Audio, Pentecost
Louise Fortuna
A Sermon for St. Mary's

As Aimee concludes her year of deacon training with us, she leaves us with a love letter.

Listen to Aimee’s sermon by clicking “Read More.”

A Sermon for St. Mary's
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Minted in God’s Image

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Together we celebrate these young people that are such a wonderful part of our St. Mary’s community. This is an important milestone in young peoples’ lives. These years are a time of SO much change and growth, of learning, struggling, and testing. We celebrate all the possibilities that mark this journey to adulthood and this step of becoming a teenager. We acknowledge that it can be tough, very tough. Tough for teens, and tough for those who parent them. Tough when young people want to push back and try to make their own way to figure out who they are. And tough for those who parent, who want to set limits and keep them safe AND give them space and help them discover who they are. This can be a time of loss AND new life, AND a battle of wills! And so, we acknowledge all of the mess and beauty and potential, and we remind ourselves that others have been here before and made it through, that we don’t do it alone, that God is with us every step of the way. 

Listen to or read Ryan’s entire sermon by clicking “Read more.”

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Being a Good Steward of God's Gifts

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In our readings for today we have a thread running through them, or perhaps we should say a vine is running through them. We have three readings that talk about a vine and a vineyard. The Psalm talks about a vine that has been laid to waste, and the Psalmist is asking why did this happen? The vine shows up in Isaiah, and  Isaiah gives us the answer. What has happened is that the vine has not been well tended, it has not been well taken care of, and as a result it has been producing the wrong kind of fruit. It has been producing the wild grapes of injustice, of violence, and bloodshed, instead of the good grapes of love and mercy and justice. As a result, it has been laid to waste. It has been allowed to be overrun.

Listen to or read Bingham’s entire sermon by clicking “Read More.”

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Patterning our Lives on Christ

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Our second reading today comes from Paul’s letter to the church in Philippi, written while he was in prison. We don't know if this is one of the early times Paul was in prison, or if this the final time […] Paul also wants to address a couple of issues. We don't know how big of a deal they are. This letter is not like some Paul sent to the other Christian communities where there was a great conflict or existential crisis of some kind. But apparently things kept popping up here and there, and he wants to help them with a few reminders to help them grow in their faith.

Listen to or read Bingham’s entire sermon by clicking “Read More.”

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The unfathomable expansiveness of God's love

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Today’s first reading comes from the end of the Book of Jonah. Many of you already know that Jonal is one of my absolute favorite stories in all of Scripture. Although, I confess to you that has not always been the case. I didn’t care about this story when I was a kid. Jonah is a story like that of Noah, because there are animals in it and there are lots of kids books about that, even if they are not kid’s stories. But as a little kid, Jonah did not resonate with me, and when I got older I thought of it as a kid’s story and I didn’t care for it. But when I was in Seminary, I took a class on short stories in the Hebrew Bible. Jonah was one of those stories, and by the end of the semester I was in love with the story of Jonah. 

Read Bingham’s entire sermon by clicking “Read More.”

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God's dream of forgiveness and reconciliation

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Three stories of sibling rivalry. Three stories that teach us so much about the nature of God and what God wants us to do in this world. Three stories of siblings who fight, as so many do, but ultimately the will of God is reconciliation.

Listen to or read Bingham’s entire sermon by clicking “Read More.”

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First Do No Harm; Then, Start Loving

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Owe nothing to anyone, that’s how this morning’s Epistle begins. St. Paul just prohibits being in debt, and that’s it! No mortgage for a house or a business; no loan for a car or boat or RV; no deferrals for taxes; no owing the hospital for necessary treatment. Owe nothing to anyone. It seems very clear and uncomplicated; even so, I doubt there are very many of us who live by it, or even try to live by it, these days. It’s not that we interpret this teaching metaphorically; we just dismiss it as irrelevant in the modern world. Which, I would argue, is actually fine.

But for those who feel guilty about it, I might be able to offer you some contextual help.

Listen to or read Dr. Loren Crow’s entire sermon by clicking “Read More.”

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Let God Judge

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An excellent list of how to fashion our lives after Jesus. Genuine love, hate for evil, mutual affection, honoring others, serving God with gusto, rejoicing in hope, finding patience amidst suffering, remembering to always pray and bring our lives to God, sharing and helping others, and welcoming the stranger. These are solid actions for us aspire to as we seek to live out God’s love today, but…but what about when people are stupid, or mean, or judgmental, hateful, or just plain wrong? Then what? 

Listen to or read Ryan’s entire sermon by clicking “Read More.”

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