light

,

Lucy, John, and You: Witnesses to the Light

,

Today is the 3rd Sunday of Advent, and today, December 13th, is also Saint Lucy’s day. The Feast of St. Lucy is not a major feast day, so it does not take precedence over a regular Sunday service. This is not like Mary Sunday where we get special Mary readings and Mary prayers. It is not like All Saints Sunday with special All Saints readings and All Saints prayers. And even though today is not technically a major feast day, for some people it is pretty major. It is definitely an important feast day for them.

Click “Read More” to read or listen to Bingham’s entire sermon for the 3rd Sunday of Advent.

The Church Year

One of the many things I love about our particular way of following Jesus in the Episcopal Church is the emphasis on the church calendar or the liturgical year. We are one of several traditions that follow the ancient practices of the church year. It may seem a bit esoteric at times, maybe a bit insignificant in the grand scheme of things, but I think it is a valuable tool to help us in our faith and in our lives as we try and follow Jesus.

,

You Are the Light

,

In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and there was darkness over the deep. And God spoke and said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw the light was good. From that moment on, the light coming from God has never failed to shine in the darkness of this world. The creation story tells us that God created two great lights: the greater light for the day, and the lesser light for the night, the sun and the moon, a powerful reminder that even in the darkness of night there is still a light that God has provided for us. As we look back on history and the ways God has been working in this world, we see God has continued to shine light in the midst of our darkness.

,

Wise Men

,

It is 5:00 in the morning. The house is quiet and cold on this winter morning and you hear the rain outside falling on the pavement and the trees.

You have been startled awake by a vivid and very strange dream. You toss in your bed for a bit, but sleep eludes you and the dream haunts you. Perhaps by going over it in your mind, you’ll be able to go back to sleep.

,

God Kindles a Fire in Our Darkness

,

Christmas feels like home and all the comfort that word conjures up inside of me. And yet, I’m acutely aware as we read this Gospel tonight, that the first Christmas was anything but home for Mary and Joseph. They were not home for the holidays when this day first became holy. They were at the end of a long journey, having just left their home, a journey that had been made much more difficult given the late stage of Mary’s pregnancy.

   St. Mary's on Instagram     
follow us: @st.marys.eugene
The Celebrations Intergenerational Choir is St. Mary’s Pop Up Choir! Just three rehearsals Sun, Apr 28 Sun, May 5 Sat, May 11 at 5 pm at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church 1300 Pearl St, Eugene, OR One performance Sun, May 19 at the 9:30 am serv
All set up and ready for tonight’s newcomers dinner! We schedule three of these a year. If you consider yourself new to St. Mary’s we really hope you’ll join us for our next one!
Important Construction Updates: Alley entrance is blocked through Tues, Apr 9 Access to Berktold Hall and Sunday School wing will be through Pearl St side entrance (photo 2) through Tues, Apr 9 All worship services are still happening and church a

Worship. Serve. Grow in Faith.