“Then Jesus said to them, "The cup that I drink you will drink; and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized” ~ Mark 10:39 When I think of the things I have truly missed most in ministry during the time of the pandemic, baptism is right there at the top of the list. Baptisms are wonderful celebrations in the church, where families and the church come together to welcome someone, usually, a baby though not always, into the mystical body that we call the church, to … [Read more...]
New Life – Baptism of Christ Sunday, 2020
“See, the former things have come to pass, and new things I now declare; before they spring forth, I tell you of them.” – Isaiah 42:9 “Gone by 2040? Statistics report wake-up call to church, says primate” If you receive the Anglican Journal or you happened to read one here in our entryway before they were taken, you would have been confronted by this shocking headline, on the front page of our church’s national newspaper. The article is a response to statistics which were recently released … [Read more...]
Dearly Beloved – Sermon for Baptism of Christ 2019
*Audio available at the bottom of the page* "You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased." - Luke 3:22 Whenever we baptize someone these days, it often becomes a pretty big deal – perhaps it’s because we don’t baptize as often as we used to or because we love a big spectacle, but it seems that more and more the baptism of a child has become an event. Everyone gets dressed in their finest clothes (the child is often in a fancy dress or suit), family from all over are invited … [Read more...]
Look, Here’s Water – Sermon for Easter 5
Look. Here's water. What's to prevent me from being baptized? When I was a teenager, I began to ask impertinent questions about religion. In this way, I was a pretty typical teenager. Once I approached a church-going relative and asked about Jesus. I was beginning to think there was more to this Jesus person than simply “Jesus-loves-me-this-I-know.” So I asked this relative of mine and he said, "Well, you just gotta love Jesus. If you don’t, you’ll go to hell!" I don’t blame my … [Read more...]
The King Will Come – Sermon for Nov. 26
Today we celebrate the feast of the Reign of Christ, or for those traditionalists among you, Christ the King Sunday. So with that being the case, what’s the first image in your mind when you hear the words King or Queen? Perhaps you’re a good staunch royalist and you picture Queen Elizabeth II in all her dignified regality. Or perhaps you’re more of the history buff (I know I am!) and the first image that comes to mind is one of the great warrior Kings, like Richard the Lionheart, riding to … [Read more...]
If Love Was Fair – Sermon on Matthew 20:1-16
“And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner.”– Matthew 20:16 “It’s not fair! It’s just not fair!” If you had siblings, or children or have kept abreast of popular culture you probably have heard this refrain before – maybe you have even said it once or twice in your life. It is usually uttered when the person saying it, feels that they have been unfairly treated, or when someone else has received something that the person believes they deserve, or when things just don’t … [Read more...]
Sermon on Exodus 14:19-31
When I was young, I loved comic books. I was enthralled by the adventures of the mighty, spandex-clad super-heroes and villains. I was especially fascinated by their origin stories – how they got their super-powers, and what motivated them to lives of crime or heroism. One monthly series, called “Secret Origins” fed my curiosity. Take Spider-man. He got his spidery powers after being bitten by a radio-active spider. His first impulse was to use his power for selfish gain. It was only when … [Read more...]
Upside Down
“I came to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! – Do you think I have come to bring peace to the earth? No I tell you, but rather division!” – Luke 12:49, 51 Well I don’t know about you, but it seems that from last week to today we have jumped from the frying pan into the fire. Last week – when we wrestled with Jesus’ teaching on how our lives our prioritized, particularly around the tough issue of money – seems like a cake walk compared to the bombshell that … [Read more...]
Keep the Faith
“When Jesus heard this he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, he said, "I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith." ” – Luke 7:9 Faith is a tricky thing. We talk a lot about it in the church, we profess it week-in and week out in the creeds, we have faith in people, in ideas, in God. And yet as much as we talk about it, as much as faith shapes who we are as Christians and as a Church – I would argue that for most of us, our Christian ‘faith’ can be … [Read more...]
Stories Don’t End
Today as we celebrate the Feast of the Baptism of Our Lord, let us remember our own baptisms. Let us remember that in Baptism we are invited into God's Story and to set our sights on the beginning and the end, the Alpha and the Omega, Jesus Christ. … [Read more...]