Rev. Beth Putney joins Brick Church as Interim Associate Minister, supporting Youth, General Pastoral, and Deacon Ministries. She comes to us from Pasadena, California, where she served as the inaugural Jeff & Lynn O’Grady Pastoral Resident for Theology and Culture at San Marino Community Church. The interdisciplinary nature of that residency deepened her understanding of ministry as an intergenerational calling. Rev. Putney is eager to journey with our congregation and to come alongside youth, young adults, and deacons in this season of ministry. A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College, Rev. Beth earned her Master of Divinity, Master of Christian Education and Formation (Ministry with Young People track), and Certificate in Theology, Women, and Gender from Princeton Theological Seminary in May 2023. While at Princeton, she participated in several grant initiatives focused on innovation in the church, including Teaching Spiritual Entrepreneurship (funded by Trinity Wall Street) and the Ministry Collaboratory for Young Adult Ministry (funded by the Lilly Endowment). She also served as research assistant to Rev. Dr. Kenda Creasy Dean and authored the companion workbook to Dr. Dean’s latest book, Innovating for Love: Joining God’s Expedition through Christian Social Innovation. Rev. Beth received the 2022 Covin Award in Youth Ministry and the 2023 Robert Boyd Munger Award in Youth Ministry. She is also a member of the inaugural cohort of the Polaris Young Adult Leadership Network, a grant initiative at Princeton Theological Seminary designed to connect and equip young adults innovating in the church. Originally from the Pacific Northwest, Rev. Beth loves books, the outdoors, and good coffee. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with friends, exploring new places, visiting art museums, running, and listening to Taylor Swift on repeat.

The Bereavement Group provides a safe and caring space for those who have experienced a loss - whether a family member, friend, or another meaningful person in their life. Over the course of 10 weeks, group members will work together with a psychologist facilitator to share stories and learn from each other's experiences. The group will begin October 20 and meet through December 8 from 6:30-7:30 PM. The cost is $160 for the full program, and enrollment is limited to 8 persons. Financial assistance is available if needed. Meeting Dates: 10/20 10/29 at 5 PM 11/3 11/10 11/17 11/24 12/1 12/8

I Peter 2:1-10 ​We are a holy priesthood, Peter tells us. An extremely lofty honorific which we are sure does not fit us. In fact, I imagine we simply dismiss this statement out of hand. Peter is wrong. There is nothing especially holy about any of us compared to anyone else in this world, and certainly you and I are not performing priestly, cultic duties.  Mesopotamian ancient priests would sacrifice a sheep and take a close look at its liver to reveal God’s will. The oracle of Delphi would inhale volcanic fumes, enter into an ecstatic state to induce prophecies. Over the millennia, the priestly acts evolved, and in ancient Jewish times the priest would burn parts of the harvest on the people’s behalf as an offering of thanks to God, and once a year they would slaughter one goat, and the second goat—the scapegoat—would symbolically take on the sins of the people by being sent into the wilderness. It was understood in all of these traditions that the priest was a holy person appointed by God to divine truth and take away the sins of the people. As Christianity developed, the priestly role included consecrating the communion elements through which the bread and the wine literally became the crucified Christ’s body and blood. In this instance, Jesus is understood as the sacrificial lamb and the scapegoat to take away our sins. During the time of the Reformation, amongst its theological leaders—John Calvin, Ulrich Zwingli, and Martin Luther—there was a recognition that the role of the priest had become distorted and did not reflect biblical principles seen through the lens of Christ. The book of Hebrews is definitive on this point: Nor was it to offer himself again and again, as the high priest enters the holy place year after year with blood that is not his own, for then he would have had to suffer again and again since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to remove sin by the sacrifice of himself.  — Hebrews 9:25–28 Once and for all. If this is done once and for all, then the priestly role of sacrifice no longer is relevant. And since the point of the sacrifice was to forgive the sins of the people, the people no longer needed the priest in order to receive forgiveness. This is a critical point, an inflection of power asserted through the divine truth of Scripture. And for the people of the Reformation, this meant the church no longer held sway over our souls. On this Kirkin’ of the Tartans Sunday, we give thanks for our history traced through Scotland and the entire Reformation that set us free from the tyranny of the church and the tyranny of the king. At the time, the king had a vested interest in high church authority. In fact, James I (aka James VI of Scotland!) was adamantly against a Presbyterian church order because he felt it would undermine his kingly authority. As he said at the Hampton Conference in 1604,“ No bishop, no king! ” He did his best to quash this movement. This brings us back to First Peter. In light of this history and biblical understanding, what does this mean—that we are a holy priesthood? First, our holiness is not derived from any inner quality. We are not holy because we are morally pure. Rather, we are holy because God has given us a holy calling, which Peter tells us, “ in order that you may proclaim the excellence of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. ” And the central place we are called to this proclamation? —Worship. And so, our Presbyterian Book of Order, W-2.0201, declares: In Jesus Christ, the Church is called to be a royal priesthood, giving glory to God in worship and devoting itself to God’s service in the world...The order of worship should provide for and encourage the participation of all; no one is to be excluded. The sacrifice of Jesus leveled the playing field of faith, which means that I and Rev. Unzaga don’t perform any cultic rites on your behalf. We are all holy; we all have this calling. Furthermore, Presbyterian worship is not made authentic or more faithful by designated priests but is an act of the whole people of God, which informs our liturgy every Sunday. Liturgy is all the different parts of the service—the prayer of confession, the assurance of pardon, the affirmation of faith, the offering, and so on. Liturgy literally means “the work of the people.” And we understand that all worship is the work of the people. And so, the whole congregation, no matter the quality of their voice or their age, sings to God. Church members offer prayers and collect the offering. Even the sacraments are not solely the province of the pastors. In fact, we cannot perform the sacraments without the participation of elders or deacons. During the baptism, an elder introduces the family. During communion, they uncover the elements and, along with the pastors, distribute the bread and wine to the people. Not only is the Scripture translated into the language of the people, but the people read it in worship. The authority and holiness of Scripture does not rest in the ancientness of its language but the truth contained within it—the truth available to all. The truth of your priesthood and mine is the promise of the most wonderful thing in all of the universe—to fully ascend the ladder of love. Plato, in his work  Symposium , described this ladder. Love begins most often with a sense of physical attraction. This is the recognition of the physical beauty of another person. We then move to the love of the beauty of souls, the love of knowledge, and finally the love of beauty itself. Think about that flush of attraction which drew you to your life partner—an incredible feeling. You love being with them for how they make you feel, and you want to spend the rest of your life with them. They bring you a sense of security, and their embrace brings comfort. But whether this is a romantic partner or a dear friend, at some point this love hits a wall. You’re frustrated with their idiosyncratic behavior. And perhaps the love grows dim. They no longer meet your needs. You realize you’ve only loved them for the way they make you feel, for what they do for you. And this is where many become stuck—stuck in the lower forms of love, and so too it is with our love for God. If we suffer, if we go hungry, if we don’t get the job we want, we become frustrated, angry, and distant from God. And in so doing, we have disclosed something about the nature of our love—it is transactional; it has conditions. Our limited sight, our creaturely nature, makes it impossible for us to ascend higher on the ladder of love. But through Christ all things are possible, for through him we have all become priests. The priest can enter into the Holy of Holies. The priest can enter into the very presence of God. And to be in God’s presence is not simply to feel love, but it is to know love itself—the most beautiful thing in existence. To enter into this place requires courage—courage to leave behind the lower forms of love. Courage that the prophet Habakkuk showed in the most desperate of times: Though the fig tree does not bud and no fruit is on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though the sheep are cut off from the fold and no cattle are in the stalls, yet I will exult in the LORD; I will rejoice in the God of my salvation!  — Habakkuk 3:17–18 And when we are finally able to love God without any conditions or expectations, it is then that we can truly love each other, knowing that there is a seed of God planted in every one’s soul. Amen.

Join us in Watson Hall for fun and fellowship on the court! Sessions are offered for all levels: Beginner & Intermediate on Mondays (4:00–6:00 PM) and Saturdays (10:00 AM–12:00 PM), Advanced play on Mondays (6:00–8:00 PM), and a Church Members-only session with instruction for beginners on Thursdays (4:00–5:30 PM).

