The Gospel reading this morning really invites me, engages me, more than any of these other readings. It reminds me of some things I’ve shared with you before about some of the stages that religion can go through. Some of this is from Richard Rohr. You may remember my mentioning him. I want to put this in some sort of context. It’s that reading where Jesus says, “You’ve heard it said, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I say…”
When Ricky asked me to stand before you and share my story I was more than a bit apprehensive. Then after we scheduled my talk for February thirteenth, I realized I woukd be speaking after Bishop Curry. So you might be wondering why I accepted this opportunity to speak given all of the powerful talks that have come before me. But as the mother of three small children, all under the age of seven, I could not pass up the chance to talk for ten uninterrupted minutes…
It’s a joy to be back at St. Paul’s. I must tell you that once in a while when I get a Sunday off, I’ll slip in and sit in the back at the 7:30 (I like that 7:30) and then go to Starbuck’s and see all those Episcopalians who are supposed to be in church. I really do give God thanks for the witness, the ministries, the service that you do as St. Paul’s Church here and well beyond Cary. I really do thank God for your ministries and your witness. This is just a lovely church, a wonderful place. And your clergy are among the best that God has called for in the church…
Good morning. My name is Rick Bradley and I have to tell you how I came to be the parishioner before you to share my stewardship story. For many of you who have come before me to share your story, you know how this works. If you’ve been an involved parishioner as a ministry leader or on Vestry or served in some other capacity that made you known to others, you just know that your time is coming and you will be asked to stand before the congregation and share your story…
Have you ever heard the story of the rector who was preaching to the congregation on a Sunday, and it’s that time of the year that is stewardship, and a lot of the talk is about giving? The rector says to the congregation, “I have good news. We have all the money we need. We have all the money we need to do all that we need to do.” And the congregation looks a little puzzled. And the rector says, “But here’s the challenge: all the money is in your pockets…”
The historian and theologian Diana Butler Bass, in responding to the tragedy in Arizona last week was quoted as saying that: ” ..the core values of our faith are at odds with violence and the rhetoric of violence. We need to give our people hope that the God born a few weeks ago in a manger is still among us, deeply grieving and deeply caring.”
In every tragedy, whether near or far, in every loss, whether ours or another’s, in every fear and doubt and any crisis that we encounter (and we all encounter many throughout our lives) in all of these instances it is eventually to God that we turn for answers, for comfort, for a reason to go on…
Today is our annual meeting day. I apologize for this service starting later. This is the first time we’ve tried it between services so now we have some ideas about how we can tweak that a little better next year. What I want to do today is, rather that what you might call a regular homily, I will present some thoughts in the context of our annual meeting day. St. Paul’s has many blessings to be thankful for. But with those blessings also come challenges. And so this year, 2011, it certainly is a year of blessings and challenges. I want to share some information with you and put it in context to understand what we’re experiencing as well as that experience within the larger church…
The 1st Lesson: Christ’s birth and kingdom are foretold – Isaiah 9:2, 6-7
The 2nd Lesson: The prophet Micah foretells the glory of the little Bethlehem – Micah 5:2-4
The 3rd Lesson: The prophet in exile foresees the coming of the glory of the Lord – Isaiah 60:1-6, 19
The 4th Lesson: St. Luke tells of the birth of Jesus – Luke 7:7-7
The 5th Lesson: The Shepherds go to the manger – Luke 2:8-11
The 6th Lesson: The wise men are led by the star – Matthew 2:1-5a, 10-11
The 7th Lesson: St. John unfolds the great mystery of the Incarnation – John 1:1-14
He became a child so that you could become a full mature human being. He was wrapped in swaddling clothes so that you could be unraveled from the meshes of death. He came on the earth so that you could live beneath the stars. There was no place for him in the inn so that there could be many dwelling places for you in heaven. He was rich but he became poor for us. His poverty is our riches and his weakness is our strength. He is poor for us but in himself he is rich. You can see him lying there in swaddling clothes but what you cannot see is that he is God’s son…
Good Evening and Merry Christmas. I’d like to offer a thought tonight. Many years ago when I was in the seminary one of my professors once said, “When you preach, just try to say one thing. Tonight I’d like to say one thing. I hope that when you leave here, that that one thing is something you take with you tonight. I’d like to do that by sharing some wisdom from two spiritual writers that I admire, Richard Rohr and Thomas Keating. Share two things from their lives that perhaps captured that one thing…