December 24, 2018 - Christmas Eve

Lectionary Readings

Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors ☩ in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

            What a joy it is to be here with you on this holy night. There is something special about this night. Something beckons us out of our warm homes and pajamas and calls us through the darkened streets to make our way to gather with friends and strangers to recall the birth of Jesus. Maybe it’s a deep sense of faith that brings you here, perhaps it’s nostalgia, or it could be something in your soul that tells you that you might find here tonight that thing you’ve been searching for. Whatever it is, there is no denying the power of this night which fills us with wonder and stirs us to sing praises to God.

December 23, 2018 - Advent 4C

Lectionary Readings

God our redeemer, who prepared the Blessed Virgin Mary to be the mother of your Son: grant that, as she looked for his coming as our savior, so we may be ready to greet him when he comes again as our judge ☩ in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

            “Jingle Bells,” “Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” “White Christmas” – we’ve heard these songs dozens of times over the past weeks. But there is one song that we haven’t heard this season, and, no, I’m not speaking of “Dominic the Christmas Donkey,” which is a fun song. The song to put on our lips and carry with us in our hearts is Mary’s song which we heard this morning.

December 16, 2018 - Advent 3C

Lectionary Readings

Stir up your power, O Lord, and with great might come among us ☩ in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

            Once you’ve been through Advent a few times, you’ll start to notice the pattern. On the First Sunday of Advent, the focus is apocalyptic, with Jesus speaking of the end of all things. The Fourth Sunday of Advent focuses on Mary as the God-bearer. Which leaves us with Sundays two and three and their focus on John the Baptist’s prophetic ministry and call to repentance.

December 9, 2018 - Advent 2C

Lectionary Readings

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people and set them free ☩ in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

            You may have noticed that this morning’s psalm does not come from the Book of Psalms, but rather from Luke. A psalm is a hymn to God found in Scripture, and this passage from Luke certainly fits that definition. This particular psalm is known as the “Benedictus” because that is the Latin translation of the first word “blessed,” and historically, that is how psalms are named.

December 2, 2018 - Advent 1C

Lectionary Readings

O Lord, we wait in hope for your coming ☩ in the of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

            The song on the radio tells us that this is the most wonderful time of the year, and it is. Advent is a special season for us as people of faith. It has been said that the Church remembers three different comings of our Lord Jesus Christ – as he comes in history, mystery, and majesty. As far as Jesus’ coming in history, we think of the Incarnation which we will celebrate more fully from December 25 through January 5. Jesus also comes to us in mystery each time that we gather in his name to break bread and share the cup. And there is his coming in majesty at the end of all things to culminate his reign of shalom and love. It is this final coming of Jesus Christ in majesty that Advent focuses on, which is why Advent is such a majestic time for us as Christians.

November 25, 2018 - Proper 29B: Christ the King

Lectionary Readings

Almighty God, guide us to seek your Truth: come whence it may, cost what it will, lead where it might. Amen.

            There’s a podcast that I listen to, and I’ve been told that’s the most Millennial way possible to introduce a topic, but this podcast asks it’s guest each week “What one trend in society worries you the most?” People respond with all sorts of answers, but as I’ve thought about that question, I’d have to say that the trend that worries me most in our society is the erosion of truth. As we heard in today’s reading from John, Pilate asks “What is truth?” For much of Western civilization, the quest for truth has been a driving force. We have built libraries, philosophies, laboratories, cathedrals, and universities as we have sought truth. Some have argued that what separates humans from other animals is that we are “meaning-making” creatures; that is, our desire for meaning and truth is what makes us unique. But as you all know, there is an overt crisis of truth in our society.

November 22, 2018 - Thanksgiving

Lectionary Readings

In the name of the One from whom all blessings flow. Amen.

            A recent Pew study found that 80% of all Americans report feeling thankful in the past week. 80%? If that seems a bit high to you, it seemed that way to author Diana Butler Bass, who has written a new book called Grateful. She says that she was confounded because other studies show that Americans are more anxious than ever and more pessimistic about the future. If you look at our economy or our political system, it certainly doesn’t seem like gratitude is a core principle in our society. She says that what we are experiencing is a “gratitude gap” between how we state that we feel and how our lives are actually lived out.