Revelation 4:1-11 ​During seminary, Wendy and I spent one summer in Tupper Lake, New York, where I served as an intern at a country church there. Liz was two at the time, and she would stand at the top of the steps welcoming people as black flies with their gruesome fangs attacked us! For entertainment when people came to visit, we would take them to the local trash dump at dusk. Like clockwork, half a dozen bears would appear, providing great entertainment. We’d go blueberry picking around the lake as loons mesmerized us with their ethereal call, which was much more beautiful than the music on Sunday morning there.  There was a faithful organist—I say faithful because she played for many decades—but had two hip replacements. Which already is a challenge for an organist, but it was doubly so because this was a pump organ, which required pumping those pedals to push the air through the organ pipes! The music was awful. The great 16th-century Reformers—John Calvin, Ulrich Zwingli, and possibly even Martin Luther—would have been thankful for her, because of it, there was zero chance that anyone would be distracted by its beauty. The Reformers sought to change worship because it had become overly elaborate, with too many extra layers. They wanted to simplify worship so that nothing would pull us away from focusing solely on God. Like folks in the 1950s, they knew music had incredible power. " [Rock and Roll is] the martial music of every side-burned delinquent"  (Frank Sinatra), and Rock and Roll is where  "God and the devil shake hands " (Neil Young). And because of music’s power—like the people of the 1950s who were terrified of the Beatles’ long hair—the Reformers went to extremes: The organ was characterized as the “ Devil’s Bagpipe ” and a “ Seducer to Worship .” Organs in one city’s five churches were silenced, then destroyed. The organ in Zwingli’s Grossmünster, the Cathedral Church, was relatively new. Historian Sharp said eyewitness Gerold Edlibach described the instrument—it was massive, gorgeous, superb, and very expensive, with an imposing cluster of registers. Edlibach also described its destruction—it was “ ripped down and smashed ” while the cathedral’s organist, Pelagius Karlschmid, “ stood by, helpless and weeping. ” Sharp reported that in various cantons of Switzerland, pipes were melted and recast. In Schaffhausen, pipes became wine cans; in Winterthur, a new roof for the prison tower; and in Geneva, dinnerware for the city hospital by order of Reformer John Calvin.  (Source:  Beggars All Reformation Blog, 2012 ) Clearly, they took reform too far, but there is something important we can learn from them—and it’s reflected in our  Presbyterian Book of Order : W-2.0202  The singing of psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs is a vital and ancient form of prayer. The Reformation sought to reclaim the role of music in worship. It is prayer—and as such, it must always turn us to God, in service to glorifying God and never mere entertainment. Granted, it is not always simple to separate the two. If at the end of a wonderful anthem our only thought is the beauty of the music or the incredible talent of the choir, then the music is distracting us. Certainly, these are normal responses—but the aim is to take us deeper. Music’s power is meant to connect a part of ourselves to the glory of God that mere words cannot touch. Scripture tells us,  “As you sing, make a melody to the Lord with your hearts.” Furthermore, the Book of Order tells us that all of us are the primary choir, not just the ones sitting in the chancel. Presbyterian worship by its very nature is participatory. It is not a spectator sport. Even when we are listening to the choir, we should be aware they are not singing to us—they are singing to God on our behalf. And like all elements of our worship, these understandings are drawn from Scripture. And in our text from Revelation, we find ourselves in the throne room of heaven itself! This fantastic scene is not a literal description of heaven. Heaven is beyond our earthly grasp—but it is evocative of divine glory speaking to us; these images seek to peel back the veil of eternity, “ And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and inside. Day and night without ceasing they sing,  ‘Holy, holy, holy, the Lord God the Almighty.’” Music in worship is first and foremost an act of praise. This is our destiny—day and night without ceasing, the text tells us. Our Sunday morning worship is meant to be a rehearsal of this eternal throne-room scene. Consider the opening hymn. The procession of the choir, the Order of Saint Paul, the Beadle, the elders, and the pastors are all meant to give us the sense that we are being ushered into this throne room. In fact, Revelation tells us that everyone in heaven and everyone on earth will join together in praise. So, on Sunday morning, we are literally joining the heavenly choirs. The scene continues into the fifth chapter of Revelation, in which we discover the presence of the Lamb, so the focus of the heavenly praise turns to the Lamb of God—that is, Jesus: “ Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might, and honor and glory and blessing! ” “Blessing, honor, glory, and power be unto Him!”  