Messy Anger, God’s Love, Christian Comfort and Stephen Ministers

An August Forward Day by Day¹ Meditation on Psalm 70 sites raw vindictiveness and unparalleled trust within a single verse. The Psalmist calls for enemies to be shamed, dismayed and disgraced. Reading between the lines, the meditation sees this call, not as an order, but as an admission of the messiness of angry moments. Thus, the meditation offers modern insight into the ancient text.

Such an admission is a moment of unparalleled trust in God. Unleashing the depth of anger, we model turning these feelings over to a loving God.

But one’s enemies are not always external. Sometimes we identify the pride, envy or gluttony in our lives as the real “us.” Depression, (anger turned inward) in some folk, can retard the hope of God’s grace to renew life’s virtue.

Vindictiveness or depression--both require that unparalleled trust in a loving God who listens. It is also true that sacramental Episcopalians can touch this divine love through the ministers of the church. The Sacrament “Reconciliation of a Penitent”² continues the practice of auricular confession heard by the priest. As early as 373 A.D., the Church Fathers attested to this practice.

But the Prayer Book also envisions the liturgy’s allowance for a penitent to have a deacon or lay person as a confessor. Indeed, our Barnaby-folk, in union with Christ, often offer outward signs of God’s love. With or without a liturgy, in small groups or one-to-one, our folk are learning unparalleled trust in God by admitting their gut-level anger to another. Both become witnesses to God’s love.

In addition to Deacon Judy’s ministry and my own, let me encourage you to make use of our Stephen Ministers. Since the Jan. 2004 commissioning, they have taken people’s needs seriously: death, aging, divorce etc.³

The program values expressing and caring for all feelings, including painful, messy ones like anger. Each Stephen Minister continues to hone their excellent listening skills in bi-monthly support sessions. Contact our Stephen Leaders [Deacon Judy, Sondra Hubble, David Jackson] when the Psalmist’s call becomes your own. Even one meeting with a Stephen Minister can be a milestone of God’s love.

Yours in Christ,
David J. Mossbarger +

¹ This pamphlet contains three months of one page meditations. Generally the author takes a daily office passage (like those read Monday, Wednesday and Thursday at morning prayer). It is a key discipline for many of St. Barnabas’ readers. We invite you to pick up a copy today.
²Book of Common Prayer, page 446 ff.
³ There can be situations which may require a Stephen Minister to encourage someone to seek professional help.

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