Transfiguration

Okay folks, I am busy about many things, but I want to get back to this blog. And remember, not much prep for me goes into this---it's what has embedded itself in my memory after preaching these texts many times.

I love Transfiguration of the Lord Sunday. To me, it is a much needed reminded of the Lordship of Christ, with his bleachy-white robe and back lit face, making Warner Sallman prints a parody of what Christ really was and is (sorry, Sallman fans). Ah the sermon, which way to go? The "Fairest Lord Jesus" route, reminding the folks on this Sunday before Lent begins, of the true nature of the man who will be marching to the cross? Or "what was it that those guys were talking about, anyway" route, when Elijah and Moses and Jesus were chatting? That can be a very intriguing way to go(and you can throw in some appropriate humor too...please don't have them talking about who will be the number one seed in the NCAA men's basketball tournament, unless you do it to make some kind of point...and hopefully more than a free throw). Or Peter and the three dwellings---holding on to the moment instead of taking the experience and going forward, or something like that. Or Peter's fear of the transcendent moment--what does that say to us? Or God's voice---"listen to him!" echoing that Sunday after the Epiphany, at the baptism of the Lord. So many ways to go---don't try to go too many at once.

White and beauty need to be everywhere, in your sermon, on the altar. It is a Sunday of light---lots of candles, maybe a variety of portraits of Jesus (beauty I know is in the eye of the beholder but hopefully use ones that speak beautifully the truth of Christ.) The painting above was done by Beato Angelico and dates from the late 14th or early 15th century. I love his work

Hymns---"Fairest Lord Jesus" of course, "I want to walk as a child of the light," "O Morning Star," any that describe Christ in terms of light. There are lots of praise choruses--"Majesty", from the Faith We Sing, "From the Rising of the Sun" p. 2024; "The Lily of the Valley 2062"---also from the UMH--"I want to walk as a child of the light". In "The Faith We sing" there are two newer beautifully written Transfiguration texts--on 2102 by Tom Troeger and 2103 by Carl Daw. I am moved every time I sing 2103--it is to the hymn tune Hyfrydol (Come Thou Long Expected Jesus) .

I am at the office and my sermons are on my home 'puter. I will try my best to post one tonight on the Sermons by Susan blog.

Epiphany 4 B The Authority of Jesus

Having survived the fish, it's time to move on to unclean spirits. The astounding authority with which Jesus heals and teaches is the crux for me of our gospel pericope next Sunday (hopefully you already know that it is Mark 1:21-28) I had always found this scripture a bit hard to preach, because I nearly always have some kind of image or metaphor which guides my sermon-building, based on the scripture and the meaning I sense for me and the folks in the pew. I really never got there. That wis, until I was preaching at Community UMC in 2000 on this scripture (which also was Superbowl Sunday) and I preached the sermon I have posted at:

http://sermonsfromsusan.blogspot.com/

BTW If you ever should be so led as to use something from one of these sermons I am posting, please let the folks know it was me who said it first. This way, you can blame me if things don't go so well :-) But seriously, I'd appreciate a nod... Also, remember these sermons were preached at a particular time; and so some of the observations I make are not as apt now as I hope they were then. This is one of the sermons that I use as proof that one can be nearly too creative in metaphor, but man, even when I read it just now, I realize that time to time, despite my generally self-deprecating sense of my preaching, I did in fact, do really more than okay once in a while. The folks at Community, as I recall, really did get something out of it. And by then, they were used to me.

As I look back over other sermons I have preached on this scripture, another approach I have taken is that where Jesus' authority rested wasn't in intellectually reasoned arguments, or cool headed debate, but in his passion and his lived ministry...integrity you might say, walking the talk. Integrity is in short supply in many facets of our culture, so this might be an approach that would resonate with you and the people.

