Holy Communion 1/23/22: Memorial of St. Vincent of Saragossa

Join us today as we celebrate Holy Communion for the Third Sunday of Ordinary Time, 1/23/22. To follow along at home, click here and print the Holy Communion Program. Text of today’s homily below.

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If you would like to have prayers offered for you, a loved one, a friend, for someone who is suffering, ill or who has departed, please email Archdeacon Mitch at mitch@heritageartsinc.com and we will pray for you. And if you’d like to assist in the beautification, improvement and maintenance of St. Barachiel Chapel, or support our educational mission, please click here to make a donation.

Homily for the Third Sunday of Ordinary Time -- Sunday 1/23/22

Readings: Neh 8:2-4a, 5-6, 8-10, Ps 19:8, 9, 10, 15, 1 Cor 12:12-14, 27, Lk 1:1-4; 4:14-21  

Yesterday, brothers and sisters, was the feast day of St. Vincent of Saragossa, and today we’re going to take advantage of our option to celebrate his memorial.  St. Vincent was born in the 3rd century and died in the year 304.  He was a deacon, an assistant to Bishop Valerius of Spain, who suffered under a speech impediment.  St. Vincent was his spokesman.  So, when Bishop Valerius was thrown in prison by the Roman governor Dacian during the Christian persecutions ordered by Emperor Diocletian, St. Vincent was taken in as well.

Bishop Valerius was banished, but St. Vincent’s outspoken manner made him the subject of severe torture. His flesh was pierced with iron hooks, he was bound and roasted on a red-hot gridiron, and tossed into a prison cell whose floor was strewn with broken pottery.  His demeanor was so calm and unmoved in the face of his extreme suffering that when he died at peace his jailer repented of his sins and was converted to the Christian faith – an occurrence not uncommon in the lives of saints and martyrs by the way.

After his death his body was cast onto a muckheap and would’ve been devoured by vultures had it not been protected by ravens.  Dacian then ordered the body interred at sea, where it washed ashore and was taken by the faithful to be interred at Cape St. Vincent on the coast of Portugal which now bears his name.  A shrine was built on the spot, and ravens continued to protect his body, so much so that 800 years later, when Spain and Portugal were under Muslim rule, the place was referred to as Kanīsah al-Ghurāb or “The Church of the Raven.”

The raven, of course, is the dire black bird that leads the spirits of the departed toward the afterlife in the old pagan myths. But in Genesis the raven is the first bird Noah released to find dry land after the flood, and in the old art of Alchemy, the raven symbolized the first stage of development in the Great Work – the perfection of the soul in and the manufacture of the heal-all known as the Philosopher’s Stone.  The Savior himself references the raven in the Gospel of Luke 12:22-25.  Jesus said,  

“Therefore I say unto you, Be not anxious for your life, what ye shall eat; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. For the life is more than the food, and the body than the raiment. Consider the ravens, that they sow not, neither reap; which have no store-chamber nor barn; and God feedeth them: of how much more value are ye than the birds! And which of you by being anxious can add a cubit unto the measure of his life? If then ye are not able to do even that which is least, why are ye anxious concerning the rest?” Luke 12:22-25 American Standard Version

I assure you that Jesus Christ, the Word Made Flesh, the Author of Life, did not randomly select the raven – a bird that feeds on waste and carrion and symbolizes death – for use in his sermon. The raven reminds us that every breath may be our last, and if we live their lives steeped in this knowledge, we can live life to the fullest no matter how dark our lives become.  Perhaps we can even have the courage of St. Vincent of Saragossa.  Let, therefore, the knocks and rattles of the raven’s eerie call be as a proclamation to you. Fear not death. But rather take flight!

INTENSITY: METTLE MAKER #291

What is the weekly mettle maker? It’s a weekly shot in the arm, a semi-fortnightly kick in the pants — your helpful heckler, hammering away at you to stop hemming and hawing and hurdle headlong into becoming your own hero!

INTENSITY: METTLE MAKER #291

“Consider the ravens, that they sow not, neither reap.” Luke 12:24

Self-defense: The fourth week of the month is always weapon week. Set a goal to execute 200 strikes per day (100 with each hand) using either a mock weapon vs. your heavy bag or with a live weapon vs. a pell or weapon post. If a carpenter can drive nails all day, 7 days a week for 30 years and call it a job well done, you should be able to summon up enough intensity to play pretend combat for 5 minutes every day for one lousy week. Get there.

Fitness: What’s “intensity level” in weightlifting terms? If the max you can bench press for 1 rep (“1RM”) is 160 lbs. then you should be able to do a set of 10 with 75% of that number, or 10 x 120 lbs. The percentage of 1RM is generally referred to as “intensity level.” The higher the intensity level the higher the drain on your central nervous system (CNS). If you’re a power lifter, you like intensity. Lifting is your sport. “Intensity means gains bro!” CNS drain from lifting is expected and accepted. But if you’re a martial artist or a tennis player, and you’re lifting at more than about 75%, the CNS drain will tend to steal the intensity from your martial arts training, your tennis training, or what-have-you. Put your intensity where it belongs! Need help tweaking your program, or want help designing one from scratch? Enroll in the free Heritage Self-Defense Distance Learning Program or maybe click here to sign up for the free Heritage Fitness Program. Did I mention they’re both free?

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Snow tracking is fun. Done that lately?

Wildwood: Lots of snow this week in the East and Southeast, plenty right here in Richmond, VA. Something about the snow really makes being in the woods more intense. Perhaps it’s because it’s relatively rare where I live. Anyway, snow tracking is great fun. You can spot animal tracks with incredible ease, and snow dampens the sound of your approach if you’re careful and slow in your stalking so that every footfall doesn’t make a scrunch that is. You might even be able to sprinkle salt on a rabbit’s tail. The old timers used to say that sprinkling salt on a wild animal’s tail made them way easier to catch. Why not test out the axiom and have some fun in the bargain? By the way, do you know how to appropriately camouflage yourself in snowy conditions? Unless you’re a soldier trying to make yourself invisible to aerial recon, the best plan is to wear white pants (and boots if you have them) with a camo jacket. Common sense really. Just look out into the snowy woods. White on the bottom, camo on top, right?

Spirit: Here is another meditation from my forthcoming book tentatively titled The Art of Dying Well: Forty Memento Mori Meditations.

Jesus said, “Therefore I say unto you, Be not anxious for your life, what ye shall eat; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. For the life is more than the food, and the body than the raiment. Consider the ravens, that they sow not, neither reap; which have no store-chamber nor barn; and God feedeth them: of how much more value are ye than the birds! And which of you by being anxious can add a cubit unto the measure of his life? If then ye are not able to do even that which is least, why are ye anxious concerning the rest?” Luke 12-22-25 American Standard Version

The Raven is the dire black bird that leads the spirits of the departed toward the afterlife in the old myths. Whenever the Raven enters the story, he reminds us that every breath may be our last and, as everyone knows but few embody, those who live their lives steeped in this knowledge live to the fullest. Just as the raven was the first bird released to find dry land after the flood, in the old art of Alchemy, the raven was the first of the animals associated with the four stages of development in the Great Work – the perfection of the soul in preparation to meet one’s maker and the fabrication of the heal-all known as the Philosopher’s Stone.

