THE EASTER MESSAGE 2024 Rev. Br. Abbot Julian E. Hall

The Easter Letter from Abbot Julian Hall

April 12, 2024

Dear Sisters and Brothers, 

     Actually, I began an Easter Letter in early March, and then other responsibilities took over.  Today is the thirteenth day of the Season of Easter.

     Last Sunday, April 7, I preached at St. Paul’s UCC in Stoverstown, with a Spring Grove, PA address. The Gospel reading  was John 20:19-31. So, my thoughts today are about Thomas, the one who was not with the disciples on the evening after Jesus was raised from the dead.  You know the story.

     This story is often referred to as the doubting Thomas.  After Thomas had heard Jesus say put your finger here, and your hand there, we hear his response.  He said, “My Lord and my God.” 

     Then, there are the words of Jesus.  “Blessed are  those who have no seen and yet have come to  believe.”

     From time to time, all of us need encouragement, and when that happens, wouldn’t you agree that it is so uplifting to us? Of course.  And that is why we encourage one another. It makes so much difference.

     The center of the story is Jesus.  It is a story of hope and promise, not judgment and reprimand. The truth of Scripture lies in its power to make the presence of God in Jesus available to the faith community in each successive generation. These last three sentences are from The New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume. IX. 

     I am closing with a prayer that I shared at the BSOW Council Meeting this past Monday, April 8. It is from the book Common Prayer, “A Liturgy For Ordinary Radicals by Shane Claiborne and Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove. The title is “For Deliverance from False Desires and Fears”.  It is my hope that it will also be encouraging to my Brothers and Sisters of the Way.

For Deliverance from False Desires and Fears

Deliver me, O Jesus,

   from the desire to be esteemed,

   from the desire to be loved,

   from the desire to be honored,    

   from the desire to be praised,  

   from the desire to be preferred to others,    

   from the desire to be consulted,  

   from the desire to approved, 

   and from the desire to be popular.

Deliver me, O Jesus, 

   from the fear of being humiliated,

   from the fear of being despised,     

   from the fear of being rebuked,    

   from the fear of being slandered,  

   from the fear of being forgotten,      

   from the fear of being wronged,  

   from the fear of treated 

   and from the fear of being suspected.

And, dear Jesus, grant me the grace to desire 

   that others may be more loved than I,    

   that others might be more esteemed than I,     

   that in the opinion of the world, 

      others may increase and I decrease,   

   that others may be chosen and I may be set aside,

   that others may be preferred to me in everything

   that others may become holier than I, 

   provided, that I, too, become as holy as I can.  Amen.

BROTHERS AND SISTERS OF THE WAY

Rev. Brother Julian E. Hall, Abbot

April 23, 2023

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

Christ is Risen!  Christ is Risen indeed!

It is my hope and desire that you are filled with gladness and joy during this Easter Season.

Since I retired for the fourth time in September of 2018, it was quite unusual that I was preaching on the Sundays of Holy Week and also on the Second Sunday after Easter.   Then I remembered that during the last Advent and Christmas, I was also active for four Sundays.  

While I have had on my mind for several months that the Abbot writes a letter during Easter to the members of the order, I had been ruminating on the gospel reading for the second Sunday which is John 20:19-31.  The time frame begins with the evening of Resurrection Day and it continues through the next week.  The subtitle is ‘Jesus Appears to the Disciples’.

On the evening of the Day of Resurrection, the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews.  Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.”  After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side.  Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.  

You know the story.  And you remember Thomas wasn’t with them when Jesus first appeared to them, and you know his response. 

Then one week later, Jesus appeared again, and said, “Peace be with you.”   Jesus asked Thomas to put his finger in the nail prints and then his hand in the side.  Thomas answered and said, “My Lord and my God.”  Those words stand by themselves in all four gospels. We finally read about a disciple calling forth “My Master and My God.”

Of course, the disciples had a lot to process.  Jesus had called his disciples, and they had been on a journey of learning and preparation for several years.  They had seen Jesus heal the sick, they had seen him cast our demons, they had even been sent forth two by two, they had seen that the power of love was stronger than hate.  They had been growing in their faith, and Jesus was preparing them to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them and teaching them to obey everything that Jesus had commanded them.  

