Society of Saint Polycarp: 2014 SSP Retreat

Sunday, June 15, 2014

2014 SSP Retreat

Last week (June 10-13), our Society held its first Retreat since 2009. We gathered at Toddhall Retreat and Conference Center in Columbia, IL, which is a fabulous venue and was the perfect setting for us. The Tyndale House was our place of residence during our stay at Toddhall, and it was simply sublime. Very comfortable and, as a bonus, it connected right to St. Cecilia's Chapel, where we gathered several times daily to pray some of the Daily Offices and to receive our Lord's Gifts at Holy Mass.

The theme of our Retreat this year was "He Who Has Ears to Hear, Let Him Hear: The Parables of Our Lord Jesus Christ." We heard excellent sermons preached by the Fathers in attendance every day on various of our Lord's parables, and spent time studying a few of them in depth together. In addition, Fr. Richard Futrell gave an excellent presentation on "New Covenant Worship as the Fulfillment of Old Covenant," showing in detailed fashion the connection between the two Covenants and the continuity between them when it comes to how God's people worship Him.

Our Retreat began Tuesday afternoon. After checking in and getting settled, we gathered in the chapel for Holy Mass at 4:00 p.m. (Votive Mass of the Holy Angels), with Fr. Larry Beane serving as Celebrant and myself as Preacher. After Mass, I made my world-famous brats (okay, maybe not world famous, but pretty good, nonetheless) and Fr. Larry's wonderful wife, Grace, assisted me in the kitchen, preparing sides and salad. We rounded off the day with me leading a discussion on the theme of the Retreat, as well as introducing a publishing project for our Society to the Fathers and Brothers in attendance, which was well received and will begin to be implemented in the next couple of months. We also had ample time to relax, visit, and shoot the breeze with one another throughout the afternoon/evening, and gathered to pray Compline to end our day, with Dcn. Joe Greene serving as liturgist (as he did each evening at Compline). Our Retreat was off to a great start!

Wednesday began with Matins at 7:30 a.m., with Fr. Aaron Filipek serving as Liturgist and Preacher, blessing us with a proclamation on the Parable of the Lost Sheep. We gathered for breakfast at the Toddhall Dining Hall at 8:30 a.m. and were back in the chapel at 10:00 a.m. for Holy Mass (Feast of St. Barnabas), with Fr. Richard Futrell serving as Celebrant and Fr. Jay Watson as Preacher. At 11:00 a.m., Fr. Richard gave the first part of his presentation, mentioned above, and we followed that with the Office at Sext at 12:15 p.m., with me serving as Liturgist and St. Cyril of Alexandria as our Preacher. Then, it was off to lunch in the Dining Hall at 12:30 p.m. and back to the Tyndale House at 2:00 p.m. for the second part of Fr. Richard's presentation. We prayed Vespers at 3:30 p.m., with Fr. William Weedon serving as Liturgist and Preacher, sharing an excellent homily on the Parable of the Pharisee and Tax Collector, then we gathered for dinner in the Dining Hall at 5:30 p.m. We had a couple hours of free time until we gathered at 8:00 p.m. to hear Dcn. Latif Gaba give a presentation on "The History of the Society of Saint Polycarp," which lead into a discussion and brainstorming on the Society going forward. Compline to round off the day.

Thursday again began with Matins at 7:30 a.m., with Fr. Larry serving as Liturgist and Fr. Richard serving as Preacher, holding forth on the Parable of the Talents. After Matins, Grace made us breakfast, employing the farm-fresh eggs Dcn. Joe brought for us, and then we were off to pay a visit to the International Center of the LCMS. Unfortunately, Fr. Richard had to leave after Matins to attend to an unexpected death in his parish, so he wasn't able to join us for our visit to the I.C. and had to miss the remainder of the Retreat. Fr. William left early on Thursday to head over to the I.C., as he was serving as Liturgist and Preacher for chapel there at 10:00 a.m. When we arrived at the I.C. a little before 10:00 a.m., Fr. William greeted us and showed us to the chapel, where he lead Responsive Prayer 1 and preached a short homily on Acts 2 (the Day of Pentecost) to all who were in attendance. After the Service, he introduced us as "his brethren in the Society of Saint Polycarp," as well as all the other guests who were there that day. Then, he lead us on a tour of the I.C., which included taking us into the Executive Offices, where the Rev. Dr. Jon Vieker (Senior Assistant to the President) graciously showed us around. Unfortunately, President Harrison wasn't in that morning, but we all got to sit in his chair and pretend to be "king for a day." :)

