Once we see how Matthew reads history, we are forced to ask a more uncomfortable question: If God’s saving work repeats and deepens across time, where is it happening now? Where is the Christ Child today? Not sentimentally – but concretely. Where is new life appearing that unsettles old power? Where is hope being born in places that seem too small, too ordinary, or too marginal to matter? Where are children – and others – […]
At the end of the Gospel we hear on Christmas Eve, we are told that Mary pondered these things in her heart. She did not rush to explain them. She did not try to resolve all the questions. She held them—patiently, prayerfully—allowing their meaning to unfold over time. That may be the most faithful response available to us right now. Rather than rushing ahead to the next obligation, the next resolution, the next task, what […]
An excerpt from my sermon linked below: Christmas has a way of feeling as though it exists outside of time. The music, the ritual, the familiarity can give the impression that we are stepping into something eternal. And in a sense, we are. But at the heart of this celebration is not an idea or a feeling. It is an event. Something that happened on a particular night, in a particular place, to particular people. […]
The portion of the Gospel according to Matthew we read this day tells the story of Jesus’ birth in a way that is, at first glance, surprisingly restrained. There are no shepherds here, no angels filling the sky with song, no frantic journey to Bethlehem. Instead, Matthew gives us a quiet, almost domestic scene, focused not on Mary, but on Joseph. Joseph, we are told, is a righteous man. And his righteousness shows itself not […]
We arrive this week at a kind of turn toward Christmas. Advent has its own pace — measured, expectant, leaning toward the horizon — but today the season deepens and brightens at the same time. This Sunday has a name all its own: Gaudete Sunday. The Sunday when we rejoice. The Sunday of the rose candle — if your Advent wreath includes such a thing. It is the liturgical hint that the long night is […]
The peace that Isaiah envisions is not a ceasefire, not a truce, but a total reordering of human life around the presence of God. And again, Christians recognize this in Christ. He is the one who makes peace — not by force, not by intimidation, but through reconciliation. He is the one who stretches out his arms on the cross to draw all people to himself. He is the one who rises from the grave […]
May your day be filled with memories and blessings.
Three years ago, when the Gospel assigned for this week last was read, I had this to say: In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus is warning us that the Apocalypse is coming. That word, apocalypse means “hidden” in Greek. Jesus is telling us in the Gospel today that the violence and injustice that is present in the world, and which seems hidden from us, is about to become manifest and evident to everyone. It will be […]
There’s a question at the heart of All Saints’ Day. It’s not a question we usually ask out loud in church, but it sits quietly in the background of our prayers and hymns, in the candles and the names spoken at the altar. The question is this:Do we still believe in the future? Do we still trust that God is not done with the world—that the story is moving somewhere, that there will come a […]
It is often said that more miracles happen in a church basement than in the nave. In the nave, we use the polished brass, we process in order, we sing beautiful hymns, we hear fine sermons. It’s holy space—yes—but it can sometimes become a place where we perform our piety. But in the basement… that’s where people show up to be honest. That’s where the recovery groups meet. That’s where the food pantry is. That’s […]
