anna Kennedy
Chapel Decorations                                                       Joyce Nakamoto
Projected Imagery                                                        Sue Smith
Web Master                                                                      Ruth Niino-DuPonte  
Videographers                                                                Eric Tanouye, Eli Yamaki
                                                                             Ruth Niino-DuPonte, Bob Smith

We welcome you to worship this day. Church of the Holy Cross seeks to help its members, friends, and visitors follow the guidance of God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit, encouraging all people to love one another according to the teachings of Jesus. We live and teach the faith, speak good news, minister to people near and far, and work with other households of faith and helping agencies to improve our community and our world. To support our ministries, please visit our Donate Page.

Rev. Eric Anderson What I'm Thinking

What I’m Thinking: Mercy for Who?

To whom should Jesus’ followers show mercy? If we follow Jesus’ example, we should provide it to people we do not expect.

Here’s a transcript:

I’m thinking about the seventh chapter of Mark’s Gospel (Mark 7:24-37), the section we might describe as “two stories in which Jesus healed people” – because that is precisely what he did.

The second is fairly straightforward. Some friends brought a man to see Jesus and asked him to heal the man’s deafness. Jesus did a few actions, said “Ephphatha,” which means, “Be opened,” and sure enough the man could hear.

The first one has a couple of unusual features, however. The first is that it was a long-distance healing. A mother came to Jesus and asked him to cast a demon out of her daughter, but the daughter was still at home. When Jesus consented, the mother returned home to find that her daughter was well.

Now that, in and of itself, does not make the story unique in the gospels. What does make it unique is that the woman was specifically identified as a foreigner, a Syrophoenician, and when she asked for Jesus’ help, initially he refused. He said, “It is not right to take the children’s food and give it to the dogs.”

She replied, “Even the dogs are entitled to what falls from the children’s table. Then Jesus consented to heal the girl.

One of the great theological conundrums of this text is, did Jesus learn something in this moment? It’s probably unanswerable. If your theological perspective is that Jesus’ godhood, his divinity, was the greater part of him, than you’d have to read this is saying that no, Jesus was in some way testing the woman, testing his disciples, to see if they would recognize that grace can be given to anyone. But if you believe that Jesus’ humanity was the more important factor at play, than yes, Jesus learned something here.

In either case, Jesus presumably – because he repeated the story – and Jesus’ disciples –  because they clearly repeated the story – and Mark – because he heard the story and set it down for us to read and repeat over the centuries, even the millennia – they wanted us to learn something.

We find it all too easy to set people apart for one reason or another: religion, nationality, skin tone, gender, the people to whom they’re attracted, all sorts of things. We set them aside and somehow they are no longer recipients of mercy. At least, not our mercy.

Did Jesus learn otherwise that day? I don’t know. But the woman asked for that mercy and she received it for her daughter, and Jesus’ followers since that time have known, even if we haven’t always done it, we have known that mercy is due to all people, not just the ones who are closest to us, not just the ones who are like us.

Mercy is due to all God’s children: the entire population of the world.

That’s what I’m thinking. I’m curious to hear what you’re thinking. Leave me your thoughts in the comment section below. I’d love to hear from you.

Rev. Eric Anderson Sermons

Sermon: Inside and Outside

September 1, 2024

James 1:17-27
Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

I probably shouldn’t tell you this. It’s something of an open secret among clergy, that there is something “performative” about being a pastor. That is, ministers are aware that we have to present ourselves as someone worth imitating, while also knowing that some aspects of our characters or histories won’t stand up to scrutiny. The truth is, we’re aspiring to become the person we present ourselves to be.

But every once in a while, we yearn to spend some time in a “safe space,” to speak more openly about this person who isn’t quite what we aspire to be, and… well. Frankly, when we do, it sounds a whole lot like talking stink.