Rest assured the Jesus Christ, the Word Made Flesh, the Author of Life, did not randomly select the raven for his sermon. Let, therefore, the knocks and rattles of the Raven’s eerie call be as a proclamation to you. Fear not death. But rather take flight!

If this sort of thing interests you, come to this blog every Sunday for Holy Communion and worship with us, and click the button on the right to subscribe to the church newsletter.

Holy Communion 1/16/22: What is Wine? (John 2:1-11)

Join us today as we celebrate Holy Communion for the Second Sunday of Ordinary Time, 1/16/22. To follow along at home, click here and print the Holy Communion Program. Text of today’s homily below.

If you would like to have prayers offered for you, a loved one, a friend, for someone who is suffering, ill or who has departed, please email Archdeacon Mitch at mitch@heritageartsinc.com and we will pray for you. And if you’d like to assist in the beautification, improvement and maintenance of St. Barachiel Chapel, or support our educational mission, please click here to make a donation.

Homily for the Second Sunday of Ordinary Time -- Sunday 1/16/22

Readings: Is 62:1-5, Ps 96:1-2, 2-3, 7-8, 9-10, 1 Cor 12:4-11, Jn 2:1-11

John 2:1-11 (American Standard Version)

And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: 2 and Jesus also was bidden, and his disciples, to the marriage. 3 And when the wine failed, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. 4 And Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come. 5 His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it. 6 Now there were six waterpots of stone set there after the Jews’ manner of purifying, containing two or three firkins apiece. 7 Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the [a]ruler of the feast. And they bare it. 9 And when the ruler of the feast tasted the water [b]now become wine, and knew not whence it was (but the servants that had drawn the water knew), the ruler of the feast calleth the bridegroom, 10 and saith unto him, Every man setteth on first the good wine; and when men have drunk freely, then that which is worse: thou hast kept the good wine until now. 11 This beginning of his signs did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested his glory; and his disciples believed on him.

 Brothers and sisters, what is wine?  Wine is water that has fallen to earth from the clouds, been drawn up into grapevines along with minerals and nutrients, and made into the juice of the grape by action of the sun on the leaves.  Then, with ingenuity and patience, the juice is fermented, aged and decanted by skilled artisans.  Wine is water transformed through the cooperation of nature, man and the grace of God’s creation.

What is special about wine?  In Jesus’ time, not all water was safe to drink.  Without modern detection and treatment methods it wasn’t uncommon for people to suffer from poisoning by bacteria, parasites, and excessive minerals in or near water sources.  But the grapevines filter the water of parasites and minerals, and fermentation kills harmful bacteria. Wine was always pure and safe to drink.  And, on top of all that, wine is delicious and brings with it warmth and joy.

Wine was and is a rather miraculous thing.  But why is providing wine to a wedding banquet the perfect way for the Son of God to begin his ministry?  A wedding, my friends, is an event where a couple and their families are joined together under the blessings of God.  And as they are celebrating, the old wine runs out.  Jesus changes the water in the ritual washing pots into wine.  The message he is sending is that the old way of doing things was good, but they have become empty; they need to be filled up with something miraculous, something greater.  Is it good to wash ourselves, to purify the outside?  Sure it is.  But we should also purify the inside.  We should drink in purity, we should celebrate and be filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit.

This miracle is pointing to a new wedding – the wedding of humanity to God through the miracle of Jesus Christ.  It’s not accidental that this miracle was performed on the third day after Jesus entered Galilee.  Wine is symbolic of blood.  This is a foreshadowing of his rise on the third day after his crucifixion.  And just as the servants and the waiters are aware of the miracle but the headwaiter and the guests are not, the apostles and servants of Jesus Christ will be privy to the Mysteries of the Resurrection that we celebrate today in Holy Communion – and may hope to be honored guests at the greatest celebration possible, which is resurrection into the Kingdom of God in the time to come.

CLIMB: METTLE MAKER #290

What is the weekly mettle maker? It’s a weekly shot in the arm, a semi-fortnightly kick in the pants — your helpful heckler, hammering away at you to stop hemming and hawing and hurdle headlong into becoming your own hero!

CLIMB: METTLE MAKER #290

Can you finish this in under 20 minutes with good form?

Self-defense and Fitness combo: See if you can get through this mobility grinder in under 20 minutes: Bear Walks (25 x 4 yards), Crawl (8 x 4 yards, belly no higher than 4” from the dirt), Get-ups (25), Prisoner Get-ups (25), Shoulder Roll (25), Side Deadfall (25), and Sprints (50 x 4 yards). If you think this was fun, you should enroll in the free Heritage Self-Defense Distance Learning Program or maybe click here to sign up for the free Heritage Fitness Program. Did I mention they’re both free?

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Wildwood: Can you identify the tree on the right? I spotted this small but perfect specimen this week. If you can’t, you should think about signing up for the Wildwood nature appreciation and survival program. Like all our programs, its free. Here are a couple of hints. If you see the white top of this tree in the distance, you may have found a water source. And this is the tree that Zacchaeus climbed and sat in order to get a better view of Jesus.

Spirit: Here is another excerpt from my forthcoming book, “The Craft of Dying Well.“

“In the world there will be tribulation. But be of good cheer. I have overcome the world.” ~ John 16:33

During his time on earth, Christ was as fully human as you are. He died, rose from the tomb after three days, and promises you a share in his resurrection. He is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6) who takes you by the hand that you might go with him to dwell in his father’s house. Death is but your entry into the suffering of the cross. To fear your demise is to doubt Christ’s victory over death. Fear not. Christ has vanquished death, and you will also.

If this sort of thing interests you, come to this blog every Sunday for Holy Communion and worship with us, and click the button on the right to subscribe to the church newsletter.

Holy Communion for the Baptism of the Lord 2022

Join us today as we celebrate Holy Communion for the Baptism of the Lord 2022. To follow along at home, click here and print the Holy Communion Program. Text of today’s homily below.

If you would like to have prayers offered for you, a loved one, a friend, for someone who is suffering, ill or who has departed, please email Archdeacon Mitch at mitch@heritageartsinc.com and we will pray for you. And if you’d like to assist in the beautification, improvement and maintenance of St. Barachiel Chapel, or support our educational mission, please click here to make a donation.

Homily for the Baptism of the Lord – Saturday 1/9/22

Readings: Is 42:1-4, 6-7, Ps 29:1-2, 3-4, 3, 9-10, Acts 10:34-38, Lk 3:15-16, 21-22

Lk 3:15-16, 21-22 (American Standard Version)

15 And as the people were in expectation, and all men reasoned in their hearts concerning John, whether haply he were the Christ; 16 John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but there cometh he that is mightier than I, the latchet of whose shoes I am not [a]worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you [b]in the Holy Spirit and in fire.

 21 Now it came to pass, when all the people were baptized, that, Jesus also having been baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened, 22 and the Holy Spirit descended in a bodily form, as a dove, upon him, and a voice came out of heaven, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.

Friends, they say “Love hurts.”  But really only distortions of love hurt, like lust, desire, possessiveness, puppy love and unrequited or one-sided love.  These cause all manner of problems in our lives -- arguments, fights, disputes, self-harm, jealousy – you know, all the drama, upset and catastrophe we’ve seen depicted in stories from the Old Testament to Shakespeare to modern reality TV shows.  Particularly painful and dangerous is the situation in which one person loves the other but are not loved in return.  For the loved party, this can lead to deep feelings of guilt and misplaced obligation.  To the unloved party this can feel like dying, like drowning, like being lost at sea. 

