Relating, Creating, Transforming
John 20:19-31 Some of you know that from March 16-23 I decided to participate in a program of the Interfaith Center of Greater Philadelphia and the University of Wisconsin Eau-Claire’s Better Together initiative. The program was called Interfaith Encounters Alternative Spring Break. There were 44 students from the school from around the world, hailing […]
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 MoreBased on Malachi 3:1-4 and Luke 1:68-79 The world isn’t just the way it is. It is how we understand it, no? And in understanding something, we bring something to it, no? Doesn’t that make life a story?[1] The words of the character Pi in Yann Martel’s novel, Life of Pi. I am moved by […]
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 […]
Read More