I took an even different approach in a sermon earlier in my preaching days, and actually it looks like I preached this one in at least two different churches...the Ernest Angley sermon. Ernest was a faith healer with flair to spare broadcasting on Saturday nights in Nashville while I was in seminary at Vanderbilt. Some of us would gather 'round the TV and watch this toupeed, chubby, white suit wearing, carnation brandishing showman. He had an affinity for healing the deaf by putting fingers in their ears and saying "Satan, come out!" He also made the name of Jesus into a 4syllable word..."Ja-E-Sus-a". In the sermon, after dismissing Ernest, I talk about everyone's need for healing, that Jesus does heal, most of the time through our relationship with other, and I end with Nouwen's Wounded Healer story, which I guess every preacher is obligated to use at least once a quadrennium. It's a good story, but many have heard it. I would not preach this sermon again. The Angley image is really too strong. I have grown tired of myself and others who easily dismiss miraculous healing, or the mystery of God's power, or the charismatic gifts. The years and my own deep grief and the witness I can make of the miracle of God's healing since especially the mid-nineties make me a little less inclined to dis those things I don't understand. Not that Ernest wasn't a charlatan, but when the people hear you making fun of guys like this (who really are so easy to make fun of) they sometimes use your take on him as reason to dismiss others who may be true instruments of the gifts of the Spirit. Not that we shouldn't be skeptical. But we NEVER should be so certain that we can define how God works so completely that we think we have in our intellectual grasp the mind of God. Remember, if you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans (or your theology of healing.)

About it being Superbowl: although it isn't on our liturgical calendar, this may be THE high holy day for American sports. You may be doing "Souper Bowl Sunday" where your youth or others bring a can of soup for the local food pantry. There may be Souper Bowl gatherings at the church or in members' homes My advice would be not to worry too much about theologizing at the parties about the game or about American sport or materialism or athletes who make way too much money. For the day, enjoy it and the people. Remember not to drink with parishioners (I would say remember never to drink with parishioners, though I know in other parts of the US there may be different customs), don't get anyone too riled up over team loyalty, and maybe, if you are invited to the home of a member of your church, you might just get to know some of the folks in the pew in a brand new way. Listen at the party more than talk, smile and laugh a lot and refrain from sermonizing if at all possible, though prayer never hurts; in fact it always helps. Offer to pray but in this circumstance but don't push to pray. You personally may need to pray silently for the will to eat one of those appetizers made from Vienna sausages. Try it, though, you might really like it. And enjoy the commercials.

Epiphany 3B

Friends: I will try to get these on on Sunday nights. Because it is Sunday night, I usually am fairly tired, but not for this. I love doing it. But I will not be editing my entry closely which means you get it kind of raw. Hope it still helps!

This next Sunday is known to Cox-Johnsons as "Fish Sunday." There is always a "Fish Sunday," in each of the three years of the lectionary cycle. This year's Gospel lessons are from Mark so the story here is short and sweet. I love it that the Old Testament is from Jonah..so I guess we could call it "Big Fish Sunday"...Wasn't there a movie recently of the same name, minus the Sunday part??? Any illusions there that would work here?


When I have preached this text from Mark I have taken varied approaches. I think I must have preached more often from Matthew than from Mark on this text. I really love the most the account in Luke, and the poignancy there of Peter's confession. I have a link before to a sermon I preached both at Community and at our evening service at Broadway where the theme was "being called from our comfort zones." Please forgive the misspelling and paragraph markings. I originally typed it in Claris, (o, I am old) and have opened in Text pad in Windows Vista. This sermon was preached from the Matthew version, but it works I think for Mark. Please note, though that the verses are from Matthew, I believe not Mark . And you WILL have to overlook the funny little symbol things, because I am not going to take the time to edit it:
http://sermonsfromsusan.blogspot.com/

But for me, this day just shimmers with possibilities for visuals. Did anyone say "fish?" Nets, nets, nets, folks, that some of your fisherpeople may have that are CLEAN, can be strewn, artistically of course, on the altar and other places Scarves with fish on them, any kind of fish will work, and other kinds of nets that are colorful would work well of course.

This gospel story is one that children can very easily act out, as they read it.