In the flood story, when mankind does not love God properly, the waters rise and drown the world in the oceans of chaos.  Only Noah and his family, who love and trust God, are spared.  Their seed is the seed of the human race.  In Genesis 8:12, Noah releases a dove from the ark.  When it does not return, he knows the flood waters have receded.  Probably Noah follows the dove in the direction of dry land, a common practice of sailors in ancient times. 

Noah and his family’s properly ordered love for God – symbolized by a dove – leads them out of the seas of chaos to the dry, stable land.  A married couple at a fancy wedding may release a bevy of doves to symbolize their properly ordered love for one another.  A husband and wife’s true love – filled up with respect, caring, patience and devotion – leads the family through the stormy seas of life to dry and stable land also.  And when the children love the parents in return?  When the family loves the church, and the church loves God?  This is the bedrock of society.

How fitting it is that the Holy Spirit should descend on Jesus in the form of a dove after he’s baptized by John.  The lost dove that guided Noah and his family in Genesis has returned to bless the perfect love of the Father for the Son and the Son for the Father.  The waters which destroyed a sinful humanity receded for Noah and have become the saving waters of baptism.  The mortal dove of Noah has become the dove of the Holy Spirit.

You see now my friends, that if the properly ordered love of an earthly family is capable of great things, then the perfectly ordered love of the Holy Spirit is capable of miracles untold!

WORKMAN: METTLE MAKER #289

What is the weekly mettle maker? It’s a weekly shot in the arm, a semi-fortnightly kick in the pants — your helpful heckler, hammering away at you to stop hemming and hawing and hurdle headlong into becoming your own hero!

WORKMAN: METTLE MAKER #289

Those of us who work sitting (or at best standing) behind desks can’t imagine how it’s possible for a manual laborer to toil all day in the soul-sucking heat of summer or the aching cold of winter. Those who hold a tool for at most five or ten minutes at a stretch, to put up a curtain rod or perhaps hang a picture, can’t comprehend how a man can swing a hammer from dawn to dusk or move a couple of tons of dirt or gravel in a few hours with just a shovel and a wheelbarrow.

Right now you may think that many capabilities are beyond your reach. But the carpenter begins his career as a helper, carrying tools, hauling wood, and fetching nails, working his way up over the course of years. It takes years for a landscaper or construction worker to develops his muscles and hone his technique.

Daily effort and a workmanlike approach is the key to success in all things.

Work.

~Excerpt from my forthcoming book, The Craft of Dying Well

Self-defense: Put on work gloves and safety goggles, pick up your live training knife, and get in front of your forging post or pell. Put in four rounds of Double-slash and Stab. Alternate hands each round, aim at both high and low targets, and vary your slashes (2-8, 8-2, 2-6, 6-2, 3-7, 7-3, etc. ). Be sure to select a specific point for your stab — aim for a tiny knot or make a pea-sized dot with a marking pen. If any of this doesn’t make any sense, you should question your training methods. Consider enrolling in the Heritage Self-Defense Distance Learning Program (it's free by the way because we’re a charity).

Fitness: Form matters. The old-timers were really big on form, and many of the current greats are too. Try doing 12 each of the following calisthenics with perfect form on a 10-second pace per rep (4 count up, 2-count hold, 4-count down): Push-ups, Zombie Squats, Jackknifes, Neck Crunches, Sit-Outs, and Back Bridges. If this doesn’t take at least 12 minutes you’re going too fast, and if you’re not a little sore tomorrow I’ll eat my hat. Want more? Click here to sign up for the free Heritage Fitness Program. Did I mention it’s free?

Wildwood: How do you develop cold tolerance better than a dog’s? By regularly going outside in the cold while wearing the least amount of clothing you can stand (within safe limits of course) . Did you read the quote at the top of the page? No? Go read it, I’ll wait. Good. Still don’t believe me? Dig this:

“The Powhatans [native Indians of Virginia], being active outdoor people, dealt with winter cold as long as possible by merely acclimatizing and oiling themselves. [John] Smith was amazed at the men’s ability to go about nearly naked in weather such that “a dogge would scarse have endured it.” However, when they finally bundled up they wore fur cloaks called “matchcoats.”” [p. 69]

“[T]he English did notice that the Indians washed every morning in the nearest stream, whatever the weather, after which they staged a prayer ritual. They told the English they washed themselves and even their small children in order to make them hardy and inured to cold.” [p. 78]

~Rountree, Helen C. The Powhatans of Virginia (1989, University of Oklahoma Press)

And lastly, go read this great article by Mark Hatmaker about cold tolerance. Get there. Want more? Sign up for the Heritage Wildwood distance learning program..

Spirit: Here is another excerpt from my forthcoming book, The Craft of Dying Well.

“Where, O Death, is your victory? Where, O Death, is your sting?” ~1 Corinthians 15:55-57.

Assume your meditative posture of choice and set a timer for 10+ minutes. Any posture will do (in a chair, cross-legged, kneeling, seiza, virasana, doesn’t matter) as long as your back is straight and your hands are close to your body so your arms don’t get tired. Breathe in as you silently ask, “Where, O Death, is your victory?’ Hesitate with lungs full as you silently ask “Where, O Death, is your sting?” Repeat as you breathe out and hesitate with lungs empty. Keep airways open when you hesitate full and empty — don’t clamp down. As you do this, imagine every possible way you could be suffered to die. By slow and painful disease, in a bed in an old-folk’s home abandoned by family, freezing to death in cardboard box under the overpass, shot, stabbed, car accident, tortured by terrorists, by every method your mind can conjure — especially the ones that terrify you the most. Begin to do the work of hardening yourself to the inevitability of death, for only by banishing the fear of death do we truly live.

If this sort of thing interests you, come to this blog every Sunday for Holy Communion and worship with us.

Holy Communion for the Epiphany of the Lord 2022

Join us today as we celebrate Holy Communion for the Epiphany of the Lord 2022. To follow along at home, click here and print the Holy Communion Program. Text of today’s homily below.

If you would like to have prayers offered for you, a loved one, a friend, for someone who is suffering, ill or who has departed, please email Archdeacon Mitch at mitch@heritageartsinc.com and we will pray for you. And if you’d like to assist in the beautification, improvement and maintenance of St. Barachiel Chapel, or support our educational mission, please click here to make a donation.

Homily for the Epiphany of the Lord – Saturday 1/2/22

Readings: Is 60:1-6, Ps 72:1-2, 7-8, 10-11, 12-13, Eph 3:2-3a, 5-6, Mt 2:1-12

A star rises in the east and the wise men come to worship the King of the Jews.  We often speak of three wise men because there are three gifts and because an obscure Greek manuscript lists three by name, but in some faith traditions they are numbered up to twelve.  We can’t really be sure about that detail.  And in the popular imagination, we picture them riding on horses or camels, literally following a star in the distance until they stumble upon the holy family with the newborn Jesus. 

But that can’t be right because, in the story, when the wise men see the star they go to Jerusalem and begin to make inquiries.  How do they know to go to Jerusalem?  They are magi, and a magi is a Persian astrologer-priest.  In those days, astrology (fortune telling by the stars and planets) and astronomy (the study of celestial objects and phenomena) were one and the same.  So, when this star rises they consult their astrological charts and past predictions and they point to Bethlehem.

