June 25, 2026 from Bishop Akiyama
The Bishop’s Message from 6/25: Dear Friends in Christ, Our current liturgical season, the Sundays after the Pentecost, is the longest season of the church year, spanning between the Sunday after Pentecost to the first Sunday of Advent. Some refer to it as “ordinary time,” although this is not a term used in our Book of Common Prayer. We also call this time the “green season” because green is the liturgical color of the season. The theme of Ordinary Time is rooted in our celebration on Pentecost Sunday of the power of the Holy Spirit working within the disciples as they struggled to understand their mission after Jesus’ earthly departure. In this liturgical season, we focus on the quiet and often invisible work of nurturing the roots of our faith so that we are grounded and able to grow and mature as followers of Christ. The color green also reminds us of the growing season of summer, a time when plants and fruiting trees draw from their deep roots to produce fruit which we can enjoy. Preparing our spiritual soil—faith practices—requires some refining and purifying as well. When I was a youngster, I would spend a week or more with my uncle and aunt in the Willamette Valley. They grew wheat, among other crops, and if my visit happened to be in the late summer the smell of field burning was typical. It was a strange smell because it contrasted so sharply with the fragrance of growing and fruiting crops. I learned that this was a method used by farmers of certain crops to clear noxious weeds and diseases from the soil after their crops had been harvested. Field burning is a highly controlled practice these days, but I find it a helpful image for our spiritual work in the Ordinary time of our faith journey. This is a season when we are encouraged to make time to focus on weeding out the habits that weaken our faith so that we may refine and deepen our spiritual roots in practices that endure. It can be a subtle and quiet process, yet it can also be bold and dramatic like the fires purifying the fie The reading from Malachi, appointed for yesterday’s Morning Prayer for the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist, depicts our spiritual preparation as acts which cleanse and refine: “See, I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple. The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight—indeed, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts. But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap; he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver…” (Malachi 3:1-3). Rather than fearing the presence of God as something one cannot endure, it is helpful to remember that our growing season—Ordinary time—is a time of shedding habits that stunt our spiritual growth. Engaging in this work can be fearsome because letting go of unhelpful habits can feel like entering a “refiner’s fire.” Nonetheless, our spiritual work in Ordinary time is to do the spadework—to dig deep, nourish the roots of our faith, and weed out the elements that interfere with our ability to follow Christ. This kind of effort requires faithful patience working alongside persistent impatience. Thankfully, this is our longest liturgical season, giving us the space to prepare for a deeper awareness of Christ in our lives. By the power of the Holy Spirit, may your Ordinary time be extraordinary as you move toward the human flourishing of God’s desire. Blessings,  |