12-28-2025 Questioning Christmas

Thomas J Parlette
“Questioning Christmas”
Matthew 2: 13-23
12/28/25
 

          One of my favorite Christmas specials is “Santa Claus is Coming to Town.” It’s one of those classic stop motion shows the 1960’s and early 70’s, like “Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and “The Little Drummer Boy.” I was 7 years old when “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” premiered in 1970 – and that has always been my favorite.
          I think that’s my favorite for several reasons. It has great original songs. The backgrounds are so detailed and meticulous, and its great story. But my favorite part about “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” is that it answers a lot of questions about Christmas traditions.
          In fact, right at the start of the movie, the Mailman/Narrator, voiced by Fred Astaire, opens some letter to Santa from kids around the world, and you hear their questions : Why does Santa wear a red suit? Why does he come down the chimney? Why does Santa have whiskers? Do reindeer really fly? Why do we hang stocking by the fireplace? Why does Santa live at the North Pole? A lot of questions – all of which are answered by the time the show is done. I think that’s why it is my favorite – I like questions to be answered, and I prefer my answers in form of a story.
          Most of those questions center on the traditions of Christmas, not the actual Christmas story about the birth of Christ that we Christians tell each year. For skeptics of the faith, Christmas as tell it brings up its own set of questions, such as: Did the virgin birth really happen that way – How is that even biologically possible? What about all the angels in the story – do angels really exist, I’ve never seen one? Why would Joseph take his wife, nine months pregnant, on a journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem – pregnant women do not like to travel, with good reason, it’s not safe. How did Jesus survive being born in a barn with all those animals – talk about unsanitary, that would never happen today.
          Skeptics are often very well read – they know our story and that leads them to question everything about Christmas. “How could it happen like you say ?” as if this is a reason not the believe the story, – as if the “hows,” the mechanics of the story, matter to God. The question we should ask is “Why?” Why is the story told this way? Why does God choose to have the story of Jesus’ birth unfold as it does?
          Matthew is actually the one telling this story, and he has very specific reasons for telling it this way. In the time of Jesus, all important people – like Kings and rulers and prophets – had unique birth stories. It was a technique used to say, “This person is special, this person will do great things.” Certainly Jesus fit that mold.
          Matthew also tells his story this way because he wanted to show that Jesus, even though he was the Son of God – did not live a charmed life. He faced challenges, as did his family. When you look beyond the pretty pictures we paint of Bethlehem and the stable and the angels and the shepherds all present at the manger, you find a great deal of danger. The threats are ever present, like they are in this story for today, when Mary and Joseph are forced to flee with their baby to a foreign land to escape the massacre that’s coming at the hands of Herod.
          Usually we spend these Sundays of Christmas basking in the afterglow of the Christmas story. We don’t tend to spend much time with the stories that complete the events of Christ’s birth. First we have this miraculous escape, after an angel appeared to Joseph in a dream. The holy family hightails it out of the country, and flee, as refugees to Egypt.
          When Herod realizes that his plan has fallen apart, he flies into a murderous rage and gives orders to kill all the boys born in Bethlehem, and the surrounding country, who were two years old and younger, just to make sure. Both of these unhappy circumstances took place to fulfill scripture that Matthew knew well – and so did the Jews he was telling this story too. They would have mouthed the words of those scriptures as Matthew told his story.
          So, after Herod died, another angel shows up and tells Joseph it’s safe to go back home. So the Holy family made their way back to Galilee, to a town called Nazareth – again fulfilling what the prophets had said that, “He will be called a Nazarene.” Everything was falling into place just perfectly.
          Matthew told his story in such a way as to answer all the questions the Jews at the time had about Jesus birth and whether he was the Messiah – Matthew gave them the answers to their questions in the form of a story.
          Most often we focus on the comfort we receive from Christmas. The warm glow of lights, the presents, the Christmas cards, the food and the parties.
          But if Matthew’s story teaches us anything, it is that that is not Christmas – that’s the holidays. They are two different things.
          The holidays are all about the warm fuzzys, the decorations, the cookies, the feel-good Hallmark movies and all the rest of the stuff that our culture tells us we need to get into the holiday spirit. And all of that stuff has its place – I enjoy it all as much as anybody.
          Christmas is about God coming to be with us – as one of us. That’s Christmas – the rest is holiday tradition, which is useful to put us in the mood to celebrate REAL Christmas, but they are different.
          Christmas is about putting the Christ child at the center of our lives. It’s about the hope that comes to shine light in our darkness. Real Christmas is about letting God lead us into a foreign land, a land we are familiar with, but a land we are willing to journey to all the same because that’s where God is leading us.
          The author and lecturer, Tony Campolo, likes to tell a story about what happened to his good friend Mike Yaconelli. Yaconelli used to talk about a deacon in his church who was slacking off on his “deaconing” duties, if you will. He just wasn’t doing what he was supposed to do as a deacon.
          So, one day, Yaconelli says to this deacon, “I have a group of young people who go to the retirement home and lead a worship service once a month. Maybe you could drive them over there sometime.” And the deacon agreed, he could do that much.
          The first Sunday the deacon was at the home, he was in the back with his arms folded as the kids were doing their thing up front. All of a sudden, someone was tugging at his arm. He looked down, and there was an old man in a wheelchair. He took hold of the deacons hand and held it all during the service.
          The next month, he did the same thing. And the next, and the next.
          Then, one month, the old in the wheelchair wasn’t there. The deacon inquired and was told, “Oh, he’s down the hall, right hand side, third door. He’s not doing well. He’s unconscious. He doesn’t have too much longer, but if you want to go down and pray for him, that would be fine.”
          So the deacon went and there were tubes and wires hanging all over the place. The deacon took the man’s hand and prayed that God would receive this man, and bring into the next life as comfortably as possible.
          As soon as he finished the prayer, the old man squeezed the deacons hand, and the deacon knew the man had heard the prayer. He was so moved that tears rolled down his cheek.
          As he pulled his together and made his way out of the room, he bumped into a young woman, who turned out to be the old man’s daughter. She said, “Oh, I’m so glad you came. He’s been waiting for you. He said that he didn’t want to die until he had the chance to hold the hand of Jesus one more time.”
          I don’t understand – what do you mean?
Well, my father would say that once a month Jesus came to visit. He would take my hand and hold it for a whole hour. I don’t want to die until I have the chance to hold the hand of Jesus one more time.” (1)
The Lord lead that deacon to a land he didn’t want to go – at first. But he followed God’s call, and became the presence of Jesus for an old man at a retirement home.
That’s Real Christmas – following the Spirit somewhere we never expected to go. You can question the nuts and bolts of Christmas and the finer points of the story of Jesus’ birth all you want – as this story shows, it’s been challenged and threatened from the very beginning. But it doesn’t matter. The story has held up for more than 2000 years, and it will hold up for 2000 more.
 The point is wherever we go and whatever we’re doing, we are the presence, the hand of Jesus, for everyone we meet. For in Jesus, God has come to be with us – as one of us. That is more than the holidays – that is Real Christmas.
May God be praised. Amen.