I love Handel! But music in worship does not begin and end with hymns of praise—it extends throughout the service. I invite you to pull out your order of service and follow along. After our public confession we sing the Kyrie, “ Lord, have mercy upon us. ” These words are drawn from many places in Scripture, but most potently from Psalm 51. King David recognizes the immensity of his sin. He has murdered a man out of lustful desire. He knows that God does not want animal sacrifices but rather a truly contrite heart. When we sing “ Lord, have mercy ,” we should use the music to enable our desire for mercy to be more humble, more authentic, and more deeply felt. We also sing after the Affirmation of Faith. The affirmation follows the sermon. Once we have heard the Word of God, we stand up before the world and say, “ I believe. ” And upon realizing what it is that we believe—that God’s gracious love in Jesus Christ has saved us—we cannot help but sing with joy: “ Glory be to the Father, glory be to the Son, glory be to the Holy Ghost. Glory be! ” Next, we pull our gaze down from heaven and look out onto the world that God has created. Having heard Scripture, we have a clear picture of how far this world is from God’s will for it. So we pray. We pray for ourselves, we pray for our friends, we pray for those around the world. And when the spoken prayer is complete, the whole congregation finishes the prayer by singing: “ Not for this land alone, but be God’s mercies shown from shore to shore, and make the nations see that we must loving be, and form one family the wide world over. ” Then comes the offering. We may think this time is about putting money into the plate—and though that is part of it—it is not the primary intention. First and foremost, this is a time to remember Christ’s self-offering, his sacrifice, his death. He offered his life for our sake. That is what this moment commemorates. We happen to collect money at this time because, in light of the depth of his love for us, we can only respond with thanksgiving. Your offering is meant to be a reflection of the love and thankfulness in your heart. At this point the choir offers up a prayer for all of us—the anthem. They sing on our behalf to this incredible God, a God that is beyond our comprehension, that displays a mercy and a steadfast devotion outside of human capability—and God does it for us, a wayward, obdurate, and recalcitrant people. And as we listen to them sing, perhaps we’ve gone deeper into the presence of the Spirit of God than at any other moment in the service. For me, it’s like a spiritual exhale of my stress, my anxiety, and my worries. Which brings us to a moment of exceeding joy and anticipation. Have you ever noticed after the anthem there is a subtle but critical moment? Melissa or Ray play a transition with the theme of the anthem transposed, modulated. There is an immense amount of the gospel in those few notes they play—it builds and builds and builds. It is my most anticipated moment in the service until they play a chord—an exceedingly powerful, triumphant, and joyful chord—that one chord that makes me stand up ready to sing like no other point in the service: Praise God from whom all blessings flow! Praise God, all creatures here below! Praise God above, ye heavenly host; Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost! Presbyterian worship has sought to be simple so that everything turns us to God. We are wary of emotions that might become sentimentality. We don’t simply want a pretty sanctuary or an exquisite piece of music that doesn’t point us above.We don’t want an impressively intellectual sermon that simply proves how smart the pastor is.We are afraid of our own feelings—I’m afraid, lest I shed a tear and show that I am human. But most of all we are afraid of… clapping! Some months ago, the chancel choir, along with a percussion group, offered up a gift to God on our behalf—the composition known as  The Cry of Jeremiah  by Rosephanye Powell. In many ways it tells the story not only of Jeremiah’s anguish but humanity’s journey of sin, brokenness, and fear. There are somber, deep, and painful moments in the piece. You can feel Jeremiah’s soul-crushing sorrow when they sing,  “Cursed be the day I was born!”  It is heavy, hard, and heart-rending. But like the Bible itself, there is a turn. It doesn’t come all at once—the choir starts a rhythmic chanting,  “Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia,”  and then a single, incredibly powerful voice… and it’s not simply a strong or beautiful voice but a voice that conveys a life that has lived in the depths and the heights of human experience.  “I’ve gotta rejoice!”  she sings as the choir’s  Alleluias  grow more hopeful. The organ plays a funky beat; the solo voice ascends higher and higher as she carries us with her up into the stratospheric heights. And then her voice melds with the choir’s as the organ rumbles with joy and the percussion beats out divine power, as it comes to a rapturous conclusion! Music has a special power to usher us into the holy presence of God. Dare I say it was the perfect moment in worship—except for one thing. As the last note played, there was an awkward silence. We looked around at each other, and we Presbyterians all wanted to do something very un-Presbyterian—applaud—but we were too afraid. All of us. Though generally I am against it, in that moment I truly believe it was the Holy Spirit offering an authentic way for us to give thanks not simply for the music, but for what the music gave us—the joy of God’s amazing love. Alleluia! Amen!

