Naked and Afraid

  Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a Biblical image when you google ‘naked and afraid?’ And I know that some of you shook your heads if you say the sign before it was changed to highlight Marita’s funeral. But naked and afraid is Biblical! It’s not often that I…

And Mary Said Yes!

Well, good morning everyone. My, what a fine gathering! Do you recognize me without my blue shawl? You know me as Mary, although I was more commonly called by my Jewish name, Miriam. And this is the kind of thing I wore most days, not the blue of royalty, although I am honored that I…

War for the Planet of the Apes

Spoiler alert: If you haven’t seen it and plan to, don’t read any further. I was a big fan of the original Planet of the Apes from the sixties, so when my husband suggested we go see War for the Planet of the Apes, I readily agreed, despite not seeing Dawn of the Planet of…

Daring to Take Heart

Picture a mid-thirties woman, going through some major life challenges: health issues, marital breakdown, family of origin conflict, financial stress. She is depressed, despairing and fearful of what the future holds. She is walking on her favourite beach wondering where God was in the midst of her life. She came to this beach where she so often…

The Jesus Business

That passage from Paul’s letter to the church in Corinth is often read at weddings, to the extent that one year, I was tempted to take if off my suggested list of readings for weddings. And a few months ago, I saw something on Facebook; advice to a teenage girl on how to know whether…

Love, Poured Out

I am yet another one of those unnamed women in Holy Scripture… Women who played significant parts in our holy stories… but not thought important enough to be named… You people get angry if your name is misspelled in your papers… imagine not being named at all… just ‘a woman…’ Some scholars have thought I was Mary of…

That’s Not in My Job Description!

In order to make sense of the story I just read, you need to have a bit of background. Jesus is taking some time away; he is tired from the demands being made upon him. He was in Tyre, which was an ancient seaport of Phoenicia: one of the great cities of antiquity, famous of its…

Fresh Eyes or Fish Eyes?

Each week, or almost each week, I stand up in front of many of you and tell you where pondering and reflecting on the readings has led me over the last week… and so a sermon is born… But…I want to remind you that just because the readings touched me in a particular way this time,…

No, It Is NOT Finished!

John 18: 1-19:42 April 3, 2015 Ecumenical Good Friday Service This was a bit of an interactive dialogue. When I said the words, “It can’t be finished, oh my God, how can it be finished?” The congregation responded with “No, it is NOT finished!” Those words were what went through my head as I remember that day……