When they arrive, and Herod gets wind of their inquiries, he brings together the chief priests and scribes who quote Micah 5:1. “And thou Bethlehem…of thee shall come forth a… shepherd of my people Israel.”  Herod sends the wise men to Bethlehem to investigate. And the Gospel says that the star, “went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was.”  All celestial objects near the elliptic, that is the plane the zodiac, rise in the east and set in the west, take about twelve hours to move from horizon to horizon, and are roughly overhead at midnight.  It’s only about five or ten miles from Jerusalem to Bethlehem, depending which sides of the two cities your journey begins and ends.  It’s certainly conceivable that, once it was good and dark, they set out on foot (as many people did in those days), headed toward a star in the eastern distance.  That’s a two or three-hour walk.  As they walked, the star rose and came toward them; and by the time they found the holy family, the star appeared to be directly above. 

Isn’t that something?  Isn’t it really fun to see that there’s nothing at all impossible about the story as we read it here?  Sure.  But how is it significant, and what can we learn from it? 

The magi were the most educated class in the pagan world at that time, and their greatest scientists.  These were the men kings like Herod relied upon to tell time by the stars, to determine when the earth would process and winter would begin, so that crops could be planted after the first frost and harvested at the right time, and so forth.  Entire nations lived and died by the measurements of the magi.

God, by making the movements of a particular star coincide with the birth of his Son, has revealed the birth of Jesus to the greatest scientific minds of the day.  He has revealed himself as the Celestial Mover of the heavens.  And by drawing Herod into his divine plan, such that Herod brings together the best and brightest of the region – the Jewish priests and scribes as well as the great Persian astrologers and philosophers – God takes his place as King of Heaven and Earth. 

Let this be a sign for us.  Let’s never claim that science is at odds with religion, because clearly it is not.  It doesn’t matter if we are educated or uneducated, Jew or gentile, for as St. Paul said, there is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor male and female, for we are all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28).   Let all of us, from the humblest shepherd to the most educated scientist, from the richest to the poorest, seek out Bethlehem and pay homage to the King.

Resolutions: Mettle Maker #288

What is the weekly mettle maker? It’s a weekly shot in the arm, a semi-fortnightly kick in the pants — your helpful hebdomadal heckler, hammering away at you to stop hemming and hawing and hurdle headlong into becoming your own hero!

Resolutions: METTLE MAKER #288

Sorry we missed posting a mettle maker last week. Wait a minute — actually I’m not sorry at all — it was Christmas Day! I had no business blogging, and you would’ve had no business reading a blog, on just about the most important holiday (second to Easter?) in the Western World.

Today is pretty important too, mainly because today is the day most people start their New Year’s resolutions. But let me tell you kids, there ain’t nothing like a brush with death (like my heart attack two weeks ago) to remind you that if something’s important enough to warrant making a resolution, do not put it off until the start of a new year.

Whatever you want to do, do it now.

In the words of the great Theodore Roosevelt,

“Do what you can, with what you’ve got, where you are.”

I’m not letting a little heart attack stand between me and my dreams — I’m not even going to let it slow me down.

Whatever you’ve got standing in your way, start finding a way to work around it, with it, or in spite of it.

Self-defense: Sometimes a micro-dose of consistency is just what you need to start engraining consistent practice habits for the long haul. The coming week is striking week. Resolve to work your heavy bag every day this week for at least 3 rounds per day. You’ll be surprised how easy it is to put in at least 3 rounds twice the week after. From there — if you want to have punching and kicking power that’ll put bullies, killers and thugs on their butts — make sure that you work your heavy bag at least twice a week for the foreseeable future.

Fitness: If you can’t do it for a 100 years without your body falling apart, it’s not sustainable. Whatever you do, don’t start 2021 with guns blazing. Training at redline for weeks at a time is a recipe for injury and reduced performance. Come up with a sensible training plan that averages out to about 75% effort over the long haul and that exceeds 90% effort no more than 1/4 of the time. Look at your plan and make an evaluation. If you need help designing a plan, click here to sign up for the free Heritage Fitness Program. Did I mention it’s free?

Wildwood: Primitive skills are like a language that’s used to communicate the world. You can’t get fluent in French, let’s say, without speaking French with native speakers on a daily basis. Well you can’t get fluent in outdoor skills if you only practice once or week or go hiking once a month. For the coming week, try practicing as often as you can throughout the day. Every time you climb your stairs at home, practice your stalking skills by trying not to let the steps creak. When you go to the supermarket, practice your plant ID skills by seeing how many of the plants and flowers you can identify in the floral section. Next time you get in your car, practice your tracking skills by trying to determine how many critters came into contact with it based on animal prints, droppings, webs, insect trails, and so forth.

Spirit: The symbol of Heritage Arts is the hourglass. Where the top half of the hourglass meets the bottom is the place where the ideal meets the real, where the theoretical meats the actual, and where ultimate success is realized if the timing is right. This embodies the Greek concept of kairos which is the perfect or most opportune time for a proper action, like planting time or harvest time, the time for setting sail on a voyage, the time for breaking ground on a building project, the time for a wedding, etc. Kairos is the Greek word for time found in Mark 1:15 in the Greek New Testament. And since Mark was the first gospel written, these are the first recorded words attributed to Jesus: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15).”

In other words, the perfect time to encounter God is always right now.

Holy Communion for the Nativity of the Lord 2021

Join us today as we celebrate Holy Communion for the Nativity of the Lord 2021 (recorded the afternoon of 12/25/21). To follow along at home, click here and print the Holy Communion Program. Text of today’s homily below.

If you would like to have prayers offered for you, a loved one, a friend, for someone who is suffering, ill or who has departed, please email Archdeacon Mitch at mitch@heritageartsinc.com and we will pray for you. And if you’d like to assist in the beautification, improvement and maintenance of St. Barachiel Chapel, or support our educational mission, please click here to make a donation.

Homily for the Nativity of the Lord 2021

Readings: Is 52:7-10, Ps 98:1, 2-3, 3-4, 5-6, Heb 1:1-6, Jn 1:1-5, 9-14

Brothers and sisters, the prologue of the Gospel of John describes Christ’s nature as the Word of God – the Way, the Truth and Life – and explains that if we accept Christ, who is the light of the human race, we can become children of God.

It can be hard to see his light because the modern world is so full of lesser, very distracting lights, stars, and luminaries of all kinds.  Everywhere we turn there are headlights, streetlights, and stoplights; movie stars, YouTube stars, social media and news luminaries, and political meteors; cell phone screens, video game screens, TV screens, VR goggles, and the list goes on.  On all sides, blinking lights and shiny toys distract and attract our attention.  And let’s not forget the worst light of all, the light of Lucifer – whose name means “light bringer” – who rather than reflecting the light of Christ, illuminates instead our hearts’ desires for more – more fun, more food, more pleasure, power, fame, and “likes.”  Distracted and re-directed by all of these different lights, we increasingly find ourselves led astray into discord, dispute, depression and disbelief in in Father, Son and Holy Ghost.

