Advent I December 1st, 2019 Isaiah 2:1-5 Romans 13:11-14 Matthew 24:36-44 One of the things that I like the best about the Episcopal Church is that it follows the regular and traditional pattern of the Church’s Year. Every season of the secular year has its corresponding liturgical season. The Church’s year begins with the…
HARVEST / CHRIST THE KING November 24th, 2019 Deuteronomy 26:1-11 Philippians 4:4-9 John 6:25-35 The news stories concerning migrants and refugees over the past 5 years or so have reminded us forcibly of the historical fact that migrant peoples are very rarely welcomed with open arms by the settled populations into which they move. The…
Pentecost XXIII November 17th, 2019 Isaiah 65:17-25 II Thessalonians 3:6-13 Luke 21:5-19 When I encountered the breadth of Christian spirituality in the United States first-hand, I was astonished at the importance that many Christians gave to thinking about the end of the world. Televangelists, book sales, entire denominations were dedicated to interpreting the book of…
All Saints Sunday November 3, 2019 Daniel 7:1-18 Ephesians 1:11-23 Luke 6:20-31 For centuries it was the custom in Christian countries to give children the name of a saint. The principle is even written into the Canon Law of the Roman Catholic Church: “Parents, sponsors and the priest are to take care that a name…