 

 

1. Homileticsonline.com, Tony Campolo. “Becoming what God intended you to be.” 30goodminutes.org.

Christmas Eve 2025 In Our Dark Streets Shineth

Thomas J Parlette
“In Our Dark Streets Shineth”
Christmas Eve 2025
 

Every year on the 24th of December,
We gather here to rejoice and remember.
We remember the stories passed down from of old.
We rejoice in memories of our Savior foretold
 

His birth announced by legions of angels,
Appearing in the night sky, like stars shining bright.
Their good news was delivered to grumpy, scruffy shepherds,
Keeping watch over the flock in the cold winter night.
 

We gather here in this holy place, surrounded by stained glass,
With their colors so bright,
 

Dressed in festive sweaters in the glow of soft candlelight.
The energy of youth jumps from the pews
As excited boys and girls anticipate Santa, whose arrival is due.
 

In the lobby, explosions of bright red and green pop from poinsettias.
Christmas trees, dripping with lovely decorations,
Some handed down from past generations.
We revel in the glorious music and the comforting words
We recall almost by heart.
 

But we know that the world is not always a treat
It is not always so bright and cheerful and sweet.
The world is often a very dark place,
Filled with heartaches, and losses and behaviors quite base.
 

Even as we gather with joy in our hearts,
The loss of loved ones can still cut deep.
The shadows lengthen and the darkness descends.
 

The prophet Isaiah spoke of this darkness when he wrote:
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light,
For they lived in shadows, but now the light shines on them bright.
Isaiah spoke of the baby born in Bethlehem
As the source of this bright hope,
A baby named Jesus,
Born to rule as King of the world, in its full scope.
 

The priest Zechariah, father of John,
Offered a song of hope embodied in this one:
“By the tender mercy of our God,
The dawn from on high
Will break upon us,
To give light to our darkness, in the shadow of death,
And guide our feet into the way of peace.”
 

In December, 1865, young Phillips Brooks decided he needed a break.
As pastor of the Church of the Holy Trinity in Philadelphia,
A sabbatical he did take.
The Civil War had just ended a few months prior,
So he took a trip to Europe, then on to the Holy Land, as was his desire.
On Christmas Eve, Brooks found himself in Jerusalem, that holy city.
 

He acquired a horse and set out towards Bethlehem,
Exploring the land, dirty and gritty.
He rode six miles south to find the spot the shepherds had been.
The stars were twinkling over the quiet little town.
The peacefulness melted Brooks face to a grin.
The perfect stillness, like a dreamless sleep,
Stayed with him and sat in his heart down deep.
 

When young Phillips returned to his church,
He jotted down some verse about the night of Christ’s birth:
“O little town of Bethlehem
How still we see thee lie
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by.”
 

As he sat in his office overlooking Rittenhouse Square,
Brooks thought about the state of the nation, still young and fair.
The last four years of war had left people frightened and scared.
They had been through dark times,
And needed some hope just to know that God cares.
He was moved to add some text to his verse:
“Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting light
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight.”
 

Over the next three years, Brooks added to his poem.
And just before Christmas, 1868, he summoned his friend.
The organist at Church, Lewis Redner, to put music to his verse.
But as hard as he tried, Redner came up dry.
He said, “My brain was all confused, but I was roused from sleep late in the night hearing an angel-strain…
And seizing a piece of music paper, I jotted down the treble of the tune.” (1)
 

“O Little Town of Bethlehem” made its debut on the 27th of December,
Performed by the Children’s Choir of Holy Trinity, (2)
As beautiful as any could remember.
Over the years it has become a standard on Christmas Eve,
With its assurance that hope conquers darkness,
And God will never leave.
 

In December 1941, the times were again as dark as they could be.
The world was at war, Pearl Harbor had been bombed,
 America had to act, this they could see.
So Prime Minister Churchill made the dangerous journey to visit President Roosevelt in Washington D.C.
 

