Category Archives: sermon

Jesus, Mary, and Judas

Posted on March 7, 2016 by Rosalind C Hughes

Poor, jealous Judas, love-lorn puppy, eyes stinging from the stench and from the memory: “See how he loved him!” they said when Jesus wept, and now this woman spilling fragrant death all over. Her sister rattles the plates on purpose. Mary, rapt … Continue reading →

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Year C Lent 4: life and death

Posted on March 5, 2016 by Rosalind C Hughes

It is such a familiar story, and one which we love: God running to us, skirts hitched up, “my child! My child!” It is all the good news that we need. We were dead but are alive again, by the … Continue reading →

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The prodigal God

Posted on March 3, 2016 by Rosalind C Hughes

Waiting  for the God to come home; if I saw her on the road would I run, hitching up my skirts, fire up the pyre, melt the golden calf, sacrifice my unbelief, my cold soul on the altar of her … Continue reading →

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A cynical preacher on the prodigal parable

Posted on March 1, 2016 by Rosalind C Hughes

Every story has a point of view. I knew that family. I would have told their story a little differently than Jesus did. I would have told you a little more. The kid was a chancer, a gambler, an addict. … Continue reading →

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Year C Lent 3: self-examination and repentance

Posted on February 28, 2016 by Rosalind C Hughes

Lest ye repent, says Jesus, you will all perish as they did. It was the first soundbite of Jesus’ campaign trail, his initial mission statement: Repent, for the kingdom of God, the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Our exhortation … Continue reading →

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The penitent

Posted on February 26, 2016 by Rosalind C Hughes

on her knees scrubbing blood from the pavement beneath the broken icon

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Year C Lent 1: reading and meditating on God’s holy Word

Posted on February 14, 2016 by Rosalind C Hughes

So it is Lent; but because we are not Puritans but Episcopalians, we can still have a little fun. Today, I have brought a new game to get us in the mood to consider this morning’s gospel. It is called, … Continue reading →

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An Ash Wednesday meditation

Posted on February 10, 2016 by Rosalind C Hughes

We are dust, and to dust we shall return. That much is true, and yet it is not the whole truth. We are dust. We are accounted as dust in the scales of creation and God, of the nations and … Continue reading →

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Last Sunday after the Epiphany: shining through

Posted on February 8, 2016 by Rosalind C Hughes

The closer we come to the core, the center of the gospel, the more clarity and the more mystery we encounter. On the one hand, the story is straightforward. A child’s board book would show Jesus and the disciples dusty … Continue reading →

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The Dorchester chaplains: friends of God

Posted on February 3, 2016 by Rosalind C Hughes

Homily for Evensong at Trinity Cathedral, Cleveland A website dedicated to the memory of the Dorchester chaplains describes a fine detail: Petty Officer John J. Mahoney, tried to reenter his cabin but Rabbi Goode stopped him. Mahoney, concerned about the … Continue reading →

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