"The words of the Preacher, the son of David,
king in Jerusalem.

Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities;
all is vanity.”

Those are the opening words of the Old Testament Book of Ecclesiastes. Given that the author of Ecclesiastes is held to be King Solomon and that Scripture tells us that ”Solomon's wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east country, and all the wisdom of Egypt. For he was wiser than all men” (I Kings 4: 30-31), it is unfortunate that the primary meaning of the English word “vanity” has changed since the first publication of the King James Bible in 1611.

“Vanity” today usually means a foolish or excessive pride in oneself, especially in one's physical appearance, but that is not the sense in which it was used in the seventeenth century when educated Europeans were still expected to have a working knowledge of Latin. The Latin root of “vanity” is the Latin word “vanitas,” which means  "emptiness, untruthfulness, or futility," being itself derived from the noun “vanus,”which simply means "empty.” That meaning in fact still does survive in one modern English phrase; when we say that something was attempted “in vain,” we mean that the effort failed, that it was futile.

If we read further on in Ecclesiastes it becomes quite clear that the older meaning is the subject of Solomon's teaching, and that makes it a suitable subject for our consideration of how each of us will keep Lent this year. Most Church historians would agree that the very early Christians saw the keeping of a Lenten discipline as a requirement only for those catechumens (those being instructed in the faith) who were to be baptised on Easter Day, but it evolved into a season of reflection, self-discipline, and repentance for the whole Church, and experience has proved that it is of great spiritual benefit to those who take it seriously.

It is worth remembering when considering the words that “all is vanity” that King Solomon could certainly not be described as anything other than a worldly man. He was wealthy, powerful, respected, and no stranger to either luxury or the pleasures of the flesh. After all, I Kings 11:3 tells us that  he had seven hundred wives and three hundred concubines. Now, I'd be willing to bet that those numbers are an exaggeration, but still …

I would suggest to you that there are two different ways to think about the assertion that “all is vanity” and that one is more helpful to most of us than the other. The first way is the simplest and most radical. It is to view all human affairs, activities, and accomplishments as being utterly worthless and useless and therefore completely without any merit or value whatsoever. A surprisingly large number of people profess to believe this.

I am not referring here to monks and nuns who accept a religious vocation to withdraw from the world in order to devote themselves to prayer, study, and contemplation, which are, after all, human activities. They do not necessarily despise life in the world outside their walls but rather see it as an unnecessary distraction from their own individual personal vocation.

What I am referring to is the philosophical attitude we call “nihilism.”

The word is derived from “nihil,” the Latin word for “nothing,” and is an apt label, for the basic assertion of nihilism is that nothing whatever, including human life, is of any intrinsic value or meaning. One of its most basic tenets is that no God or gods exist, and that therefore there is no divinely mandated moral order, no such things as objective right or objective wrong, no such things as objective good or objective evil. All systems of morality are seen as artificial and devoid of any real existence. Another basic claim of the nihilists is that nothing has any true objective universal meaning and that there is therefore no such thing as actual truth, all apparent knowledge or meaning being no more than the viewpoint and opinion of one particular individual or culture.

While only a probably very small minority of Americans would describe themselves as nihilists, it is nevertheless true that nihilistic attitudes and beliefs are widespread in our culture. Every time you hear someone conclude an unsuccessful attempt to convince you of something with “Well, that's YOUR truth” you are hearing the voice of nihilism.

The denial of the reality of God and the consequent denial of a true and objective moral order are certainly commonplace in our society. Nihilism has had a baneful effect on nearly everything it has affected, most notably our educational system, our entertainment, our arts and literature, and our politics, and those most affected by it are notable for their purposelessness, anger, and despair, When is the last time you saw a black-clad, black fingernail-polished, Goth girl with heavy black eye makeup laughing, or even smiling?

This belief in the meaninglessness and emptiness of all things may seem to be an appropriate Christian response to Ecclesiastes' “all is vanity,” but it is not. It is neither spiritually, emotionally, or mentally healthy.

The final words of Ecclesiastes are these: “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.” he sees that all human endeavor can only be seen as futile by those who either do not believe in the existence of God or do not believe in the possibility of a relationship with Him. The Old Testament Jews knew that God does exist and that they were in relationship with Him both as a community and as individuals.

That relationship was expressed in the Law as set forth in the Scriptures which we know as the Old Testament. Believing this gave their lives a clear purpose, whidh was to obey and serve God, and this belief rescued them from any temptations to despair at human mortality or the admittedly temporary nature of human accomplishments. They saw the social and material aspects of their lives as offering possibilities for deep and enduring importance because God had shown them that living those lives as He commanded would have consequences for their happiness in this world and beyond.

This is a good and healthy attitude for you to bear in mind as you consider what you will undertake as a personal rule of life for Lent. Yes, it is a season of self-examination and repentance, but we should never forget that Christ is indeed risen and that He has not only opened for us the gates to a life beyond the grave but has also shown us that the life that we live here and now is truly significant because our actions here have effects on the state of our souls.