Which is a pretty good indication that religious leaders haven’t changed all that much since Jesus confronted this set of visiting scribes and Pharisees from Jerusalem. D. Mark Davis writes at LeftBehindAndLovingIt, “I think the identification that these folks came from Jerusalem is significant. In Mark, Jesus’ ministry is in Galilee, where he is enormously popular. The antagonists come from Jerusalem (in Judea) and Jesus only goes to Jerusalem during the last week of his life – to die.” Back in chapter 3, another group of scribes from Jerusalem accused Jesus of being possessed by Beelzebul, so I think Rev. Davis is onto something here. Jesus had got along quite well with the local Pharisees, who probably considered him one of them, but the ones from the big city, well. They were looking for ways to discredit him.

They found one. Despite Mark’s assertion, it wasn’t true that regular handwashing was a practice of “all Jews” in the first century, but it was certainly highly recommended by the notable teachers of the day. For that matter, it’s highly recommended by notable teachers of our day in schools, homes, hospitals, and so on. Not three years ago we guided people into this sanctuary past a set of sinks to make sure worshipers arrived with clean hands.

Our lectionary editors have somewhat helpfully, and somewhat not, removed a section of this text that explains why Jesus got so worked up. The people who criticized him and his disciples engaged in a practice that avoided their obligations to care for their aging parents. The greed and callousness that came out of them, asserted Jesus, defiled them much more than unwashed hands.

As Matt Skinner writes at Working Preacher, “At least one part of this passage is straightforward, although disturbing: Jesus explains where evil comes from. It comes from within all those people who bug you. But also from within you. Me, too.”

Ouch.

Debie Thomas writes at JourneyWithJesus.net, “Again, it’s easy for us to look down on the Pharisees, as if we in our enlightened modernity would never make their mistakes. But honestly, are we any different? Don’t we sometimes behave as if we’re finished products, with nothing new to discover about the Holy Spirit’s movements in the world?“

Ouch again.

Jesus did not reject the tradition of handwashing, we should note. He simply would not use it as a basis for religious condemnation, either of his own followers or anyone else. He also would not use one kind of religious obligation – making gifts to God – to avoid another kind of religious obligation – care for one’s parents. Most of all, he would not mistake the trivial for the vital. He would not mistake the somewhat important for the greatly important.

He would not – did not, and does not – misunderstand the complicated nature of the human heart, which contains side-by-side the evil intentions he listed so fiercely, and the positive intentions toward the virtues I can quote from last week’s reading from Ephesians: truth, righteousness, peace, faith, salvation, and reliance upon the Holy Spirit. James, writing many years after Jesus’ ministry in Galilee, reminded his hearers of this crucial theme in the life of Christian faith: not everything in the human heart is supposed to be brought out into the open, and the important things of the faith are not supposed to be locked away in there. “Human anger does not produce God’s righteousness,” wrote James, and haven’t we seen the truth of that a few times over the centuries? “Be doers of the word and not merely hearers,” wrote James. Don’t leave the truth, righteousness, peace, and all the rest remain within you, but let it be shared.

And oh, yes: “Care for orphans and widows in their distress.” If you feel like you’ve heard that one before, the prophets of the Old Testament said it. A lot.

And bridle the tongue. That’s one of James’ obsessions. We know a lot about the way words bring harm, too, don’t we?

Karoline Lewis writes, “We need only the ramping up of the political season to remind us that words and actions are a revelation of character. What we say and what we do reveal who we are. It is that simple. Jesus knew that. Mark wants us to know that. And we often forget that.”

Dr. Lewis wrote that in 2015, by the way.

And she also wrote this: “All of these texts articulate how hard it is to live what we believe, to speak our truth, to be willing to bring forth in our words and our actions what is in our hearts. And how hard it is to hear that what others hear from us does not seem to be us. That’s why you need people around you who will tell you the truth when they see a disconnect between who you are and what you say and do.”

The gathering of the Church is not to enable ministers to talk stink. It’s to enable ministers – lay or ordained, because we all serve on Christ’s behalf – to help one another avoid talking stink. The gathering of the Church is not to condemn the failures of those inside or outside, but to support those who strive to learn from their failures and work towards their best. The gathering of the Church is not to establish a city on the hill inaccessible to those with unwashed hands, but to welcome in those who want to share the gifts that God has given them.

