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, […]

Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7; Psalm 66:1-11; 2 Timothy 2:8-15; Luke 17:11-19 There’s a great scene in the 1965 Civil War movie Shenandoah. I posted it on our Facebook page this week; maybe you saw it. Jimmy Stewart plays a widowed farmer. Trying to heed his wife’s dying wish that their seven children be raised as good […]

Lamentations 1:1-6; Psalm 137; 2 Timothy 1:1-14; Luke 17:5-10 Before I launch into a look at this morning’s gospel, a few words are in order about Psalm 137. Needless to say, the last verse is a little shocking—a bit more graphic than we would prefer on a Sunday morning! This psalm is a lament over […]

Jeremiah 8:18-9:1; Psalm 79:1-9; 1 Timothy 2:1-7; Luke 16:1-13 Yesterday Don and I went to see the “Downton Abbey” movie. We have been anticipating this movie for some time, and we were not disappointed. It followed very well in the steps of the TV series. For Anglophiles like us, it was pure candy. The movie […]

Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28; Psalm 14; 1 Timothy 1:12-17; Luke 15:1-10 What is the source of the deepest joy in your life? Think about that for a moment: What event, what person, what idea, sparked or now sparks the greatest feelings of joy for you? I’ll wait a moment for you to think about it and […]

Jeremiah 18:1-11; Psalm 139:1-5, 12-17; Philemon 1-21; Luke 14:25-33 Well, here we go again.  In this morning’s gospel, Jesus is up to his usual devices, saying things that surprise and puzzle us. Speaking to the crowd following him on the road to Jerusalem, Jesus makes bold demands: “Whoever comes to me and does not hate […]

Jeremiah 2:4-13 Psalm 81:1, 10-16; Luke 14:1, 7-14 Labor Day weekend always makes me nostalgic. As I have told you before, I come from a big Texas family, and when I was growing up every year we would have a family reunion on the Saturday of Labor Day weekend. This gathering was made up of […]

Jeremiah 1:4-10; Psalm 71:1-6; Luke 13:10-17 “Sometime in 1619, a Portuguese slave ship [the São João Bautista] traveled across the Atlantic Ocean with a hull filled with human cargo: captive Africans from Angola, in southwestern Africa. The men, women and children, most likely from the kingdoms of Ndongo and Kongo, endured the horrific journey, bound […]