He arrived on December 22nd, and on Christmas Eve, the world leaders
Addressed a crowd of 20,000. As noted in the Washington Post:
“A crescent moon hung overhead. To the southward loomed the Washington Monument… as the sun dipped… behind the Virginia hills.” (3)
 

Churchill began his remarks: “Even though I am far from my own country and my family, I cannot truthfully say that I feel far from home. Here in the midst of war, raging over all the lands and seas, creeping nearer to our hearts and homes, here, amid all the tumult, we have tonight the peace of spirit in each cottage home and in every generous heart… here, then, for one night only, each home… should be a brightly-lighted island of happiness and peace.” (4)
His comments were well received, and the very next day,
He and the President attended church together.
Included in the service was “O Little Town of Bethlehem,”
Which Churchill heard for the very first time. (5)

As we gather tonight to celebrate Christ’s birth,
We revel in the joyful warmth of this season so full of mirth.
But we also acknowledge the darkness that often exists,
The loved ones who are missing, the needs that persist.
So we listen to God’s story and we sing our angel-songs
To remind ourselves for that which our hearts truly long:

In the face of the darkest of times
There is a light that still shines.
We live in the assurance that in our dark streets shineth
The everlasting light; the hopes and fears of all the years
Are met here, in this place, tonight.
O Holy Child of Bethlehem, descend to us we pray,
Cast out our sin and enter in, be born in us today.
We hear the Christmas angels, the great glad tidings tell,
O Come to us; abide with us, our Lord Emmanuel!
My God be Praised. Amen.

 

1.    David McCullough, In the Dark Streets Shineth,” Shadow Mountain, 2010, p 19.

2.    Leben: A Journal of Reformation Life, December 15th, 2016.

3.    McCullough… p 5.

4.    Ibid… p 11.

5.    Ibid… p 15.

12-14-2025 We Are Called to Say Yes

Thomas J Parlette
“We Are Called to Say Yes”
Luke 1: 46b-55
12/14/25
          We all know that this is the season of Advent. In fact, today is the third Sunday of Advent, the Sunday of Joy, when we light the pink candle as a sign of rejoicing over what God has done and will soon do.
          But we’ve also just begun another new season – Awards season. This is the time of year when all the major film awards begin nominating and voting for all the major awards.
          The season usually starts in November, when nominations begin coming out. December heats up with the Golden Globe and SAG nominations, early predictors of who we might see nominated for the big prizes like the Academy Awards.
          The big prizes are awarded in January and February, like the Golden Globes, SAG, BAFTA (the British Oscars), and finally, in March the biggest prize of all – the Oscars.
          So right now, all the public relations firms that represent major stars are burning the midnight oil trying to line up what they call “puff pieces” for their clients. These are articles, interviews, personal appearances on TV or podcasts trying to raise their client’s profiles, create some buzz, somehow make them stand out as better, more important, more skilled or talented than their competition. (1)
          In the language of our passage for today, P.R.reps and agents are looking to “magnify” their clients for awards season.
        Today, we are looking at the second number of Luke’s musical, “Miracles in the Maternity Ward,” as we listen to Mary’s Magnificat. Luke is definitely the most musical of the Gospels. We’ve already spent some time with the “Benedictus,” sung by Zechariah. Today we move to the “Magnificat.” In chapter two of Luke, we will hear the angels sing the “Gloria In Excelsis,” and later in chapter two, when Jesus is dedicated in the Temple, Simeon will sing the “Nunc Dimittis,” giving praise to God for keeping the Divine promise.
          Mary’s song actually has much in common with another song sung in the Old Testament. At the beginning of the Book of Samuel, Hannah sings a very similar song when she learns she is finally about to have a child- “Lord has filled my heart with joy, how happy I am because of what he has done! I laugh at my enemies; how joyful I am because God has helped me!... He protects the lives of his faithful people… the Lord’s enemies will be destroyed… The Lord will judge the whole world’ he will give power to his king, he will make his chosen king victorious.”
          You don’t have to listen to hard to see the connection between what Hannah sang and what Mary now sings. Both songs magnify God’s goodness to those who are faithful.
          Mary magnifies the generous abundance of God. First, to her personally, for giving her a son, and then to the wider world, for bringing mercy and justice.
          Walter Brueggemann has coined a phrase that describes the Magnificat very well. He speaks in terms of a “lyric of abundance” as opposed to the “myth of scarcity.” (2)
          The myth of scarcity is the belief that there will not be enough to meet our needs – enough food, enough money, enough mercy, enough forgiveness, enough grace, whatever it may be. The myth of scarcity whispers “get what you can now, because there is not enough to go around.” Resources are scarce.
          The lyric of abundance, however, sings about God’s ability and willingness to provide what we need. The lyric of abundance celebrates that God is true to God’s promises – God will come through for us. God will provide. The lyric of abundance falls into line with what the Chinese philosopher Laozi wrote long ago in the Tao Te Ching – “He who knows that enough is enough will always have enough.”
          Notice that Mary sings the Magnificat with an air of confidence – she sings everything in the present tense. There is no “God will act in the future” kind of attitude. Or, “I hope God will bring justice and mercy and forgiveness and grace. No, Mary sings as if these things are already done. They’ve already happened. God will – fill the hungry with good things. God will – send the rich away hungry. God will – bring down the mighty. God will – lift up the lowly. Mary’s Magnificat is more than a prediction or a prophecy – it is a description of the new reality. (3)
          To be clear, Jesus’ birth does not erase the challenges Mary will face as an unmarried, pregnant teenager. Her joy does not mean the absence of struggle or conflict. Her joy comes in the connection to a greater story, a story much bigger than just her own. Mary’s joy that we celebrate this Sunday is because she is connected to a hope for more than can be seen at the present moment. Her joy comes from the fulfillment of promises God made to our ancestors. (4)  Mary sings with joy because God does abundantly provide.
          As followers who anticipate and celebrate Jesus’ birth each year, we are called to listen for the lyric of abundance in Mary’s song. (5)  We too are called to say “Yes” to what God is doing and put our trust in the God who provides.
          Edwina Gateley captured this call in her poem “Called to Say Yes:
          “We are called to say Yes.
          That the Kingdom might break through
          To renew and to transform
          Our dark and groping world.
          We stutter and stammer
          To the lone God who calls
And pleads a New Jerusalem
In the bloodied Sinai Straights.
We are called to say Yes
That honeysuckle may twine
And twist its smelling leaves
Over the graves of nuclear arms.
We are called to say Yes
That black may sing with white
And pledge peace and healing
For the hatred of the past.
We are called to say Yes
So that nation might gather
And dance one great movement
For the joy of humankind.
We are called to say Yes
So that rich and poor embrace
And become equal in their poverty
Through the silent tears that fall.
We are called to say Yes
That the whisper of our God
Might be heard through our sirens
And the screams of our bombs.
We are called to say Yes
To a God who still holds fast
To the vision of the Kingdom
For a trembling world of pain.
We are called to say Yes
To this God who reaches out
And asks us to share
His crazy dream of love. (6)
 

