Sermons on Spiritual Life (Page 9)
2022 Woman of the Year – Rev. Dr. Caro Hall
It may seem that we are just a small community on the edge of the left coast, with little power or sway, but my friends we are also a beacon of hope.
THE WAY OF BENEDICT
There are many legendary stories about St. Benedict of Nursia, and one of my favorites is the one about an encounter between Benedict and twin sister Scholastica one stormy night. As the story goes … (Tell the story) As I mentioned, there are many legendary stories about the life of Benedict, a man who developed a monastic Rule of Life that has endured for over fifteen hundred years and has been a primary source of inspiration for western monasticism since…
Restored to our Right Mind
Jesus’ healing of the man possessed by demons, is a story of salvation, experienced here as the restoration of personal autonomy and freedom.
Proclaiming Peace
Jesus told his disciples to proclaim the reign of God and peace to the cities and homes they visited. What if we were to take that seriously?
Turning Points
While Jesus was not received in the Samaritan village as James and John had expected them to be Jesus responded with calm and non-violence.
Baptism
The opening remarks of Presiding Bishop Michael Curry at the Executive Council of The Episcopal Church, on June 25, 2021. These remarks have been lightly edited for clarity. “Toward Truth and Reconciliation” Let me start with a scripture that you know well; it comes from Galatians, Paul, who wrote and I quote: “As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free,…
The Kiss of God
We are grounded in the energy stream of the church which experiences God as one-in-three. I riff on St Bernard of Clauvaux’s idea that God is the kisser, Christ is the kissed and the Holy Spirit is the kiss – so we are filled with the kiss of God.
Ascension, and This Week’s News
David Brooks writes in the New York Times ” How much will the pummeling act of experiencing the news these days lead to empathy erosion? Where will the forces of re-humanization come from?” The Church is called to be that re-humanizing force as the ascended Cosmic Christ lives through us, the Body of Christ.
Coming Home
God comes to us as an honored guest, making their home in our hearts until we realize that we are invited to make our homes in God’s heart.
Disagreeing is also Love
Yesterday I spoke at a rally in San Luis Obispo protesting the probable end of Roe v Wade. This is some of what I said, “In the ancient stories we hear that God gave humanity free will. God gave us the power to choose, and God rejoices when we use that power for the highest good of all beings. God also gives us consciences and it is in the interplay of conscience and freewill that God gives each one of…