Category Archives: sermon preparation

For Thomas

Posted on April 6, 2013 by Rosalind C Hughes

Thought for the second Sunday of Easter: when you are doubtful, uncertain; when you stumble through grief and tears cloud your vision as they fall; be kind to yourself. Remember, Jesus came back especially for Thomas.

Posted in lectionary reflection, sermon preparation | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

The spiritual gift of doubt

Posted on April 3, 2013 by Rosalind C Hughes

Blessed are those who can live with certainty, who can bear the burden of sureness. Because in certainty there is no need for hope; sureness has no need for trust. Some of us are not so strong. We cannot live … Continue reading →

Posted in lectionary reflection, meditation, sermon preparation | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Hungry

Posted on March 7, 2013 by Rosalind C Hughes

My brother was one of those children – maybe you were, or maybe you had one like him – who would, from time to time, express his displeasure at his parents by leaving home. He would pack up his little … Continue reading →

Posted in sermon preparation | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Prodigal

Posted on March 6, 2013 by Rosalind C Hughes

“The Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, ‘This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.’” So Jesus told them a few stories, about things that were lost and then found, about a boy who got a little lost then found … Continue reading →

Posted in sermon preparation | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Jerusalem, Jerusalem

Posted on February 21, 2013 by Rosalind C Hughes

“Jerusalem, Jerusalem! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!” The chicks scatter, competing instead of complementing one another, straining to grow despite one … Continue reading →

Posted in lectionary reflection, sermon preparation | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Year C Lent 1: temptation and perfection

Posted on February 16, 2013 by Rosalind C Hughes

Notes for the sermon that won’t be preached tomorrow: Was there never any danger that Jesus would succumb to the temptings and promptings and proddings of the devil? We tend to trap ourselves in our language of perfection and innocence, … Continue reading →

Posted in lectionary reflection, sermon preparation | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Year C Epiphany 4: Early reflections on Luke 4:21-30

Posted on January 31, 2013 by Rosalind C Hughes

Once upon a time, a boy was born, and he grew up in a regular-sized town, and the people who knew people knew him – the teachers and the coaches and the librarians, the grocers and the beat cops, his … Continue reading →

Posted in lectionary reflection, sermon preparation | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

In bodily form

Posted on January 9, 2013 by Rosalind C Hughes

When our bodies betray us, let us down, we berate them, hesitate to call them holy, when, after all, they are the sacrament of God’s creative genius, each featherlight touch a reminder of the love that engendered our creation, redemption, … Continue reading →

Posted in lectionary reflection, poetry, sermon preparation | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

John’s backstory

Posted on December 8, 2012 by Rosalind C Hughes

(Sunday sermon spoiler alert!) There is a backstory to today’s gospel. Luke gives us lots of context: who was ruling where, and had been for how long; he gives us a snapshot of the political situation, the state of the … Continue reading →

Posted in lectionary reflection, sermon preparation, story | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Christ the King, King George, and Elvis

Posted on November 23, 2012 by Rosalind C Hughes

This Sunday is Christ the King Sunday. Some people are calling it the Reign of Christ Sunday, because of revolutionary or other associations which render the title of king less than desirable in their imaginations. Imagination is key when it … Continue reading →

Posted in sermon preparation | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments