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Sunday, Pentecost 17
9/27/20 Humility Not For Wimps Jesus didn’t need to boast about his status as the son of God. Instead, he led by example and showed us as the Rev’d Mark Hargreaves points out that the strength of a truly humble person is their self-confidence and their strong sense of identity and worth. Read now. |
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Rally Sunday, Pentecost 16
Covidtide Anger 9/20/20 Have you found yourself or others dealing with anger management issues during this pandemic? You’re not alone. The Rev’d Mark Hargreaves doesn’t need to look far to show us many examples of anger in biblical stories. With some anecdotal humor he shares a few of his own and how we might cope with these times. Read now. |
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Sunday, Pentecost 15
9/13/20 Seventy Times Seven Continuing on the theme of forgiveness, the Rev’d Mark Hargreaves delves into Jesus’ rebuke of Peter, gives us three concrete reasons why we should forgive, and tells Corrie ten Boom’s story of forgiveness ending with the famous quote: “To forgive is to set a prisoner free and to discover that the prisoner was you.” Read now. |
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Sunday, Pentecost 14
9/6/20 Christ and Conflict Resolution Returning refreshed from vacation the Rev’d Mark Hargreaves takes up issues of conflict resolution, with encouragement from St. Paul, and guidance from Jesus Christ. Reconciliation is not just our gift from the cross, it is a ministry, for, as St. Paul points out, “All this is from God who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us a ministry of reconciliation.” Read now. |
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Sunday Pentecost 13
8/30/20 Being A Christian With 2.18 billion Christians in the world you have to wonder why we see so little love, grace, peace, and unity. The Rev’d D. Rebecca Dinovo reviews what both Jesus and St. Paul have to say about this, and she then shares four concrete steps to help us on our way. Read now. |
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Sunday Pentecost 12
8/23/20 Cat, Dogs, & Humility With a “mea culpa” to our domestic animal friends, and with some anecdotal humor, the Rev’d D. Rebecca Dinovo asks us to listen to the words of St. Paul in today’s epistle, and listen to those with whom we feel ourselves in disagreement, because “…scripture invites us to approach God and our neighbors with this deep sense of humility.” Read now. |
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Sunday Pentecost 11
8/16/20 Jesus wrong? No. But the Canaanite woman wouldn’t let up on Jesus. And as the Rev’d D. Rebecca Dinovo observes, Jesus uses the situation to teach his disciples about prejudice, show us our own systemic racism, and “…begin to take down the barriers that separate us from one another and from God.” Read now. |
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Sunday, Pentecost 10
8/9/20 Get out of the boat! Jesus told Peter to get out of the boat and come to Him. Looking at our present state of disunity and pandemic the Rev’d D. Rebecca Dinovo says it’s now our turn: “It is our turn to stretch out our hands and help people sinking in the storm. It is our time to do what seems impossible, because we must.” Read now. |
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Sunday, Pentecost 9
8/2/20 Covidtide Inaugurating what she calls the 21st week of Covidtide, The Rev’d. D. Rebecca Dinovo examines our feelings of scarcity amidst the pandemic, but assures us that “…with God, there is always enough – so let’s be generous…there’s enough love, enough peace, enough grace to go around for all of us.” Read now. |
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Sunday, St. James Day
7/26/20 Groaning to Glory On this St. James Day The Rev’d Dr. Mark Hargreaves shows us the depictions of our patron saint around the church, and explains St. James’ pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in Northern Spain. He then ties that pilgrimage to our present pandemic and St. Paul’s letter to the Romans, where St. Paul describes the groaning of our journey that ends in glory. Read now. |
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Sunday, Pentecost 7
7/19/20 Keeping Perspective St. Paul considered “…that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us.” The Rev’d Mark Hargreaves, picking up on that theme in the context of today travails, asks us keep a broader perspective, assuring us that “…God is with us, and He will accompany us through life’s dark days.” Read now. |
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Sunday, Pentecost 6
7/12/20 Now Live Continuing in St. Paul’s letter to the Romans, the Rev’d Mark Hargreaves reviews how St. Paul contrasts living by the flesh and living by the Spirit. He calls to us: “At this time when all our lives have been changed and constrained in so many ways, let’s look to live out our spiritual lives to the full and enjoy the abundance and the peace that that life in the Spirit brings.” Read now. Sunday, Pentecost 5
St. Paul on sin 7/5/20 Drawing from St. Paul’s letter to the Romans on the frustrations of dealing with sin the Rev’d Mark Hargreaves notes that “in this present time of our own vulnerability and powerlessness . . . now more than ever, we’re being reminded of how ridiculous it is to think that we are in control of our lives.” But St. Paul didn’t leave it there, and neither does Fr. Mark. Read now. |
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