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Bible app doesn’t get the season
A real push notification on my phone right now: As the Easter season begins, start a Reading Plan today Two gut responses: The “Bible” app, YouVersion doesn’t actually know that Lent begins today, not Easter? Who doesn’t get that Lent isn’t Easter? The Advent/Christmas problem is invading Lent! The world mischaracterizes Advent as the Christmas…
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For Good, He Leaves
a Homily for Easter 7B Text: John 17:6-19 Jesus leaves twice. We forget that. We celebrate Jesus dying and rising again. But Jesus doesn’t rise like a ghost on the way up to the clouds. Jesus comes to his disciples and clears the air. Think of it this way. In preparing for his death, Jesus…
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Love and Sacrifice
a Homily for Easter 6B Text: John 15:9-17 Last week’s Gospel pericope ended with verses 7 and 8 which read: If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and…
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The one about the good shepherd
a Homily for Easter 4B Text: John 10:11-18 “I am the good shepherd,” Jesus says. What a great line. The good shepherd. Not at all like the badones, the ones that run away. Or don’t know anything about their sheep. A good shepherd. One that protects the flock. It is a message that speaks even to…
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Sharing the Story
a Homily for Easter 3B Text: Luke 24:36-48 Was it Real? This is our third Sunday in Easter and our third different resurrection story. We had Mark’s open-ending with Mary, Mary, and Salome running away in fear with instructions to bring the Good News to the rest of Jesus’s followers. We had John’s story of…
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Finding Proof in Baptism
a Sermon for Easter Text: Mark 16:1-8 This is the tough Easter gospel. The gospel we know as mark is the only one without joyous celebration and is perhaps a strange note to cast on a celebratory morning like this. These three women, Mary, Mary, and Salome come to the tomb expecting to prepare Jesus…
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The Unsatisfactory Ending
a Sermon for the Great Vigil of Easter Text: Mark 16:1-8 The Down Ending This may seem strange to you, but this gospel reading is by far my favorite text in Scripture. I absolutely love it. Let’s read the last two verses again: But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead…
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Fixing What We Got Wrong
My mentor during seminary, The Rev. Darren Elin once remarked that we get our two biggest holidays backwards: we celebrate Christmas the night before and Easter the morning after when it should be the other way around. Boy was he right. This is my first Christmas in 5 years in which I wasn’t one of…