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Being Present
While Easter stories rely on the absence of Jesus in the empty tomb, they also establish the presence of Jesus with the apostles to be the presence of Christ for each other. Easter and the returning presence of Jesus Easter 3B | Luke 24:36b-48 When someone tells me they like the prequels to Star Wars,…
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The Tale of Two Easters
In our readings from Acts and John, we get two very different stories of the apostles responding to the risen Christ. But they both actually point to the same teaching. Luke and John reveal a false choiceEaster 2B | Acts 4:32-35, John 20:19-31 In Holy Week, we traced the last week of Jesus with the…
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Before Christ is Risen
For Christians, the empty tomb is a strange image for Easter — we struggle with what God is actually giving us: the need to wrestle with Jesus’s absence before we can find him present. Mary confronts death before seeing new life Easter | John 20:1-18 There is more to say than “Christ is Risen!” Not…
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How to Love Change
The empty tomb is the great symbol of change. To proclaim the good news, we have to confront the truth. That we don’t hate change, we’re afraid of something else. Why we need the empty tomb The Great Vigil of Easter | Mark 16:1-8 “I hate change!” That’s what people tell me. Every day I…
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Ending Violence
In the Passion, we become the witnesses, not only to the brutality put upon Jesus, but to the violence we impose upon one another. the Crucifixion destroys the justification for violence Good Friday | John 18:1-19:42 It’s often said the Passion preaches itself. Its power is self-evident. But it doesn’t quite preach like the fire…
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Where do we come in?
The challenge of Palm Sunday is fighting the impulse to skip ahead. But we’re invited not only into a bittersweet day but a whole week which challenges how we see the hope of Christ in our lives. We arrive at Jerusalem with Jesus expecting hope and fear Palm Sunday B | John 12:12-16 Where do…
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Who They Can’t Forgive
This moment in John 12:20-33 is the tipping point. Time’s up. Make your decision. And Jesus is surrounded by people who don’t understand that forgiveness is everything. Even after resurrection, we refuse to forgive what we don’t understand. Lent 5B | John 12:20-33 There’s a scene before this one. Before these Greeks come looking for…
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Praying in the Dark
In Nicodemus, we find a stand-in for us. He’s confused, frightened, and showing up at the wrong time. And yet he’s responding to an invitation when he least expects it to do something amazing. How our searching in the dark helps bring the light to us. Lent 4B | John 3:14-21 You’ve probably heard the…