Isaiah 49:1-7; Psalm 40:1-12; 1 Corinthians 1:1-9; John 1:29-42 Last week we heard Matthew’s version of the baptism of Jesus; this week we hear John’s take on Jesus’ baptism, as well as his story of the calling of Andrew and Peter. What sets John’s Gospel apart from Matthew, Mark and Luke (known as the synoptic […]

Isaiah 60:1-6; Psalm 72: 1-7, 10-14; Ephesians 3:1-12; Matthew 2:1-12 And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.” As one prepares a sermon, you are taught to read the scripture appointed for the day and note what gets your attention. This year, […]

Isaiah 9:2-7; Luke 2:1-14 Welcome to St. Paul’s on this most holy night, as we recall one of the central stories of our faith, mixed together with the stories of our own lives, and contemplate what those stories might mean for us as we approach a new year. As I think about Christmas, stories come […]

Isaiah 7:10-16; Psalm 80:1-7, 16-18; Romans 1:1-7; Matthew 1:18-25 Did you dream last night? Last week, with Jane’s excellent sermon on The Magnificat, we got Mary’s side of the journey to the birth of Christ the lens of the gospel of Luke. In Luke’s version of things, the angel Gabriel appears first to Zechariah, the […]

Isaiah 11:1-10; Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19; Romans 15:4-13; Matthew 3:1-12 Here we are in the second week of Advent, and just as happens every year, John the Baptist comes on the scene. John and his prophetic words are this week’s theme: From last week’s words from Jesus himself about his second coming we move backwards chronologically […]

Isaiah 2:1-5; Psalm 122; Romans 13:11-14; Matthew 24:36-44 We have now passed Thanksgiving, and so begin our headlong rush toward Christmas. For me, it always feels like a frenzy! As a child I remember December being the longest month; all of the anticipation of Christmas made it endless! But as I have grown older, it […]

Jeremiah 23:1-6; Canticle 16 (The Song of Zechariah); Colossians 1:11-20; Luke 23:33-43 As you may know, there was troubling incident at Monument Valley Middle School last month. As reported in the Berkshire Eagle, “a student repeatedly had been telling Jewish students that he was going to ‘nuke the Jews,’ and that ‘I have a list […]

Haggai 1:15b-2:9; Psalm 145:1-5, 18-22; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17; Luke 20:27-38 Yesterday I attended the 118th Convention of the Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts, along with our priest associate Jane Tillman and our two lay delegates, Diana French and Natalie Boyce. We did a lot of the business of the church—approving budgets, receiving reports, and […]

Daniel 7:1-3, 15-18; Psalm 149; Ephesians 1:11-23; Luke 6:20-31 I am sure you noticed that our church yard is a little barer this week. We had to take down the magnificent maple tree that has stood in our church yard for a many, many years. I have worried about that tree since I arrived here, […]

Joel 2:23-32; Psalm 65; 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18; Luke 18:9-14 Is political fatigue settling into you yet? I suspect you will all agree with me that of late our political discourse has sunk to new lows. There is so much back and forth these days – so much vitriol, so much real and manufactured outrage, […]