On this Third Sunday, we celebrate Joy. The joy that moved Mary to sing her Magnificat – my soul magnifies the Lord. My soul rejoices in the fact that God will always come through for us. God abundantly provides. So, once more, let us follow Mary’s lead, and say “Yes” to what God is about to do, through a baby, named Jesus, born in Bethlehem, upon a midnight clear.

May God be praised. Amen.

12-07-2025 Our Yearly Visit from John

Thomas J Parlette
“Our Yearly Visit from John”
Matt. 3: 1-12
12/7/25, 2nd Advent

So here we are, the second Sunday of Advent, and we have our annual visit from John the Baptist.
There is a rhythm to our Advent texts. Every year, we start with some apocalyptic readings that talk about judgment and the second coming of Christ. Then, on the second Sunday of Advent we welcome that mysterious, boisterous man from the wilderness, wearing his camelhair clothes and eating wild honey like a human Winnie the Pooh. Although John is not nearly as sweet as Winnie the Pooh. The third and fourth Sundays of Advent are reserved for Mary’s Magnificat or John’s question from prison – “Are you the One, or should we wait for another,” as well as the story of Joseph and his angelic visitor informing him that he will have a son.
As for John, he always rolls into town with words of judgment and rebuke, but the John we read about in Matthew’s gospel is especially harsh. The text tells us that one day John walked out of the wilderness,
proclaiming “Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven has come near.” Everyone knew that these were the words spoken by the Isaiah long ago – and now, a new Isaiah appeared bearing the message –
“Repent.” People from Jerusalem, the big city and the people from Judea, the simple country folk, all came to be baptized along the Jordan, confessing their sins. But then, along come the Pharisees and the Sadducees, “coming for” baptism. There’s an interesting little word used here by Matthew – a preposition “epi.” Usually this word gets translated “coming for,” but according to William Herzog in the commentary “Feasting on the Word,” this word “epi” could also be translated as “coming against.” (1)
The Pharisees were a political interest group with a holiness agenda for Israel, and they promoted their program by aligning themselves with factions within in the powerful ruling class. Those the Pharisees and Sadducees were different in many ways, they had a common, potential enemy in John. This honey-eating wilderness man was a threat to their power and control over the religious life of Israel. They needed to check up on him and see what he was up to. John sensed this immediately. They weren’t really there to receive baptism, there were coming against his baptism. The religious leaders from Jerusalem did not want John usurping their authority. So it’s no wonder that John offers them such harsh words. “You
brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee the wrath that is coming. Even now, the ax is ready to cut you down – every tree that does not bear goodfruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” Yes, I’m looking at you
Pharisees and Sadducees.
We would like to think that it’s just the religious leaders way back in Jesus’ day who are the targeted audience here. But, in all honestly – it’s all of us. These words are hard to hear – they are not the warm
fuzzy’s that we would prefer in the days leading up to Christmas. The Chilean biblical scholar Pablo Richard has written a number of works on Revelation and has noted the popularity of the book among Latin American peasants. Whereas themes of judgment are often upsetting to North Americans, these same themes are relished by the poor. It’s not hard to see why: judgment is upsetting only when you
think the judgment will go against you, rather than in your favor! (2) The poor clearly hope that God’s judgment will be good news for them. For us, North American Christians who are pretty comfortable in most things, this call for repentance carries with it a sense of warning and rebuke.
Rebuke is an interesting word. Our bible study this past Wednesday night, we did a quick Google search on rebuke as it related to the original Isaiah. What we learned was that a rebuke was meant to correct and teach – much like a parent would correct their child. They would “rebuke them” with the intent that their child would learn and change their ways. We all had a much more negative idea of the word rebuke than what it was meant to be. We all focused on ideas like punishment, instead of correction. Although John comes across pretty harsh, his call to repentance is less about judgment and punishment and more about teaching and correcting. The word used in this passage is “metanoia.” It means to take on a new mind-set. In this season of Advent, John calls us to change the way we think.

