St George's Sermon Blog

  Pentecost 6 (A) – Proper 9 [RCL] Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49, 58-67; Psalm 45:11-18 or Song of Solomon 2:8-13; Romans 7:15-25a; Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30 Freedom For   This weekend marks 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence in the United States. Two hundred and fifty years. That is a remarkable milestone for a nation! Whatever country we inhabit, whatever our political convictions, it is worth pausing to give thanks for the freedoms we enjoy, for the generations who have sacrificed to preserve them. And, in the United States. for the democratic experiment that has endured longer than many thought possible. But anniversaries are not only occasions for celebration. They are also opportunities for reflection. They invite us to ask not only where we have been, but also who we have become. And so, on this weekend, perhaps the question before us is a simple one: What does freedom actually mean? For 250 years, Americans have debated that questi...

Jeremiah 28:5-9; Matt 10:40-42 So I have been thinking a lot this week about who we welcome and what it means to be a faithful community in the midst of difficulty and change.   Because the way of the gospel is and always has been hard and not always the easy or obvious choice.   And our readings today reflect this.   But they are also a bit tricky because both are just little bits of much larger stories that require a bit of context to understand. First, we have this little snippet from Jeremiah and his showdown with the false prophet Hananiah.   And here, God’s people have found themselves in a bit of a tight spot.   The growing Babylonian empire is threatening to swallow the land of Judah and it’s neighbors whole.   The kings and leaders of Judah and their people as a whole have turned away from the one true God to worship other gods and have put their trust in other foreign leaders.   And as a result, the old king and many of the country’s re...

  Matthew 28:16-20 So Today is Trinity Sunday and it is a big day of transition.   This is in fact the turning of the church year.   For the first half of the church year, we focus on the life of Jesus, the events of Jesus’s time on earth.   We walk alongside Jesus through the preparation for his birth, birth at Christmas, his baptism, the calling of his disciples and start of his ministry.   Then though the Lenten season of preparation for his passion, the hard walk of Holy Week, his death and then resurrection on Easter, which is then followed by his post resurrection appearances and preparation for the post-east world, at Ascension and Pentecost.   Through this time, we get to experience the whole of Jesus’s earthy life in one 6 month cycle every year. Then today, the year turns.   And the other half the year, 26 weeks from now until the end of November, we focus on the teachings of Jesus, on his time of ministry, on his parables, works and te...

  I Corinthians 12:3b-13 Today is the great festival of Pentecost in the church, one of the Holiest days of the church year.   The day we remember the coming of the Holy Spirit.   It is the birthday of the church, the festival of the Holy Spirit.   But it is also a little weird and scary.   Quite frankly Pentecost can be a little intimidating.   I mean just look at the story, rushing wind, tongues of fire, people suddenly and impulsively speaking in foreign languages, generally making a public spectacle of themselves.   This holiday can be a little hard to get behind.   Anyone can handle Christmas and Easter.   They deal with discrete historical events, events that perhaps most importantly happened to someone else.   We easily try to can sit by and stand as silent witnesses to the events of Jesus’s birth, life and death, but not Pentecost.   In a world full of spectator events, Pentecost is a full contact sport.   No one kn...

  1 PETER 4:12-14; 5:6-11   “Like a roaring lion your adversary the Devil prowls around, looking for someone to devour,” that someone could be you or me, or all of us, what is a Christian to do? Peter admonishes us to discipline ourselves, keep alert and resist ol’ Lucifer while staying true to our faith by being humble and giving up any anxiety we may feel to God’s care. He further reminds us that our brothers and sisters are facing the same kinds of situations as we are, we are not alone. Now, our undisciplined gut reaction may be to focus on amassing as much physical might as possible, where can I buy an AK-47 or a 357 magnum? Maybe I should watch a bunch of Dirty Harry movies to prepare myself for any conflict that lies ahead – ( imitates Clint Eastwood ) “Go Ahead Devil You Punk, Make My Day!” Hmmm I’m not sure if that sounded more like Dirty Harry or Reagan? As reassuring as that power trip might seem initially, it is not the disciplined response that Pete...

  Acts 1:6-14; Psalm 68:1-10, 33-36; 1 Peter 4:12-14, 5:6-11; John 17:1-11 by  The Rt. Rev. Carol J. Gallagher, PhD It is time for Jesus to depart from his disciples, those people who have been with him through thick and thin. Throughout our lives, we have times when we have to let go of loved ones, even when we wish we had more time together. Jesus is leaving his adopted family, the ones he cares for like a parent.  He knows them intimately. He knows them well enough to understand how quickly they can stray off course, fight with one another, and make a mess of many things. He loves them despite all their foibles, their pettiness, their greed, jealousy, and selfish ways. Human, like us, Jesus prayed for them as one who loved them completely and ached for them to have good productive lives and ministry. He wanted them to get beyond their differences and work together for the good of the world. Like Jesus, we make a constant prayer for those we love: that they are protecte...