Sermons (Page 157)
Feast of Mary, Mother of Jesus
If you’re anything like me, you probably have a healthy number of questions. I wonder things like: Why didn’t Trump use a better word than “wherever” to describe the blood coming out of Megyn Kelly? Or why do I have to pay Hulu to watch commercials? And I’ve often wondered, “Why should I care about Mary, the mother of Jesus?” After all, as a Lutheran Mary has not played anything more than a passive role in my life. So when I went to a Roman Catholic high school I would ask a lot of questions about her. I’d talk with my teachers about their answers, especially since most dogma about Mary was codified quite recently and isn’t explicitly supported Biblically…
Eleventh Sunday After Pentecost
It was like a scene from a horror movie on that dark morning at the social service agency where I used to work. Everyone was silent and somber, with pain, venom and grief burning in the shadows of their eyes. A cloudy essence reigned free throughout the building, smelling oddly like smoke… What happened, you ask? Did someone die? Did we lose that major federal grant we had spent weeks working on, or have a donor back out on much-needed funds to feed our hundreds of needy clients? Did some cataclysm occur that numbered our days in the office? No, it was worse than all of that, far worse – the coffee pot in the breakroom was out of action…
Ninth Sunday after Pentecost
(said through a megaphone) “Can I have your attention please.” “(ding, dong) doors closing” (siren noises) (yelling noises). What grabs your attention? Our city is filled with non-stop bombardment of our senses. In fact research has suggested that the brains of urban and rural dwellers operate differently. They say that the regions of the brain that regulate emotion and anxiety become over active in city-dwellers. They think it’s the more demanding and stressful environment for us city-dwellers that contributes to the increased risk of anxiety and mood disorders in urban settings. And it’s no wonder – almost everyone wants our attention…