Over the last several days, I’ve been watching the new release of the Beatles Anthology documentary on Netflix. The last episode followed how the remaining members of the group – Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr – went about recording the last song that John Lennon recorded on his cassette player at home. After cleaning up the recording as best as they could, they set to work on recording their parts and mixing the sound. All three remembered how strange it felt to hear their friend’s voice through their headphones after so many years. Often, they were too overcome with emotion to get any work done – they didn’t want to make any changes out of respect to their fallen brother. So they sat down and decided to change their mind-set. They decided that they would approach this process like John had taken a last minute vacation and left them a message. “Listen boys, I’ve gone on holiday for awhile, but I left you this song I’ve been working on. Go ahead and do your thing with it – I trust you.” With that change in their mind-set, they were able to work collaboratively, like they always had and released the last songs John
had been working on solo, as the Beatles.

In this Advent season, John calls us to change the way we think. Our preparation for the Advent of God through Jesus has nothing to do with presents, twinkling lights, hot chocolate and fresh baked cookies or anything else that our consumer society would tell us we need to have to get in the Christmas spirit. Our preparation for the baby soon to be born in Bethlehem, is about taking time to reflect on our life. It’s about getting ourselves into a new mind-set and clearing the way for God to break in upon the world once more.
Karen Hanson is a chaplain at a busy hospital in Minneapolis. She remembers a time when the hospital did some major remodeling. She works as a trauma chaplain, so she is in the emergency room quite a bit.
It was very important that there was a direct path from the ambulance bay to the Stabilization Room so that the critical trauma patients could be quickly transported to life-sustaining help. She remembers at the time that the paramedics had to navigate several tight corners and occasionally an obstacle like some piece of
equipment or an unused wheelchair or extra bed had to be moved to get the patient where they needed to go. When they did the remodeling, they redesigned the Emergency Department to create a beeline straight to the Stabilization Room – no turns, no space for extra equipment to accumulate, just a clear, straight path (3) In an emergency situation, removing obstacles, clearing the way, literally saves lives.
John calls us to repent, to change our mind-set and clear the way for God to break into our lives once more. Yes, John’s words can be harsh, they can be hard to hear. But John’s message can be boiled down
to “Come and get it!” That’s the word that we need to hear today. A fellow preacher, Ozzie Smith, points out that “Hope has emerged from the wilderness. It’s not over,” says John. Grace is here, come and get it. It’s yours for the asking. Smith goes on to say that his preaching professor at McCormick Seminary, Don Wardlaw, used to say, “Leave room for Auntie Grace.” And John’s preaching, although harsh, draws us nearer with grace. Auntie Grace. Auntie Grace says it doesn’t matter what you did, matters what you can still do.” (4)
So, as we gather at the table in this Advent season, let us hear once more John’s call to repent, change our mind-set, and clear the way for God to act once more. Let us not get bogged down with what we have
done, but let’s look forward to what we can still do as we live in God’s grace.
May God be praised. Amen.


1. William Herzog II, Feasting on the Word, Westminster John Knox

Press, 2010, p 49.

2. Daniel L. Smith-Christopher, Connections, Westminster John

Knox Press, 2019, p 33.

3. Karen Hanson, “Prepare the Way,” Bearings Online, Nov. 30 th ,

2021.

