Stanley and Lydia

Proper 21, Year C: 1 Timothy 6:6-19 and Luke 16:19-31. Dressed in an ill-fitting pink jacket and tired-looking black flats, I was feeling nervous. How could I not be? I was meeting Mr. Stanley Marcus, whose family founded Neiman-Marcus, the luxury department store.  I was in my early twenties and the designer for the Dallas …

Keep Counting

Proper 19, Year C: Luke 15:1-15 Do you remember learning how to count? For some of us, that was a long time ago!  When I was a young child, counting was fun. And counting by 2s, 5s, and 10s was a nifty trick. Do you remember learning that? Perhaps you also remember that when you …

Feats of Clay

Proper 18, Year C: Jeremiah 18:1-11. Feats of Clay is a pottery studio and gallery located on Burnet Road. Maybe you’ve seen it. I was there with a parishioner last week. We had finished lunch and I invited her to walk across the street with me to check out Feats of Clay. After perusing the …

Christmas in July

Proper 13, Year C: Luke 12:13-21 It’s Christmas in July! I say this because the gospel parable today reminds me of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. You recall the story’s character Ebeneezer Scrooge. He is a person so turned-in on himself that he does not think of others and the consequences of his actions until confronted …

A homily for John

John 14:1-6 They are images of light and they are amazing! During the last few weeks, NASA has released the first few images from the Webb telescope.  While I did not know John, what I have been told about him makes me think he would have been overjoyed to see them. John was always learning, …

Update our Settings

Proper 11, Year C: Luke 10:38-42. Did you hear that? Luke says: “But Martha was distracted.” Well, that could be any of us!  Genevieve was distracted. Tim was distracted. Write your name here … distracted.  The story of Mary & Martha is a well-known to many of us. You are likely familiar with the interpretation of this …

The Good Sam Club

Proper 10, Year C-2022: Luke 9:51-62 My dad would fiddle with the radio dial as the local stations came in and out of range. In the backseat of the car with my sister, we knew exactly where her side ended and mine began. Long before the iPad and iPhone, I would stare out the car …

Jesus calls us to follow, so c’mon.

Proper 8, Year C: 2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14; Galatians 5:1, 13-25; Luke 9:51-62. A lot has happened in the two weeks that I’ve been on vacation! During my flight home yesterday, I watched a black & white film that was released last year, entitled C’mon C’mon. One of the main characters is an insightful and bright …

Pentecost 2022: comfort for troubled hearts

Pentecost C-2022: Acts 2:1-21; Romans 8:14-17; John 14:8-17. I was afraid of the dark when I was a child. I recall waking up in the middle of the night, surrounded by darkness. Filtered moonlight streaming through the limbs and leaves of nearby trees blown about by the wind, dancing shadows across the walls and ceiling of …

Listen Up, Listen In: Jesus is praying for us

Easter 7, Year C: Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20-21; John 17:20-26. Hey – did you hear that? Did you listen in? Jesus is praying. Praying for us — because he knows. Knows the horror and the grief.  The anger and frustration.  In 1st century Palestine and in our present moment, Jesus knows our temptation to despair in the face …