Dear Partner in Preaching, Hey – I know it hardly helps to get these reflections so late in the week. And I apologize. My work at LTSP, and particularly our efforts to unify the Philadelphia and Gettysburg seminaries, has been pretty much all consuming of late and it’s getting harder to find time to write. Again, my apologies. I’ll try to do better. In the meantime, I’ll keep this week’s reflection relatively short. So….what strikes me most about this story is not the miracle itself. This is Jesus we’re talking about after all. But rather the reaction of the crowds. Luke tells us that after Jesus gave life back to the widow’s...

Dear Partner in Preaching, A question: Do you think the disciples were more frightened before the stilling of the storm or after? I realize the answer may seem obvious. After all, not only does Mark describe the “weather event” the disciples are experiencing out on the See of Galilee as “a great windstorm,” but he also tells us that the boat is so swamped with water that the disciples are frightened for their very lives. And yet consider: after Jesus stills the seas and wind with his voice, after the disciples recognize that even the elements of nature obey their teacher, and after all that was once terrifying has been banished, the...

Dear Partner in Preaching, What’s the difference between a fable and a parable? I think answering this question is crucial if we are to preach this passage. You see, a fable is primarily didactic, a clever story meant to offer some insight into and instruction about life – think Aesop’s Fables for a moment. A parable, on the other hand, is intended to be disruptive, to interrupt what you thought you knew and not just teach you something but actually to confront you with a surprising and often unwanted truth. Fables are handy when you want to give kids some good advice or teach them some moral or practical lesson. Who doesn’t remember...