For the Love of Symbols

So, in case you didn't know, today is (was) Maundy Thursday.

Traditionally, Maundy Thursday is the day during Holy Week that we commemorate Jesus washing his disciples' feet and commanding them to do the same to others ("Maundy" comes from the Latin word for "command"). Many churches do this by washing one another's feet.

My church does not.

#PalmSundayPonderings

(Posted on Facebook on Palm Sunday)

I realized today how few people, other than clergy, post pictures of themselves at church unless it's a special event like a concert or a baptism.

Sermon: "Every Step", Exodus 15:1-7/Numbers 14:1-4/Luke 19:28-40 (March 20, 2016)

3/20/16

(Video of this sermon)

Andrew and I obviously had nothing to do with scheduling Palm Sunday where it sits in the liturgical calendar, but it fits so nicely with the themes we’ve had this year that I’m tempted to try and take credit. First we had the stewardship campaign, where we talked about being “all-in” as our community travels together into the future. Then the “Journey to Bethlehem” that we undertook in December, tracking the miles that we walked, biked, and swam so we could experience the distance trekked in order for our Messiah to be born. And now, during Lent, we’ve walked the path of our worship together, reminding ourselves why we do what we do every week, and where we go from there. Journeys, all of them. And now, today, we talk about yet another journey—a shorter one, perhaps, but one just as significant. All four gospels recount this story of Jesus’ triumphant journey into Jerusalem, during which he’s met with the cheers and jubilation of the people—and yes, of course, palms. There are some grumbles from the religious authorities—some of them even have the audacity to try and stifle the celebration—but nothing on earth can stop the holy procession.

Sermon: "Ready for Use", Isaiah 40:3-8/Luke 8:5-8, 11-15 (February 14, 2016)

2/14/16

(Video of this sermon)

(This sermon is the first in a Lenten series on the elements of worship: Preparing, Confessing, Sacramental Community, Proclaiming, and Responding)

The other day, I was in my office with Elizabeth and Meredith Kukla, who were admiring my collection of stoles, when I decided to use it as a teaching moment. Every week, the Church school teachers remind the class of the liturgical season, so I wanted to see how much the girls remembered about the liturgical colors. They hollered that green was for ordinary time, almost before I got the question out, and they remembered that purple was for Advent—I was impressed they’d clearly been paying attention so far this year—but they struggled a little bit when I challenged them to tell me the other season that uses purple (I’m sure that they would have had a much quicker answer if I had asked them after class today). To help them remember in the future, I told them that Purple is the color of Preparation for our biggest holidays (and yes, you’re allowed to use that pneumonic device to remind yourself, too). Preparation…such an important aspect of Lent to remember, and yet, this is far from the only time that we’re called to the important work of preparing.

Teaser Trailer for February 14 Sermon

In which I Daydream About the Perfect Communion Experience

Communion.

We all do it (well, if you consider yourself a Christian and attend worship on any sort of regular basis). But we don't all do it the same way.

Sermon: "Ready or Not...", 1 Corinthians 12:4-11/John 2:1-11 (January 17, 2016)

1/17/16

I know that there’s only one God, but if I WERE polytheistic, I’d say that the lectionary gods were smiling on me this week. Today in worship, we’re celebrating the ordination and installation of new church officers, our new Deacons and Ruling Elders, and what lands in my lap but this passage from 1 Corinthians. I couldn’t ask for a better topic than the variety of gifts given by the same Spirit. We may not necessarily experience all of the gifts that Paul outlines in his letter to the Corinthians these days—when’s the last time you heard a reliable prophecy?—but certainly we’ve all observed how the diversity of God’s gifts to us works to make God’s presence felt in the world around us. In fact, I’ve personally seen a variety of these gifts shared right here at FPC.