What Has Not Changed

  Every July 4 there is a big celebration of the United States gaining independence from Great Britain. Those who fought in the Revolutionary War are seen as heroes. The English redcoats were the enemy. Time moved along and today England is among the best friends of the United States. The two countries are working together to help Ukraine fight to keep its independence from Russia.

   The eyes of the world were on England since Queen Elizabeth's death on September 8, watching elaborate and carefully choreographed ceremonies preceding and during her funeral. Multitudes stood in line for nearly a day to file past her coffin as it lay in state four days. Many Americans are fascinated with the monarchy and watch the royal family's movements. Few people alive today can remember a time when Elizabeth was not queen. Her seventy-year reign is unmatched in England's history.

   Immediately upon her death, her firstborn son, Charles, became king. There was no long noisy campaign to determine who would take the throne. It was his by birthright and he waited seventy-three years for his day to come. However, years ago he would have been disqualified by his marriage to a divorced woman. It was for that reason that Elizabeth became queen.

   King Edward VIII became king in January 1936 and abdicated 326 days later to marry Wallis Simpson, a twice-divorced American woman. A divorced woman with two living ex-husbands was politically and socially unacceptable as a prospective queen consort. Additionally, such a marriage would have conflicted with Edward's status as titular head of the Church of England, which, at the time, disapproved of remarriage after divorce if a former spouse was still alive.

    When King Edward abdicated, the crown went to his younger brother, George. King George VI reigned from 1936 until his death in 1952. George had two daughters but no sons, so the crown passed from him to his oldest daughter, Elizabeth. 

     Despite his marriage to a divorced woman, Elizabeth's son Charles became king upon her death. What changed since Edward VIII in 1936? The Church of England's prohibition of remarriage after divorce melted in the passing of time. Divorce and remarriage no longer carried any stigma and is socially acceptable.

    What has NOT changed is the Word of God and the words spoken by Jesus himself. “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced from her husband commits adultery." (Luke 16:18 NKJ)

   Those are harsh words in today's culture, but the Word of God has not changed with the times. The Bible is not a smorgasbord where we can pick and choose what we like and leave the rest. Jesus said what He meant and meant what He said. He also said, "If you love me, keep my commandments." 

Every Little Bit

  The calendar says there are two weeks of summer left but the shift to fall has begun. Schools are in session, leaves are beginning to fall (drying up due to the dry weather), the AC is turned off, and mice are looking for shelter. Yesterday I wrapped up canning with five pints of pears and today I will do some fall housecleaning.

   August was the hottest one in 124 years of record keeping. It was also very dry and farmers started chopping corn in August because it was already dried. We finally got a good soaking rain this week which is another indication of the shift into fall. The dry weather reduced crops for farmers but we lack nothing. Gardens produced all we need to provide us with food for the winter. 

    Yesterday the news included a report on famine in Somalia due to a long drought. Babies are too weak to cry. People are trekking across the desert in search of food and burying their dead along the way. The lack of food is also the result of the war in Ukraine not being able to ship grain and oil from their ports. Although the ports are now open it is too late to get enough food to everyone in time.

    As I stored the last jars of food on my canning shelf I felt guilty to have such an abundance and not be able to hand some of my jars to those starving people. The problem is not lack of food but uneven distribution. So much of the food grown in the US is wasted. Food pantries and organizations such as Blessings of Hope and Helping Hand distribute foods that have been rejected for various reasons. For example, one company tried a different kind of lid on an ice cream box and didn't like it. There was nothing wrong with the ice cream but whole batch was rejected because of the box and sent to Blessings of Hope for distribution. At least it didn't wind up in a landfill where a lot of good food goes.

   I don't have any answers to the problem of uneven distribution of food, but there are things we can do to be good stewards of what we have and share with those in need. We are involved in a local food pantry, helping to package food to be shipped overseas by Christian Aid Ministries and Blessings of Hope. It's a drop in the bucket of the global needs but every little bit helps.