October 28, 2018 - Proper 25B

Lectionary Readings

Be with us, O Lord, for if you are with us nothing else matters, and if you are not with us, nothing else matters. Amen.

            “Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.” Those words of Job express so much about the human condition and both the blessings and the challenges of saying anything about God. This morning, I want to say four things about the grandeur of God, but first I will give a very short summary of the Book of Job to make sure that we’re all up to speed on how we got to this, the final chapter in Job.

October 21, 2018 - Proper 24B & Feast of St. Luke

Lectionary Gospel Text (Feast of St. Luke Readings)

In the name of the loving, liberating, and life-giving Trinity. Amen.

            What difference does it make that you are a follower of Jesus? I’m sure you all know people who aren’t people of faith and yet they live lives similar to yours – they are nice people, they give to charity, and they’d be there to help you in a time of need. Certainly, we’re here this morning and they’re not, so that’s a difference. But the way they might view our religious practices is that it’s a nice hobby for us. It gives us a sense of purpose and meaning, and they might find that same sort of thing when they walk in nature, or practice yoga, or listen to music. When it comes down to it, what is the difference between a devout Christian and a compassionate atheist?

October 7, 2018 - Proper 22B

Lectionary Readings

Come, thou fount of every blessing, and tune our hearts to sing thy Grace. Amen.

            Jesus, why in the world do you always have to do this? It’s a lovely morning and we’ve come together with our church family to praise you and you have to say something like “Whoever divorces their spouse and marries another commits adultery.” Jesus, don’t you know that’s not the sort of thing that we say in church? And what am I supposed to do as the preacher, just pretend that you didn’t just say that? Well, Lord, I’m just thankful that the people that you’ve given to me to care for have open minds and are committed to this parish. If we’re going to have to struggle with these words, at least we can do it together.

September 30, 2018 - Proper 21B

Lectionary Readings

Be with us, O Lord, for if you are with us nothing else matters; and if you are not with us, nothing else matters. Amen.

            The Bible is full of rich and stimulating stories of faith. Once such story is that of Esther. It’s not a story that is well-known though, and it only shows up once every three years in our cycle of Sunday morning readings. While I will point to some aspects of the story that are worthy of our deeper consideration, I want to start by telling the story of Esther, both because it is a story that the Church should be more familiar with, but also because just hearing the story itself will be edifying to your faith.

September 23, 2018 - Proper 20B

Lectionary Readings

In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit ☩ one God and mother of us all. Amen.

            Today’s Gospel text from Mark is iconic, and I mean that literally. Sunday School classrooms and nurseries around the world have paintings of Jesus taking a little child into his arms as he teaches his disciples that “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.” The reason why this Biblical scene so often appears in relation to ministry with children is that it is a sweet and endearing depiction of Jesus. The image seems to reassure nervous parents that it’s okay to leave your child under the watchful eye of Jesus. And certainly, commending our loved ones to God’s care and keeping is a good thing to do. But this enacted parable that Jesus offers about children coming to him is not, at its root, a story about a cuddly Jesus; rather it gives us a radical and subversive example what it means to follow Jesus.

September 16, 2018 - Proper 19B

Lectionary Readings

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

            Who is Jesus? It’s a simple question but it is one that makes all the difference in our lives, in our deaths, and in our world. Who is Jesus? The question is not “What do the Creeds say about Jesus,” or “What is your favorite Biblical image of Jesus,” or “What does your priest say about who Jesus is.” But who do you say that Jesus is? The answer to that question will give you the foundation and the trajectory of everything else.

September 9, 2018 - Proper 18B

Lectionary Readings

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

            This passage that we heard this morning from Mark is one of the more challenging stories that we have about Jesus. The reason why it’s such a challenge is that what we are presented with is a side of Jesus that we don’t often hear about. When we conjure up images of Jesus in our minds, we usually think of Jesus as the nicest person we can imagine. But the way Jesus acts in this passage from Mark challenges that stained-glass version of Jesus.