Tag Archives: Jesus

A Gethsemane prayer

For once, just for once you tried to lay your burdens, those acquired from crowds and children, a collection of tax collectors, sinners and scribes along the way – for once, just for once you tried to lay them on … Continue reading →

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The Baptism of Our Lord

Today’s sermon began with yesterday’s story about Noah’s dove… Is this what Jesus meant, when he told his cousin John that he must be baptized to fulfill all righteousness: that he would have to go back to the beginning, when … Continue reading →

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The Feast of the Epiphany at the Church of the Epiphany

The Feast of the Epiphany at the Church of the Epiphany. The first feast of the Epiphany was the revelation of God’s love to the world through the birth of Jesus Christ, and the proclamation of that birth and its … Continue reading →

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Christmas 1

Tomorrow is children’s day at Epiphany – the children are leading us, as in “a little child” etc. For me, poetry is timeless and ageless. The Prologue of St John might be a little obscure to the 6-year-old mind, but … Continue reading →

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Sermon for a Christmas Eve with pick-up pageant

This sermon was written for a Christmas Eve on which the Church of the Epiphany hosted a pick-up pageant, invited any and all children to come and pick out a costume to join in the play as they arrived in … Continue reading →

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Blue Christmas 2013

There is a scene in the extended poem by W.H. Auden, For the Time Being, that has never left me since I first read it. The language is so visual I can almost see it. Transplanted into contemporary England – … Continue reading →

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Year A Advent 3

John sends a message from prison. Whether he is worried, depressed, or angry we don’t know; but he asks, through his disciples, “Are you the one, or are we still waiting for somebody else?” John has already told the whole … Continue reading →

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Year A Advent 2: Snakes and other stories

There are a lot of snakes in today’s readings. In Isaiah, a small child plays over the nests of asps and adders. In Matthew, John the Baptizer calls the Pharisees a brood of vipers. Now, a quick survey of biblical … Continue reading →

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John of Damascus

A homily for Evensong at Trinity Cathedral, Cleveland. In a characteristically involving novel, Kazuo Ishiguro broached the subject of souls. I don’t want to give too much away, in case you still want to read the book or see the … Continue reading →

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Christ the King

The honest thief Don’t tell me you are saving me while we hang here side by side in searing pain under a searing sun; don’t talk to me of gardens of ease where mercy falls down like a river when … Continue reading →

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