4. Ozzie E. Smith Jr., “Come and Get It” Day1.org.

11-30-2025 In Days to Come

Thomas J Parlette
”In Days to Come”
Isaiah 2: 1-5
11/30/25, 1st Advent
         When we think of Martin Luther King Jr., the first thing that comes to mind is his inspiring, optimistic and hopeful words. In fact, on my bookshelf I have a collection of his speeches, letters and sermons called “A Testament of Hope.” We think of words like:
“Let us not wallow in despair, I say to you today, my friends.
And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.”
I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; “and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.” (1)
         You can probably hear the overtones of Isaiah in King’s speech – in fact he quotes Isaiah 40 directly. This is common for Dr. King. His “Letter from the Birmingham Jail” sounds like the Apostle Paul could have written it. And you can the influence of Isaiah on King’s “I Have a Dream Speech.”
         Today is the first Sunday of Advent. This is the season where we live in the tension of the “Already, but Not Yet.” In Advent, we look back to what God has already done through a baby born in Bethlehem, and we also look for forward to what God has not done yet in Jesus’ second coming.
        Isaiah points to this when he talks about the days to come. One day, Jerusalem will be re-established and the people will stream to the mountain of the Lord, so that the Lord “may teach us His ways and we may walk in his paths.”
         Isaiah also addresses his current situation by looking forward to the day when the people “shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks.” During Isaiah’s time, there were threats all around the Northern Kingdom of Israel. There was a constant threat of war from the much larger, much stronger empires surrounding the tiny Kingdom of Israel. So, Isaiah’s prophecy was pretty bold. When he looked forward to the day when “nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore,” – there were no doubt people who scoffed at this notion. “Yea, right, Isaiah – that day is never going to come. That kind of peace and harmony will never happen.”
         This is a pretty natural reaction when we consider the kind of peace and justice that both Isaiah and Dr. King looked forward to. These days to come are the “Not Yet” part of Advent. This is the hard part of Advent. Living with hope is difficult – because sometimes it doesn’t look like this hope we point to will ever be fulfilled. It’s easy to think, “Every year at Advent we talk about this hope in the days to come – but things never seem to get any better. We still in the shadow of war, people are starving right under our noses, the poor keep getting poorer and the rich keep getting richer.”  Pessimism seems the logic response – not the kind of hope both Isaiah and Dr. King talk about.
         Truth be told, toward the end of his career, Dr. King started to get a bit more pessimistic himself. Richard Lischer, in his study of Dr. King’s sermons and speeches from 1967-1968, called The Preacher King, noted that King’s optimism began to fade, giving way to “a more profound critique of the American system.” (2)
         Lischer notes King’s despair when he realized that the changes he dreamed about for our country, the vision he shared in his “I Have a Dream” speech, weren’t going to happen. But Lischer also noted that, “The more pessimistic King grew with regard to humanity, the more optimistic he became about God.”
         This is the optimism that guides Isaiah. He is confident that these things will happen. Notice there is no qualifying or wishy-washy language from Isaiah here. Throughout this passage Isaiah uses the word “shall” – he has full confidence that the Lord will do these things. Jerusalem will be re-established on the Lord’s Holy mountain and all the people – underline “all people” there – will stream to the Lord’s mountain to learn God’s ways. Weapons will be turned into farming implements, and the people shall not learn war anymore.
         Our first reaction might be a pessimistic – “Yea, right, that’s not going to happen,” but Isaiah is certain – The day will come when justice and rightness will be re-established, and “we will walk in the light of the Lord.”
         And all of this will start with a baby born in Bethlehem. A baby that will change the world.
         Garrison Keillor once wrote about how a baby changed his world. In a posy on his website, garrisonkeillor.com called “Walking to Church On a Cold Day,” Keillor wrote:
         “Walking to church on December 1st, against a cold wind, made me very grateful to get there, walk into the warm sanctuary, have a cuo of coffee, shake hands with people. And up front hung the Advent wreath waiting for the first candle to be lit.
         Christmas changed for me 27 years ago. It got small. My mother loved the holiday and we had the tree and stockings and piles of gifts and the big dinner, and I did my best to keep up the tradition after I left home. For a few years I spent Christmases in Copenhagen where Christmas is a monthlong festival with obligatory traditions galore. Mt Danish friends didn’t necessarily believe in sanctification by faith but they believed in singing all the carols around an enormous tree elaborately decorated and then opening piles of gifts properly wrapped and not merely with adhesive tape but also with ribbon tied into bows, followed by a dinner of roast goose, red cabbage and rice pudding, followed by serious drinking.
         But in 1997, as Christmas approached, my wife was nine months pregnant and we sat in our New York apartment with no need of tree or gifts or goose. The anticipation was everything. We lit a candle and waited day after day and on the 29th the hol child arrived and the obstetrical nurse handed her to me, her arms waving, her legs dancing, and the songs vanished, the stores full of junk, the Christmas tree lots, the glittery lights, and it’s been a beautiful simple holiday ever since.
         I don’t come to church Sunday morning as a saint, I come to contemplate my messy life and the time I’ve wasted and friends I’ve abandoned, but on this Sunday morning the deacon read from Luke’s gospel loud and clear, “Be on guard that your hearts are not weighed down with the worries of this life.” Astonishing! A command to lightheartedness!- the opposite of what unbelievers believe church is all about.” (3)
         Isaiah gives us reason to be light-hearted on this First Sunday of Advent. For he reminds us that in days to come, the Lord SHALL bring Peace, Justice and Hope to our world once more.
         May God be praised. Amen.

1.   Americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm.

2.   As cited by Issac Villegas, “American Hell,” The Christian Century, April 2025. www.christiancentury.org.

3.   Garrison Keillor, “Walking to Church On a Cold Day,” garrisonkeillor.com.

11-23-2025 Setting the Stage

Thomas J Parlette

“Setting the Stage”

