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Day of Pentecost (C) – June 9, 2019
[RCL] Genesis 11:1-9; Psalm 104:25-35, 37; Romans 8:14-17 or Acts 2:1-21; John 14:8-17, (25-27) Genesis 11:1–9 This passage in Genesis describes a time when all of humanity resided in one place and spoke one language, a vision of unity that sounds awfully appealing today. Imagine how our perception of the world’s economic and environmental challenges…
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Easter 7 (C) June 2, 2019
[RCL] Acts 16:16–34; Psalm 97; Revelation 22:12–14,16–17, 20–21; John 17:20–26 Acts 16:16–34 It is only after the apostles are thrown in jail that God rescues them with a dramatic earthquake. Why does God wait to free them until after they are beaten and persecuted? Why not save them before the trouble? Sometimes God doesn’t intervene…
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Easter 6 (C) May 26, 2019
[RCL] Acts 16:9-15; Psalm 67; Revelation 21:10, 22-22:5; John 14:23-29 or John 5:1-9 Acts 16:9-15 Throughout the Acts of the Apostles, Paul and his crew are directed where to go in many different ways. Just before this passage, the apostles are “forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia” and “the Spirit…
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Easter 5 (C) May 19, 2019
[RCL] Acts 11:1-18; Psalm 148; Revelation 21:1-6; John 13:31-35 Acts 11:1-18 The Acts of the Apostles depicts Jesus’ early followers as observant Jews and the beginnings of the church as rooted within Judaism, yet is concerned with the expansion of the church from those origins to a movement spread throughout the Roman Empire.In the first…
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Easter 4 (C) – May 12, 2019
Acts 9:36-43; Psalm 23; Revelation 7:9-17; John 10:22-30 Acts 9:36-43 One of the true joys of the Easter season is dwelling in the Book of Acts and seeing the immediate effects of the Resurrection upon the community of Jesus’ followers. We hear of people, at least men, who are filled with the Holy Spirit, and…
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Easter 3 (C) – May 5, 2019
[RCL] Acts 9:1-6, (7-20); Psalm 30; Revelation 5:11-14; John 21:1-19 Acts 9:1-6, (7-20) Saul of Tarsus, the persecutor of Christ-followers, performs his job so thoroughly that Acts describes him as “still breathing threats and murder” (v. 1). Rounding up believers on the Way, binding them up, andsending them to Jerusalem was as innate to him…
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Easter (C) 2019
One of the wonderful joys of Easter is that it is a Season: 50 days to celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Christ’s victory over the power of sin, evil and death.We celebrate those seven Sundays during which the early Church commemorated/remembered together in community what took place following Jesus’s death and burial.…
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Mary Magdalene Fund Easter Ingathering
But whoever has been forgiven little loves little. “Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” The Mary Magdalene Fund supports the operations, work, and mission of The Episcopal Community. The name of the Fund was chosen because Mary Magdalene was the first to spread the news of the Risen Christ. Funds may be…
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Palm Sunday – Year C
ISAIAH 50: 4-9The prophet receives his assignment from God every morning, which he dutifully teaches to God’s people. Question: What have God’s prophets taught you? Are you willing to trust them? PHILIPPIANS 2: 5-11 Paul calls us to a life of humility in the service of our Lord and Savior Jesus. Question: Have you committed yourself…
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5th Sunday in Lent Year C
Isaiah 43:16-21“Trust in God brings the past alive, gives the present meaning, and the future hope.” Question: Do we really want our faith to be so mundane as to be entirely predictable? Or do we want our God to do surprising things, things that we couldn’t even begin to imagine, things that ‘no eye has…