We Your People, Ours the Journey
a webspace devoted to sermons, thoughts and ramblings from the ministerial journey
This week, I am heading for Washington, D.C., to the United Methodist Building. Did you know that The United Methodist Church owns a building next door to the Supreme Court? We do, and it's pretty amazing. It's the home of The UMC's General Board of Church and Society, and there I will be receiving some… Continue reading D.C.-Bound
"Breath of Comfort" (December 7, 2014) The prophet Isaiah reminds us that God speaks comfort to us first and foremost, while we wait for justice to unfold. In a time when we see much need for justice and healing around us, let us not rush to DO something to try to fix it, but hear… Continue reading Sermon: Breath of Comfort
"Hope and Longing" (November 30, 2014 - First Sunday of Advent) In the wake of more racial injustice, and in the face of pandemic illnesses, what does it mean to hold out hope? Can we hear the sacred longing in our own cries of "how long?", and cling to the Advent promise that Christ is… Continue reading Sermon: Hope and Longing
"Searching for Scraps" (August 17, 2014) In the face of the death of Michael Brown and the ongoing tension and violence in Ferguson, MO, we hear the story of the Canaanite woman, shouting after Jesus for justice and grace, asking for even the scraps that others might overlook. Where are the scraps of justice and… Continue reading Sermon: Searching for Scraps
Here is the full text of the motion I made, as amended and adopted by the 2014 session of the New England Annual Conference: An Invitation The New England Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church strives to be an inclusive conference that celebrates, develops, and affirms God-given gifts for lay and ordained ministry. We… Continue reading An Invitation from the New England Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church
Perhaps I thrive in what others call "broken homes." Not that I've had a lot of choice in the matter. A child of one divorce and a participant in another, it seems that separation is just part of my life. I can rage against it or not, but it simply is. I live in a… Continue reading A Call for In-Home Separation
"Living Water" (March 23, 2014) At the well, Jesus encounters a powerful theologian in the form of a Samaritan woman, and their conversation looks at the literal and spiritual needs for water. This day after World Water Day, how do we understand the intersections between the literal water crisis and the spiritual need for living… Continue reading Sermon: Living Water
One of my favorite parts of the tv show "The West Wing" that seems realistic to me is the refrain "what's next?" Used to change the subject, to close a conversation, to carry on with work, to recommit to tasks at hand, these two words return again and again in the script as the characters… Continue reading What’s Next?
Here we go again... A month after the Board of Ordained Ministry in Pennsylvania stripped Rev. Frank Schaefer of his ordination credentials for officiating at his son's wedding and refusing to state he would follow the entirety of the Book of Discipline in the future, the United Methodist Church is back at it again. The… Continue reading Let the penalty fix the “crime”
I'm thinking of a Dr. Seuss story about Whos today. No, not How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Although I'm feeling particularly non-Christmassy at the moment. Let's start there. Remember Rev. Frank Schaefer? He's the United Methodist pastor from Pennsylvania who officiated for the wedding of his son and his son's husband in 2007, only to… Continue reading We Are Here.
We Your People, Ours the Journey 