The Unknown Known: Meditation on Good Friday
Is there a balm in Gilead? If we were to ask the imperial powers of this world, then the answer would be no. I just saw a documentary film about…
Category: Sermons
“We wish to see Jesus”
“Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” These are the words of the Greeks who have come to the Festival of the Passover in Jerusalem. They have seen Jesus riding his…
Ash Wednesday: Learning to Love Lent
[Preached at All Saints Church, Pasadena, CA in English and Spanish Isaiah 58: 1-12 Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21] My brothers and sisters in Christ, I invite you to this holy season…
“Do you think God wants you to be miserable?”
Ecclesiasticus 15:15-21 Matthew 5:21-37 Rules, rules, rules. All the readings today are about following God’s commandments, and the general message of them is, if we follow God’s rules and God’s…
The Snark Factor (video and text)
[Preached at All Saints Church, Pasadena, CA on 1/26/2014. Video available here: “Has Christ been divided into parts?” This verse from our reading today in Paul’s first letter to the…
Sermon on Christmas Day: Slouching Toward Bethlehem (video)
Preached on Christmas Day, 2013, at All Saints Church in Pasadena, CA. A video version of this can be found on YouTube. Readings: Isaiah 9:2-7 Luke 2:1-14
Sermon on Christmas Day: Slouching Toward Bethlehem (text)
[An approximate version of what was preached at All Saints Church, Pasadena, CA, on December 25, 2013.] Readings: Isaiah 9:2-7 Luke 2:1-14 Holy people, full of grace, the Lord is…
Sermon: Can we start over?
[Preached in Spanish on Dec. 8, 2013 at All Saints Church, Pasadena, CA] There is a tendency in some parts of the Church to avoid thinking of Advent as a…
Sermon: Jesus is our Gatorade
(Preached in Spanish at All Saints Church, Pasadena, CA, Nov. 13, 2013) My friends in Jesus Christ, Six years ago, I ran my first marathon—the California International Marathon in Sacramento.…
Sermon: “A New Covenant: Hope for Immigrants”
(Preached in Spanish at All Saints Church, Pasadena, CA, Oct. 20, 2013) Texts: Jeremiah 31:27-34 Luke 18:1-8 My friends in Jesus Christ, There are moments in history in which justice…
The Spiritual Practice of Empathy
[Preached in Spanish on September 29, 2013, at All Saints Church in Pasadena, CA] Luke 16:19-31 This story today about the rich man and Lazarus demonstrates the problem with a…
“You will be like a well watered garden”
[Preached in Spanish at the Spanish service at All Saints Church, Pasadena, CA, on August 25, 2013] My friends in Jesus Christ: In the middle of summer, when the San…
Sermon: This Ain’t Your Mama’s Mary Magdalene
[Preached on the Feast of Mary Magdalene at All Saints Church, Pasadena, CA. A video version of this sermon can be viewed via YouTube: My friends in Jesus Christ,…
Gospel on the Ground 