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Advent 1 · Jeremiah 33:14-16 · November 29, 2009
By Joel D. Biermann Thoughts from the text So, it begins again: another church year, another Advent, another Christmas shopping season, another winter … another time of waiting. Waiting through the dark days…
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Proper 29 · Mark 13:24-37 · November 22, 2009
By Joel D Biermann Considerations in relation to the text 1. There is no doubt about the theme for this Sunday’s text. Every Scripture reading for the last two weeks has been…
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The Velvet Revolution, Vaclav Havel, and Stanley Hauerwas…20 years later
The New York Times did a nice retrospective yesterday on Czechoslovakia’s Velvet Revolution on its 20th anniversary. I was 15 years old when the Berlin Wall fell along with all the other…
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Proper 28 · Mark 13:1-10 · November 15, 2009
By Timothy P. Dost Introduction In this text Jesus encourages his disciples—and us—to look not to present things, no matter how externally impressive, but rather to find our hope in Christ, who has…
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Proper 27 · Mark 12:38-44 · November 8, 2009
By Rick Marrs Several years ago, the parish I was serving invited the District’s Mission/Stewardship Executive to preach for our “New Consecration Sunday.” He surprised the congregation with this opening: “Sometimes Christians ask…
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All Saints’ Day · Matthew 5:1-12 · November 1, 2009
By Jeff Gibbs I would suggest that the preacher not try to “cover” the entirety of the Beatitudes; there’s too much here! For a relatively lengthy exposition, see Gibbs, Matthew 1:1-11:1 (CPH, 2006),…
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Jaroslav Pelikan on "the need for creeds"
This morning, American Public Media’s “Speaking of Faith” replayed an interview with the late, great Jaroslav Pelikan on creeds and how they function within religious belief. Excellent stuff.
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Reformation Day · John 8:31-36 · October 25, 2009
By William W. Schumacher The assignment of this text for the festival of the Reformation suggests the question: Was the Lutheran Reformation about freedom? Luther’s famous early work, “The Freedom of a Christian,”…
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Proper 24 · Mark 10:23-31 · October 18, 2009
By Robert W Weise From the Impossible to the Possible of God’s Grace Introduction We live in a world that continues to place personal wealth and individualism over and against the word…
