Phil Hooper
The Rev. Phil Hooper serves as rector of St. Anne Episcopal Church, West Chester, in the Diocese of Southern Ohio. He is a regular contributor to several Episcopal projects including Sermons that Work and the Prophetic Voices preaching podcast. You can find his sermons and other writings at byanotherroad.com.
Sermons and Bible Studies
Answer, Advent 3 (A) – December 14, 2025
[RCL] Isaiah 35:1-10; Psalm 146:5-10; James 5:7-10; Matthew 11:2-11 We want answers, most days. We crave them; we seek them; sometimes we demand them. We peer at stars and read between lines and survey the vast, muddied landscape of our experiences, hoping to catch sight of something clear and telling. Often they are quite matter-of-fact, […]
At the Edge, Proper 21 (C) – 2025
[RCL] Jeremiah 32:1-3a, 6-15; Psalm 91:1-6, 14-16; 1 Timothy 6:6-19; Luke 16:19-31 If you have ever had occasion to stand at the edge of the Grand Canyon, you know that its vastness is difficult to take in. The distances and depths appear unreal to human eyes unaccustomed to such magnitude. Our brains, dazzled and dismayed […]
Departures, Maundy Thursday – 2025
[RCL] Exodus 12:1-4, (5-10), 11-14; Psalm 116:1, 10-17; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; John 13:1-17, 31b-35 It is not as common an experience in North America, but perhaps you have had, at some point or place in your life, the distinctive experience of standing on the platform of a train station, either as the one who is […]
Uncountable, Christmas Day (I) – 2024
[RCL] Isaiah 9:2-7; Psalm 96; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14 (15-20) They came to be counted. This is where it begins: Joseph and Mary, just two of many in the teeming, trembling, transcendent history of their people, traveling the well-worn roads of their ancestors and coming, at last, to Bethlehem, the city of King David. They […]
What Is Loved Is Resurrected, Easter Day (B) – 2024
[RCL] Acts 10:34-43 or Isaiah 25:6-9; Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24; 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 or Acts 10:34-43; John 20:1-18 or Mark 16:1-8 What is loved is resurrected. That is the proclamation of this singular, eternal day, when the dawn kisses the darkness and wipes away its tears. As sunlight pours itself out into the morning sky, so […]
This Feast Is for You, Maundy Thursday – 2022
[RCL] Exodus 12:1-4, (5-10), 11-14; Psalm 116:1, 10-17; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; John 13:1-17, 31b-35 Welcome to Maundy Thursday. Welcome to the feast of God’s boundless hospitality. If you have ever been the person who was not invited to the party, this feast is for you, for all are invited here. If you have ever been […]
Bible Study: Advent 4 (C) – 2021
RCL: Micah 5:2-5a; Canticle 15 (or 3) or Psalm 80:1-7; Hebrews 10:5-10; Luke 1:39-45, (46-55) During Advent and Christmas, we will be using study prompts and other activities tied to the sermon for the week. Read the sermon aloud and follow-up with spoken responses to the two questions at the end. Find our full sermon […]
Drawn Deeper, Epiphany – 2021
[RCL] Isaiah 60:1-6; Psalm 72:1-7, 10-14; Ephesians 3:1-12; Matthew 2:1-12 The metaphors of light and darkness are pervasive throughout Holy Scripture and Church tradition, but such imagery reaches its apogee now, on the Feast of the Epiphany. For those of us in the northern hemisphere, this is the day, in the lean light of January, […]
Bible Study: Advent 3 (B) – 2020
RCL: Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11; Psalm 126 or Canticle 15 or 3; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24; John 1:6-8, 19-28 Emptiness If you have ever stood at the rim of a canyon, you know what it is to comprehend the immense majesty of emptiness. These clefts in the earth, carved by the incessant flow of water over millennia, […]
Emptiness, Advent 3 (B) – 2020
[RCL] Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11; Psalm 126 or Canticle 15 (or 3); 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24; John 1:6-8,19-28 If you have ever stood at the rim of a canyon, you know what it is to comprehend the immense majesty of emptiness. These clefts in the earth, carved by the incessant flow of water over millennia, are rocky […]
Joy and Sorrow, The Presentation – 2020
[RCL]: Malachi 3:1-4; Psalm 84 or Psalm 24:7-10; Hebrews 2:14-18; Luke 2:22-40 If you have ever lived in (or simply loved) a very large city, you will likely have discovered that for the urban dweller, one of life’s greatest pleasures is walking down busy sidewalks on a mild evening as life swirls around you in […]
What’s in a Name?, Holy Name Day – 2020
[RCL]: Numbers 6:22-27; Psalm 8; Galatians 4:4-7 or Philippians 2:5-11; Luke 2:15-21 In Act II of William Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet, the lovestruck Juliet ponders a difficult circumstance: she, a Capulet, has fallen in love with a man who bears the name of her family’s sworn enemies—the name of Montague. Passionately and hopefully, with youthful […]
Don’t forget to subscribe to the Sermons That Work podcast to hear this sermon and more on your favorite podcasting app! Recordings are released the Thursday before each liturgical date.
Receive Free Weekly Sermons That Work Resources!