Let us pause here and now on Christmas Day to focus our attention on Jesus Christ, the light of the human race, and to celebrate the day when his light first dawned on the earth.  Because Jesus Christ is eternal, his light shines on all places, at all times, and for all people.  And if we can look away from the distracting, worldly lights on every side and gaze toward the fixed point that is the light of Christ – if we can all walk together toward God – we can all grow closer.  God draws all things toward one another by drawing them into himself.  The nearer we get to him, the nearer we get to one another.

Stop looking down and look upward toward Christ.  Join hands with your families, friends, neighbors, and fellow citizens – and walk toward the light born in Bethlehem.  You see, we are not born brothers and sisters by flesh and blood, or the will of men can never unite us. We are made brothers and sisters only if we accept that we are all children of God.

Holy Communion 12/19/21 - Fourth Sunday of Advent

Join us today as we celebrate Holy Communion for the fourth Sunday of Advent 12/19/21. To follow along at home, click here and print the Holy Communion Program. Text of today’s homily below.

If you would like to have prayers offered for you, a loved one, a friend, for someone who is suffering, ill or who has departed, please email Archdeacon Mitch at mitch@heritageartsinc.com and we will pray for you. And if you’d like to assist in the beautification, improvement and maintenance of St. Barachiel Chapel, please click here to make a donation.

Homily for the Fourth Sunday of Advent – Sunday 12/19/21

Readings: Mi 5:1-4a, Ps 80:2-3, 15-16, 18-19, Heb 10:5-10, Lk 1:39-45

Luke 1:39-45 - American Standard Version

39 And Mary arose in these days and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Judah; 40 and entered into the house of Zacharias and saluted Elisabeth. 41 And it came to pass, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit; 42 and she lifted up her voice with a loud cry, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. 43 And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come unto me? 44 For behold, when the voice of thy salutation came into mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. 45 And blessed is she that [a]believed; for there shall be a fulfilment of the things which have been spoken to her from the Lord.

Friends, today’s Gospel reading is the story of St. Mary visiting her relative Elizabeth who is also pregnant.  Mary carries the Savior, while Elizabeth carries the St. John the Baptist, and when Mary arrives, the unborn baby John leaps in Elizabeth’s womb.

Isn’t this a quaint story?  Sure, of course it is.  It’s just the kind of story people love to tell, especially expectant mothers.  You can just imagine this story being retold by Mary and Elizabeth, and by all of their girlfriends.  “Did you hear what happened when Mary visited Elizabeth?  Don’t you know, as soon as she came into the room, baby John started kicking like crazy!  Isn’t that something?”

But rest assured, brothers and sisters, this is more than a charming tale meant to warm our hearts.  Is it okay for it to be that?  Yes, certainly it is.  But like every story in the Bible there are deeper levels at which this story can be read and interpreted.  And one of those ways touches each and every one of us.

Because we all carry within us hidden potentials that are waiting to be born.  These can be literal children, of course, but they can also be projects, ideas, businesses, speeches, conversations, donations and good works, and so on.  We also have the potential to give birth to bad things, negative things, unhealthy things.  But if we are like Elizabeth and the baby John inside her – if we allow ourselves to be open and receptive to the presence of Jesus Christ – to what beautiful and miraculous things might we give birth?  If we allow our hearts to leap, and kick and stir, and we if we dare to bring into the world potentials that resonate with Jesus Christ, how wondrous that would be!

Don’t forget, brothers and sisters, that Elizabeth was up in years, and so was her husband Zechariah.  But, by the grace of God, she conceived a son despite being past her prime.  Have you given up on your hopes and dreams of a greater life in Christ?  Have you despaired on giving birth to something great?  I implore you my friends to let Jesus in!  Let the things that are unborn in you leap for joy at the approach of Jesus Christ, and bring them into the world!

You don’t have to rock the world – you don’t have to raise a million dollars for charity or quit your job and go overseas on a mission, although those things are great if that’s what you have stirring inside you.  Anything dream or goal can be done in Christ, to the glory of God the Father, and with the guidance of the Holy Ghost.  Remember always that it is in God that we live, and move, and have our being; therefore, all things may be done in Christ.  And as long as there is breath in your body, through him, and with him and in him, all good things are possible.

Resilience: Mettle Maker #287

Before we get to the weekly mettle-maker, a reminder that Spirit Month is in full swing! There are still two more events you can participate in this month…

Christmas Carols and Cheer (Dec. 23rd from 6 PM to 7 PM). Join us at West End Manor Civic Association. Sit around the fire bowl, enjoy a cup of hot chocolate or apple cider, and sing Christmas carols! Open to the public. No registration required.

Virtual Open House (Thu. Dec. 30th. 6 PM to 7 PM). A public Zoom call for friends both old and new. Pose questions, make suggestions, or just chew the fat, chat, or kick the cow pat. Click here to join the call. Use passcode 967346.

Resilience: METTLE MAKER #287

Resilience is on my mind this week in the wake of Monday’s heart attack. I still can’t believe I hiked to the top of Tuscarora Overlook on Saturday and had a cardiac event on Monday — what the heck? Anyway, I’m doing fine now. No surgery needed at this stage, just some meds. Please take note that exercise, a healthy diet and clean living can neither erase the effects of previous bad habits nor overcome genetic predispositions and funky anatomy — so take corrective action and see your doctor for a check-up. Am I ashamed of the abuse I heaped on my body in the past? Yep. But I’m proud of the fact that I overcame my bad habits, and I’m happy to report that my spiritual, martial, and survival training protected me from panic during the event, kept me patient and positive at the hospital, and are insulating me from depression and negativity. Now, on with the show!

Self-defense: Next week is wrestling week, so here’s a simple wrestling drill for you. If you’re training solo, get out your floor bag and set your timer for three rounds. Cycle through the following: Bottom Scissors (squeeze to failure), Bearhug (squeeze to failure with proper forearm and/or fist placement), Back Bridges (4 reps), and Grinding/Cramming (reverse to top position and grinds, crams, gouges, etc. for about a minute). Reverse and repeat for the duration. If you’re training with partner, keep the grinding at low power — just hard enough so that you and partner know that you’re hitting the right spots — and alternate roles. If you’re training solo, get your floor bag and get to work.

Fitness: Mark Hatmaker points out that if you can’t do it every day it ain’t sustainable. In order to be and remain resilient, you have to have a little in the tank when you need it. Training in the red line with too much frequency leaves you in a depleted state. Take a look at your training log. Are you a tortoise or a hare? Would a graph of your training look like a heartbeat — lots of blanks punctuated with spikes — or a mildly undulating waveform? Remember kids - Sloane’s teddy wins the race (it’s a “sure thing”). Adjust accordingly. If you have a serious health event (like, I don’t know, a heart attack?), it’s good to be well-trained but rested, and to have a few pounds of fat on your bones.

Wildwood: Do you have an emergency kit in your purse, fanny pack, or shoulder bag when you’re about town or going on a short hike? You can put one together for pennies. Here’s a picture of mine. It’s not much bigger than my hand. I had one in a plastic case which finally gave up the ghost. So I sent to the dollar store and bought a $1 make-up bag. Clockwise from upper left: saline eye drops, adhesive bandages and butterfly closures, tweezers, Benadryl, ibuprofen and acetaminophen, petroleum jelly (for lips, hands, fire-starting, etc.), needle and thread, mini fishing tackle kit, lighter, water purification tablets, and a lighter. Get there.

