January 6, 2025 - The Epiphany

Lectionary Readings

Thank you for bringing us into thy perfect light, O Christ. Amen.

For most Christians in the United States, Epiphany isn’t quite an afterthought because it’s not always even a thought. Epiphany always falls on January 6th, after the conclusion of the Twelve Days of Christmas. The Sunday after the Epiphany is typically the day on which we remember the Baptism of Jesus, and so Epiphany maybe gets a brief mention during the Christmas pageant when the magi from Matthew show up in what is, otherwise, Luke’s story about the birth of Jesus. But Epiphany itself rarely gets to stand on its own.

January 5, 2025 - The Second Sunday after Christmas

Lectionary Readings (and full Gospel text)

In the name of our Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace ☩ Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

What would you do if you had no fears? If you could take any risk, go on any adventure, or do that thing you’ve always wanted to do, what would it be? That was one of the questions that we recently pondered at a youth group gathering. Several of our youth gave some insightful responses. And one youth said something that really resonated for me – “I’d be more honest with people.” It’s a great response. So often there are things that we want to say, but we worry how they will be received. Maybe we think we can offer some helpful bit of advice, but we worry they’ll take it the wrong way. Perhaps there is someone we want to give an affirmation to, but there’s a chance it will come out wrong, so we hold back. It could be that when someone asks us how we’re doing, we play it safe and say “I’m good” instead of asking for the help we need. We are bound by so many emotions and fears.

December 29, 2024 - The First Sunday after Christmas

Lectionary Readings

In the name of our Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace ☩ Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

One of the things that gets better the older you get is getting clothing for Christmas. As a kid, there was nothing worse than getting socks or a pair of dress pants that you “needed” as a Christmas gift. But now, give me some nice dress socks and you’ll get an authentic “thank you.” Well, this morning we heard the prophet Isaiah proclaim, “God has clothed me with the garments of salvation, he has covered me with the robe of righteousness.” Though we might not think of what God gives us at Christmas as being clothing, it’s the metaphor that Scripture gives us and is one that fits quite well.

December 25, 2024 - Christmas Day

Lectionary Readings

In the name of the God who is one with us. Amen.

Though it might sound like it, denominalization is not a term used to describe the splintering of Christians into different groups. No, denominalization is the technical term that linguists use to describe what is otherwise known as “verbing.” It’s when we take a noun and turn it into a verb. As in, “I miss being a child, adulting is hard,” or “I’ve been to enough Christmas parties, I’m ready for some introverting,” or “During the Christmas season, I’ve been priesting a lot.” These are all examples of denominalization, and they put the emphasis on the action, making the verb, even if it’s not normally a verb, more immediate and to the point.

December 24, 2024 - Christmas Eve

Lectionary Readings

In the name of the God who is love ☩ Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

“To you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.” Well, go on then, get moving. Was it not clear? “For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests on his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” How else can I say it? “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all.” It’s almost like we don’t know how to hear Good News anymore.

December 22, 2024 - The Fourth Sunday of Advent

Lectionary Readings

O come, O come, Emmanuel. Amen.

When I was on sabbatical last year, I was in the Edinburgh airport getting ready for a short flight over to Dublin. I was flying on one of those very economical airlines. I think the one-way ticket was something like 45 euros, so I guess you get what you pay for. Well, the time of the departure came and went with not so much as a word from any airline staff. Up until this point, the two dozen or so of us who were on that flight had been ignoring each other – earbuds in ear and reading books. See, we were waiting on something that was going to be predictable. But when it got to be the time that we were supposed to have landed in Dublin but still hadn’t even boarded the plane, the waiting turned from boredom to anxiety. And with that change, our disposition towards others changed as well – bookmarks went into books and headphones got put away and we started to talk to one another. It started with the basic “I wonder what’s going on?,” to the more personal “What are you planning to do in Dublin?” What made the waiting more bearable was the sense of community, knowing that we were not waiting alone.

December 15, 2024 - The Third Sunday of Advent

Lectionary Readings

O come, O come, Emmanuel. Amen.

“What then should we do?” It’s the “so what” question that preachers know always has to be addressed for a sermon to do its work. How does the Gospel intersect with our lived experiences? The crowds were out in the wilderness to be baptized by John and hear his preaching. They’re motivated to bear fruits worthy of repentance, but need some guidance on what exactly that means and so they ask, “What then should we do?”