After touring the I.C., we went out for lunch to a restaurant Fr. William recommended, where everyone but Leo (Fr. Larry's awesome son) and me ordered sirloin tip salad (or something like that), per Fr. William's suggestion, while Leo and I ordered sandwiches, as is normal for lunch. :) (Actually, the salad thingy everyone got looked very good and they all raved about how delicious it was; but, the sandwiches were pretty good, too). After lunch, it was back to Toddhall for Holy Mass at 1:30 p.m., with Fr. William serving as Celebrant and Fr. Larry as Preacher. Then, we relaxed until it was time for Vespers at 4:30 p.m., with Fr. Aaron serving as Liturgist and me as Preacher, tackling the Parable of the Good Samaritan. After Vespers, we went out to dinner at a local restaurant called "Who-Dats," which served New Orleans food and made the Beane family feel right at home. In the evening, we were tremendously blessed to be lead in a study of the Parable of the Sower by Fr. Larry and a study of the Parable of the Pharisee and Tax Collector by Fr. William. Both of these learned brothers presented us with some of the best teaching on these parables any of us has ever received, which lead into fantastic and deep discussions of them. It was like a Bible Study on steroids. Truly awesome! Then, we closed our night by praying Compline again.

Friday, our last day of the Retreat, began with Matins at 7:30 a.m., with Fr. William serving as Liturgist and Fr. Jay serving as Preacher, proclaiming the Good News of Isaiah 65:17-25 and the Parable of the Ten Virgins. After Matins, we took a little break to set up the altar and then celebrated Holy Mass (Votive Mass of the Holy Cross), with Fr. Aaron serving as Celebrant and me as Preacher. After Mass, Grace cooked us another delicious breakfast with Dcn. Joe's eggs and then it was time to pack up and depart by 11:00 a.m.

That's a rundown of our time together, but it doesn't do justice to how enormously blessed we were at this Retreat. Lots of time to relax and enjoy our time together, lots of laughs, some good drinks and cigars, good food, lots of theological discussion and reflection, and being in our Lord's Holy House to receive His Holy Word and Sacraments multiple times daily - well, it just doesn't get any better than that! And, we were so impressed with the facilities at Toddhall and the kind folks who run it that we have already set the date and reserved the Tyndale House and St. Cecilia's Chapel for next year's Retreat, which will be held Tuesday, June 9 - Friday, June 12.

Special thanks to Grace for cooking and cleaning for us during our stay, and to Leo, who lead most of our meal prayers IN LATIN, which was very impressive. Fr. Larry is blessed with a wonderful family. Special thanks also to Fr. William for playing the organ/piano during many of our Services, and for leading us on a tour of the I.C., and to Dcn. Joe for bringing the eggs and leading us in Compline each night, and to Frs. Richard, Larry, and William, and Dcn. Latif for their Presentations/Bible Studies, and to all the Fathers who preached and celebrated. It was all outstanding; I really don't know how it could have gone any better than it did.

Can't wait for next year's Retreat!

In Christ,
Fr. Thomas Messer
SSP Dean

+ Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam! +

1 comment:

Jay WatsonJune 15, 2014 at 6:40 PM
Thank you Fr. Thomas for this beautifully written summary of our recent retreat. We are all blessed to have you as are hard-working and dedicated Dean. Onward and Upward, ALWAYS-- IN CHRIST JESUS!
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About our Society

The Society of St. Polycarp is made up of Lutheran clergymen and laity committed to the confessional, liturgical, sacramental, and spiritual renewal of the Church of the Augsburg Confession. Since our Church's problems are not political, but rather spiritual, we pray God to grant us repentance, and seek no political aim. Members of the Society commit themselves to the following Rule.

The Rule
1. Members of the Society confess Holy Scripture to be "the pure, clear fountain of Israel" and also "the one true guiding principle," i.e., the sole norm or "judge, rule, and guiding principle" of the same (FC Ep. Comprehensive Summary, 7; FC SD Comprehensive Summary, 3). We rejoice in the tradition of the Holy Doctors and Fathers of the Church, in whom Christ kept His promise that "the gates of Hell shall not prevail against (My Church)" (Mt 16:18), so that the Lutheran confessors could say that "the churches among us do not dissent from the catholic church in any article of faith" (AC Preface to XXII, 1, Latin). We reject all methods of interpretation that seek to understand the meaning of Scripture apart from the guidance of the Church, through which God gave us the Scriptures.