With God’s helping hands, our Prayer Shawl Ministry has lovingly created more than 700 shawls since its inception — over 50 just this year — for members of our congregation and their families. We’re grateful for every stitch! Whether someone is facing a health challenge, experiencing loss, or beginning a new chapter in life, each shawl is prayed over and presented as a tangible wrapping of God’s love. Please join us in this meaningful ministry. We are currently seeking experienced knitters to help continue this good work. Can’t make a meeting? No problem — one of us will gladly meet with you individually to coordinate patterns, yarn, and drop-offs. Reach out to: Jaqueline Worth —  jaqworth@gmail.com ; Linda Simpson —  linda.simpson@davispolk.com Karen Fang —  karencfm@yahoo.com   Deborah Kramm —  dkramm@att.net All are welcome. Join us in wrapping our community in prayer and care.

The Associate Pastor Nominating Committee (APNC) is eager to hear more from Brick members as we review Brick's current ministry and seek to discern our future needs and what we are looking for in new associate pastors. The APNC is hosting three opportunities for Brick members to speak with the APNC and share your thoughts and hopes. We hope that you will be able to attend one of these meetings. You are welcome to attend the full hour or just to drop by for a few minutes. We value your input!  Sunday, October 19 | 12:15 PM | Living Room Monday, October 27 | 6:00 PM | Carnegie Room Wednesday, October 29 | 6:00 PM | Zoom Only  Zoom Meeting Information https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81111095194?pwd=A27LcSXKxdyUbN73cKJjI0Pwa4Un9s.1   Meeting ID: 811 1109 5194 Passcode: Feedback

Children 3-years-old through 7th grade are invited to celebrate Advent and Christmas by participating in the Brick Church Christmas Pageant! The pageant is an opportunity for children to offer worship leadership and be our Christmas storytellers. All rehearsals will take place in the Watson Hall unless otherwise indicated.  Please note: Jr Speaking Roles are now available to enthusiastic K-1st Graders. Other K-1st Graders are invited to be in non-speaking roles. To participate in one of the many roles offered, please register below.  We also welcome older youth to help with lighting and staging.

“Worship the Lord with gladness” - Psalm 100:2a The  Book of Order  tells us that Christian worship joyfully ascribes all praise, honor, and glory to the triune God. “Triune” means we worship all aspects of the divine - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Through our understanding of the Trinity, our worship takes shape.   Call to Worship   We begin by worshiping the Almighty Creator God. The majestic organ ushers us into worship, and a biblically based Call to Worship opens our hearts to adore and praise our mighty God. The opening processional hymn is a foretaste of eternity - a rehearsal for the heavenly throne room.   Prayer of Adoration   There’s a vision in the Book of Revelation describing the Elders before the throne and before the Lamb, They bow down and cast their golden crowns on the glassy sea. That beloved hymn,  Holy, Holy, Holy , comes directly from this passage. In worship, we first offer our praise to this Holy and Mighty God - and through the majesty of worship, we suddenly realize that we are in the presence of the One whose glory overwhelms us.   Prayer of Confession   In that holy presence, we become aware of our unworthiness and our sin - the very things that separate us from God. Scripture reminds us that to see God face to face is to be overcome by divine immensity, and so we turn to confess our sins. In that confession, we feel a sense of awe, recognizing the grandeur and holiness of God.   Assurance of Forgiveness   The assurance of pardon follows immediately - not because of our repentance, nor because of the act of the pastor, but because of Christ’s enduring love. Our pardon is already secured through His sacrifice. Worship now shifts from God the Creator to Christ our Redeemer and Brother.   We see that God infinitely humbled God’s own self to be with us. Jesus extends forgiveness to all people. His sacrifice is so powerful that it reaches back to the beginning of time, cleansing those who lived before Him, and forward to all who come after. Hebrews tells us this sacrifice is “once and for all” - one sacrifice sufficient to expiate all sins throughout time. After the assurance of pardon, we are deeply aware of the extent of Christ’s love and grace.   Passing of the Peace   We then turn to “pass the peace,” which is the most exceptional moment of our week. When we extend the peace of Christ, we are not simply greeting one another - we are wishing each person the greatest possible gift: the peace of Christ.   In a world of conflict and division, Christ eradicates shame and separation, giving us the true ability to love ourselves and others. This is the profound peace that passes all understanding.   The Word of the Lord    All Presbyterian worship grows out of the Word of God. During the Reformation, worship had accumulated traditions without clear scriptural grounding. John Calvin urged us to return to Scripture, ensuring that every part of worship, its order, content, and spirit, be rooted in the Word of God.   