In this gathering, Jesus feeds us on the bread of life, and satisfies our thirst with the cup of blessing. As we come to Christ’s table shortly, let us find there the nourishment to move forward as disciples together.

Amen.

by Eric Anderson

Watch the Recorded Sermon

The image is “Eating with Unwashed Hands,” an etching by Jan Luyken from the Phillip Medhurst Collection of Bible illustrations housed at Belgrave Hall, Leicester, England (The Kevin Victor Freestone Bequest). Photo by Philip De Vere. Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=20225111.

Rev. Eric Anderson Worship Services

Worship for September 1, 2024

Thank you for joining us for this live stream (or recording, as the case may be) of Sunday worship. May it bless you! You may need to click “Play” to launch the stream, which will be live around 9:50 AM.

Welcome to the live stream of worship from Church of the Holy Cross for Sunday, September 1, 2024. You will find the service outline below, and you may download and print the PDF to follow more easily. 

We will celebrate Holy Communion during worship today. If you are worshiping from home, please prepare and have nearby a staple food like bread or rice and a beverage for that portion of the service.

Worship Service for September 1, 2024 (PDF)Download
Story: Dirty Finches (PDF)Download
Sermon: Inside and Outside (PDF)Download
Pastoral Prayer (PDF)Download

Service of Worship September 1, 2024
Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost

Rev. Eric S. Anderson, Pastor

WE GATHER TO WORSHIP GOD

Please note that audio and video of this service are being live streamed on the Internet and will be recorded. The right rear section of the sanctuary will not be captured by any cameras. Please be aware that in other sections you may be visible at times.

Prelude: Kum Ba Yah                                                     Kayleen Yuda

Lighting of the Candles

Ringing of the Bell

Welcome                                                                 Rev. Eric S. Anderson

* Call to Worship: (based on Psalm 15)                                    John Narruhn

Leader:         Who may abide in the tent of the LORD, or rest upon God’s holy hill?
People:        Those who speak truth from their hearts and do what is right with their
                        hands.

Leader:         Blessed are they who speak no slander, who do no evil to their friends.
People:        Blessed are they who do not heap shame upon their neighbors.

Leader:         Blessed are those who do not take advantage of another’s need.
People:        May those who do these things never falter, never fail.

All:                 Let us worship God!

* Hymn #498: Jesu, Jesu, Fill Us with Your Love (v. 1-5)

* Invocation: (based on Psalm 45:1-2, 6-9)                                           John Narruhn

Your throne, O God, endures forever. The signs of your reign are equity and justice. You love righteousness; you frown at wickedness. May we receive the anointing oil of gladness as we worship you today. May our souls be filled with sweet fragrance and joyful music. Accept our worship, O God, and bless us by it. Amen.

Please be seated

WE SHARE THE WORD OF GOD

Anthem: Thank You, Lord, for the Trials                                                       IYAA

Time with the Children                                                Rev. Eric S. Anderson

Scripture: James 1:17-27                                                        John Narruhn
Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. In fulfillment of his own purpose he gave us birth by the word of truth, so that we would become a kind of first fruits of his creatures.

You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger; for your anger does not produce God’s righteousness. Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls.

But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselvesin a mirror; for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act—they will be blessed in their doing.

If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him, they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. (For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands, thus observing the tradition of the elders; and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it; and there are also many other traditions that they observe, the washing of cups, pots, and bronze kettles.So the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, ‘Why do your disciples not live according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?’ He said to them, ‘Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites, as it is written,

“This people honors me with their lips,
    but their hearts are far from me;
in vain do they worship me,
    teaching human precepts as doctrines.”

 You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition.’

Mark 7:14-15

 Then he called the crowd again and said to them, ‘Listen to me, all of you, and understand: there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile.’

Mark 7:21-23

For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.’

Sermon: Inside and Outside

WE RESPOND IN WORD AND DEED

Pastoral Prayer

Please join me in the Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever and ever. Amen

Call to Offering                                                    John Narruhn

We lay down our burdens in the grace of God. We take up our service in God’s grace as well. This is a time to share our gifts with the Church of Jesus Christ, and through the Church, the world. Whether you share your gift here in the church today, through a gift online, or via an envelope in the mail, let the offering now be received.