Remember Acts 1:6, when they were together for the last time with Jesus before he ascended into the clouds and out of sight, they asked, “Master, are you going to restore the kingdom to Israel now?”  “Is this the time?”     

Now I will quote Eugene Peterson.  “Jesus told them, “You don’t get to know the time.  Timing is the Father’s business. What you’ll get is the Holy Spirit.    And when the Holy Spirit comes on you, you will be able to be my witnesses in Jerusalem, all over Judea and Samaria, even to the ends of the world.”

Is not that true also for us today?  “We don’t get to know the time.  Timing is the Father’s business.  What the followers of Jesus get is the Holy Spirit.”

I have been thinking again and again about our Lord’s answer.  “Timing is the Father’s business.  What you’ll get is the Holy Spirit.”  

Timing or the Holy Spirit?  I don’t think it is a choice.  It is a calling. It is being given a gift, the gift of the Holy Spirit.  As we ponder the life and future of our Order, being open and listening to the Holy Spirit is not optional, but vital.  Being open to the Holy Spirit can provide focus and also clarity.  After all, as an Order, it is God who works through us.

With interest I have read the variety of responses about the statement of purpose, vision, or mission statement that Brother John Danner prepared regarding our Order.  There have also been some very attentive comments about the name of our Order, the BSOW.  It just might be that the Holy Spirit has and continues to be present and at work in our Order.

Thank you again for your prayers for our order and its members. They do make a difference!   

As we continue through this Season of Easter, let us rejoice and be glad.  “Christ is Risen.  Christ is Risen Indeed.”

Peace and Joy to my Brothers and Sisters,                                                                    Brother Julian, Abbot   

Dear Sisters and Brothers of the Way,  

Allow me to begin with the words of Micah 8:6.  We are reminded  of what the Lord requires of us:  “To do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.”     This is about our  journey.  It is about our relationship with God. It is about being faithful to our community of faith.  

For this Easter letter, my thoughts are about the conversations that God (Father), Son (Jesus) and Holy Spirit (Comforter) were having during the days of the Holy Week and beyond. 

Ancient words still speak. When Jesus said, “Forgive them for they know not what they do,” those words were spoken while Jesus was on the cross.  However, they are also for us today, and  for those who will come after us.   

What we often identify as the Sixth Word from the cross, “It is finished,” is from John 19:30.  Yes, God became incarnate, born a baby, grew up and lived among us. He called his disciples, he taught them what it meant to be disciples, he  healed the sick, he cured lepers, he dined with the sinners, and he reached out to the marginalized and the poor..   Jesus was nailed on the cross, gave his life for one and all, and he died.  Had it ended?  Not quite.  On the third day, he rose again.  Was his life over?  Not really, he would ascend to his Father and our Father, his God and our God, so we might  receive power from the Holy Spirit our Guide and Comforter. Think of it as a new beginning. They were to go forth proclaiming  the Kingdom of God. 

In Matthew 28:20, Jesus reminds them, “I am with you always, to the end of the age.”  The triune God is in conversation together again,  much like Jesus who  would often leave his disciples so he could be alone with his heavenly Father. The  disciples would not be abandoned  when Jesus returned to his Father.  And, that is also true with us. We are not alone.  God, Son, and Holy  Spirit will be with us.   It is a reminder of the power of love that is with us today. 

Even in the shortest gospel, in Mark, chapter 16, the young man in the tomb gives instructions.  “Go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you.” When the disciples so needed it, they received focus, guidance, comfort, and clarity. 

Luke 24:13-35 is the story of the two disciples who were walking to Emmaus and are so despondent.  Then Jesus joined them and interpreted things about  himself in the scriptures.  As they arrived in Emmaus, he walked ahead, and they urged him to stay because the day was nearly over.  “When Jesus was at table with them, he took the bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.  Their eyes were opened! 

Back in Jerusalem, while the two disciples were telling all  those gathered there what had happened to them, Jesus appeared among them and said, “Peace be with you.”  They were meeting behind closed doors,   Jesus opened their minds  and hearts.  They  had allowed fear to replace their faith.  Jesus  said, “I am sending upon you what my Father promised; so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.  Again, here is another example of  God and Jesus  and the Holy Spirit communicating for the benefit of the disciples and followers.  The triune God desires to do the same with us today so we can continue to grow and be faithful witnesses to the  love that gives us a new beginning.  

