Category Archive

17th Sun in Ordinary Time • 2 Kings 4:42-44 • Ephesians 3:14-21 • John 6:1-21 • July 25, 2021 Once upon a time there was a mighty prophet who led his people to safety right through the sea, even though it was impossible. Later he went up a mountain and brought back a just and honorable way of life. Many generations later, people told with wonder how another prophet made a little food go a long way—although mothers and cooks have been doing that since the beginning, so maybe the miracle was how well it was done by a man …

Solemnity of Benedict and Scholastica – July 11, 2021                        Lynne Smith, OSB Proverbs 4:7-13                                Acts 2:42-47                                      Matthew 23:8-12             The readings for today were selected especially for the Solemnity of Benedict and Scholastica. Each of them provides some background for monastic life. The Rule of Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia, Italy, belongs to wisdom literature as does the book of Proverbs. Wisdom literature, found in many cultures, reflects on the nature of life and offers teaching and advice for living a good life. According to one commentator on Proverbs, “human wisdom is a love of reality, …

Whirlwinds and Liminal crossings Mark 4: 35-41 Colleen D. Hartung Our readings today start with God speaking from the heart of a mighty whirlwind and end with Jesus calming a storm that threatens to swamp the disciple’s boat and end their lives before their ministry even begins.  In both cases, for Job and the disciples, the storm is disorienting and meant to signal the possibility of some transformation or reordering that might allow the protagonists in these stories to see their lives, their relationships, their faith and their ways of being in new ways.  As a way of considering the …

With apologies to anyone listening who knows anything about civil engineering, I  begin today reflecting on bridge-building. A bridge can take us from the known to the unknown, across ravines of misunderstanding to the firm ground of mutual appreciation for another’s perspective and vision. The Greek speaking world of St. Paul in his missionary travels put a lot of stock in persuasion. In the culture of Western Europe and North America we are accustomed to persuading others to our point of view. You can see how well that is working on our political landscape. In the culture of the Jews …

Feast of the Holy Trinity Holy Wisdom Monastery May 30, 2021 Isaiah 6:1-8; Romans 8:12-17; John 3:1-17 Roberta M. Felker “What do we pray for but the equation that helps us make sense of what happens in our daily lives? What do we believe in if not that which tells us we’re alive? “ ~ A. Van Jordan These two lines from the American poet, A. Van Jordan’s splendid collection bookend today’s reflection. What do we pray for but the equation that helps us make sense of what happens in our daily lives?  What do we believe in if not that …

Pentecost • Acts 2:1-21 • Rom 8:22-27 • Jn 15:26-27,16:4b-15 • May 23, 2021 Alison Long’s homily right after Easter made an impression on me. Why, indeed, were most of the disciples still locked in fear in the upper room even after the news of the resurrection? Why, for that matter, am I holed up at home, now that local pandemic conditions have eased and I’m vaccinated? I think it’s because recovering from trauma takes time, and faith needs the soil of healing to take root. So here we are, weeks after the Resurrection, celebrating Pentecost. Pentecost was the Greek …

FOURTH SUNDAY OF EASTER April 25, 2021 Acts 4:5-12 1 John 3:16-24 John 10:11-18 I am the good shepherd.  I know my own and my own know me, just as God knows me and I know God.  When I first read this passage from today’s gospel text, I remembered the long summer afternoons at our neighborhood pool, when our children were young.  Most of the parents would be lounging around the pool, talking or reading, and occasionally taking a little dip in the water to cool off.  The children were all in the pool swimming and playing with one another, …

    Third Sunday of Easter – Earth Day Sunday – April 18, 2021 Grace to you and peace from God the Creator, the Holy Spirit and Christ our Redeemer. Amen.      When we reflect on the seasons and days of the church year that we have just come through, there is a familiar pattern to them all. The Passion stories of Holy Week and Easter have common scenarios and traditions, from Palm Sunday to Good Friday to Easter Sunday morning that we know and find spiritually nourishing for our faith.  Following Easter, though, the stories in the New Testament range …

Spoiler alert, for Risen Christ appearance stories stay tuned to the first three Sundays of the Easter season where John and Luke will fill us in on breaking news. If the end of Mark’s account of the Gospel leaves you wondering why he did not provide detailed descriptions of the various sightings of the Risen Christ Jesus, imagine what the first readers thought of this a mere 30 or 40 years after the events of Jesus’ earthly life. Those first readers and hearers would know some of the stories through oral tradition.  Mark avoids re-telling them for a reason. Mark, …

Good Friday 2021                                                                               Holy Wisdom Monastery Isaiah 52:13-53:12; John 19:16-30                                                   Patti La Cross   I suspect that today we approach the cross not only a year older,  but humbled – by our own experiences and losses, by the suffering of those we know and those we don’t, and by our growing awareness of the compounding impacts of racism and poverty. These opening opportunities to worship in person are indeed a boost for the gathered, and hopefully an encouragement to those who may soon be here. Wherever we are now, we turn to reflect on this central event of our faith:  …