[RCL] Acts 16:16-34; Psalm 97; Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20-21; John 17:20-26 Today’s gospel reading contains the climax and culmination of what is known as the “Farewell Discourse” or “High Priestly Prayer”.  In this scene, John has Jesus and the disciples (minus Judas Iscariot) in the room after the washing of the feet and the last…

Today the scriptures teach us that the Gospel of Jesus Christ, above all other things, is liberation. We see this dynamic all over our story from Acts. We read that Paul and Silas, as they minister in Philippi, attract a hanger-on. She is an enslaved woman, and she is said to have a spirit of…

Imagine thousands of people dressed in white clothes for the Feast of the Epiphany singing, praying, and waiting with anticipation outside a church near the Red Sea in Ethiopia. The faithful sway side-to-side singing praises to God in thanksgiving for Jesus Christ. There are shouts of jubilation when the bishop exits the cathedral holding a…

The Seventh Sunday of Easter always seems to be a sort of in-between place; the Feast of the Ascension was celebrated just a few days ago, and Pentecost is still another week off. Like the disciples, we seem to stand metaphorically staring into the heavens, awaiting the next chapter of our story to unfold. The…

There is a story or parable, variously ascribed to the wisdom traditions of Arab, Chinese, or rabbinic literature, which illustrates well “the changes and chances of this mortal life,” as the Book of Common Prayer describes the vicissitudes, the ups and downs, of this world. According to most versions, the story – no doubt apocryphal…

The readings today are a good example of how amazing, wonderful, and alive the written word of the Holy Scripture is. Although it was recorded at a different time in a different place by people of a different culture, it is still relevant to our lives in the Church and the world today. If you…

The elderly and rheumy-eyed bishop climbed to the pulpit slowly and with difficulty. While he recovered from the effort, the congregation noted the kindness, wisdom, and experience evident on his face. He smiled a wan smile and hunched his shoulders in that familiar gesture of despair and said, “Whenever I have to preach from the…

Saint Paul calls us to be those people who pray without ceasing. The world is a scary place. All three of the lessons we have chosen to read today attest to that fact! In the first lesson (Samuel), the people realize that they have gone against God’s will by asking for a king. But everyone…