Offertory: God’s Love Surrounds Us                                                     Kayleen Yuda

* Doxology
Praise God from whom all blessings flow,
Praise Him all creatures here below
Praise Him above ye heavenly host
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost – Amen

* Offertory Prayer

May we do your word as we hear it, O God. May we understand your word and so do well. Accept these gifts, we pray, and by them fulfill your purposes in the world. Amen.

* Hymn #337: Draw Us in the Spirit’s Tether (v. 1-3)

Sacrament of Holy Communion

Invitation
Consecrating the Bread and Cup
Sharing the Bread and Cup
Prayer of Thanksgiving

* Hymn #454: Lord, I Want To Be a Christian (v. 1-4)

Announcements                                              Rev. Eric S. Anderson

Benediction                                                                   Rev. Eric S. Anderson

Postlude: Great God of Glory                                                            Kayleen Yuda

* Please stand if you are able.

Permissions

Kum Ba Yah
Lani Smith
Tune: © 1984 Lorenz Publishing Company,
a division of The Lorenz Corporation
(Admin. by Music Services)
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890

Jesu, Jesu, Fill Us with Your Love
Text by Tom Colvin, 1969
© 1969 Hope Publishing Company
Tune CHEREPONI Ghanian folk song
Arr. by Jane Marshall, 1982
© 1982 Hope Publishing Company
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890

Thank You, Lord, for the Trials
Author Unknown

God’s Love Surrounds Us
Carl Simone
Tune: © 1985 Lorenz Publishing Company,
a division of The Lorenz Corporation
(Admin. by Music Services)
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890

Draw Us in the Spirit’s Tether
Text by Percy Dearmer, 1925
© 1925 by Oxford University Press
Tune UNION SEMINARY by Harold Friedell, 1957
© 1957, 1985 by Belwin-Mills Publishing Corp.
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890

Lord, I Want To Be a Christian
Text: African-American spiritual
Public Domain
Tune I WANT TO BE A CHRISTIAN, African-American spiritual
Arr. by Joyce Finch Johnson, 1992
© The Pilgrim Press
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890

Great God of Glory
David Paxton
Tune: © 1985 Lorenz Publishing Company,
a division of The Lorenz Corporation
(Admin. by Music Services)
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890

We welcome you to worship this day. Church of the Holy Cross seeks to help its members, friends, and visitors follow the guidance of God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit, encouraging all people to love one another according to the teachings of Jesus. We live and teach the faith, speak good news, minister to people near and far, and work with other households of faith and helping agencies to improve our community and our world. To support our ministries, please visit our Donate Page.

Rev. Eric Anderson Pastor's Corner

Pastor’s Corner: Making Memories

We are always making memories.

Sometimes those memories are pleasant, happy, joyful. These rise from celebrations, from accomplishments, from recognitions. Others are less so. They rise from losses, griefs, failures, and blame.

We are always making memories.

I wish we could control that, but of course we can’t. Good things and bad things come along in life, leaving their passage in our memories.

We are always making memories.

I think it’s worth the effort to create times we will remember with affection. Hold those celebrations when the opportunity comes along. Praise your friends and family members for their achievements, and let them praise you when your turn arrives. Go to the birthday parties. And when you’re there, do the things that promote joy but do not risk harm. As the Apostle would say, be filled with the Spirit.

When the sorrows come, you can still influence the memories you (and others) will retain. Be gracious to the person who has failed, and be aware of those who comfort you when you have failed. Listen to the voices of sympathy in loss. Emphasize the ones who assist you over those who blame you.

We are always making memories.

Make happy memories that avoid regret for ill-considered words. Make sorrowful memories that recall the love that carried you.

We are always making memories.

In peace,

Pastor Eric

Rev. Eric Anderson What I'm Thinking

What I’m Thinking: Unwashed

We wouldn’t be happy about people eating with unwashed hands, either, but Jesus was right: it’s what comes from within that causes the most problems in the world.