This earthly mortal life is the arena in which we contend for Him and for ourselves against the forces of evil and the powers of darkness, and in so doing we prepare ourselves for our eternal life with Him. Please do not misunderstand; this emphatically does not mean that we earn our way into that life, but rather that we prepare ourselves to receive the fullness of it when we shall be offered it by God's grace and mercy.

God does not hate the world or its people – after all, He created it and has promised to redeem both it and us. The Christian life to which we are called in this fallen and sin-stained world is God's offer to us of a life of meaning and clear purpose. None of us lives it perfectly, which is why we need repentance and confession, but our honest attempts to examine our own lives and to amend our flaws are precious to God, for they are the means to draw closer to Him now in preparation for the perfect and eternal relationship which He has promised us.

February 18th will be Ash Wednesday. Lent is coming. Please do not ignore it or, worse yet, dread it. It's not an ordeal, it's an opportunity. Make some Lenten resolutions and do your best to keep them. Your efforts will please God and strengthen you.

-- Fr Bragg+

All things come of thee, O Lord, and of thine own have we given thee

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SERVICES & EVENTS

This Saturday, February 14, Women's St. Valentine's Day Potluck Luncheon: Join us for food and fellowship as we celebrate the feast of St. Valentine at 12:00 noon on Saturday, February 14th. Please contact Susan Fonte, jsfonte@comcast.net or Amy Bilyeau, abilyeau@gmail.com with questions and to RSVP 

Sunday, 9:00 AM & 11:15 AM Holy Communion, for online participation go to https://www.facebook.com/saintsofscotland (7:45 AM service has been suspended)

Discussion of the Saints this Monday 7:30 PM, undercroft, with Fr. Bragg, all are invited even if you have not been to prior discussions. For online participation go to https://www.facebook.com/saintsofscotland

Shrove Tuesday, February 17, 7:00 PM, Evening Prayer Service followed by pancake & champagne supper, please invite family, friends, and neighbors

Ash Wednesday, February 18, 12 noon & 7:00 PM, Holy Communion & Imposition of
ashes, for online participation go to https://www.facebook.com/saintsofscotland

Friday, February 20, 7:00 PM Stations of the Cross and Lenten Suppers – and every Friday during Lent.  If you can provide a soup and bread supper on one of these Friday evenings, please so indicate on the sign-up sheet on the bulletin board in the undercroft.

Saturday, February 21, 9:00 AM, DMAS Women's Retreat, Church of the Ascension, 13941 Braddock Road, Centreville, VA has been postponed until Saturday, February 21 at 9:00 AM. extending registration until Ash Wednesday (February 18th), so there's still an opportunity to sign up. https://dmas-acc.org/upcoming

Monday, February 23, Vestry Meeting, 7:30 PM, undercroft

DMAS Lenten Retreat: "Blessed at the Cross", Saturday, March 7, 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM, St. Alban’s Anglican Church, Richmond, VA, for more information and to register go to www.dmas-acc.org
 
MaRiH Crisis Pregnancy Center: Critical Needs & More
Thank you for your help. Instead of presenting the whole list of needs, we are emphasizing the critical needs that MaRiH Center has and listing some other needs. The critical needs list below has been updated:
Diapers, sizes 5 and 6
Winter coats (Boys & Girls), size 2T 
Winter clothing, sizes 3- 6 months and 2T 
Wipes
Baby Blankets
Baby formula: Similac Advance Formula
Bibs: toddler
Lovies, rattles, teethers
Other needs:
Diapers, newborn, 1, 2, 3, 4
Fall/Winter Clothing, 6-9 month, 9-12 month, 12 month-18 month, 18-24 month
Bibs, infant
Winter Coats, all baby sizes
There are two options for helping the Center with these needs! 
 
Option 1 
Amazon has all the specific items needed. You can order the specific item(s) and have them delivered directly to the Center.  

The MaRiH Center
3230B Duke Street
Alexandria, VA 22314-4521
703-370-4774

Option 2 
Go to your local store, purchase the items requested and drop them off at church on Sunday. We will deliver them to the MaRIH Center.
 
Food Bank Needs
 
With the cold weather here the food bank has more folks who need food. Please help this month with a food donation if you are able. Those we help feed are very thankful for the food we provide to them each month. Please also buy low sugar cereals (and not the kid's types that have lots of sugar). Also lower sodium products are better and more healthy.

Current needs include the following:
canned meats (chicken, corned beef, spam)
peanut butter
jelly
tuna
canned vegetables (corn, green beans - (regular and low sodium)
individual fruit cups (low sugar)
canned fruit (low sugar)
canola or vegetable oil (48 oz)
boxed cereal (low sugar) and instant or old fashioned oatmeal (18 oz or 42 oz)
pasta (regular and gluten-free):
instant potatoes
single serving fruit juice
macaroni & cheese
soups: Chunky or Progresso,noodle soup; chicken broth, cream of mushroom
coffee, cooking oil, flour, sugar
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St. Andrew & St. Margaret of Scotland
1607 Dewitt Avenue
Alexandria, VA 22301-1625