Spirit: When was the last time you experienced wonder? Wonder is the experience of something new, unusual, strange, extraordinary, mysterious, or downright miraculous. It’s akin to surprise, astonishment, admiration, or amazement, but its closest synonym is awe. Wonder makes you feel small. But unlike the other emotions that make you feel small by pushing you down – embarrassment, defeat, shame, guilt, and so on – wonder is a positive emotion that makes you feel small in a good way by drawing you upward into and toward something larger and fuller than yourself. The experience of wonder makes you happy, humble, and inquisitive, simultaneously aligning you with a higher power and igniting the desire for deeper understanding. This is why Socrates rightly said, “Wonder is the beginning of wisdom.”

Heritage Arts Camp-out at Douthat

This weekend was the Heritage Arts Camp-out. For a little background on the hike, visit the founder’s blog.

Get Out: Mettle Maker #286

Today we're in Clifton Forge. VA at Douthat State Park for the Heritage Camp-out. But for those who stayed home today, we present…

GET OUT: METTLE MAKER #286

For the Self-defense and Fitness cadres: complete a 15-min. ascending half pyramid of Bridge, DDU, Shots, Get-ups, Bodybuilders, Mountain Climbers, and Pikes. Watch your form!

Wildwood: If you have to build a lean-to to stay dry in cold weather, which arrangement will keep the smoke out of your shelter? Instinct makes one want to put the wind at your back facing the fire, but this can create a low pressure area in the lean-to and make the smoke hover in the shelter. Pitch your lean-to with the wind cutting across your back at a 45 angle for better results. See pic below.

Spirit: There is an ancient idea that passions have sins nested within them. The other day, when discussing something I was passionate about, my language strayed into coarseness, and my spirit slipped toward irreverence and disrespectfulness. When you feel your passion rising, try to stop and make sure that your passion is for good, and make an effort to tighten the reins — there may be a worm in the apple.

“He who refuses to give into passions does the same as he who refuses to bow down and worship idols.” St. Theophan the Recluse

Put the wind at your back in a 45° angle or you may have a smoky lean-to.

Holy Communion 11/21/21 - Second Sunday of Advent

Join us today as we celebrate Holy Communion for the second Sunday of Advent 12/5/21. To follow along at home, click here and print the Holy Communion Program. Video and text of today’s homily below.

If you would like to have prayers offered for you, a loved one, a friend, for someone who is suffering, ill or who has departed, please email Archdeacon Mitch at mitch@heritageartsinc.com and we will pray for you. And if you’d like to assist in the beautification, improvement and maintenance of St. Barachiel Chapel, please click here to make a donation.

Homily for the Second Sunday of Advent – Sunday 12/5/21

Readings: Bar 5:1-9, Ps 126:1-2, 2-3, 4-5, 6, Phil 1:4-6, 8-11, Lk 3:1-6

Brothers and sisters, the poorest nations with the lowest standards of living, the most violence, and the least stable infrastructure are the ones where Christianity is growing fastest.  I believe that’s because those are the places where people are best able to hear and understand God’s word – where people most sincerely and urgently beg for relief from suffering.

In those places, where electricity may be intermittent, water unreliable, food supplies insecure, and the rule of law absent, today’s readings make perfect sense.  When you have to walk to get water and carry it by hand on a dirt road, taking a roundabout way to avoid warlords or bandits, washouts or collapsed bridges, you long for your paths to be made straight.  When you rely on your legs to carry heavy loads up and down real hills, you dream of a day when valleys will be filled and mountains brought low.  After a long day’s work doing manual labor, the thought of a steep and winding walk home fills you with dread.

But here in the United States, where Christianity is in decline, these ancient words seem far removed, strange, and not applicable to us.  What’s a long, twisting road to us?  We have cars, buses and subways.  What difference does a tall hill make?  For most of us, the worst thing we have to fear along the road is getting stuck in traffic.  When we hear of paths being straightened, valleys being filled, and mountains being brought low, we think of apocalypse, earthquakes, and landslides. 

I urge you my friends to see today’s Gospel reading by a different light.  Consider the people of your city or county who aren’t doing as well as perhaps you are.  What can you do to help the children who have to walk the long way to and from school to avoid drug dealers and gangs?   What of the ones who have to spend many hours hopping a half-dozen different bus lines to get home from work, or who have to walk home at night in bad neighborhoods when second shift is over?  

And even though we may be in better circumstances than those who must literally walk crooked roads and steep paths, let us not forget that we need God to fill up our valleys of depression and addiction and close our political divides; we have mountains of pride, anger, greed and waste that cry out to be brought low; we have crooked paths of corruption, lies and red tape that beg to be made straight; we have friends and neighbors who need help struggling up hills of recovery from sicknesses of all kinds.

Let us offer our prayers, and do our parts, to prepare the way of the Lord and make straight his paths.

Announcing Spirit Month!

December is Spirit Month at Heritage Arts — the time of year when we celebrate, renew, rejoice, and recharge!

Spirit Month Activities

Heritage Arts Campout (Fri. Dec. 10th - Sun. Dec. 12th). Click here to register. Max of 12 people — sign up now! Two nights under the stars making s'mores, playing guitar, and hanging out at Douthat State Park -- one of the 10 best parks in the United States (https://www.dcr.virginia.gov/state-parks/douthat). Check-in Time: no earlier than Friday 4 PM. We'll eat, make s'mores, play guitar and hang out. Saturday: we'll go where the wind blows us -- hike, canoe on the lake, or explore. Mitch will be available to lead sessions for anyone who wants to work on skills -- Heritage Wildwood stuff (wild plant ID, bow drill fire making, arts & crafts, etc.), Heritage Self-Defense sessions, or Heritage Fitness Q & As. Sunday: We'll get up, have breakfast, do a spiritual circle-up and parting prayer , and be out by 11 AM. Totally free, donations accepted. Bring your own food, beverages, and gear. No gear? No problem! Just bring your food and a sleeping bag and we'll find a tent for you to borrow or an extra space if you're okay bunking up. We've got cooking gear covered. Stay only one night or just drive out and spend Saturday (but arrive by 9:00 AM or you might miss us).

Patio Potluck (Thur. Dec 16th). Open only to members of Heritage Self-Defense in Richmond VA. Sandwiches with vegetarian options and drinks will be provided. Bring a side dish to share, or just share your pretty face and mooch, it’s cool.

Christmas Carols and Cheer (Dec. 23rd from 6 PM to 7 PM). Join us at West End Manor Civic Association. Sit around the fire bowl, enjoy a cup of hot chocolate or apple cider, and sing Christmas carols! Open to the public. No registration required.

Virtual Open House (Thu. Dec. 30th. 6 PM to 7 PM). A public Zoom call for friends both old and new. Pose questions, make suggestions, or just chew the fat, chat, or kick the cow pat. Click here to join the call. Use passcode 967346.

Spirit Month: Mettle Maker #285

December is Spirit Month at Heritage Arts — the time of year when we celebrate, renew, rejoice, and recharge!

Spirit Month: Mettle Maker #295

This week’s challenge is to plan on participating in at least one of our events, either in person or online. Get there!

