Recall this familiar bit of biblical dialogue:
Jesus asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they answered him, “Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” So Jesus asked them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’
Dear Cathedral Family and Friends,
These past several days have been trying, as torrential rains and flooding have interrupted our livelihoods and upended our lives. In such times, it does us good to remember the love of God that passes all understanding and provides peace of heart even when the world outside roils. Perhaps providentially, the psalm appointed for this Sunday is Psalm 29, sometimes given the title “The Voice of God in a Great Storm.” The psalmist reminds us that, though God’s presence in the natural order is often mysterious, God is nevertheless here, with us, in the midst of storm, wind, and all other assaults we may face.
Usually this blog consists of theological musings. Rarely, though, its about making music videos with my eleven year old daughter. I chose Loudon Wainwright’s “The Days that We Die.” (Though the sentiments of the song certainly don’t pertain to our relationship. She’s a daddy’s girl through and through!) She chose as her song Christina Perri. I’m sensing a generation gap… Her video isn’t perfect yet, and she won’t let me post it until it is. I, myself, gave up perfection long ago in favor of grace.
A couple of weeks ago, Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao clashed in the boxing ring with no less than four welterweight boxing titles on the line. By many, the match was titled the “Fight of the Century.” It turned out to be a real snoozer, decided after a full twelve rounds, with lock-ups and defensive work as the order of the day. Anyone who called Mayweather-Pacquiao the fight of the century surely never saw Sugar Ray Leonard go toe-to-toe with Marvelous Marvin Hagler thirty years ago, or Mike Tyson fight anyone in the 1980s, or Ali-Frazer, or Joe Louis batter Max Schmelling. Those were fights. And not a one of them could lay a candle to the battle I’ll call the “Fight of the Millennium.” That’s the first millennium, to be exact. And the battle didn’t take place in a boxing ring. Rather, it occurred at a church council in A.D. 418.
God in the Midst of the City 