Have any of you parents out there had the experience of your young children learning a classroom lesson on the environment and then becoming the household garbage police? I admit it, my children were the ones who insisted—leaving no room for negotiation—that I separate waste from recyclables.
I may not have been an early adopter, but of course … Read the rest
Continue reading "Furnace of Angels" »
I never imagined myself saying this in church—or anywhere else, for that matter—but this morning I feel a bit like a mulberry tree. Some very faithful people said “be uprooted from your 13 years of service on the staff of the Bishop of California and be planted at Trinity Cathedral,” and here I am. Feeling a bit out … Read the rest
Its somewhat legendary in the Episcopal Church that the seminarian or brand new clergy get assigned to preach on the Sundays when the lessons are really difficult, or when the theology is complicated (like on Trinity Sunday). Steve, I’m not a seminarian! And just because I’m moving away is not an excuse to punish me.
But here we … Read the rest
Continue reading "Eschatological Investment" »Many years ago when I was waking up to my Christian faith, I took a Bible study course that used a particular method for reading scripture. Bible scholars call that a hermeneutic: a lens though which we consciously (or unconsciously) interpret a sacred text. So in this case, for each Scripture passage we studied, we were asked to … Read the rest
Continue reading "Compassionate Judgment" »“What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?’ Then he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.”
So said the rich man in the parable of Jesus we just hear this morning. He’s really … Read the rest
Continue reading "In Between the Barns" »Lately I’ve been listening to lots of stories about parents and children. You probably all know the variations on the theme: children doing things their parents don’t want them to, adults failing to parent their children adequately, siblings taking very different paths and dividing loyalties. Makes for messy holidays and family reunions, no? But it has always been … Read the rest
Continue reading "Hunger for Home" »Romans 8:18-25 + Luke 13:18-21
Last Friday afternoon, as I was preparing my sermon for Sunday, I had something of a small-scale panic attack. I was a long way away from home—retreating in Sonoma County—when I discovered that I’d left my reading glasses behind. So there I was, ensconced in the deep shade of the shade of the redwoods, struggling … Read the rest
Continue reading "Sight for Suspect Saints" »“What do you think?” Jesus asked the chief priests and elders. Well, what do YOU think about the behavior of these two sons? Is it better to be a hypocrite or a nay-sayer?
Spoiler alert: this parable was kind of a trap for the temple authorities, because Jesus was using it to reveal their own hypocrisy. They gave … Read the rest
Continue reading "Saying Yes and Saying No" »New Consecration Sunday Proper 28A/Matthew 25:14-30
Maybe you’ve heard it said that your talent is God’s gift to you, and what your do with it is your gift to God. And then again, maybe you’ve heard this one—
“For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them… to … Read the rest
Continue reading "To Each According to Their Ability" »“Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is … Read the rest
Continue reading "Francis and Feeding the Wolves" »