Here’s a transcript:

I’m thinking about the seventh chapter of Mark’s gospel (Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23), one of Jesus’ disputes with some Pharisees.

The Pharisees began with a perfectly reasonable question: “Jesus, why don’t your disciples wash their hands before they eat?” We today would ask somebody who came to the table with dirty hands why they hadn’t washed before they ate. In the first century, this was also a question of ritual relationship with God. Washing was a way to remind people not just of their relationship, but of their obligations, before God. The Pharisees’ question was perfectly sensible.

The question, or quite possibly the questioners, seem to have irritated Jesus quite a bit. He raised an issue — which our lectionary editors have omitted — of a practice among some wealthy and powerful Pharisees. They would tell their parents that a portion of their wealth had been designated as sacred to God, and that therefore it could not be used to support them. “This people honors me with their lips,” Jesus said, “but they are far from me in their heart.”

How widespread that practice was I do not know, but it is clearly not just a circumvention of obligation, it is, in fact, flying in the face of one of the Ten Commandments. No wonder Jesus was irritated. He told his disciples that it is the things that come from within that defile, things like anger and malice and jealousy and greed.

I’m not going to tell you not to wash your hands, particularly since we’ve had abundant demonstration over our lifetimes that reducing the spread of disease is an awfully good thing. What I am going to tell you is to focus on those things that come from within. When those impulses towards violence or malice or jealousy, when those impulses towards greed and selfishness, when that self-righteousness rears its ugly head, then it is time to remember that we are to keep our souls and our actions as pure as we can. Don’t swallow the anger: manage it. Don’t exercise the greed. Don’t bring the bad things that are on the inside to the outside.

Instead, let the grace of God fill your heart and bring your face and your fingers into accordance with the guidance and the example of Jesus.

That’s what I’m thinking. I’m curious to hear what you’re thinking. Leave me your thoughts in the comment section below. I’d love to hear from you.

Rev. Eric Anderson Sermons

Sermon: Unarmored

August 25, 2024

Psalm 34:15-22
Ephesians 6:10-20

It was a hymn tune first, with lyrics that included “Oh Brothers” (and in the next verse “Oh Sisters”) “will you meet me on Cannan’s happy shore?” It was one of those sung in the camp meeting worship services of early 19th century American settlements in the West.

With the arrival of the Civil War, however, the tune found a new set of lyrics. “John Brown’s body lies a moldering in the grave; his soul’s a marching on.” It became a marching anthem for soldiers of the Union Army, who took inspiration from the intense anti-slavery activist John Brown, who had been executed after a frustrated attempt to seize guns to outfit an uprising among enslaved African Americans in 1859.

Julia Ward Howe heard the song during a review of Union troops in Washington, DC. A companion, the Rev. James Freeman Clarke, suggested that she come up with a new set of words – and she did. “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” became a marching anthem for the Union armies as they moved to battles throughout the 87 year old nation.

The Civil War is still, today, the deadliest conflict in the history of the United States of America. “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” played a role in inspiring  hundreds of thousands to kill or be killed.

I get… anxious… about military imagery in hymns, theology, and yes, in Scripture. Human beings are gifted at transforming military metaphors into actual assaults. For that matter, they transform other symbols for use in armed conflict. Famously, the Emperor Constantine put two superimposed Greek letters on his shield before he went to battle against Maxentius in 312 with the Imperial throne at stake. The letters were Chi and Rho – which look like an X and a P to our eyes – the first two letters of “Christ” in Greek.

Constantine won. Maxentius died. We don’t know how many others died with him. Constantine legalized Christianity in the next year, ending nearly three hundred years of intermittent persecution. Unfortunately, it would also strengthen the notion of a warrior Christ, one who would give military victory, and incidentally label all those opposing Rome, or France, or Spain, or England (or take your pick) as evildoers to be cut off from remembrance on the earth.

The Apostle’s metaphor of the Whole Armor of God has been used to endorse the holy wars, the inquisitions, the crusades that have taken so many lives and grieved their purported Divine endorser. I have no doubt it would also grieve the Apostle.