Help us to love you, redeeming God.  Help us to love our neighbors, and also the strangers. Help the nations of the world to look upon one another as relatives, since we are all members of one  human family.  

Help us to love God’s world.  Help us to love  all of creation, the rivers and oceans, the forests and the trees, the land, and the soil, all of which we have polluted.   

May this Easter be a new beginning for us!   

May this Easter also be a new beginning for the Brothers and Sisters, a new beginning that brings glory and honor to you. 

Sincerely, with deep affection,                                                                                       Brother Julian, Abbot       

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

For a couple of weeks, I have struggled with the Easter Message.  I initially chose  the reading from John 20:1-18.  Then, I considered the reading from Mark 16:1-18.  The Year B lectionary other readings were also given thought, but I returned to the Johannine selection. 

My primary focus is on Mary Magdalene. I have been thinking about her and her love for the One who transformed her life.  Like the other disciples and followers of Jesus during Holy Week,  those days certainly impacted Mary Magdalene. It is my hope and prayer that my thoughts  will help you see the faith of one whose life was so profoundly touched by Jesus. May it also be for us, as it has many times, and again, just maybe, in a new and fresh way.     

Grace and Peace and immersed with Hope and Joy,      Brother Julian, Abbot 

Mary Magdalene had seen her beloved Teacher placed in the tomb  early on Friday evening just before Sabbath  began. 

The week before had been filled with activity: a triumphal entry into Jerusalem with a great crowd shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord---the King of Israel!”; Jesus entering the temple and driving out those who were selling Passover items there, saying “My house shall be a house of prayer but you have made it a den of robbers.”; the chief priest, the scribes and the leaders of the people kept looking for a way to catch him and destroy him; Jesus teaching in the temple daily, telling parables to provide understanding and insight; and spending time teaching and praying for his disciples; observing  Passover  and introducing the Eucharistic meal, Jesus washes his disciples’ feet; Jesus shares with his disciples that one of them will betray him;  Jesus leads his disciples and followers to the Mount of Olive where he asks his disciples to pray for strength against temptation;  Judas comes with the a crowd and soldiers and   betraying Jesus with a kiss, and the soldiers arrest him taking him to the high priest’s house.  Then, Jesus is lead before the council of the scribes and high priests; in the morning the council take Jesus to Pilate. The next procedure is to take Jesus before Herod, who with his soldiers mocked Jesus and sent Jesus back to Pilate; and Pilate who wishes to release Jesus, but he wants to appease the crowd, so he offered them Barabbas, and they demanded that he release Barabbas and crucify Jesus.  Pilate gave the verdict that Barabbas  be released and Jesus is sentenced to death by crucifixion.   

The Teacher, whom they believed to be the Messiah had actually been crucified.  Mary Magdalene had been with other women as Jesus  was nailed to the cross, and they actually saw him grow weaker and weaker, and finally he took his last breath.  It had been week filled with activity, frustration disappointment, utter exhaustion.  Jesus, God’s only begotten Son, had been crucified!

A very tired and even more weary and sad, Mary Magdalene, makes her way to the cemetery, where Jesus had been buried. What was on Mary’s mind?  Who will be able to move the huge stone that blocked the opening of the tomb?  But more than that, she was grieving her Teacher’s cruel death,  and she and other women followers including Mary, the mother of Jesus had personally witnessed all these events.  Mary Magdalene was filled with grief, and she knew that Jesus’s mother was hurting so bad that the pain was  crushing her heart.

In Luke 8:2, Mary Magdalene is identified as a Galilean woman from whom Jesus had exorcised seven demons.  It is important for us to remember that there is no biblical foundation that Mary Magdalene is a sinful woman or prostitute. That imagery was developed in later historical periods. 

Imagine that there was a single person who had so impacted and changed your life, and then you saw that one die a cruel death, The emotional suffering that you would be feeling would be almost beyond description.  Well, that had happened to Mary Magdalene.

With a heavy heart over the death of the One, her Master, who demonstrated the power of love that changed her life, her entire being is heavy, weighted down with grief and sorrow as she made her way to the tomb where Jesus’ body was buried.

The darkness is  diminishing as our Mary came closer to the tomb.  She saw, to her surprise, that the huge boulder had been rolled away from the opening of the tomb.