Calvin also emphasized that the center of the Christian life is worship - not salvation. Salvation exists to free us to worship God fully in spirit and in truth. Worship is what we are made for. It is our purpose now and for eternity.   Congregational Response   Sunday worship is really a rehearsal for our entire life. Our whole life is meant to be an act of worship and service to God, with an awareness of the divine presence always. As such, Sunday morning worship trains us to live our lives in honor of God.   Through this Trinitarian lens, our worship mirrors the nature of God:   We bow in awe before the mighty Creator, eternal God. We approach God as a friend through Jesus of Nazareth, who extends welcome. We carry with us the Holy Spirit, who makes us aware of God’s presence and teaches us how to pray.   Paul tells us the Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. Worship is not only praying, singing, and preaching, but also listening - cultivating awareness of the Spirit within us. This awareness helps us recognize God in creation and Christ in the stranger, the hungry, and the broken.   Benediction and Sending   Salvation is the gift that frees us to live out our eternal purpose: to praise and glorify God. In Presbyterian worship, every aspect is an act of the whole people of God. Even when the choir sings, it sings on behalf of all. Congregational singing, reading, and serving remind us that worship belongs to everyone. That is why children sing in worship, why youth read scripture, why Elders and Deacons serve at communion. Worship is everybody’s calling, everybody’s responsibility, and everybody’s privilege.   The preacher’s task is to open the Word so that all may sense the Spirit within and live as witnesses to Christ’s love.  In Hebrew, the words for worship and service are the same: reminding us that to serve God in the world is itself an act of worship.     Prayer of Confession:  Holy God, You have made us to worship You in thanksgiving and love. Yet we come seeking more to receive than to give. Expand our hearts to God-sized service, that our reverence might be worthy and set a pattern for our daily lives. Amen.

Join us for Sunday Worship as we observe All Saints' Day on November 2 ! In this special service, we will remember and honor those who have departed. Together, as a community, we will reflect on their lives, celebrate their memories, and find solace in the embrace of shared remembrance. Click here to submit the name of a loved one who has passed away by October 28.

Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received. Whoever speaks must do so as one speaking the very words of God; whoever serves must do so with the strength that God supplies. - 1 Peter 4:10-11 (NRSV)   Within stewardship lies the secret to Christian success. In the world, one becomes successful by inventing something, by making significant money, or by becoming popular - finding acclaim from the world - and that is how we achieve success. But success in the Christian world comes through devoted stewardship. One of the most profound gifts the Christian faith gives us is an ability to emulate God. In Jesus, we see the primary attribute He calls us to emulate, in addition to love, is humility. And so proper stewardship is always humble, because it never seeks gain or benefit for itself. It seeks the goal - and at Brick Church, our goal is to spread the spiritual blessings of God to anyone and everyone, especially those in deepest need. But Jesus promises us God will reward us. It is not monetary but something much greater than any earthly acclaim or awards. It is the reward of an inner sense of purpose, of accomplishment, of doing something greater than ourselves, and of truly reflecting the heart of Christ. In New York, we are used to working very hard for things and spending a lot of time planning and preparing. If we only spend five minutes planning and preparing our stewardship, then the rewards will be the same as in the professional world: non-existent. You can't work for five minutes and hope to get a profound return in the business world, and neither can you in the spiritual world. It takes real investment, and it begins with sound planning - and that sound planning begins by thinking through your stewardship to God. We can do an accounting here. Mathematics and finances are a big thing in New York, and so if you were to do an accounting of your life - of all of your resources, of what you have gained from God's gifts - and measure that, how would what we give in return compare? If you were to attempt to measure what you gave back to God, where would you find yourself on the ledger? Would you be in the black? Would you be in the red? None of us, of course, can actually be “ahead.” So the only thing we can do is gratefully serve and listen. And the profound uniqueness - the secret to Christianity - as Saint Francis told us, is that it is in giving that we receive. In fact, we can only ultimately receive once we give. When we give in a meaningful, significant way, that's when we receive the full benefits of the Christian faith, which are the words God speaks to us: Well done, my good and faithful servant; enter into the joy of your master.  What could possibly be more rewarding than to bring God joy?  May the Lord bless our stewardship this season so that all may experience the abundance of God’s love.

