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The Beginning Is Near – An Advent Sermon On Mark 13:24-37
After the start of the Israel-Hamas war I heard comments about the end of the world. A couple of people asked me if I thought the end was near. I heard the same kind of comments and questions after the Robb School shooting. I also heard them following the January 6 insurrection. And just a…
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Thanksgiving And Prayer
“Thus we should all give thanks to Him, as it is said: ‘In everything give thanks’ (1 Thess. 5:18). Closely linked to this phrase is another of St Paul’s injunctions: ‘Pray without ceasing’ (1 Thess. 5:17), that is, be mindful of God at all time, in all places, and in every circumstance. For no matter…
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The Opposites Within Us – A Sermon On Genesis 25:21-34
I’m going to try something different today. I’ve not done this before and I’ll probably never do it again. But it feels like the right thing to do this morning. I’m not going to preach on one of the assigned lectionary readings. A couple of months ago I received a gift from a friend and…
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Becoming Ourselves – An All Saints Sermon On Revelation 7:9-17
I want you to take a moment and in your head list as many saints as you can. If you need some help you can look at today’s bulletin and the Litany of Saints we prayed at the beginning of the liturgy but remember, that litany is not exhaustive. As we heard in our first…
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A Litany of Saints
O God the Father, Creator of heaven and earth, Have mercy upon us. O God the Son, Redeemer of the world, Have mercy upon us. O God the Holy Spirit, Sanctifier of the faithful, Have mercy upon us. O holy, blessed, and glorious Trinity, one God, Have mercy upon us. Holy Mary, Mother of God…
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Doing Love
This past Sunday I preached on the two great commandments, to love God and love our neighbor as ourselves. We usually associate love with a feeling toward another. We love some people but not others. We love sometimes but not all the time. Love as a feeling is based on circumstances. Jesus, however, commands love…
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For The Love Of God, Lewiston, Israel, And Palestine – A Sermon On Matthew 22:34-46
Lewiston, Maine. I had never heard of Lewiston until last Wednesday night. Most of our country probably had never heard of Uvalde until that Tuesday in May last year. Lewiston now joins Uvalde, San Ysidro, El Paso, Killeen, Sutherland Springs, Sandy Hook, Virginia Tech, the Pulse Nightclub, and Las Vegas as one of the top…
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Life Is Not A Two Column Ledger – A Sermon On Matthew 22:15-22
“Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s and to God the things that are God’s,” Jesus says in today’s gospel (Matthew 22:15-22). It sounds simple enough. It sounds like we should be able to just take a piece of paper, divide it into two columns, one for God and one for…
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I Offer My Tears – Prayers For Israel And Gaza
By geography they are Israelis and Gazans. By ethnicity they are Jews and Arabs. By religion they are Jewish and Muslim. By history they are enemies. At least, that’s what I’ve been told. I wish it were that simple. I wish I could draw a bright line between who is right and who is wrong.…