According to Those Who…, Trinity Sunday (C) – 2007
According to those who study such things, there are well over five hundred parishes in the Episcopal Church named after the Trinity, making it, along with Christ Church and Saint Johnâs, one of the all-time favorite names for our parish communities. Episcopalians seem to know instinctively the importance of the Trinity in defining their faith […]
Easter Moves Around…, Easter Day (C) – 2007
Easter moves around a lot from year to year. Unlike Christmas, which always falls on December twenty-fifth, no matter the day of the week or the number of shopping days since Thanksgiving, Easter can fall on most any Sunday between March twenty-second and April twenty-fifth. There is, in fact, an entire section of the Book […]
Presiding Bishop: Three mission questions
How do we understand our mission — as Christians, as Episcopalians, as congregations in this church? We might begin with the catechism's definition of it as “to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ” (p. 855 in the Book of Common Prayer). We're meant to understand that in the broadest […]
Presiding Bishop Frank Griswold: A reflection on the Millennium Development Goals
The Church’s engagement in the fight to end global poverty and achieve the Millennium Development Goals stems not from a vague sense of care for the poor, but rather from our faith in a God whose deepest desire is communion with and between all people. From that perspective, I’d like to reflect for a few […]
The Fact That We Have…, Independence Day – 2006
Note: Collect 17 âFor the Nationâ (BCP p. 258) may be used instead of the Collect for Independence Day (BCP p. 242). The fact that we have the option of two Collects for Independence Day hints at the possible ambiguities associated with a national holiday. Such ambiguities also reside within our Gospel. This section of […]
Who Hasn’t Been Impressed…, Lent 1 (B) – 2006
Who hasnât been impressed by the beauty of a rainbow? Rainbows have the quality of wonder: yes, there is a scientific explanation for how light is refracted in a certain way, but really they seem more like magic. After a rain, a colorful bow appears in the sky, a pure gift, a delight to the […]
Remember, Ash Wednesday – 2006
âRemember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.â BCP 265 The season of Lent begins with one word: Remember. âRemember,â says priest or minister as a cross of ash and dust is traced on our brows, âthat you are dust, and to dust you shall return.â It is a sober beginning to […]
Presiding Bishop’s statement on the life and witness of Coretta Scott King
On behalf of the Episcopal Church, let me express my sense that with the death of Coretta Scott King our nation has lost a tireless witness for racial equality and justice. In the wake of her husband’s assassination, Coretta Scott King, with immense dignity and grace, helped to lead the nation in healing while at […]
There Is a Temptation to Say, Epiphany 1 (B) – 2006
The voice of the Lord is upon the watersâ¦the Lord is upon the mighty waters.â – Psalm 29 There is a temptation to say too much about this Feast of our Lordâs Baptism and the lessons before us. The texts speak mightily for themselves: The spirit-wind of God and Godâs voice is upon the mighty […]
An intimacy with Scripture
Several weeks ago, I returned to St. Paul’s School in Concord, N.H., for the 50th reunion of my graduating class. It was a great joy to reconnect with those who had been part of a very important chapter in my life. During the weekend, at odd moments I found myself drawn again and again to […]
They Are Fondly Heard…, Epiphany 4 (A) – 2005
This passage from the Gospel of Matthew is known commonly as The Beatitudes. They are fondly heard by people of good will, and treasured as words of comfort to the afflicted and distressed. But like many popular passages in Scripture, they need to be placed in the context of their original hearers, and then brought […]
It’s Time to Clean House, Advent 2 (A) – 2004
Today may we consider what it means to find springtime in December. In the name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In many parts of the country, late fall weather can be surprising. In fact, it can seem like spring. Temperatures can be unseasonably mild and people can even walk around in their shirtsleeves […]
The New Gentiles, Christmas 2 – 2004
Where should we look to see the magi, the wise men, the Gentiles of today, the people perhaps different from us who are following the star to Jesus? May we consider this question with open hearts. In the name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Today’s Gospel presents an epiphany. Epiphany comes from a […]
Through the Aisles…, Proper 14 (B) – 2003
Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from […]
The Spirit: That We Might Live No Longer For Ourselves, Easter 5 (B) – 2003
Consider a nurseryman. He propagates and raises ground covers. His hands work steadily, day in and day out, creating and co-creating new life for the world. He sits at a bench to do his work. In the still, humid heat of the summer he puts his bench out of doors in a particular spot where, […]
IN THE SHADOW OF WAR
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, We, your bishops, write to you in perilous times. We do not know what the next days will bring. War and the threat of war make many afraid for the welfare of all that they love, and all those whom they hold dear. Such fear gnaws at the edges […]
In The Shadow of War: A Pastoral Letter
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, We, your bishops, write to you in perilous times. We do not know what the next days will bring. War and the threat of war make many afraid for the welfare of all that they love, and all those whom they hold dear. Such fear gnaws at the edges […]
A sermon from the National Cathedral on the 5th Anniversary of the Presiding Bishop's Investiture
Cathedral Church of St. Peter and St. Paul The Most Rev. Frank T. Griswold Presiding Bishop and Primate The Episcopal Church, USA January 12, 2003 Five years ago, on the morning of January 10, 1998, I stood in this pulpit. It was a Saturday, and the day before we observed â as we do this […]
In the Campaigns Waged…, Proper 21 (A) – 2002
Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed against me, and get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! [Ezekiel 18:31 – NRSV] In the campaigns waged around the Bible, and its role, or lack of it, in the public schools, one of the laments is often that we have forgotten […]
A Commemoration of September 11, Various Occasions – 2002
[Note to the reader: This sermon is designed to accompany a service of remembrance. It could follow the reading of the Great Litany from the Book of Common Prayer, or the Gospel lesson.] Suggested Proper for Peace, lessons on page 930, Book of Common Prayer Collect: Almighty God, kindle, we pray, in every heart the […]