Luke 1: 67-79

11/23/25
         It all started in 1924. Some employees of Macy’s Department Store in New York City decided to try and draw in some extra business by having a parade. That original Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade looked a lot different than it does now. There were no floats, there were now balloons – just an assortment of animals that had been borrowed from the Zoo. The 6 mile route was more than twice as long as the current 2.5 mile walk. But it started a tradition that has grown beyond Macy’s wildest dreams.
         The parade was first televised nationally in 1947, and it has been part of Thanksgiving every year since. This year, the parade turns 99 years old – so next year, for their 100th birthday should be something.
         It takes a lot of work to organize the Parade. Macy’s has never been specific about how much it costs to stage the event, but estimates put the cost at around 13 million. This year, they expect to include 29 floats, 34 balloons, 11 marching bands and 5,000 volunteers.
         Amazingly, watching the parade is free – Macy’s does not sell tickets. Other companies will arrange “viewing experiences” that can cost a couple of hundred dollars up to the VIP level that can go for 4,000 a person. These are the companies that put up those bleachers you see on TV – Macy’s doesn’t do those. Macy’s has always thought of the parade as their gift to their customers all over the world.
The preparations for the parade go on almost year round, with a crew of 27 painters, carpenters, animators, sculptors, designers, electricians and engineers working some 8,000 hours to make the parade possible. All in all, it takes 2,000 gallons of paint, 300 lbs of glitter, 200 lbs confetti and 375 paint brushes to get the parade ready. All those helium-filled balloons means that Macy’s is actually the 2nd largest consumer of helium in the United States, second only to the US government.
         If you want to go to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade in person – you better go early. Experts advise staking out your spot as early as 6:00 am on Central Park West between 61st and 75th.
         It takes a lot of time and effort to set the stage for a show like the parade. For my money, I think the best seat is in my living room with some hot chocolate and a slice of pumpkin chocolate chip bread – that’s how I like to set the stage for a Happy Thanksgiving. But I love watching the parade every year.
         Today is Christ the King Sunday, sometimes called Reign of Christ Sunday. It is the last Sunday of our liturgical year. Next week we start a new year, as we enter the season of Advent. All the readings we hear on this Sunday celebrate the King who is about the burst onto the scene in the form of a baby, born in Bethlehem. All our Bible passages for today set the stage for the arrival of Jesus.
         Luke begins his Gospel story like he’s writing a modern Broadway musical. You might call it, “Miracles at the Maternity Ward,” because he tells the story of not one, but two miraculous births.
         The first miraculous birth story revolves around Elizabeth and Zechariah. Zechariah is a priest in the Temple at Jerusalem. His wife, Elizabeth, is the daughter of a priest – so holy duties run in the family.
         The Angel Gabriel appears to them and announces that Elizabeth is pregnant and will have a son. Zechariah finds this hard to believe at their advanced age. So Gabriel takes away Zechariah’s ability to speak. For the rest of Elizabeth’s pregnancy – he will be silent.
         Upon first glance it appears that this silence is a punishment for not believing what Gabriel has to say. But upon a reflection, there is another possible way to look at Zechariah’s situation. Instead of being struck as a punishment, perhaps it is meant to provide a time of forced contemplation on this miraculous event. Perhaps Gabriel’s intent is to say – “Look, Zechariah, I know this is hard to believe. It shouldn’t be possible. But just be quiet and observe how God is going to work in this situation. Don’t say anything, don’t try to offer any explanation, don’t offer any skeptical words – just be quiet and watch. Watch and wait.” Sometimes that’s the best strategy – be silent and let things unfold. Perhaps that is what Gabriel is doing here.
         Our passage picks up the story just after John is born. And Zechariah, in the spirit of a classic musical, sings his praises to God and his predictions about what lays ahead for his son. It is a song that we know as the “Benedictus”, meaning Blessed. Later, Mary will also sing her own song, a much more famous song called the “Magnificat” – meaning “magnify”, as in magnify the Lord. But for now, we listen to Zechariah.
         Zechariah’s Benedictus speaks of all the ways in which John will bring God’s blessings to the people of Israel. His son will be the one who will prepare the way for the Lord, he will give knowledge of salvation to the people and remind them that their sins are forgiven. In some of the most beautiful words in the Bible, Zechariah sings – “By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from high will break upon us, to give light to those in sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.” His song makes clear that John will be the forerunner of Jesus, he’s going the set the stage for Jesus, preparing the way for him and guiding the people into the presence of God’s chosen savior. John is coming to start a revolution – not a revolution of violence and uprisings, but rather a revolution of peace, mercy, forgiveness and love.
         Zechariah doesn’t just bless his new-born son, he also points to the roles we all share, to our calling as disciples of this coming King. We too, like John, are called to be forerunners of Christ. We are called to set the stage, to prepare the way, to bear the light and guide others into the presence of Christ, the Prince of Peace.
         There are a few concrete ways in which we can do that:

1. By practicing mercy. (1) When we live with mercy and forgiveness at the core of our actions, we are setting the stage for the coming of Jesus. The New Testament scholar N.T. Wright says, “The art of gentle – of kindness and forgiveness, sensitivity and thoughtfulness and generosity and humility and good old-fashioned love – have gone out of fashion. Ironically, everyone is demanding their “rights,” and this demand is so shrill, that it destroys one of the most basic “rights,” or at least the longing and hope, to have a peaceful, stable, secure and caring place to live, to be, to earn and to flourish.” (2) Living with mercy is to live counter to what our culture teaches us. To live with mercy is to be a forerunner of Jesus and helps to set the stage for Christ.
2. By speaking hope into despair. (3) When we live and speak hope in all situations, encouraging those who are discouraged, reminding them of God’s faithfulness, we are helping to set the stage for the advent of Jesus.
3. By living peacefully with others. (4) In his letter to the Romans, Paul wrote “If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” In other words, don’t go around looking for fights, mind your own business. And, as we talked about last week – be a good neighbor. When we live in peace, we are guiding people into the presence of Christ.
4. And finally, By showing up in faith, even when we are filled with doubt. (5) Remember, at the beginning of this story, Zechariah had doubts of his own, but with Gabriel’s help, he let things unfold, and God did what God does. We prepare the way of the Lord not by having perfect faith, but by showing up with whatever faith we do have, even when we have doubts of our own.
         The title of Zechariah’s song this morning says it all. His “Benedictus” is a song of blessing. He sings of the blessing that his son brings him, but also of the blessing that his son will bring to the people who sit in darkness. In our fractured world, our calling is not to win arguments, but to speak blessings, (6) like Zechariah does today.
         By doing so, we set the stage for the advent of Jesus, the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords and the Prince of Peace – who comes to rule with mercy, forgiveness and love.
        May God be praised. Amen.

