During this Easter season, a series of our daily office readings come from the Book of Daniel. The second half of Daniel is a full-fledged apocalyptic text, complete with visions and beasts and all things end-time related. If you are a fan of the book of Revelation in the New Testament (as I am), you […]
Sermon Topic: Pride
Vanity of Vanities!
“Mortal pride and earthly glory, sword and crown betray our trust; though with care and toil we build them, tower and temple fall to dust. But God’s power, hour by hour, is my temple and my tower.” (Robert Bridges; 1844-1930) My wife and I are very blessed in that we have had some wonderful vacations […]
To Walk Humbly
In the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen. It is quite an honor to become a member of the Saint Thomas Choir of Men and Boys. To receive the white surplice indicating membership in that accomplished group is a significant privilege as well. I add my congratulations to the new […]
Grace is Sufficient
One of the most notable characteristics of the Christian New Testament must be the highly unusual relationships it suggests between strength and weakness, between success and failure. You can see that in the life of Jesus, of course: his crucifixion being his crowning moment. But it’s just as true of the apostles he sent out […]
I Am among You as One Who Serves
And it came to pass, as [Jesus] went into the house of one of the chief Pharisees to eat bread on the Sabbath day, that they watched him. [Luke 14:1] And by watching him closely, the Pharisees hoped to catch Jesus make a mistake or to trap him in heresy or blasphemy. But Jesus was […]
Do Not Be Anxious
After a 66-day crossing, the 102 Mayflower pilgrims meant to get to the Hudson River. Instead they dropped anchor at Cape Cod, crossed Massachusetts Bay, and spent the brutal winter of 1620-1621 in the small ship, just off where they eventually settled, Plymouth, named after their English point of departure. Only half of them survived […]
And Forgive Us Our Trespasses...
In the Name of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Ghost. Amen. “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” Over the forty years of my life as a priest, the issues raised by this sentence in the Lord’s Prayer have been among those matters most regularly […]
Why the Lord Loves King David and Mary Magdalene
In the Name of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Ghost. Amen. King David’s great sin is well known. He took beautiful Bathsheba, the wife of his faithful soldier Uriah, in adultery and conceived a child which would die. To hide his deed he tried twice in vain to get Uriah […]
