This day, Tuesday in Holy Week, is easily overlooked in the journey of Holy Week. Palm Sunday. Maundy Thursday. Good Friday. Holy Saturday. These all have easily recognizable markers in the path of Jesus from earthly ministry to resurrected Lord. But, this Tuesday, this third day in Holy Week, is essential to us, and to … Continue reading Dying to our little grains of wheat
Gospel
The question we cannot escape: “Do you believe this?”
Do you remember those WWJD bracelets everyone was wearing around in the early- to mid-2000s? “What Would Jesus Do?” It’s an important question. But, perhaps a better question is: What would we do? What would we do if we encountered the resurrected Lord? If we really saw, face-to-face, His power in this world? Our reading … Continue reading The question we cannot escape: “Do you believe this?”
The roles we play
In my sophomore year of high school I tried out for the play “Up the Down Staircase,” by Christopher Sergel, based on the book by Bel Kaufman. I did not expect much from the casting. In my high school years I was, to put it mildly, uptight. Straight-laced. Prudish. Moralistic. Narrow-minded. Stick in the mud. … Continue reading The roles we play
Life with God isn’t in the rear view mirror
There’s a great scene — it may be the only good scene — in the 1976 comedy “The Gumball Rally,” about an illegal coast-to-coast car race. Italian race car driver Franco, played by Raul Julia, tells his racing partner (in a horribly exaggerated Italian accent): “And now my friend, the first-a rule of Italian driving.” … Continue reading Life with God isn’t in the rear view mirror
Noon Prayer — Fourth Sunday of Lent
Anointing in prayer
Lent 16 — Thursday in the Second Week of Lent
Who do we see? How do we see them? These two questions frame our Christian walk, and are central to our readings from Jeremiah and Luke. Our Gospel reading gives us the fairly straightforward parable of Lazarus and the rich man. The rich man is well-dressed, well-fed, lives in a palatial setting and has all … Continue reading Lent 16 — Thursday in the Second Week of Lent
Lent 13 — Monday in the Second Week of Lent
Overcoming the way of the goat When I was a boy, my family raised dairy goats. One of my daily chores was to walk our big mama goat, Nanny, on a tether from our barn to a pasture a few hundred yards away. To reach the green grass of the pasture, we had to cross … Continue reading Lent 13 — Monday in the Second Week of Lent
Lent 12 — Second Sunday in Lent
Stepping forward, with eyes of faith “Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.” Those words from Corrie ten Boom speak to one of our chief sources of fear in this life, fear that clouds our vision of God: fear of an unknown future. Our future, at least to us, is … Continue reading Lent 12 — Second Sunday in Lent
Lent 9 — Thursday in the First Week of Lent
Ask, Search, Knock -- According to God's Will St. Maximilian Kolbe In the summer heat of August, 1941, St. Maximilian Kolbe walked into an isolation area in the Auschwitz concentration camp to await death. Kolbe was one of a group of men selected to die by starvation, as a warning to other prisoners. Kolbe was … Continue reading Lent 9 — Thursday in the First Week of Lent
‘The Man in Black’ — Episcopal Church to celebrate Communion with Johnny Cash
What songs would Johnny Cash sing if he were to attend a traditional celebration of Holy Communion at an Episcopal Church? St. Matthew's Episcopal Church, in Enid, Okla., will explore that uncommon pairing during the church's monthly Holy Ground service, 5 p.m. Sunday. The Rev. John Toles, pastor at St. Matthew's, said the service will … Continue reading ‘The Man in Black’ — Episcopal Church to celebrate Communion with Johnny Cash
Our grief is an act of worship
Read in memory of Ruthie Carter, at St. Matthew's Episcopal Church, Enid, Okla., Feb. 22, 2020 "Jesus wept." “I am Resurrection and I am Life, says the Lord. Whoever has faith in me shall have life, even though he die.” We hear those words from our opening prayer again in today’s Gospel reading, from St. … Continue reading Our grief is an act of worship
The uncomfortable path of truth
Delivered for Noon Prayer, 2.19.2020, at St. Matthew's Episcopal Church in Enid, Okla., in observance of the Feast of Frederick Douglass (20 February). “You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” That line, from our very brief Gospel reading today, is one of the most popular quotes from Scripture. But, what … Continue reading The uncomfortable path of truth
May Christmas transform our hearts and our society
The Christmas season is upon us — in the traditional Church calendar, Christmas began on Dec. 25 and ends at Epiphany on Jan. 6 (followed by the beginning of the Orthodox Christmas season Jan. 7). Regardless of when you believe Christmas begins and ends, the season is, at its best, a time of family, … Continue reading May Christmas transform our hearts and our society
Blessed are you, the Church Militant
This sermon originally was delivered on Nov. 3, 2019 in observance of the Feast of All Saints, at St. Matthew's Episcopal Church, Enid, Okla. Who is a saint? As we gather here in a sanctuary named for St. Matthew, that may seem an odd question. Certainly, all the canonized saints are included in this definition … Continue reading Blessed are you, the Church Militant
Living square with God
This piece was adapted from reflections delivered during Morning Prayer and Evening prayer, July 14 and July 16, respectively, in separate nursing home and prison ministries. How do we square our lives with God? This is one of the central questions of all theology. How should we live our lives so that we are "square" … Continue reading Living square with God
