Pilgrimage Sermon at St. Martin’s Canterbury Sept. 28, 2026 Hosea 2:14-23, Psalm 89:1-37, Acts 20:17-38, Luke 5:1-11 We stand here today in the oldest church in continuous use in the English-speaking world. This church has been a community of prayer and welcome in the name of Jesus Christ since before the year 597 CE. The … Continue reading Pilgrims in Canterbury
The chapel named after the doctor (Dr. Robert F. Thomas) who delivered Dolly Parton for a sack of cornmeal 14th Sunday after Pentecost Proper 17, Year AExodus 3:1-15, Romans 12:9-21, Matthew 16:21-28 Whenever I read about Moses and the burning bush, an important story of our faith, I can’t but help to hear Ralph Stanley … Continue reading Take Your Shoes Off and Follow
13th Sunday After PentecostProper 16, Year AAugust, 23, 2026 Matthew 16:13-20 How many of you have ever looked up what your name means? You may not know why you were given the name you were given, but I think most of us have been curious about what our names mean. Do they have prophetic power … Continue reading Messiah?
8th Sunday After Pentecost,Proper 11, Year AMatthew 13:24-30,36-43 July 19, 2026 Well, my fellow farmers! Here we are again in the fields planting seeds. But today I’m going to talk about the weeds. What is a weed anyway? As we learn more about soil conservation and growing plants that are actually native to the region, … Continue reading Wheat, Weeds, and Dandelions
7th Sunday after Pentecost, Year AMatthew 13:1–9, 18–23July 12, 2026 I love to plant seeds. Inch by inch, row by row, I love to watch my garden grow, and while I have yet to master a yield of one hundred, sixty, or even thirtyfold in a harvest, there is nevertheless something innate in me that … Continue reading Frivolous Farming
5th Sunday After Pentecost, Year AJune 28, 2026Matthew 10:40-42 In today’s very short Gospel passage, we hear the word “welcome” no less than six times. I have to admit from my musical theater days that every time I see the word “Welcome” I immediately start singing “Wilkommen, Bienvenue, Welcome.” And then proceed immediately to The … Continue reading Welcome
3rd Sunday After Pentecost, Proper 6, Year A June 14, 2026 Matthew 9:35-10:8(9-23), Genesis 18:1-15, (21:1-7) We continue in the Gospel of Matthew this week, as we will for weeks. All twelve disciples have now been called, representing the twelve tribes of Israel which Jesus will now send out. This is one of five discourses … Continue reading Compassion and Hospitality
2nd Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 5, Year A June 7, 2026Genesis 12:1-9Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26 Well, here we are in the season of what the church refers to as Ordinary Time or the green season. We will be green for a very long time now, well into the fall. And you know what Kermit the frog … Continue reading I Desire Mercy
7th Sunday of Easter, Year AMay 17, 2026 Acts 1:6-14 This is the 7th Sunday of Easter, also the Sunday we remember the Ascension of Jesus, or as some refer to it, the day Jesus started working from home. The Ascension is celebrated on the 40th day after the Resurrection, which was last Thursday. The … Continue reading Wait, Pray, Act
5th Sunday of Easter, Year AMay 3, 2026 John 14:1-14 I’m sure you all have heard a version of the joke where a person dies and goes to heaven and St. Peter is touring the new arrival around to see the new house with many, many rooms in heaven. You can throw any denomination under … Continue reading Way of Abiding
