January 25, 2026 - The Third Sunday after the Epiphany

Lectionary Readings

Blessed are you, O Lord God, King of the Universe, for you shine upon us the light and warmth of your gracious love. Amen.

“Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.” That is the Ninth Commandment and an ethnical norm for both Jews and Christians. As we so often profess, Jesus is the Truth of God in the flesh, and so to lie is to violate the Godly characteristic of truthfulness. In particular, the directive is not about untruthfulness in general, but specifically is about not spreading falsities about our neighbors.

January 18, 2026 - The Second Sunday after the Epiphany

Lectionary Readings

Lord Jesus, help us to more fully receive and reflect your light. Amen.

Some of you might remember those magic-eye pictures that were extremely popular in the 90s. At first glance, they appear to be just random dots of color – but if you stare at them, a 3D image will pop out. If you don’t look long enough, the image appears to be flat. But with a bit of time, the image becomes alive in three dimensions. This is how I hope that we’ll see our faith as well – that when it exists in three dimensions, it becomes vibrant instead of flat.

January 6, 2026 - The Feast of the Epiphany

Lectionary Readings

Star of wonder, star of light, guide us to God’s perfect light. Amen.

“What kind of God would do this?” That was the refrain of the sermon that I preached on Christmas Eve and it’s still a good question to ask at the Feast of the Epiphany. The oddity of the story continues as does the grace that flows from it. And so, we are left pondering what kind of God would do this.

January 4, 2026 - The Second Sunday after Christmas

Lectionary Readings (full text from Matthew)

In the name of the Word made flesh: Jesus Christ. Amen.

Today’s Gospel text is a tough one. Perhaps the toughest one. It’s often called the “Slaughter of the Innocents,” and it troubles me every time I read or preach on it. As the preacher, I had a choice on which text to preach today. And, truth be told, the appointed readings for today would have given me an easy way out. The assigned verses for today skip 16 through 18, the part about Herod’s rage and murder. But we can’t just cut out the hard parts of the story – either in the Bible or in our lives. The story of Christmas is incomplete if we only tell the pageant and crèche version of it. The whole of the story is not “silent night, holy night, all is calm, all is bright” because there’s also the Coventry Carol, “Herod the king, in his raging, charged he hath this day. His men of might in his own sight, all young children to slay.”

December 28, 2025 - The First Sunday after Christmas

Lectionary Readings

In the name of the Word made flesh: Jesus Christ. Amen.

The most theologically rich verse in all of Scripture may very well be John 1:14, “And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.” In the Episcopal Church, the Gospel text for both Christmas Day and the First Sunday after Christmas is John 1; which means that in my 16 years of ordained ministry I’ve preached on this passage nearly 30 times. Each year, I wonder “How will this text speak this year?” And, without fail, the Word continues to speak – and it’s often verse 14 that does the heavy lifting. This year, what the Spirit drew my attention to is the final part of that verse where John writes that this Word is “full of grace and truth.”

December 25, 2025 - Christmas Day

Lectionary Readings

In the name of the Word made flesh – Jesus Christ. Amen.

The facts on the ground are that on December 16, 1773, members of the Sons of Liberty boarded a shipping vessel in the Boston Harbor and threw 342 chests of tea in the water. Seen from the British perspective, a lawless mob destroyed property and caused hardship for businesses and consumers alike. This was an unnecessary and violent act of terrorism. From the perspective of many colonists, this was a group of patriots standing up to tyranny and burdensome taxation after their petitions were ignored. This was a necessary stand against oppression and began the path towards liberty. How we tell the story changes the story.

December 24, 2025 - Christmas Eve

Lectionary Readings

May the love of Christmas be ours this night and for ever ☩ in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

In my office I have two shelves of books that I intend to soon read. And those shelves would be empty if I’d stop buying new books to fill them. One of those books that I haven’t yet gotten to is called “God: A Biography.” I’m sure it’s a good read, but there’s just something about that title that seems overly ambitious. Talk about padding your résumé – “Oh yes, I’m God’s biographer.” The truth of the matter is that no mortal is able to be God’s biographer. Our intellects are too dull, our lives are too short, our perspectives are too limited.