Matthew 17:1-9 This Sunday is the last Sunday in the season of Epiphany. That means among other things that many of us will be singing lots of alleluias, because the word “alleluia” is one of those things that we give up for [...]
Matthew 5:21-37 This Gospel lesson is daunting. Jesus says that we fall short of God’s reign if even our most trivial-seeming thoughts and attitudes fall short of mutual love. (Lust, for example, falls short of mutual love; it’s a selfish desire to [...]
Isaiah 58:1-12 The season of Lent is approaching, though still several weeks away. (As a kid, when I first heard the word “Lent,” I thought people were talking about stuff that gets on your clothes—I soon learned otherwise.) But one of our readings [...]
Micah 6:1-8; Psalm 15; 1 Corinthians 1:18-31; Matthew 5:1-12 A reading from St. Alfred North Whitehead: “When the Western world accepted Christianity, Caesar conquered … The brief Galilean vision of humility flickered throughout the ages, uncertainly … [But] the Church gave unto [...]
Matthew 4:12-23 Peter, Andrew, James, and John—Matthew tells us that these were the very first followers of Jesus. All Jesus did was call to them, and they walked out on their steady jobs into an uncharted future. Why would they do that? [...]
John 1:29-42 Our lesson from what came to be called “the Gospel of John” is about another John—most often referred to as John the Baptist. (Incidentally, the Gospel itself claims to be a “group project” based on the testimony of an unnamed [...]
Matthew 3:13-17 John the Baptizer had been praying for God to step in and take over the world. And this is how his prayer got answered: Jesus showed up and followed an upside-down script. Instead of taking over the world, he let [...]
Matthew 2:1-12 (online here) Christmas ends with the Feast of the Epiphany on January 6. The word “epiphany” means “disclosure,” and in this case it refers to the first disclosure of Jesus’ arrival, and of God’s universally reconciling presence, to non-Jews (aka [...]
Philippians 2:5-11; Luke 2:15-21 Alright, everybody knows it’s New Year’s day. So happy New Year! And congratulations for dragging yourself out of bed this early. That takes dedication. Of course it’s also the eighth day of Christmas, so Merry Christmas too! But [...]
[I preached this sermon 39 years ago, when Christmas Day likewise fell on a Sunday, at the United Church of Hyde Park in Chicago. It prompted a number of appreciative responses. One was from the historian of religions, Wendy Doniger, who happened [...]