By email, Ms. Catherine Lee told us that the new Friendship Magazine had just been published online yesterday, July 6th, at this link:
It is on the Taiwan English Episcopal Church website under the Friendship Magazine section here:
There's a lot of information about the late Rev. Jason Ke in this July issue of the Friendship Magazine, including my article on pages 13 and 14 (see below):
Tribute: My Impressions of Rev. Jason C. S. Ke
"Our Father in heaven ... Give us today our daily bread." -- The Lord's Prayer
The Rev. Jason Ke, our good teacher and kind friend, passed away on April 28, 2023. This made many of us who come to St. James' Church, Taichung on Sundays feel so sorry and sad. His passing is definitely a great loss for us; we can no longer speak to him in person. But in the meantime, we believe that Rev. Jason "has fought the good fight; he has finished the race; he has kept the faith" (2 Tim. 4:7) and therefore we pray for him in faith, hope, and love, trusting that he has returned to our Father in heaven, full of the Lord's blessings.
Like my friends at church, I will miss Rev. Jason terribly. If you asked me what impression I have of Rev. Jason, I would say that it's more than I can describe in words or that it's too much for me to put down on just a few pages...
First of all, I remember Rev. Jason's generosity -- sharing with us the various kinds of bread he made, especially at coffee hour right after St. James' English service on Sundays. Not only did he bring home-made bread (e.g. bagels, croissants, garlic bread, multi-grain bread, French toast, etc.) to St. James for coffee hour, but he also sometimes prepared special baked gifts for individuals, including a beautiful birthday cheese cake for my grandson's third birthday in 2003! (see middle photo).
Talking about bread, Rev. Jason once taught me the "philosophy of bread." He testified to the love of God, who created something very special in the barley and wheat, namely gluten; and he emphasized that without that precious "gift" of gluten, we could not be able to make bread from barley or wheat. What's more, learning to make good bread is like experiencing love (or free gifts) from the Lord.
In those years some of my friends visited Rev. Jason regularly at his home in Chiayi, to learn how to make bread (in its literal sense) and to renew their "spiritual life" (spirituality) by talking with Rev. Jason. They said they were trying to get more "spiritual food" from him to enrich their lives.
For the same reason, we used to have our "Fr. Jason's Time" (柯牧師時間) during our coffee hour at St. James (see photos). Those at the coffee hour sometimes asked Rev. Jason questions that are hard for most of us to answer -- questions about the Bible, the Christian faith, or about genuine Christian everyday life, and he was always willing to give good and convincing answers. Yes, Rev. Jason was eager to share what he had learned about the truth and the Christian faith, especially in the final years of his life.
Rev. Jason told us over and over again that the center of our Christian life should be nothing but our Lord Jesus Christ; he even pointed out that no preaching could be truly good without a focus on the Lord in teaching -- If it doesn't focus on Jesus Christ, it's not a good sermon at all, no matter how much information it contains or how well it is presented! I remember that Rev. Jason once commented on a young visiting missionary because what he preached lacked the teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Rev. Jason was wise and brave, indeed. When my friends and I visited him at his place in Chiayi in February, he said it might be the last chance for us to see him in person... Having been ill for quite some time, he didn't shy away from talking about life and death. Instead, he wanted to follow the will of the Lord God as always.
Even at his funeral on May 8 and his memorial service on May 20, I did not hear much about the life story of Rev. Jason, because he had previously told his family that the Lord's love and his teachings (instead of his own personal life) should be the focus; simply, he had wanted the preacher at his funeral or memorial service "not to focus on my own life, but to proclaim the way, the truth, and the life of the Lord Jesus."
Thanks be to God! Rev. Jason already set a great example for us to focus on Jesus Christ. Let's just remember him in prayer. And at this moment let me pray: May the Lord bless him, our honorable priest and dearest friend, who has now returned to our Heavenly Father; may the Lord bless his family and each of us who have been related to him one way or another. Amen.
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