Isaiah 6:1-8 W 1.1001 Christian worship joyfully ascribes all praise and honor, glory and power to the Triune God.   Christian worship takes on many different forms throughout the world. In the ornate Eastern Orthodox tradition, there are paintings of the saints known as icons, which the congregants kiss; a physical act that resonates with a deep spiritual hunger and love. In the cement sanctuaries in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, thousands engage in hour-long prayers punctuated by charismatic fervor, with powerfully rhythmic music that leads participants into a deeper and deeper and deeper experience of the Holy Spirit. At Westminster Abbey, an ethereal Evensong echoes off the stone walls, and the crystal-clear voices pierce the defenses of our minds, making room for God. Every different tradition opens us up to a different aspect of God. Today in our sanctuary we represent a very wide perspective of this worldwide church, with members from China, Korea, Mexico, Ghana, the Dominican Republic, France, Brazil, and all over these United States. You come from Catholic, Baptist, nondenominational, Methodist, evangelical, and so many more. But we find ourselves at the Brick Presbyterian Church, which both falls in line with the historic nature of Presbyterian worship while also having its own unique interpretation. And like every tradition, the Presbyterian form of worship has a very important history for its development and a particular Scriptural lens that focuses the cadence of our worship. This lens grew out of the time of the Reformation. Reformers believed that the Word of God is central to Christian worship. At the time, the church had refused to translate it into a language that members could understand, and the priests failed to proclaim it. They found many worship traditions for which they could not find any Scriptural warrant. For Presbyterians, the elements of worship must have their foundation in Scripture. And the content of worship must all grow out of the Word of God as well. Five hundred years ago, our theological forefather John Calvin wrote a treatise entitled “On the Necessity of Reforming the Church.” It was to be presented to the Emperor Charles V to defend the Reformation. “ The whole substance of Christianity, viz., a knowledge, first, of the mode in which God is duly worshipped; and, secondly, of the source from which salvation is to be obtained .” Consider the implications of this quote; it declares that worship comes even before salvation! Salvation is a result of our fallen nature, but worship is our purpose for existing. Worship is what we owe God. But… … it is not only a duty, it is a joyous privilege. … it is not only something we do, it is who we are. … it is not only something we give to God, it is a blessing God gives to us. Our passage from Isaiah is the quintessential summation of Christian worship, and it begins with reverent awe. In the midst of a vision Isaiah finds himself in the Temple. This was not just any place of worship. The Temple was a supreme gift given to the Israelites. And in the inner recesses of the temple is the Holy of Holies. The Holy of Holies was separated from the rest of the tabernacle/Temple by the veil, a huge, heavy drape made of fine linen and blue, purple, and scarlet yarn and embroidered with gold cherubim. It represented God’s presence on earth. In this vision Isaiah is overwhelmed by the staggering, stupefying, spectacular, and sublime presence of God. Otherworldly angels with six wings sing with voices so powerful that the immense stone pivots shook, and the house was filled with smoke! Just the mere hem of God’s robe filled the entire Temple! Presbyterian worship begins with a sense of profound reverence. It is reflected by the majesty of the organ prelude, the Scriptural call to worship, the hymn of praise, and the opening prayer filled with adoration of God. The center of worship is praise. After this overwhelming moment Isaiah experiences an excruciatingly powerful sense of unworthiness. To be in the presence of God is to be before something so holy, so pure, that Scripture tells us it meant death. For a small creature of infinitely less power to be confronted with the infinite is for a moment to feel as if your soul is going to be extinguished. The closest parallel that I can think of is the time I can remember when the wheels of a plane lifted off the tarmac and suddenly a few seconds later the earth is shrinking and growing at the same time, and my knee started to shake, for suddenly I felt as if I had a God’s-eye view of this planet. It is spine-tingling and terrifying at the same time. To make matters worse, Isaiah is aware of his sin. “ Woe is me, for I am a man of unclean lips, living amongst a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts! ” Simply being in the presence of God compels