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The scandalous character of ministry
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4 min read
The Lectionary did us no favors by jumping into Luke at chapter 7, skipping what I think are the two most important chapters in the whole gospel in 5 and 6. Smack in between the calling of disciples and the Sermon on the Plain is one of my favorite moments of Jesus’s. It is striking…
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Being Shown What To Do
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5 min read
a homily for Proper 5C Text: Luke 7:11-17 Listen to “Being Shown What To Do” here and read along Getting Focused On Wednesday night (at Basics), we talked about ministry. What it is, who does it, and why it matters. The Book of Common Prayer describes it as the work of the laity, bishops, priests,…
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Conan’s Inspiring Sendoff
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1 min read
I like Conan O’Brien. Certainly much more than Leno. And to be truly honest, Jimmy Fallon’s is the only “late show” I watch now. But these words, this send off to Conan’s last Tonight Show are prophetic. You should watch this. And if you have, then watch it again, because you need to hear them again.
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I Can Label Myself, Thanks.
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3 min read
Some people don’t like labels. It’s common among members of my generation to reject them. However, it seem that when people say this, they are really trying to say that they don’t like being labeled by others. Or perhaps the problem isn’t the label, but the box in which we put those people we label.…
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A Powerful Faith
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6 min read
a homily for Proper 4C Text: Luke 7:1-10 [Listen to “A Powerful Faith” here while you read along.] Making it personal Man, that Centurion looks good, doesn’t he? Generous? Check. Compassionate? Check. Faithful? Double-check. That guy sure looks good in the end, doesn’t he? The basics of the story are these: Jesus strolls into Capernaum.…
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Build Systems or Leaders?
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3 min read
Which is more important: the system or the leader? Since arriving at St. Paul’s, which is a pastoral-sized congregation*, I’ve figured out that much of the structure of the church is based on specific leaders doing specific tasks, rather than systems. I’m not sure how to feel about this. *[a pastoral-sized congregation is what many…
Make a New Normal
