St. Benedict
The Fall of the Roman Empire is usually dated to 476 when the Roman Emperor was deposed by Odoacer who was probably from one of East German peoples. Benedict was born just four years later in 480. Although we talk about the Fall of the Roman Empire it was not something that happened overnight – there was a prolonged period of unrest and uncertainty both before and after 476. It was a time of massive migrations in Europe; groups of…
St. Francis
Photo by Taneli Lahtinen on Unsplash Today we complete the Season of Creation as we celebrate the feast of St. Francis. As a young man, Francis rejected his wealthy family and took seriously, and literally, Jesus’ instruction to his disciples to take nothing extra for the journey when he sent them into the villages to preach. He began his ministry in 1209, wearing the clothes of a peasant and preaching repentance. Soon others joined him, and they lived in a deserted leper colony…
Healing the Earth
Photo by Evan Clark on Unsplash.com Revelation 22:1-5 Last night I had a dream. (But not a visionary one like Dr. King’s!) I was in seminary, and one of the students had been murdered. Many of us were involved in trying to dispose of the body quietly. As the dream progressed I became more and more worried about this and aware that I and others might go to prison. By the end of the dream I had decided that I…
Sky
Luke: 24:45-53 One of the things that I love about living here is the amount of sky that we can see. And I know that many of us find the beauty of a sunset to be a place and a time when we are moved beyond ourselves and experience God. The Apostles Creed tells us that “Jesus ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.” Scholars suggest that this creed originated in the second century or…
Humanity
Photo by Sandy Kumar @ Unsplash.com At first glance, it may seem a little strange that during the Season of Creation we celebrate humanity. But it is only strange when we persist in the idea that somehow we are separate from the rest of creation. When we shift our perception and realize that we are as dependent upon our environment as any other animal, we can see that we are just as much part of creation as a coyote, a…
Mountains
1 Kings 19: 8b – 15 Matthew 17: 1-13 As many of you know, I love the mountains. Being able to be in the Sierra gives me great joy. And so I am delighted that it is Mountain Sunday and I can share some of my holiday photos with you. Most of them are actually of the lakes, trees and boulders that we find in our mountains. Mountains are important in Scripture – Mt Sinai and Mt Horeb were very…
Longing for Healing
Photo by Danna Joy Images. Newborn Monarch at St Benedict’s On Thursday we started a six week class[1] focusing on Thomas Merton who was a Trappist monk and priest. Merton wrote over 70 books, mostly on spirituality, social justice and pacifism. This year is the fiftieth anniversary of his death and so it seems appropriate in this Season of Creation to look at his ideas about creation. In 1964, Merton wrote, “We live on a planet which has reached the point of extreme hazard…
Eating Jesus
Today we complete our five week study of Jesus as the Bread of Life and the gospel reading tells us that we are not the only ones who struggle with this – the disciples also found it difficult. In fact, some who were following him turned away. Jesus said, “Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them.” We hear this same language when Jesus talks about himself as the true vine. And…
Bread for the Journey of Grace
Photo by James Harris on Unsplash Thanks to the Rev. Merritt Greenwood for this great sermon.