Today is the Third Sunday of Easter.When Jesus met the two women by the empty tomb, he told them not to be afraid.The Bible tells us not to be afraid.Fear gives rise to anger.  It triggers a fight-or-flight response to the real...

The title of today’s reflection is “See for Yourself.”It is about seeing.Through the eyes of a child.With the heart.Goethe said, “Thinking is better than knowing but not as good as looking.”

Today is the Second Sunday in Lent.The basic theme of our reflection this morning was "Christianity--It's Not a Religion; It's a Relationship." It's about what it means to be a Christian.

Today is the first Sunday in Lent.The theme of my reflections over the six Sundays in Lent will be on Jesus' life and teachings that immediately preceded his death and resurrection. Today's reflection drew from the teachings ...

 This really isn’t a sermon; it’s a story, perhaps a parable.It’s entitled “The Rabbi’s Gift.”

Greetings!This reflection is about how our identity as individuals, as a church, as a nation, and as a world is formed by our past but also by our vision of who or what we can be. The occasion is the celebration of our 160th annual meeting ...

This morning’s reflection focused on listening:as a kind of presence as a creative energyin our relationship with other peoplein our relationship with ourselves in our relationship with GodGod...

Jan 19, 2025This morning, as we experienced a deep gratitude to the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. for his contributions to our nation, to both Blacks and Whites. The theme of our reflections is stupidity.

The theme of today’s reflection was how to change the future. I assume you think it needs changing.Are you curious?

This morning, we reflected on the theme of Epiphany. It involves a search.It leads to a discovery, a realization.I read T. S. Eliot’s “Journey of the Magi,” which I like.I also include a quote on becoming seekers b...

 Today is the first Sunday of Advent.The theme of our reflections this morning is hope.The spiritual experience of hope is deeper than wishing.The opposite of hope is despair.We really need to receive the spirit...

 This sermon is about building- our self- our church- our nation- our world- with what we already have.It is entitled, "Building With Rubbish" (no offense)It is about building on rock, on The Rock.

This sermon is about The Widow’s Coins.It is also about an unusual experience I had many years ago.

Today, in our church, we observe a mixture of All Saints Day and All Souls Day.We remember those who have a profound impact upon our lives and our spiritual formation.  Then we remember that we, also, are called to be saints! 

This morning, on a communion Sunday, we think about the different calls, the different invitations that are extended to us by John the Baptist and by Jesus, though they may be two sides of the same coin.In inviting us to be yoked to him and...

This morning our church renewed the covenant between pastor and parishioner that we first shared October 7, 1997.  The renewal of our covenant marked the 27th anniversary of my call to be the settled pastor of First Community Church. I tal...

In today's sermon we look at how Taoism and Buddhism can help us understand Jesus' relationship with the woman who was a "sinner."Once again, I believe the gospel lesson is not about forgiveness; it is about love.This reflection b...

 The title of this sermon is “The Way to Heaven.”If you have ever despaired of qualifying, take heart!You may already be there!(I know, it doesn’t always feel that way. But just listen.)

This sermon, which focuses on the elder brother in Jesus' Parable of the Prodigal Son, looks at the parable from a Jungian psychological perspective.If you happen to be Freudian (or are so inclined for any other reason), you may stop li...

I would like to continue the exploration we began last week of Jesus’ encounter with the unnamed Samaritan woman by the side of Jacob’s well. The woman’s life was radically changed through this encounter. Even though there is some t...

This reflection, the third in my summer series sermons about little known people in the Bible, is about Jesus’ encounter with the unnamed Samaritan woman at the well.It raises the question of which is more important: what Jesus gi...

This sermon is part of a series that Charley Eastman of Pilgrim Church and I have been preaching in our two churches this summer.  It is about some of the little-known or lesser-known people in the Bible.Today we are taking a look ...

In our scripture lesson this morning from the Gospel according to Luke, Jesus’ disciples ask him to teach them to pray--just like John the Baptist taught his disciples. The disciples’ question implies that John taught his disciples to pr...

This morning, we are continuing our reflections on the power of prayer.  I hope our reflections during this Easter season and beyond have begun to lead us into a deeper understanding of the meaning and power of prayer, have led us to belie...

Last week, in my sermon on the theology of the Trinity, I touched on one way of understanding intercessory prayer, prayers that I/we offer to someone in need.  Today I would like to say a little more about this understanding and wh...