Heritage Arts Campout (Fri. Dec. 10th - Sun. Dec. 12th). Click here to register. Max of 12 people — sign up now! Two nights under the stars making s'mores, playing guitar, and hanging out at Douthat State Park -- one of the 10 best parks in the United States (https://www.dcr.virginia.gov/state-parks/douthat). Check-in Time: no earlier than Friday 4 PM. We'll eat, make s'mores, play guitar and hang out. Saturday: we'll go where the wind blows us -- hike, canoe on the lake, or explore. Mitch will be available to lead sessions for anyone who wants to work on skills -- Heritage Wildwood stuff (wild plant ID, bow drill fire making, arts & crafts, etc.), Heritage Self-Defense sessions, or Heritage Fitness Q & As. Sunday: We'll get up, have breakfast, do a spiritual circle-up and parting prayer , and be out by 11 AM. Totally free, donations accepted. Bring your own food, beverages, and gear. No gear? No problem! Just bring your food and a sleeping bag and we'll find a tent for you to borrow or an extra space if you're okay bunking up. We've got cooking gear covered. Stay only one night or just drive out and spend Saturday (but arrive by 9:00 AM or you might miss us).

Patio Potluck (Thur. Dec 16th). Open only to members of Heritage Self-Defense in Richmond VA. Sandwiches with vegetarian options and drinks will be provided. Bring a side dish to share, or just share your pretty face and mooch, it’s cool.

Christmas Carols and Cheer (Dec. 23rd from 6 PM to 7 PM). Join us at West End Manor Civic Association. Sit around the fire bowl, enjoy a cup of hot chocolate or apple cider, and sing Christmas carols! Open to the public. No registration required.

Virtual Open House (Thu. Dec. 30th. 6 PM to 7 PM). A public Zoom call for friends both old and new. Pose questions, make suggestions, or just chew the fat, chat, or kick the cow pat. Click here to join the call. Use passcode 967346.

Holy Communion 11/28/21 -- First Sunday of Advent

Join us today as we celebrate Holy Communion for the first Sunday of Advent 2021. To follow along at home, click here and print the Holy Communion Program. Note: The Gloria is not recited during Advent and Lent, so this will be skipped. Video and text of today’s homily below.

If you would like to have prayers offered for you, a loved one, a friend, for someone who is suffering, ill or who has departed, please email Archdeacon Mitch at mitch@heritageartsinc.com and we will pray for you.

At the end of today’s video stay tuned for a short tour of recent improvements to St. Barachiel Chapel. If you’d like to assist in the beautification and upkeep of the chapel, please click here to make a donation.

Homily for the First Sunday of Advent – Sunday 11/28/21

Readings: Jer 33:14-16, Ps 25:4-5, 8-9, 10, 14, 1 Thes 3:12—4:2, Lk 21:25-28, 34-36

 Brothers and sisters, in today’s Gospel reading, Jesus says, “Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap.”  What does it mean for our hearts to become drowsy?  When we speak of the heart we mean positive emotions, empathy, and connection to what’s going on around us.  And when we are drowsy, we are in the space between wakefulness and sleep, to be approaching unconsciousness, disengagement, and blindness to our surroundings.  This isn’t just an exhortation against alcohol and drugs; it’s a reminder to be mindful and engaged.

In Jesus’ day, there was no private life except for the very, very rich.  People lived in cramped homes, three generations or more plus animals all in one space.  The only form of escape was to drink and party.  We’ve invented plenty of ways to make our hearts drowsy since then, and Jesus knew we would do that.  But if he’d spoken about video games, 24-hour news websites, and virtual reality headsets, people of his day would’ve called him insane. But rest assured, this is the “carousing and drunkenness” of the modern era.  The average American household has more screens than people, and they’re running more than 8 hours per day.  American adults average 8.5 hours of screen time per day, and two-thirds of us indicate in polls that we couldn’t live without them.

Does it matter that we’re spending more than 8 hours per day acting out crime sprees while playing video games, watching movies in which the heroes lie, cheat, steal and kill, and absorbing hours of ten-second home videos devoid of substance?  When we watch lewdness, profanity, violence, outrage, callousness, and so on, are we committing those sins?  Consider this from Gospel of Matthew 5:27-28: “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I say to you that every one who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”  It has been estimated that 35% of all internet downloads and 80% of web streaming is pornography-related.  Now, I know what you’re thinking – “it’s just a video” or “just a movie” or “just a game” or “just a news show.”  But that’s a cop-out.  It’s a trap. If it’s insignificant – if it really is “just a whatever” – then it’s a waste of your time.  But if it is significant, then you are engaging in those behaviors in your heart.  Either way you lose – either way you need to be much more discriminating with your attention.

Jesus warns us about the “anxieties of daily life.”  The past two years have been an exercise in the “anxieties of daily life.”  On the one side we have people trying to tell us that COVID is a fiction, a mysterious plot to get shots into our arms.  The other side proclaims that COVID will kill us all unless every man, woman and child is vaccinated, and that anyone who ask questions is irresponsible and backward.  Meanwhile, the Evil One, who is a liar who sows discord through lies, laughs as we fight and argue with one another.

Jesus says, “Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and to stand before the Son of Man.”  So when you are playing that violent video game, watching that movie or video, or absorbing endless news and propaganda, ask yourself if you are being engaged, mindful, and vigilant.  Are you perhaps lulling yourself to sleep or, worse still, opening your eyes and ears to lies and falsehoods?  Are you preparing yourself to stand before Christ in innocence and repentance, or are you fanning the flames of lust, anger, vengeance and outrage?  Are you having honest conversations with real people and doing the work of the spirit, or are you being manipulated by computers, search algorithms, and lies?

The Web of Sleep: Mettle Maker #284

Note: The weekly mettle maker supports all of the Heritage Arts programs — Heritage Self-Defense, Heritage Wildwood, Heritage Fitness and Heritage Spirit.

The Web of Sleep: Mettle Maker #284

Click here to watch some folks facing the test!

• Self-Defense and Fitness: Wake up and assess yourself. November is our 4th annual Mettlecraft Month. This year’s challenge: take the Self-Defense and Rescue Fitness Test, and share your results. Here are the 10 exam questions (passing and A+ scores in parentheses separated by “/”): 1 - Breath Hold (5 sec. prep only, 1 min. / 2 minutes), 2 - Jump over waist height (1 time / 10 times in 2 mins), 3 - Pull-ups, Chin-ups, or Knee Tucks (1 Knee Tuck/ 20 Pull-ups in 2 mins), 4 - 200 yard Sprint (all out, no breaks / 30 secs), 5 - Sit-ups (50 / 75 in 2 mins), 6 - Hand Release Push-ups (10 / 60 in 2 mins), 7 - Deadlifts, 3 reps ( 140 lbs / 340 lbs in 2 mins), 8 - Buddy Carry (any method 25 yards / 100 yards in 2 mins), 9 - Sandbag run (25 lbs 1/2 mile no breaks / 45 lbs 1 mile in 12 mins), 10 - Pain test (arm in ice-water to elbow, 90 secs/ 3 mins, no verbalizations). Sound fun? Join the club, or sign up for the Heritage Self-Defense distance learning program or for the Heritage Fitness program.

Click the pic to watch a video about friction fire…

• Wildwood: Wake up and face your true skill level — bust a fire. Last week I encouraged you to keep in mind that the map is not the terrain — what is real is far different than what is imagined or visualized. Maps and visualizations are important and valuable, but only insofar as they are related to action. Could you make a fire by friction? Sure, you know the way it works and you’ve seen it done. But have you actually done it? Do you know what kinds of wood work best together, how tight the cord should be wound around the drill, and so forth? Get there! Don’t know where to start? Or maybe you just want more tips and tricks, or you’re looking for an outdoor skills training plan? Sign up here, it’s free.