Sarah Henrich writes at Working Preacher:

Yes, it is dangerous indeed to classify those with whom one disagrees as agents of the devil. We have three protections against making Ephesians 6 a warrant for warfare or oppression:

  • first, this metaphor was written for minority persons;
  • second, flesh and blood opponents are not those against whom one contends;
  • finally, the very nature of the armor makes clear that the message here is a survival strategy for persons of faith in a hostile world, not a strategy for aggression.

Take a good look at this Whole Armor of God. It’s not intended for a battle against human beings. Imagine going into a conflict equipped only with truth, righteousness, peace, faith, salvation, and the Spirit. The people who came with real armor and real weapons are going to hurt you. To put it into poetry:

I’m grateful that the struggle is not with
the powers of blood and flesh. Not if
I’m to rely upon these items
for protection of my vital spark.

What happens to the righteous? Why,
they suffer, as do those who speak of peace.
A shield of faith is powerless against
an arrow, or a club, or fist.

Should I entrust my head to its
salvation? The logic doesn’t work for me.
I wish I thought an offense of the Spirit,
of the Word, protected anyone, but… no.

And worst of all, to recommend
I gird my waist with Truth, as if
the truth has ever carried any weight
when cut so easily by lies.

Those virtues will not help you very much in a human conflict, let’s face it. Certainly not in physical combat. They’re not always very helpful in negation or debate. More than one party to a lawsuit has found that truth and righteousness falter under the pressure of greed and lies.

And peace may be the most fragile thing of all. It vanishes as soon as violence or coercion take place.

Why, then, did the Apostle advise us to enter these encounters essentially unprotected, unarmored?

It’s because there is no substitute for virtue.

Remember that these virtues are not about interactions with people – though I note that we should be using them in interactions with people – they are primarily about resisting the influence of spiritual forces. In our tradition at this time we don’t give a lot of attention to the idea of spiritual forces other than God. We don’t explain mental illness or distress with possession by demons. We don’t explain the power of greed as resulting from demonic influence. We don’t understand our own temptations as coming from anyone other than ourselves.

Many of our ancestors, physical and spiritual, did. They employed these virtues of truth, righteousness, peace, faith, salvation, and the Spirit to resist the temptations around them, temptations to selfishness, to the abuse of power, to the abandonment of their relationship with Christ. In that context, these virtues had the ability to help.

As I say, we don’t think that way about temptation. For us, it comes from within.

Does it matter?

Whether temptation is an external force or an internal collision with desire, these same virtues have the capacity to help us resist. When we search for the truth about this thing we’ve come to desire, perhaps we’ll learn not only that it’s not all it claims to be, but that it won’t make us happy anyway. I keep wondering whether, before the 2007-2008 financial crisis, if more people had spent more time understanding the truth about the financial instruments being traded, if they would have calmed things down. If more of them had been able to check their greed at the door, would things have changed?

I think so.

It’s not just the obvious temptations of sex and greed. As Katie Hines-Shah writes at The Christian Century, “’Spiritual forces of evil’ are present in mundane human life. Racism, sexism, homophobia, greed, destruction of the environment, lack of concern for human life, failure to do the good that is within us—these are forces of evil, from the classroom to the boardroom. Faithful Christians need to gird themselves against them.”

Let’s face it, the world has taught us racism, sexism, homophobia, greed, disregard for the environment. We see these things sometimes subtly and sometimes dramatically, from the offhand racial microaggression to the open and casual dumping of toxic waste. We have been taught to value human life, but to value the lives of ourselves, our families, our communities higher than others. And that makes a difference. It permits us to tolerate or even support evil.

What have we learned about doing good? That it’s the thing to do? Sometimes – but not always, right? Sometimes it would be futile, so we shouldn’t. Sometimes it would promote bad habits in someone else, so we shouldn’t. Sometimes it would put us at risk, so we shouldn’t.

All of those can be difficult questions… but can’t we do the good that is within us more often than we do?

I sincerely wish that truth, righteousness, peace, faith, salvation, and the Holy Spirit offered real protection in the real world. They don’t. They offer us protection only in the world of the spirit, which is a strange place with strange rules. The sad truth is that we confront the evils of this world basically unarmored against their physical manifestations. The sad truth is that we frequently fail to understand the ways in which these virtues protect us against injuries to our souls.

