An Episcopal Priest's Sermons, Prayers, and Reflections on Life, Becoming Human, and Discovering Our Divinity
“By faith Abraham … set out [for a place], not knowing where he was going.” How’s your faith these days? I ask that question because there are events, times, and seasons in each of our lives when everything we thought…
Read More If That’s What Faith Is Like … – A Sermon On Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16
We will never get over what has happened - children were killed, our hearts have been broken, and an image of our hometown has been shattered - but as I said Thursday evening my hope and belief, and even my…
Read More A Better Question For Uvalde
Have you seen the front page of today’s newspaper? It’s the first issue since the shooting. When I saw the front page this morning I said to myself, “That’s what I feel like.” Look at it. There’s a date, May…
Read More Uvalde Weeps – A Sermon On Jeremiah 31:15-17
The following liturgy will be prayed this evening, May 26, 2022, at 6:00 p.m. central time in person and online at St. Philip's Episcopal Church, Uvalde, Texas. Officiant: Light and peace, in Jesus Christ our Lord.People: Thanks be to God.…
Read More Prayer For Uvalde – Lament And Hope, Light In The Darkness
We will offer a service of Evening Prayer: Lament and Hope, Light in the Darkness on Thursday, May 26th, at 6:00 p.m. central time in person and online via the St. Philip’s Facebook page. All are welcome.
To symbolize our prayers for Uvalde, the lives that were lost and the families, friends, and loved ones who are grieving, we will light 22 luminarias for 22 days outside St. Philip's Episcopal Church & School. Similarly, at noon each day…
Read More Light And Bells For Uvalde
Photo by Joseph Chan on Unsplash Do not be alarmed. That’s the first thing I have to say about today’s gospel (Mark 13:1-8). And it’s the same thing Jesus told the disciples. “Do not be alarmed.” Do not be disturbed…
Read More Do Not Be Alarmed – A Sermon On Mark 13:1-8
Today’s gospel, like all apocalyptic literature, takes us to those threshold moments that leave us wondering whether things are falling apart or falling into place. By now most of you know me well enough to know that my answer to that is, “Yes. Yes, they are.” I’m betting every one of you could tell a story about a threshold time in your life. I wonder what that threshold is for you today.
The miracle, the good news, the hope for every one of us, is that sometimes Jesus comes to us disguised as a ghost. The ghost the disciples see and the Jesus they can’t see are two sides of the same thing, a holy ghost, a life giving ghost. The ghost that frightened them also carried the divine presence. The ghost they were convinced would take their life also carried the power to give life. There is always more to the ghosts of our life than we see or believe.
I don’t know if Jesus literally and physically turned water into wine. But then I don’t think that’s the point of today’s gospel. I don’t think this gospel is ultimately about turning water into wine. It’s about calling forth life where there is none. It’s about transformation. It’s about living a new life.
Interrupting the Silence 