• Spirit: Are you awake or asleep? Watch the video below. And if this sort of thing appeals to you, join us for Holy Communion on Sunday and if you need a pastoral counseling session, click here.

Holy Communion 11/21/21: Feast of Christ the King

Join us today as we celebrate Holy Communion for the Feast of Christ the King 11/21/21. To follow along at home, click here and print the Holy Communion Program. Video and text of today’s homily below.

If you would like to have prayers offered for you, a loved one, a friend, for someone who is suffering, ill or who has departed, please email Archdeacon Mitch at mitch@heritageartsinc.com and we will pray for you. And if you’d like to assist in the beautification, improvement and maintenance of St. Barachiel Chapel, please click here to make a donation.

Homily for the Feast of Christ the King, Sunday 11/21/21

Readings: Dn 7:13-14, Ps 93:1, 1-2, 5, Rev 1:5-8, Jn 18:33b-37

Friends, why does Jesus say to Pilate, “My kingdom is not of this world”? Because he wants to make it clear what he’s really up to. He says, “If my kingdom did belong to this world, my attendants would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not here." Jesus is not fighting a political battle to overthrow the Roman Empire. After the resurrection, does he come back from the dead and visit kings and queens, emperors and empresses, revolutionaries and zealots? Does he come back to try to change monarchies into democracies or communist states? To convince rulers to make better laws, to write better legislation or institute better government programs? To build great temples? No – he came to testify to the truth. He visited his disciples and friends, and he gave them authority to preach his truth and to perform miracles and good works in his name.

What about the last thing he says in today’s reading? What does he mean when he says, “Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.” This isn’t about hearing voices. Jesus is saying that everyone who belongs to the truth is listening to his voice, because Jesus is truth. The actions are one in the same. To “belong to the truth” is exactly the opposite of what most people want. We crave ownership of the truth, rather than striving to be owned by it. Our natural tendency is backwards. The truth doesn’t belong to us. It’s not ours. But we’re always trying to create it, or curate it, or possess it. To make our will manifest rather than God’s.

Don’t be like the people of Jesus’ time who wanted a king of this world. Pilate gave them a choice, and they wanted Barabbas, the criminal and revolutionary, to be released. They wanted a revolutionary who would give them what they desired. They hated Jesus because he spoke unpleasant truths. And those truths can be just as unpleasant now as they were then.

As soon as we think that our group, our church denomination, political party, favorite president, preacher, pundit, or pop culture icon is in possession of the truth, we have made something other than Christ our king. We have to get this through our heads – there is nothing here on earth that is perfect and good and true. There cannot and will not be any utopia here on earth until Christ returns to establish it in the fullness of time.

We are not going to get what we want. We’re never going to get a news outlet, website, or social media platform that we can trust to tell us the truth. We’re never going to be able to let your guard down and trust that what we are hearing aren’t lies. Neither are we going to be able to trust that our desires, our senses, or our lusts. What’s your king? Your cell phone? Your T.V.? Your favorite foods, your toys, your video games, your music, your stylish clothes? Your pornography, your house, your car pot, your alcohol? Those are all things of this world.

Two thousand years ago, Jesus wasn’t trying to win a battle to overthrow Rome. And he isn’t trying to win a battle in this world today. He is and always has been fighting to win the battle for your soul. Think about that. “The kingdom of God is within you.” (Luke 17:21). Christ’s kingdom is in your mind, in your heart, in what you think about, in what you desire, in what you crave, and in what you trust. Make Christ, and only Christ, your King.

Reification: Mettle Maker #283

REIFICATION: consideration of an abstract thing as if it were concrete, or of an inanimate object as if it were living.

Note: The weekly mettle maker supports all of the Heritage Arts programs — Heritage Self-Defense, Heritage Wildwood, Heritage Fitness and Heritage Spirit.

Reification: Mettle Maker #283

• Self-Defense and Fitness: Take the Self-Defense and Rescue Fitness Test, and share your results with us. Facing the test and posting your scores isn’t about showing off. It’s about realistically assessing yourself, taking off your rose-colored glasses, and banishing your delusions. It’s about banishing delusions and knowing what you’re capable of. Here are the ten challenges that make up the test (passing score and perfect score in parentheses). 1 - Breath Hold (5 sec. prep only, 1 min. / 2 minutes), 2 - Jump over waist height (1 time / 10 times in 2 mins), 3 - Pull-ups, Chin-ups, or Knee Tucks (1 Knee Tuck/ 20 Pull-ups in 2 mins), 4 - 200 yard Sprint (all out with no breaks / <30 secs), 5 - Sit-ups (50 / 75 in 2 mins), 6 - Hand Release Push-ups (10 / 60 in 2 mins), 7 - Deadlifts, 3 reps ( 140 lbs / 340 lbs in 2 mins), 8 - Buddy Carry (any method 25 yards / 100 yards in 2 mins), 9 - Sandbag run (25 lbs 1/2 mile / 45 lbs 1 mile in 12 mins), 10 - Pain test (arm in ice-water to elbow, 90 secs/ 3 mins, no verbalizations). At the bottom of the page you can see videos of some other folks at the club facing the challenge. Look fun? Join the club, or sign up for the Heritage Self-Defense distance learning program or for the Heritage Fitness program.

• Wildwood: The map is not the terrain — revisited. Everybody’s heard this expression, sometimes phrased “the map is not the territory.” For those who haven’t, it is used to express the dangers inherent in confusing a representation of a thing with the actual thing. I have never been lost in the woods, but I always get lost in the city if I don’t use a GPS. Up until a few weeks ago, I always made excuses for this. I would say, “I don’t get lost in the woods because everything is interesting and unique. But in the city, it’s all just a boring gray slate.” My wife is an excellent navigator, and I always relied on her. But when we were vacationing in Las Vegas and staying in the Venetian, the place was a maze. Even my wife got turned around. It hit me that (a) I have always offloaded urban navigation to other people and devices because I never cared, and (b) In the city, I always tried to navigate using a mental picture of myself moving on a map. So I switched gears in Vegas. I stopped offloading responsibility to her and I started navigating in the city the same way I navigated in the woods — by being engaged in my surroundings, looking backward at the return view, and so on. I was instantly just as good as my wife at navigating the hotel environs, and my urban navigation skills are improving steadily. Want more tips and tricks? Need an outdoor training plan? Sign up here, it’s free.

• Spirit: Be like Fred, not Bill. Let’s look at two fictional people we’ll call Bill and Fred. Both of them have steady jobs, clean criminal records, and are loved by their wife and kids. The difference is that Bill behaves the way he does because he believes that if he doesn’t, he will be cease to be successful in life. He’ll lose income, lose the respect and admiration of his neighbors and family members, be out-performed by his male peers, etc. Fred, on the other hand, is deeply engaged in the act of living. He behaves the way he does because he enjoys his job, cares about his community, and loves his family. Look at yourself from the inside. Are you making a map of rules and living in it, or are you engaged in the art of living? This is what “fulfillment” means (see Matthew 5:17-18). Join us for Holy Communion on Sunday and if you need a pastoral counseling session, click here.