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Christmas, December 25: Isaiah 9:2-7; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14(15-20); Psalm 96 When the angels show up for the shepherds, with “the glory of the Lord” shining around them, the shepherds were (rightly) terrified. Terror was the appropriate response to seeing the glory of the Lord. Moses felt it too, when he saw the burning bush.…

Fourth Sunday in Advent, 22 December 2024: Micah 5:2-5a; Hebrews 10:5-10; Luke 1:39-45, (46-55); Canticle 15 (or 3). The beginning of Micah’s prophecy for Bethlehem “You, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who are one of the little clans of Judah” is a reminder that Bethlehem was probably not where you expected a Messiah to be born.…

Third Sunday of Advent, 15 December 2024: Zephaniah 3:14-20; Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 3:7-18; Canticle 9 “Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter Jerusalem!”! Thus Zephaniah calls us. Why should we rejoice? “The Lord has taken away the judgments against you”. Not only that, but he has turned away enemies. And he will deal…

Second Sunday of Advent, December 8, 2024: Baruch 5:1-9 or Malachi 3:1-4; Philippians 1:3-11; Luke 3:1-6; Canticle 16 “Take off the garment of your sorrow and affliction, O Jerusalem, and put on forever the beauty of the glory from God.” So begins the passage from Baruch we read today. As Baruch continues with his prophecy,…

First Sunday of Advent, December 1, 2024: Jeremiah 33:14-16; 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13; Luke 21:25-36; Psalm 25:1-9 Today we begin the new church year: our readings are now in year C of the common lectionary, not year B; they will be dominated by the Gospel of Luke, not Mark as in year B. So we will…

Last Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 29, November 24, 2024: 2 Samuel 23:1-7; Psalm 132:1-13 (14-19); Revelation 1:4b-8; John 18:33-37 This Sunday is the last in the Church year: we begin the liturgical year next week, with the beginning of advent. For many years it was called Christ the King Sunday, though now it is more…

Twenty-fifth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 27, 10 November 2024: Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17; Psalm 127; Hebrews 9:24-28; Mark 12:38-44 Last week we heard Ruth declare that she would follow Naomi back to Naomi’s home in Bethlehem. This was a risky decision: support depended on being part of a household headed by a man, and Naomi and…

Twenty-fourth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 26, 3 November 2024: Ruth 1:1-18; Psalm 146; Hebrews 9:11-14; Mark 12:28-34 “Which commandment is the first of all?” The scribe’s question to Jesus is not a trick question, but it’s a hard one: the Torah contains over 600 commandments, and sorting them out is an intellectual challenge. Jesus answers…

Feast of All Saints, 1 November 2024: Wisdom of Solomon 3:1-9; or Isaiah 25:6-9; Psalm 24; Revelation 21:1-6a; John 11:32-44 Today we celebrate the Feast of All Saints, and tomorrow is All Souls: over these two days we remember those who have gone before us. Here in California, the Mexican custom of the Día de…

Twenty-third Sunday after Pentecost, October 27, 2024, Proper 25: Job 42:1-6, 10-17; Psalm 34:1-8, (19-22); Hebrews 7:23-28; Mark 10:46-52 This week we read the third part of the exchange between Job and the Lord. In the first, Job’s “complaint was bitter”, and he imagined that if he could just find the Lord, the Lord would…