Isaiah to confess his sins and to ask for mercy. Each week we confess our sins. And there should be the briefest moment of terror. We should never presume upon God’s grace. But with repetition our senses become dulled. Perhaps like me the 23rd Psalm is something you’ve known since you were a child; you’ve read it scores of times, and at some point the words just lacked power. It is akin to what is known as semantic satiation. That’s when you say a word so much that suddenly the word doesn’t mean anything anymore; it just sounds like gibberish. Now the 23rd Psalm didn’t sound like gibberish, but it did just sound like a bunch of words strung together. That was until the first 9/11 service I went to over 20 years ago; Muslims, Christians, and Jews were gathered together and united as one; we recited the 23rd Psalm in unison. Together we then said, “ Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil, for thou art with me. ” Suddenly once again I knew the power of those words—we all did. I imagine you, like me, at times find the moment of confession a rote recitation of our sins. And also it’s difficult to muster the proper level of fear, for we know what comes next; we remember the gospel. If there is a failure in our Presbyterian worship, it is that we so understand and presume the grace of God that we forget not only how holy God is but the extent; the infinite extent that the mighty God has humbled God’s own self to allow us to be in the divine presence. Unless we thoroughly appreciate the extent to which God has gone to cleanse us of our sins; unless we realize the cosmic dimensions of this infinite God, we can never properly appreciate the shocking, life-altering nature of the scope of God’s gift to us in Jesus Christ. After Isaiah confesses his sins, an angel flies to the altar, takes a live coal, and places it on his lips, “ See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for. ” After we have confessed our sins, we receive the assurance of pardon; it is at this point we shift our focus in worship; the tenor of the service changes. We move from worshiping the mighty, all-powerful God, the creator and ruler of the universe, to worshiping God in the flesh—Jesus the Christ, our friend. The pastor declares, “ In the name of Jesus Christ, we are forgiven. ” We receive forgiveness not because of the purity of our repentance nor the ritual of the pastor. Hebrews 7:27: " [Jesus] has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices, first for his own sins and then for those of the people, since he did this once, for all, when he offered up himself. " Because of our sin we could not be in the presence of God and live; God is too holy. But Christ’s death cleansed us of sin, allowing us to be in the presence of the divine. And so, the gospel tells us at that moment there was an earthquake which tore the curtain of the Temple in two. Thus, there was no longer any barrier between the Holy of Holies and the Temple, which meant there was no longer any barrier between us and God. His death was so powerful that its forgiveness extends back through time to all those who lived before and into the future to all those that will ever live. The rousing, robust, and even raucous response from the congregation should be “ Thanks be to God !” But not only does this destroy the barrier between us and God, but it destroys the barriers between you and me and between all people. It is then we know, arguably, the most soothing,calming, surprising, and penetrating moment of worship. The Passing of the Peace. The potency of this moment cannot be overestimated. The prophet Isaiah is one of the first to help us understand this moment when he told us, “ The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who live in the land of deep darkness, on them light has shined… He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. ” Jesus is the Prince of Peace because He will make wars to cease. He is the Prince of Peace because He forges harmony between enemies.  He is the Prince of Peace because He shatters the traditional barriers of class, race, and gender. He is the Prince of Peace because He reconciles us to God. At the Passing of the Peace we’re not just saying hello to each other. When you say, “ The peace of Christ be with you, ” You are hoping that they will know this peace which passes all understanding. When you pass the peace to your friend who has suffered a debilitating loss, you are wishing them Christ’s healing presence. When you pass the peace of Christ to the person across the pew who you know is estranged from a loved one, you are offering them a prayer from your heart that they will know wholeness again through His love. When you pass the peace of Christ you are blessing them with the greatest gift we can imagine, especially in our time. May the peace of Christ be with you all. Amen.