Sermons on Life of Christ (Page 14)
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Our Calling
Fishing on the Sea of Galilee was not a great job. It was dangerous, with the sudden storms that swept upon the lake. And it didn’t bring in much money. Fishing was big business, but unlike the captains here in Morro Bay, the fishermen were not entrepreneurs. They were at the bottom of a rigid hierarchy, and got to keep very little of what they caught. Fishermen had to have licenses to fish the waters as well as provide most…
The Music of the Heart
The New Year is here. We’re facing a year of great struggles, in our nation and in the world, in our communities and even within our own families. Most of us are already weary, and it’s only Day One. Can we trust that God is speaking to us in the midst of this chaos, inviting us to be co-creators of a better future? And how can we hear God speaking in the midst of the chaos, so we can…
Nothing Changes Except Everything
Nothing changed. God had broken into our world with sound and beauty. Light and hope pierced the dark of gloom and nothing changed. The prophets of old had spoken of it; “For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” The people who sat in darkness waited and hoped and prayed and longed for Light to dawn. But…
And now it’s Christmas
This has been an unusual and, in many ways, difficult year. And now it’s Christmas. Last Christmas I was given the gift of a pedicure. I’d never had one before and was very nervous about it. But I put on my big girl pants and went downtown, and surprise! It was not too painful and I liked the way my toes looked afterwards. So I’ve been back. Last time I was there I overhead another customer asking her hygienist whether…
Unlawful holy living
Along with most other mainstream churches, Episcopalians use a three year cycle of Bible Readings for Sunday mornings. This year our main focus will be the gospel of Matthew. Luke’s account of the birth of Jesus is the more familiar one. In today’s reading from Matthew we heard about Jesus’ father, Joseph, and one of the dreams which prompted him to take some unexpected and daring steps. But before I talk about that, I want to make some more general…
The Glory of Christ
Fr. Barry’s sermon is available here: Glory of Christ
Zacchaeus meets Jesus
This is what I remember from Sunday School: Zacchaeus was a very little man and a very little man was he, He climbed up into the sycamore tree for the Savior he wanted to see, And when the Savior came that way he looked up into the tree, And said, “Zacchaeus, now you just come down for I’m coming to your house for tea.” This is such a great story of the little chief tax-collector’s encounter with Jesus and it has such…
Ocean Sunday
For most of the last two thousand years, theology has focused on our relationship with God and with each other. Now we are realizing that loving our neighbor includes loving the whole of creation. As a reflection of this we will be celebrating the Season of Creation during September. This is not yet part of the normal Anglican cycle but is a liturgical tradition started in Australia some twenty years ago. As we turn our attention more and more to…
I Came to Bring Fire to the Earth
I. Backpacking A. One of my favorite summer projects over the past 10 years has been back-packing in the High Sierras of Yosemite National Park. I’ve had to put it aside the past few years but it is still bright in recent memory. It would all begin after Christmas with careful planning, pouring over trail maps, for a 7 day itinerary in the mountains; then, gathering our usual group of up to 10 young people and parents; getting a wilderness…