More on the subject of church building, including something on the idea of giving away what we have to others. Preached on May 6, 2007, at Ascension Episcopal Church, Hinton, West Virginia (Easter 5 Year C).
Category: Sermons
Hearing the Voice of Jesus in the Anglican Way
Some people read the Bible seeking black-and-white answers to “some of lifes persistent questions,” but that approach doesn’t work well for me. Anglicanism has historically been sufficiently flexible to allow people to have differing understandings of the Bible, even opposing views, and yet to remain in communion with one another. Would that it were still so! This ermon was delivered April 29, 2007, at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, Mullens, West Virginia (Easter 4 Year C).
All Things Are Made New
Church building is not about buildings, but about doing something, and that something is the spreading of God’s good news. Preached at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, Mullens, West Virginia, on April 22, 2007 (Easter 3 Year C).
“Doubting Thomas” – An Alternate View
Thomas is famous for appearing to deny the risen Lord, but is that what the Bible says? This sermon is a personal example of how a few words, previously skimmed over, can and did change my view of what happens with Thomas. The intent of this sermon is not to convert anyone to my point of view, but to explore how Scripture speaks to us. Delivered at Ascension Episcopal Church, Hinton, West Virginia, on April 15, 2007.
Easter Sunday – Why are we here today?
This sermon is loosely connected to that for Maundy Thursday in that it talks a bit about “midrash” as a technique for studying Scripture, one which I think is mis-used on occasion to avoid dealing with the hard issues of what we really believe. Delivered at Ascension Episcopal Church, Hinton, WV, on April 8, 2007.
The Last Supper
Maundy Thursday is the day on which Jesus eats the Last Supper with the twelve apostles. The name comes from the Latin which is the root for the English “mandate,” and refers to the “new coommandment” that we love one another as Christ loved us. (In the Jewish reckoning of days, what we know as a Thursday evening meal took place on Friday, the same day as the crucifixion.) The traditional foot-washing of that service demonstrates the servant nature of that love. Delivered at Ascension Episcopal Church, Hinton, WV, April 5, 2007.
“Father forgive them” — was that long ago and far away, or now?
The Passion Gospel is so long and such a powerful statement in and of itself that some clergy don’t follow it with a sermon. This is at least a short sermon! Delivered at Ascension Episcopal Church, Hinton, WV, on Palm Sunday, April 1, 2007.
“True Bread and True Life” – Lent 4 Year C
George Herbert’s “Love (3)” and the Prodigal Son figure in this sermon delivered on March 18, 2007, at Ascension Episcopal Church, Hinton, West Virginia. It follows the bread crumbs that trail through the readings and collect for the day.
Anxious Systems and The Episcopal Church
This sermon is based on some of the family systems concepts championed by Rabbi Edwin Friedman and how they are reflected in the readings for the Second Sunday in Lent (Year C, BCP lectionary). It was delivered at Ascension Episcopal Church on March 4, 2007.
It follows the meeting at Dar es Salaam of the Primates of the Anglican Communion.
Matthew 6:1-6,16-24 – Treasures on Earth
Wilderness time is not for the faint of heart, for it is a time when we intentionally remove our blinders and try to look honestly at ourselves. Delivered on Ash Wednesday at Ascension Church, Hinton, West Virginia, February 21, 2007.