2. Members of the Society will promote the importance of daily prayer and meditation on Holy Scripture. Members will commit themselves to praying at least one of the daily offices, keeping fellow members as well as the Church Catholic herself in their prayers. The ideal use of the offices is in the corporate setting; however, the praying of the offices in private is to be carried out if there is no alternative.

3. Valuing Holy Absolution as "a voice from heaven" (Ap. XII, 40), members of the Society will avail themselves of the benefit of this sacrament, as well as promoting its use. Members will seek out father confessors of their own for regular and frequent private Confession and Absolution.

4. Members of the Society will promote the Sacrament of the Altar as the chief parochial service in the Church of the Augsburg Confession (AC XXIV, 34). Members will receive the Sacrament of the Altar often, as well as encourage others to receive it frequently, thereby restoring the traditional Lutheran understanding of the central place of the Sacrament in Lutheran worship. As the Lutheran Symbols assume the weekly celebration of the Sacrament of the Altar (AC XXIV, 34-38; Ap. XXIV, 1), members of the Society will promote this evangelical and catholic practice in their own parishes and in the work of the Society.

5. As the Sacrament of the Altar is the true Body and Blood of Our Lord that is truly present, distributed, and received (AC X, German), members of the Society are committed to the evangelical and catholic doctrine of closed communion, i.e., not admitting to the altar to receive the Holy Communion those who have not previously been examined and absolved (AC XXV, 1-2), let alone those of a confession of the Faith contrary to that of the Church of the Augsburg Confession.

6. Members of the Society will promote the historic liturgies of the Church Catholic, since such liturgies shape pastoral practice and teaching that is consistent with the evangelical and catholic Faith as it has been handed down in Holy Scripture, the Ecumenical Creeds, and the Symbolical Books of the Church of the Augsburg Confession.

7. As the Lutheran Symbols confess the Blessed Virgin Mary to be "the pure, holy, and ever-virgin Mother of God" (Theotokos, Gottes Mutter), as well as "that the blessed Mary prays for the Church" (Ap. XXI, 27; SA I, IV, Latin; FC SD VIII, 24), it is altogether fitting, proper, and consistent with the Faith of the Church Catholic to honor the Blessed Virgin in liturgical celebration. Members of the Society will seek to restore the traditional Marian feasts of the Church of the Augsburg Confession (i.e., the Feasts of the Purification, Annunciation, and Visitation) as a testimony of the grace of God through her, that we might imitate the Blessed Virgin in word and example, and in thanksgiving for the Incarnation of the Son of God through her humble submission to the will of God. Members of the Society will also promote the observance and celebration of saints' days and commemorations. This is wholly in keeping with the evangelical and catholic tradition of the Church of the Augsburg Confession, whose Symbolical Books acknowledge the saints as fitting exemplars of the catholic Faith worthy of imitation, as well as our heavenly intercessors (AC XXI, 1; Ap. XXI, 4-9).

8. As the Church of the Augsburg Confession understands herself as a part of the One Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church, particularly as she exists in the West, members of the Society will take seriously the commitment to the proper ecumenicity this demands. Members will pursue dialogue with:
• Fellow Lutheran Christians to foster and promote Lutheran unity.
• Our separated brethren in the Roman Church, with which the Lutherans at the Diet of Augsburg in 1530 clearly sought reconciliation.
• The Eastern Orthodox Church, following the example of the exchange between the Lutheran theologians of the University of Tübingen and Ecumenical Patriarch Jeremiah II of Constantinople (1573-1581).
This reflects not simply the Lutheran commitment to the unity of all Christians, but ultimately the will of Our Lord Himself (Jn 17).

9. Members of the Society will make every effort to make a retreat once a year for the purpose of disciplined prayer and study, silence and reflection, as well as the celebration of the Sacrament of the Altar.

Conclusion
Following the example of our patron, members of the Society ultimately strive to be faithful to Our Lord, recalling His words to St. John the Theologian: "Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life" (Rev 2:10). Members also pray God's grace that we may be able to hand over to our posterity the tradition we have received as Lutheran Christians, and that we may be able to confess with our forebears at Augsburg that "nothing has been accepted among us, in teaching and ceremonies, that is contrary to Scripture or the catholic church. For it is manifest that we have most diligently been on guard so that no new or ungodly doctrines creep into our churches" (AC Conclusion, 5, Latin).