Relating, Creating, Transforming
Luke 7:36 – 8:3 The movie Pay it Forward is about a young boy named Trevor McKinney [played by Haley Joel Osment]. Trevor is troubled by his mother’s alcoholism and is afraid of his abusive and absent father. But something happens in school that changes his life and the lives of many others. One of […]
Read MoreLuke 7:11-17 In 1991 Terry Gilliam wrote and directed a movie called The Fisher King. I actually did not see it until later on when I was older, but when I did, I was mesmerized by it. The Fisher King tells the story of Jack Lucas (played by actor Jeff Bridges), a cynical, arrogant talk […]
Read MoreLuke 7:1-10 Two weeks ago I was asked to be a part of Thomas Jefferson University Hospital’s Disparities in Health Care Symposium. My role was to find members of particular religious traditions who had medical experience to participate in a panel. The symposium’s purpose was to educate medical students about minority health disparities in cancer […]
Read MoreJohn 16:12-15 Our perceptions are incredibly important. How we see the world—our perspectives—determines how we react to things in life and also how we interpret the t hings we experience. So let’s do some activities to reinforce that idea. What do you see? You may see a lakeview with a tree and two people standing. […]
Read MoreJohn 13:31-35 One [Lyrics by Bono; Music by U2] Love is a temple, Love a higher law Love is a temple, Love the higher law One love, One blood One life, You got to do what you should One life, With each other Sisters, Brothers One life But we’re not the same We get to […]
Read MoreLuke 24:1-12 The “Easter” sermon is the hardest one to preach. No really–it is. Contrary to popular belief, it is not the tried-and-true, Christian-crux message with which you can’t go wrong. After all, how do I effectively relate Jesus, the Easter Bunny, colored eggs, and marshmallow peeps? It is a story so misunderstood and so […]
Read MoreLuke 13:1-9 An assumption: bad things happen to bad people; good things happen to good people. If a piano falls on your head, you probably did something to deserve it. If you win the lottery, you must have been some sort of angel or amazingly kind. Reward and punishment. Judgment eclipses mercy. Simple cause and […]
Read MoreLuke 13:31-35 Let’s do something different. Bear with me here. Go back in your memory to a specific date, time of day, place, and an event in which you saw the symbol of the cross. Stand in that place. What do you see? What do you hear? Be specific. Pay attention to what you are […]
Read MoreBased on Luke 1:39-56 What are your favorite songs? Everybody has some. Which are the songs that give you energy, bring a smile to your face, and pick you up? You listen to them on your iPod, or in your car or at home and you just feel better? U2’s Beautiful Day or Cee Lo’s […]
Read MoreLuke 21:25-36: The Fantasy of Hope The first Sunday of Advent is known as the first day of a new church year. Christian Churches [Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox] around the world start with the stories of the prophets and the gospels in late November/early December and then walk through the stories together, leading up to […]
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