Category Archive

As my mind wandered over the image of Jesus, asleep in the stern of the boat while his followers panicked, a lyric and melody came to mind from my younger days, Rescue Me, sung by Fontella Bass, recorded in 1965.[quote]“Rescue meCome on and take my heartTake your love and conquer every part‘Cause I’m lonelyAnd I’m blueI need youAnd your love tooCome on and rescue me” [end quote] While the singer longs for romantic human love, the lyrics do easily fit and echo the disciples’ shout — Master, do you not care? We are going to drown! And Jesus performs his …

Body & Blood of Christ • Exodus 24:3–8 • Hebrews 9:11–15 • Mark 14:12–16, 22–26 • 6/2/24 Welcome to the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ. There are many layers of meaning to savor here: the meanings of blood familiar to original hearers of the texts… the challenge of reading Hebrews… the Gospel… and the Eucharist. I’ll start with the meanings of blood. Some are covenant-related – beginning with the ancient history of covenants, when people made ceremonial cuts and mingled their blood to declare themselves blood relatives, pledging to support and protect each other with their very …

This past Tuesday around greater Madison, and throughout the Midwest, we were reminded of the power of the earth, and our smallness in comparison. While our monastery grounds and some of our neighborhoods had trees and power lines toppled, other neighboring regions witnessed tornadoes and floods. As we felt the thunder shake our homes on Tuesday, perhaps we can more easily channel some of the intensity of today’s reading from Isaiah: The Most High sits on the throne, and just the hem of God’s  robe fills the entirety of the temple. The temple fills with smoke, the structure shakes with …

Pentecost 2024/May 19                                Holy Wisdom Monastery                                              Pam Shellberg Acts 2:1-21; Romans 8:22-27; John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15 Before the days of smart TV’s and Netflix, Hulu, and Roku, before the days of being able to watch just about any TV show at any time day or night, of being able to binge watch seasons of any particular show in a weekend – back in the days when we followed a series one episode a week, some of you might remember how each new episode would begin with, “Previously on _______” and then there’d be minute or two of clips of …

Ascension Sunday Holy Wisdom Sunday Assembly May 12, 2024 Terry Larson Acts 10-11 Mark 16: 15-20 Ephesians 4: 2 It’s unbelievable. It would have been easier to believe in the physical ascension of Jesus prior to the audacious claim, first by Copernicus, and then by the real trouble-maker Galileo, that the earth revolved around the sun. Our beloved mother earth is not the center of our solar system. Yes, I know it’s mother’s day, but our earth is just among the planets, asteroids, comets, and space junk held steady by the sun’s gravity. The heliocentric cosmological model (I found that …

Easter 5  2024        Holy Wisdom Monastery         Pam Shellberg                    John 15:1-8 As we move through the fifty days of the Easter season, the first stories of Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances give way to images of the Christ-spirit’s ongoing presence and resurrection power with us and within us. Through texts taken from John’s gospel – and so very typical of that gospel – we are offered images that invite our contemplative meditation on the nature of reality, the nature of our unity with the divine, and the nature of community. Last week it was a shepherd laying down his life for his …

You may have heard that the solar panels are not the only things shifted this week. Yes, the Benedictines have elected a new prioress, and we are so grateful for sisters Mary David and Lynn in their graceful transition. But wait, there’s more! Today’s readingsshift us!  From our basking in the joy and glory of Jesus’ resurrection, they tilt us forward;  renewing our energy, and powering our mission.  We are once again turned to face God’s people,  in whatever situation we find them, and to recognize them as belonging to Jesus’ fold, and as kin to us. The descriptor “Good’ …

Homily for the Third Sunday of Easter, April 14, 2024 Preached at Holy Wisdom Monastery Sunday Assembly, Middleton, WI Years ago as a young pastor, long before the hair turned gray, I was trying my best to make my church contemporary. I discovered the hymn writing duo of Richard Avery and Don Marsh who had penned a lively tune entitled “Every Morning Is Easter Morning.” And they are right. Every Sunday is Easter. Of course it is. Every forgiveness is Easter. Every birth of hope is Easter. These theological statements are the legacy of two millennia of Christian reflection on …

This “octave” of Easter Sunday is sometimes called “low Sunday,” because no one expects the liturgy to compete with Easter Sunday for ebullience and pageantry. Others call it “doubting Thomas” Sunday because the Gospel passage from John chapter 20 does not vary from year to year. The Roman Church has more recently dubbed it, “Divine Mercy” Sunday. Preparation for this homily leads me to title it, “open to change”  and “challenged to change” Sunday. If you grew up in a muti-generational household, you know how different the perspectives can be from one era to another. For instance, I grew up …