I have not checked out the suggested hymns on the GBOD website or on textweek, but ones I tended to use from the UMH are Jesus Calls Us; Dear Lord and Savior of Mankind (or Us All)...I think that is a Samuel Coleridge text...the tune and text are just beautiful and traditional, I know; Lord, You Have Come to the Lakeshore ... for some of us the rhythm is a bit tricky if this isn't sung very often--a good hymn to get your rhythm instruments out and let kids of all ages play; and I really like The Summons from The Faith We sing. Of course from the UMH is Lord of the Dance with its allusion to James and John.

Have fun with fish! And boats! And nets! I hope you have a great Ephiphany 3B!

A very good place to start.

Okay, so it isn't the very beginning, but Baptism of the Lord is a very good place to start this blog since of course, this is the celebration of the beginning of our Lord's ministry.

The way that I have approached this Sunday (this year the account is from Mark) is to focus on the voice from heaven..."You are my Son; my beloved; with you I am well pleased." In Mark and Luke, the words are directed right at Jesus "YOU are my son.." In Matthew the words are "THIS IS my son...." This is always somehow a "wow" moment when I hear God telling Jesus he is well pleased with him, when Jesus has not yet done much (at least not in our recorded gospels and that is our authority...although if you have not read Anne Rice's first two installations of her Christ the Lord books, I would advise you do so. It really caught my heart and imagination).

With the "YOU" words, the gospel lesson for this Sunday just reaches out and says to us preachers "YOU are my beloved, too." And in turn, it is a great Sunday to remind the congregation of that as well. And that usually means, for me, using the Reaffirmation of Baptismal vows in your congregation.

I remember a marvelous sermon on reaffirmation of baptism that Rhymes Moncure preached at annual conference where he said to us all "Did you all know that everyone here has the first first name?" Oh? I thought...and then he said, "Through God's love each of our first names is....precious..precious Jim, precious Brian, precious Susan"...now if you can use that and not refer to Gollum, please do.

Just a word more about the "logistics" of using water with the reaffirmation...yes, remember, this is not re-baptism, so water should not be poured or sprinkled on the head or put in your local UMC baptistery to immerse people in except if they have not been baptized before. I have been sprinkled with water from a palm leaf brought through the congregation; I have used water to place a cross on people's foreheads---which really of course resonates with the coming cross of ashes...think through what this might mean for you or your church; I have come up to the baptistery and touched the water. The most meaningful symbolic act of remembrance for me was being asked to take one of the small clear glass pebbles (like the ones that go in vases) that had been placed in the baptistery (or baptism bowl) covered with water --and then being asked with the rest of the congregation to take it from the water while the pastor asks them one by one "remember your baptism and be thankful." Folks can take their pebble home and be urged to put it someplace where they will encounter it often. I had a person recently from a church I served many years ago take out their wallet and show me the place where he keeps his pebble. Wow. What do you do when there are unbaptized folks, especially youth and adults present? What I have tended to do is to invite them to really think about what it means that God loves them unconditionally and to contemplate what it might mean to be baptized, and somehow, they, in kairos time, "remember forward"...well it usually worked pretty well. And ask them to come take a pebble if they wish to.

Visual suggestions: Use those shells EVERYWHERE that you, and better yet everybody else in the congregation who wants to bring them, collected at the ocean sometime in the past....put those shells on the altar, in the narthex, anyplace else you think of that is appropriate...and use other water themes...water in a clear pitcher, one of those little fountains run during the whole service on the altar...and at Broadway and its wonderful center aisle, we often slithered a long length of bluish fabric (the more transparent the better) down the center aisle as the river in our midst.

Music: Searchfor those appropriate water hymns...everything from Come Thou Fount, to Shall we Gather, and then the great baptism hymns as well. I have a hymn text I wrote for Cana's baptism and we used at Caleb's baptism (at Annual Conference -Missouri East 1991) that I really should make available. It is for infant baptism. I really like You Are Mine for this day from The Faith We Sing.

Enough. Is this kind of thing helpful???