Take on, then, this Whole Armor of God with eyes wide open. Know that you will still face the challenges of life, and that you will still face challenges to the soul. Those virtues may not help you much in the world.

But those virtues are the best there are to protect you against spiritual harms. Those virtues will guard your soul.

Amen.

by Eric Anderson

Watch the Recorded Sermon

Pastor Eric prepares the sermon text in advance, but while preaching things happen and things change. What you view will differ from what you read.

Photo of Roman crocodile armor by Ken Kennedy (taken in the British Museum) – https://www.flickr.com/photos/kkennedy/503916291/, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=16228691.

Rev. Eric Anderson Worship Services

Worship for August 25, 2024

Thank you for joining us for this live stream (or recording, as the case may be) of Sunday worship. May it bless you! You may need to click “Play” to launch the stream, which will be live around 9:50 AM.

Welcome to the live stream of worship from Church of the Holy Cross for Sunday, August 25, 2024. You will find the service outline below, and you may download and print the PDF to follow more easily. 

Worship Service for August 25, 2024 (PDF)Download
Story: Rocky the Honu (PDF)Download
Sermon: Unarmored (PDF)Download
Pastoral Prayer (PDF)Download

Service of Worship August 25, 2024
Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost

Rev. Eric S. Anderson, Pastor

WE GATHER TO WORSHIP GOD

Please note that audio and video of this service are being live streamed on the Internet and will be recorded. The right rear section of the sanctuary will not be captured by any cameras. Please be aware that in other sections you may be visible at times.

Prelude: Hymn of Praise                                           Kayleen Yuda

Lighting of the Candles

Ringing of the Bell

Welcome                                                        Rev. Eric S. Anderson

* Call to Worship: (based on 1 Kings 8:22-30)                                        Stefan Tanouye

Leader:         When they dedicated the Temple, Solomon stood and prayed:
People:        “Will God dwell upon the earth?”

Leader:         Even heaven cannot contain God, let alone anything built by human hands.
People:        We will bring our prayers to this place, but more so to the heart of God.

Leader:         We pray that God hears our prayers in the highest heaven.
People:        We pray that God hears our prayers: hears, welcomes, and forgives.

All:     Let us worship God!

* Hymn #68: God Is Truly with Us (v. 1-3)

* Invocation: (based on Psalm 84)                                                   Stefan Tanouye

How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts! There the small birds nest; there the people sing in harmony. Happy are those who live in your house, whose strength is in you, whose hearts are highways to your grace. Give us your love and your peace in this time of worship, that we may walk in righteousness all the days of our lives. Amen.

Please be seated

WE SHARE THE WORD OF GOD

Anthem: Simple Song                                                        Kanako Okita, piano
                                                                                    Tom Mirenda, tenor

Time with the Children                                                     Rev. Eric S. Anderson

Scripture: Psalm 34:15-22                                                       Stefan Tanouye
The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
    and his ears are open to their cry.
The face of the Lord is against evildoers,
    to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.
When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears,
    and rescues them from all their troubles.
The Lord is near to the broken-hearted,
    and saves the crushed in spirit.

 Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
    but the Lord rescues them from them all.
He keeps all their bones;
    not one of them will be broken.
Evil brings death to the wicked,
    and those who hate the righteous will be condemned.

 The Lord redeems the life of his servants;
    none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.

Ephesians 6:10-20
Finally, are strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints. Pray also for me, so that when I speak, a message may be given to me to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel,for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it boldly, as I must speak.

