Whether you call it Veterans Day, Remembrance Day, or Armistice Day, November 11th has long been a day on which to remember and give thanks for those who have served their country. This year it falls on a Sunday. I received little training in seminary about how to, even whether to, mark such days in the church; nor, I am afraid, did I offer my students much counsel. (Perhaps that silence was itself counsel.) While I understand some of the typical church/state concerns of highlighting such days in our congregations, it seems to me that on days like this — or, for that matter, on Mother’s Day or Father’s Day or Thanksgiving...

Luke 2:22-40 Dear Partner in Preaching, It’s amazing how quickly Christmas passes, isn’t it? After all the preparations – both in church and at home – after four weeks of Advent, after carols and service projects, special music and Christmas Eve services…. After all this, it’s suddenly done. The presents are opened, the wrapping paper put in the recycling bin, needles are falling from the tree, and it’s 364 more days until next year’s celebration. Of course, Christmas isn’t done. The church knew that there was no way you could really celebrate, let alone comprehend, the Incarnation in a day, so it recognized twelve days of...

Matthew 21:33-46 Las Vegas. Dear Partner in Preaching, I will confess that I have had a very hard time getting beyond the images and sounds from the horrific shooting in Las Vegas. They have preyed upon my imagination relentlessly, and perhaps they have for you, too…and for many of our people. Violence. More ominously, inexplicable, seemingly random violence. Which is part of what is most frightening. Not only is it becoming clear that there is no easy way to protect vulnerable crowds from gun violence, but also that we can discover no motive, which simultaneously makes this act of horrific violence more random and harder to understand and...

John 14:23-29 Dear Partner in Preaching, You could, I suspect, spend a full year preaching on just this passage and not run out of things to say. “Those who love me will keep my word.” “The Advocate, the Holy Spirit, will teach you all things.” “Do not let your heart be troubled.” “If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father.” “I have told you this before it occurs so that when it does occur you may believe.” Goodness, where’s an honest working preacher to begin? Well, as if often the case when a passage is a rich and complex as this one, sometimes it helps to focus on one key verse or phrase that...