Sauntering with William Law and the Perennial Wisdom of Silence

Readings for the Feast Day of William Law Deuteronomy 6:4-9 Psalm 1 Matthew 6:1-8, 19-21 This reflection was shared at Sacred Saunter Outdoor Eucharist on Saturday April 10, 2021 at Freshwater in Eureka. William Law was a Church of England priest in the 18th century who challenged Anglicans to take Christian living seriously in his […]

Death is Not the End

Readings for Easter Sunday Isaiah 25:6-9 Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 Mark 16:1-8 This sermon was preached at Christ Episcopal Church in Eureka CA on Easter Sunday April 4, 2021 Alleluia Christ is Risen! The Lord is Risen indeed. Alleluia! Happy Easter, everyone! Ever since my first Easter here when this Great Feast of […]

Mark’s Slant on the Easter Proclamation

Readings for the Easter Vigil (Year B) Genesis 1:1-2:4a (The Story of Creation) Genesis 7:1-5, 11-18, 8:6-18, 9:8-13 (The Flood) Exodus 14:10-31 (Israel’s deliverance at the Red Sea) Isaiah 55:1-11 (Salvation offered freely to all) Ezekiel 37:1-14 (The valley of dry bones) At the Eucharist Romans 6:3-11 Mark 16:1-8 This sermon was preached at Christ Episcopal […]

Holy Saturday Saunter with St. Richard of Chichester

Readings for Holy Saturday Job 14:1-14 Psalm 31:1-5 John 19:38-42 This reflection was shared during the Holy Saturday Sacred Saunter on April 3, 2021. Today is Holy Saturday (when we remember Christ in the tomb) and it is also the feast day of St. Richard of Chichester, a 13th century English bishop. After King Henry […]

Seeing Our Likeness in Judas Iscariot

Readings for Good Friday Isaiah 52:13-53:12 Psalm 22 Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9 John 18:1-19:42 This sermon was preached on Good Friday at Christ Episcopal Church in Eureka CA on April 2, 2021. An abbreviated version was published in the Times-Standard on April 3 as “A path toward new life and liberation” When Fr. George Leonard Shultz […]

The Divine Prank of the Paschal Lamb

Readings for Maundy Thursday Exodus 12:1-14 Psalm 116:1, 10-17 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 John 13:1-17, 31b-35 This sermon was preached at Christ Episcopal Church in Eureka CA on April 1, 2021 It’s not very often that Maundy Thursday falls on April Fool’s day as it does this year. In fact, the next time Maundy Thursday falls on the […]

Reimagining the Temple

Readings for the Third Sunday in Lent (Year B) Exodus 20:1-17 1 Corinthians 1:18-25 John 2:13-22 Psalm 19 This sermon was preached at Christ Episcopal Church in Eureka CA on March 7, 2021 According to the Jewish calendar, today is my father’s yahrzeit, which is the anniversary of his death. Although he died on March 19th according […]

The Way of the Cross

Readings for the Second Sunday in Lent (Year B) Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16 Romans 4:13-25 Mark 8:31-38 Psalm 22:22-30 This sermon was preached at Christ Episcopal Church in Eureka CA on February 28, 2021 On January 27th, 1956, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr sat at his kitchen table late at night, anxiously sipping coffee while feeling […]

The Ideal Conditions for Intimate Prayer

Readings for Ash Wednesday Isaiah 58:1-12 2 Corinthians 5:20b-6:10 Matthew 6:1-6,16-21 Psalm 103 This sermon was preached at Christ Episcopal Church in Eureka CA on February 17, 2021. On this first day of Lent, Jesus describes how we fulfill the great commandment, the three-pronged summation of the Law and the Prophets: “Love God, love your neighbor, and […]

Called to Heal: Christ Church Eureka Rector’s Report on 2020

Readings for the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany (Year B) Deuteronomy 18:15-20 1 Corinthians 8:1-13 Mark 1:21-28 Psalm 111 This sermon was preached at Christ Episcopal Church in Eureka CA on January 31, 2021 O Christ, the healer, we have come to pray for health, to plead for friends. How can we fail to be restored, when […]