Immediately she runs,, never mind her aching feet, to Simon Peter and the other disciple and told them that Jesus’s body had been taken from the tomb.  They both ran to the cemetery, and Mary also returned to the empty tomb.

You remember what happened when the two disciples arrived at tomb, but this reflection is about Mary.

She is now back at the tomb, and with her eyes filled with tears, she looks into the tomb.   She sees two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying.  They asked why see is weeping, and she responded, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.”

Then she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus.   Then Jesus asked, “Woman, why are you weeping? Who are you looking for?” She thought he must be the gardener, and so she replied, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell  me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.”

Then what is so amazing happened. Jesus said to her, “Mary!”  She turns and says to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (it means Teacher).

Even as I type what has happens, I am caught up in what has taken place. Have you ever had an experience where you pinched yourself because it was too good to be true? Well, I just did!  Did you do the same?

Mary’s Teacher, whom she had seen die is now ALIVE!  She can’t contain herself!

Jesus looks in Mary’s eyes, and says, “Mary, do not hold on to me, for I have not ascended to the Father. But go, Mary, go to my brothers and please tell them, “I am ascending to my Father and to your Father, to my God and your God!”

The NRSV expresses it this way. “Mary Magdalene  went and announced to the disciples, ‘ I have seen the Lord’; and she told them that he had said these things to her.”

While scripture does not bear this out, Mary Magdalene was so excited that she ran back to be with the disciples. She might have been even faster than John, the disciple who out ran Peter.

During the Farewell Discourses of John 13-17, Jesus frequently refers to the new relationship that the disciples will have with the Father as a result of Jesus “going away.  The incredible relationship that Jesus had with his Father is also available to all his followers!

I close by quoting N. T. Wright in Surprised By Hope. 

“God’s intention to draw humans freely into intimate fellowship with himself, has come forward to meet us in Jesus of Nazareth.     This is yet one more meaning of the resurrection.”

A LETTER FROM THE ABBOT     March 17, 2021

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

This letter is especially for our sisters and brothers who have not registered to attend the Fisherman’s Island Retreat.  IT IS OUR HOPE THAT YOU WILL BE ABLE TO PARTICIPATE in at least part of that event on Fisherman’s Island. 

We had been welcomed last year, but COVID-19 intervened.  The owners of the island, George and Susan Craig have extended the invitation to come to celebrate our 90th Anniversary of the Brothers and Sisters of the Way this year.  The retreat days are July 26-30, 2021.

On Wednesday of the week, July 28, all sisters and brothers of our beloved Order are invited to visit the island for that day.  There are places for your vehicles to be parked at no charge at a parking lot at the Boothby Harbor Congregational Church UCC. Members will leave Boothby Harbor by boat at 9 am, and then at 4 pm, you will be escorted back to the mainland. There is no charge for this day. 

George and Susan Craig and grandchildren of our founder, Rev. John Henry Wilson, Jan Reit and Nat Wilson, will join us for lunch.  The afternoon time will be quite celebratory, as we will participate in a liturgical service. It will include time for sharing, singing the hymn of our order, appropriate readings, presentation of gifts to our guests, and also Holy Communion. Besides the a small retreat keepsake booklet, our hope is to provide a 90thAnniversary Book for all our members that will be sent to them later in the year.

If you can make it for this day, we will provide some specific instructions to make it as easy as possible, so that the whole day will be a delightful experience for you.

So, there you have it, brothers and sisters.  It is our hope that a number of you will be able to be present on Wednesday, July 28. After all, we are living the vison of our founder, Brother John Henry Wilson.

Grace and Peace,
Brother Julian Hall, Abbot

(717) 873-0602

julianedhall@gmail.com

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MY INTENTION OF VISITING FISHERMAN’S ISLAND ON JULY 28

Send this to Bro Julian Hall  by email julianedhall@gmail.com

or by snail mail: 425 Westminster Ave, Cottage 25, Hanover PA 17331

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Allergies or Special Needs or Preferences:  

The word “intention” is purposefully used because a number of our members are impacted by different issues.  It you would like to attend, we encourage you to complete this form.

If something prevents you from attending, you can cancel the visit by calling 

Bro. Julian  (717) 873-0602