These Words from Hymn 95…, Epiphany 6 (B) – 2009
O how I love Jesus, O how I love Jesus, O how I love Jesus ⦠Because he first loved me. These words from Hymn 95 in our Life Every Voice and Sing hymnal come to mind as we think about the amazing miracles of Christ. Todayâs story, about the healing of a leper, reminds […]
Moving toward convention
All the governance machinery of the Episcopal Church is preparing for General Convention — oiling the gears, testing the tire pressure, checking the (electronic) connections, updating the service manuals. The pace is increasing, and it is quite surprising to see the depth and breadth of preparation for our triennial gathering. Some have compared General Convention […]
Today We Celebrate a Rite of Passage, Epiphany 1 (B) – 2009
Today we celebrate a rite of passage: the baptism of Jesus in the Jordon River, the river that held so much significance for generations of ancestors before him. Jesus was baptized by his cousin, John. It was a baptism of repentance, an act of humility and the receiving of a name â the death to […]
St. Paul's, Alexandria 200th anniversary dinner
I've been to several major anniversary celebrations in recent weeks. Last weekend I was in Cincinnati celebrating 100 years with Redeemer parish. Two weeks before that I was on Staten Island, celebrating 300 years with St. Andrew's, on the feast of St. Andrew. Last year I was in Jamestown on three different occasions to mark […]
300 Year Anniversary of St. Andrew Episcopal Church, Staten Island
Itâs an honor and a privilege to be with you for this celebration of 300 years of faithful witness on this island. As I travel around this Church I am continually amazed and delighted to discover the ways in which we are all connected. Last night I found some more of those connections. Your warmth […]
Inherit the Kingdom…, Christ the King (A) – 2008
âInherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.â Today, the twenty-eighth and last Sunday after Pentecost, brings to a conclusion the great â perhaps long is a better word for it â season of time after Pentecost. For that matter, it brings to an end the entire cycle of the church […]
Sermon for Haiti
Greetings. There is an old rabbinical story that goes like this: when a person comes to die, Moses meets him or her and asks, âdid you enjoy everything that God gave you to enjoy?â That story grows out of the same tradition as the story that Jesus tells in this morningâs gospel. Jesusâ story is […]
One Way to Approach…, Proper 26 (A) – 2008
One way to approach scripture is by asking ourselves two questions. âWhatâs going on here?â is the first. It forces us to delve a little deeper, to see if we can get a handle on the passage in question and really understand it. The second question is âWhat does that mean for us?â This question […]
The Fourth Sunday of Easter Is…, Easter 4 (A) – 2008
This Fourth Sunday of Easter is known as Good Shepherd Sunday. In all three lectionary years â A, B, and C â we read the Good Shepherd monologue from the tenth chapter of John. It is a complicated passage, in that Jesus identifies himself as being the Good Shepherd, the Gatekeeper, and even the Gate […]
The Arrest, Trial, Torture…, Easter Day (A) – 2008
The arrest, trial, torture, and crucifixion of Jesus occupy the largest single incident in any one of the four gospels. This incident has been the most widely depicted of everything in Jesusâ life. Every detail of this grisly process seems to have been carefully recorded by the evangelists. The heart-rending details of the final suffering […]
There Are Two Senses…, Proper 17 (C) – 2007
There are two senses of the word “pride.” Sometimes “pride” refers to the self-respect and strength needed to sustain a group in the face of hardship. Thus we have the slogan used in one area of a small Midwestern city: “Pride in the South Side.” Pride of this kind can be acceptable, even necessary. Another […]
Today Is Rogation Sunday…, Easter 6 (C) – 2007
Today is Rogation Sunday, when the church has traditionally offered prayer for Godâs blessing on the fruits of the earth and the labors of humankind. The word ârogationâ is from the Latin rogare, âto ask.â Historically, the Rogation Days are a period of fasting and abstinence, asking Godâs blessing on the crops, for a bountiful […]
Today We Are Invited…, Ash Wednesday – 2007
Today we are invited to swim against the tide. Let us consider that invitation. In the name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. A man was recalling his grandmother’s recipe collection. Some, he remembered, were in well-used cookbooks, and some were on index cards. But he recalled the oldest recipes in her vast collection […]
From the Presiding Bishop: A Word to the Church
I am writing to you in the light of the 75th General Convention of the Episcopal Church in Columbus, Ohio and the reactions to its decisions. A full report on the actions of General Convention is available online at the Episcopal Church’s website www.episcopalchurch.org. However, I want here to offer some reflections of my own. […]
Bishop Griswold addresses General Convention
My dear brothers and sisters. For a long time we have anticipated this moment and great numbers have people have worked very hard to prepare the way. To the Diocese of Southern Ohio I say on behalf of us all: many, many thanks for your warm welcome. To the volunteers I say that we could […]
Cuba: Presiding Bishop’s sermon affirms reconciliation
The importance of World Mission Sunday — observed February 26 across the Episcopal Church — was underscored as Presiding Bishop Frank Griswold preached in Havana, calling for reconciliation between the people of Cuba and the United States. The Most Rev. Frank T. GriswoldPresiding Bishop and PrimateThe Episcopal ChurchFebruary 26, 2006 Cathedral of the Holy Trinity […]
It Is the Custom…, Day of Pentecost (A) – 2005
Each one heard them speaking in the native language of each⦠Acts 2:6 It is the custom at some churches on the Day of Pentecost to arrange for a simultaneous reading of one or the other of todayâs Scripture lessons in multiple languages. Depending upon the linguistic gifts of members of the parish community, for […]
Pillars of understanding
Islamic foundations resemble traditional Christian practices By: Christopher Epting One of many interesting things about the study of the world’s religions is that it often leads to an invitation to examine one’s own religion closely, to critique it and, just as often, to appreciate it more fully. Just as Anglican theology frequently is described as […]
Born in 1496…, Proper 18 (C) – 2004
Born in 1496, John Colet was an English priest on the cusp of the English Reformation, the son of the Lord Mayor of London. He took an M.A. degree at Oxford before traveling to Italy to study canon and civil law, patristics, and Greek. He belonged to a group at Oxford known as the Platonic […]
A word to the Episcopal Church
My dear brothers and sisters in Christ: It has been a little more than six years since my investiture as Presiding Bishop. Over these last days I have been asked frequently – both in gatherings of bishops, clergy and lay people, and by reporters – about my view of the “state of the church.” As […]