Frequently, throughout the year, the introit, the first chant sung by the Choir at the beginning of Mass, sets the tone for the day. The introit for today clearly reminds us that something has changed. The choir sang these words of Psalm 18, “The sorrows of death compassed me, the pains of hell came about […]
A Meditation for Election Day
Do we manifest Christ by the way we live? Most of us probably do live generally decent lives, Christian lives that include concern for truth and for the ways of God. But problems arise in those areas where we fall short – and we all do fall short in differing ways. To manifest Christ in […]
For the Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost
If we ever find a friend or relative in trouble, we will probably be inclined to help, to do whatever we can. But what about finding a stranger in distress? While it may be relatively easy to care for friends and family in time of need, today the church gives us the parable of the […]
The Sunday of Orthodoxy
(A sermon for the First Sunday in Lent) Today, in addition to observing the First Sunday of Lent, we celebrate the Sunday of Orthodoxy – a good time for us to reflect on the significance of the Orthodox faith, the faith that should always guide our lives. Our celebration today recalls a time, over a […]
A Sermon for Palm Sunday
“Blessed is he that cometh in the Name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” Today, with our celebration of Palm Sunday, we enter into Holy Week. This week, beyond all other, is a time of revelation, of showing us all about God and all about ourselves. This week we will see revealed before us […]
A Sermon for Low Sunday
Today, in the Church, we have another one of those days with many names: first today is called Low Sunday in contrast with the high of Pascha. Then Quasimodo Sunday – from the Latin incipit for today’s introit (where we heard that like new born babes we are to desire the spiritual milk of God’s […]
A Sermon for the Third Sunday of Advent
St. Paul lived in Rome for two years under house arrest. He had been arrested in Jerusalem, accused of starting a riot. When he learned of a plot to assassinate him on the way to his trial in Jerusalem, he invoked his rights as a Roman citizen and appealed to Caesar, meaning that he […]
A Sermon for the Second Sunday in Lent – in time of a pandemic
To put it mildly, we live in an uncertain time, perhaps a historic time. A generation from now, students may look back in their history text books and see that this was a time of a severe medical crisis across the entire world, and a time of world-wide panic and confusion. Of course, in addition […]