Sermons by Rev. Jason S. Glombicki (Page 60)
Easter Sunday
It was a Sunday afternoon in May. 8-year-old Sergio walked down a street in his hometown in Chile. As he walked with the cobblestone below his feet and the sun beating on his face, he began to feel a little off-balance. Within seconds he fell to the ground. From the ground, he saw chimneys falling through roofs and electrical wires swinging from telephone poles. For the next ten minutes, this earthquake rattled his hometown, which geographically moved 30 feet westward. As the town moved, a large tsunami wave started flowing across the Pacific Ocean headed toward Hawaii, Japan, and the Philippians. When that rattling finally stopped, it was named the largest recorded earthquake in history…
Easter Vigil
This is the night. This is my favorite night. Oh, what a night! It’s my favorite night mainly because it both clarifies & muddies resurrection. Oh, what a night, that I will remember.
Now, in contemporary Christianity, I think we’ve taken the resurrection and limited it far too much. You see, in our continuous repetition of a figure of speech sometimes we turn a metaphor into a definition. For example, since the church seldom calls God “rock,” the language is recognized as metaphor, but because the church often calls God “father,” some people imagine God to be literally a father in the sky…
Palm/Passion Sunday
Today is arguably the most confusing liturgical day. We start with joy shouting hosanna and processing around the neighborhood. Within moments, our direction changes to Jesus’ suffering and death. It’s important to remember that Jesus’ procession was not a first-century version of a World Series Championship parade. This entry was a statement – a political and religious statement. It signified that Jesus was the returning king and the Messiah. Those laying cloaks and branches expected Jesus to overthrow the Romans and to change the religious order. This simple journey was an act of defiance, and it informs us why Jesus was killed. Jesus’ transportation indicated future. Instead of riding on a horse like a war-raging king, Jesus arrived on a donkey, which symbolized peace. ..