PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE Officiant In the hushed anticipation of your coming, O Lord, shine upon us Your glorious Light, that we might be ready for your coming, and eager to pray: Intercessor O God, in days to come the mountain of your house will be established, and your joy shall reign. We pray for the church (especially…), that you might teach us your ways and that we might walk in your paths. Come […]
Do not presume to say to yourselves, `We have Abraham as our ancestor’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. The Pharisees and the Sadducees were coming out to the wilderness to John the Baptist to be baptized. That’s pretty stunning in and of itself, wouldn’t you agree? And, John is less than impressed. “You brood of vipers!” he roars. Sounds like an interesting call to […]
The following is a reflection on 24:36-44, the Gospel Lesson appointed for the 1st Sunday of Advent, Year A. I was sitting on the couch. Watching TV. Who knows what great and inspiring programming I was zoning out to… My wife yelled from upstairs: “Rick…RICK!” “Yes?” I said, rather annoyed that she hadn’t had the grace to wait for a commercial break. “My water broke.”
Prayers of the People Officiant In the hushed anticipation of your coming, O Lord, kindle in us the desire to remain awake; that we might be ready for your coming, and eager to pray. Intercessor O God, in days to come the mountain of your house will be established, and your joy shall reign. We pray for the Church, that you might teach us your ways and that we might walk in your […]
Some of you have emailed, messaged, and poked me…wondering where in the heck I went! Well, having finished blogging the three year cycle of the lectionary, this fall I’ve been resting on my previous work. I’ve also be struggling with health issues these past two months which has contributed to my delinquency. But, I think I’m about to turn a corner, and I’m energized to “get back in the saddle” this Advent and begin a […]
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The following is a reflection on Luke 17:5-10, the Gospel lesson appointed for Proper 22C according to the Revised Common Lectionary. The apostles ask Jesus to “increase” their faith. For me, when a parishioner walks into my office and asks for help increasing and deepening their faith, I’m thrilled! I break out some good books, talk about their prayer life, get them signed up to serve Communion on Sunday… But Jesus? He brushes the disciples […]
The following is a reflection on Luke 16:1-13, the Gospel lesson appointed for Proper 20 C, of the Revised Common Lectionary. What’s the fastest way to make God laugh? Tell Him your long-range plans. Almost every year I plan this Sunday as a ‘welcome back’ Sunday where we have all the kids in church, and we have them come up and get involved in the sermon… I always envision a tear in every mother’s eye, […]
The following is a reflection on Luke 15:1-10, the Gospel lesson appointed for Proper 19C of of the Revised Common Lectionary. Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it? Nobody. No one does this. No one would ever do that.