Sermon: Unarmored                                                              Rev. Eric S. Anderson

WE RESPOND IN WORD AND DEED

Pastoral Prayer

Please join me in the Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever and ever. Amen

Reception of New Members

Geoffrey Braun (Affirmation of Faith)
Peter J. Braun (Reaffirmation of Faith)
Froilan C. Queja (Letter of Transfer)
Rosalind V. Queja (Letter of Transfer)

Invitation

Questions of the Candidate

Sharing of the Covenant

All: We covenant one with another to seek and respond to the Word and the will of God. We agree to walk together in the ways of the Lord, made known and to be made known to us. We hold it to be the mission of the Church to witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ in the entire world, while worshiping God, and striving for truth, justice, and peace. As did those who came before us, we depend on the Holy Spirit to lead and empower us. We pray for the coming of the kingdom of God, and we look with faith toward the triumph of righteousness and eternal life.

Welcome                                               Rev. Eric S. Anderson

Pastor: Let us, the members of Church of the Holy Cross UCC, express our welcome and affirm our mutual ministry in Christ.

People: We welcome you with joy in the common life of this church. We promise you our friendship and prayers as we share the hopes and labors of the church of Jesus Christ. By the power of the Holy Spirit may we continue to grow together in God’s knowledge and love and be witnesses of our risen Savior.

Prayer

* Hymn #494: We Who Would Valiant Be (v. 1-3)

Call to Offering                                                                  Stefan Tanouye

Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, salvation, and the Word of God are the spiritual resources of the Christian faith. From these virtues we make our offerings in thanks for God’s grace and in concert with God’s purposes. Whether you share your gift here in the church today, through a gift online, or via an envelope in the mail, let the offering now be received.

Offertory: Recitative for Flute                                                          Kayleen Yuda

* Doxology
Praise God from whom all blessings flow,
Praise Him all creatures here below
Praise Him above ye heavenly host
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost – Amen

* Offertory Prayer                                                                           Stefan Tanouye

You know the truth of our hearts and lives, O God. You know what we do to be Christ’s faithful followers. Accept these gifts, we pray, as one more effort to take up the discipleship to which you call us, and bless them to the increase of your realm. Amen.

* Hymn #55: Rejoice, You Pure in Heart (v. 1-5)

You may be seated

Announcements                                                                  Rev. Eric S. Anderson

Benediction                                                                 Rev. Eric S. Anderson

Postlude: God of Our Fathers                                                          Kayleen Yuda

* Please stand if you are able.

Permissions

Hymn of Praise
James Denton
Tune: © 1985 Lorenz Publishing Company,
a division of The Lorenz Corporation
(Admin. by Music Services)
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890

God Is Truly with Us
Text by Gerhard Tersteegen, 1729
Trans. by Frederick W. Foster
Tune WUNDERBARER KONIG by Joachim Neander, 1680
Public Domain

Simple Song
Leonard Bernstein
CCS License #13303

We Who Would Valiant Be
Text by John Bunyan, 1684
Tune ST. DUNSTAN’S by D. Winfred Douglas, 1917
Public Domain

Recitative for Flute
David Paxton
Tune: © 1985 Lorenz Publishing Company,
a division of The Lorenz Corporation
(Admin. by Music Services)
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890

Let Us with a Joyful Mind
Text by John Milton, 1624
Tune INNOCENTS, 1850
Public Domain

God of Our Fathers
Robert J. Hughes
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890

Dates to Remember
Today, August 25 – J’s Mini Mart

Pastor                                                                                  Rev. Eric S. Anderson
Moderator                                                                         Stefan Tanouye
Lay Reader                                                                        Stefan Tanouye
Choir Accompanist                                                        Kanako Okita
Choir Director                                                                 Doug Albertson
Organist                                                                             Kayleen Yuda
Guest tenor                                                                       Tom Mirenda
Hand Bell Director                                                        Anna Kennedy
Chapel Decorations                                                       Laura Ota
Projected Imagery                                                        Sue Smith
Web Master                                                                      Ruth Niino-DuPonte  
Videographers                                                                Eric Tanouye, Eli Yamaki
                                                                            Ruth Niino-DuPonte, Bob Smith

We welcome you to worship this day. Church of the Holy Cross seeks to help its members, friends, and visitors follow the guidance of God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit, encouraging all people to love one another according to the teachings of Jesus. We live and teach the faith, speak good news, minister to people near and far, and work with other households of faith and helping agencies to improve our community and our world. To support our ministries, please visit our Donate Page.