A sermon offered on the 15th Sunday after Pentecost, September 13, 2020. While the parting of the Red Sea looks exciting on film, the story raises a lot of questions. What do we learn from this scene of God's awesome power that gives freedom to the Israelites and death to the Egyptians? Readings: Exodus 14:19-31 … Continue reading “Thus the Lord saved Israel that day from the Egyptians”
A sermon offered on the 14th Sunday after Pentecost, September 6, 2020. The exciting story of Exodus is interrupted right before the climactic moment of the final plague by liturgical instructions for celebrating Passover. The moment of liberation is so important that the creation of the liturgy to remember the moment is part of the … Continue reading “This day shall be a day of remembrance for you.”
A sermon offered on the 13th Sunday after Pentecost, August 30, 2020. Moses is all grown up when God drops into his life. His excitement about the encounter with God at the burning bush quickly turns to uncertainty and excuses when he realizes that God is sending him. Readings: Exodus 3:1-15 * Psalm 105:1-6, 23-26, … Continue reading “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”
A sermon offered on the 12th Sunday after Pentecost, August 23, 2020. While I know the opening chapters of Exodus are the origin story for Moses, for me Shiphrah and Puah steal the show. Their act of defiance and use of Pharaoh's ignorance and prejudice against him lays the foundation for continual confrontation and challenge. … Continue reading “The beginning of liberation often comes in the form of saying no to death”
A sermon offered on the 11th Sunday after Pentecost, August 16, 2020. The readings for this Sunday are powerful, provocative, and involve a lot of shouting. I read these alongside the annual celebration of Jonathan Myrick Daniels, an Episcopal seminarian who was murdered in 1965. Daniels is remembered as a martyr in The Episcopal Church. … Continue reading “It’s all over but the shouting.”