 

1. Homileticsonline, retrieved 11/10/25.

2. Ibid…

3. Ibid…

4. Ibid…

5. Ibid…

11-16-2025 Here Comes the Cardigan

Thomas J Parlette
“Here Comes the Cardigan”
Isaiah 65: 17-25
11/16/25, Good Neighbor Sunday
 

         Today’s passage from Isaiah is one of two passages known as the “Peaceable Kingdom” passages. In the mid-1820’s, the Quaker minister and painter Edward Hicks painted a number of works, 62 to be exact, based on two passages from Isaiah – this one from Isaiah 65 and also Isaiah 11: 6-7.
         The verses from Isaiah 11 are probably more well-known – “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.” That reference to the little child is what makes the Isaiah 11 version more popular, because many people see it as a reference to the coming Messiah. So we will hear from Isaiah 11 again when we get into the Advent season.
         These passages motivated Hicks to paint The Peaceable Kingdom many times because in the 1820’s a severe rift developed within the Society of Friends.  For Hicks, the idea of the lion and the ox living peacefully together was a symbol of unity and redemption that he enjoyed painting to encourage the warring factions of Quakers to settle their differences and come together in peace. In the lion and oxen can do it – why can’t we. 

         Hicks almost always focuses the majority of his attention on the animals, both wild and domestic, living harmoniously together. What he leaves out is the first part of the passage here from Isaiah 65 – the part that talks about God creating a new heaven and a new earth. The city of Jerusalem will be a joy and the people will be a delight. No more weeping, no more cries of distress. Babies will live long and healthy lives and an older person who falls short of 100 will be considered cursed. People will build houses and live in them. They will plant vineyards and enjoy the fruit. They will be blessed, and so will their children. Before they can even think of crying out for help – I will be there, promises the Lord. 

         You don’t see that portrayed in Hicks’ paintings – he keeps his attention on the natural world, not so much on the new heaven and new earth - the New Jerusalem, the city of God. 

         In the Book of Revelation, John refers to Isaiah’s prophecy when he writes: “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.” 

         The Book of Isaiah is really two separate books. 1st Isaiah runs from chapter 1-39 and 2nd Isaiah picks up in chapters 40-66. 1st Isaiah speaks to Israel before the fall of Jerusalem and warns them about the consequences of disobeying God’s laws. 2nd Isaiah speaks more comforting words to Israel while they are in exile, having suffered the consequences of the disobedience. Some scholars, painting with a wide brush refer to 1st Isaiah as a Book of Curses, and 2nd Isaiah as a Book of Blessing. There were almost certainly two authors, at least who composed the Book of Isaiah – the length of time between the two is just too long for it to be the same author. But in the ancient world, this was a common occurrence. A disciple of a well-known prophet or someone who knew his teachings well, would often attribute their writings to the more well-known person to lead it a little more credence. 

         The passage we are looking at today is towards the end of 2nd Isaiah, sometimes called Isaiah’s Book of Comfort for the people. 

         Isaiah’s comfort are words of hope looking forward to the coming Messiah. Indeed, Isaiah speaks more about the Messiah than any other prophet from the Hebrew scriptures – that’s why we hear so much from him in the coming Advent season. 

         Isaiah describes the Messiah as both a suffering servant and a sovereign Lord. Of course, you can’t get the full picture of this Messiah without reading the New Testament as well. Based on what Jesus does, we know that God freely offers forgiveness to all who turn to God in faith. This is God’s message of comfort to us, that if we come to God in need, we will find eternal peace and fellowship with God – God does not turn anyone away. 

         The message we find in these closing chapters of Isaiah is the glorious good news that God is, indeed at work. God is restoring what is broken in our lives and in our world. As the passage says, “I am about to create new heavens and a new earth.” The world is about to change.

         The toughest thing about this passage, and many of the prophetic passages we find in the Bible, is that one, little word – “about.” I am about to create a new heaven and a new earth. It’s coming – but it’s not here yet. That is the toughest thing to live with here in this passage. It’s about to happen. The question for us is – “How do we live in these times just before God creates something new.” Can we be part of that process? How do we participate in that new creation? 

         Here is where we turn to the cardigan. This morning we have been doing some intergenerational activities from a new curriculum that our denomination has put out, based on the teachings of Mister Rogers, called “Good Neighbor Sunday.” Fred Rogers was an ordained Presbyterian minister, commissioned by Pittsburgh Presbytery to a ministry with children and families through mass media. So, “Mister Rogers Neighborhood” was actually a validated ministry, as we say in the PCUSA – much like college and hospital chaplains. 

         Rogers had a very unique ministry. We all remember how his show would begin with him entering the room, singing – “It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood…” as he changed into his trademark cardigan and tennis shoes. Then he would discuss whatever issue of the day seemed appropriate. Sometimes, it was a topic from the news, but most of the time it was a topic relevant to his young listeners and the day-to-day challenges they faced growing up. For Mister Rogers, he always preferred talking directly to a camera rather than a sea of people sitting in a congregation. To him, that solitary camera was more personal, more intimate – and it certainly fit his quiet, gentle and friendly style. 

         Although he was ordained a Presbyterian, his theology was very much influenced by the Quakers – the same as Edward Hicks’ was. Fred Rogers was steadfastly non-violent. His show began in the era of the Vietnam war and continued through the Iraq war and the terrorist attacks of 9/11. Through it all, he was always anti-war. 

         Some people speak of Fred Rogers as a modern-day Prophet. And I can understand why. But a recent book by Michael Long called, Peaceful Neighbor: Discovering the Countercultural Mister Rogers, makes the case that Fred Rogers is best understood as a Peacemaker instead of a Prophet. Indeed, at the end of a series of shows on conflict, he ran some verses from the prophet Isaiah as a screenshot at the end of the last episode:

         “They shall beat their swords into plowshares;

         And the spears into pruning hooks;

         Nation shall not lift up sword against nation;

         Neither shall they learn war anymore” (1) 

         These verses stand alongside the ones we read today about creating a new heaven and a new earth. Now, it is true that only God can bring about this new creation – but we can be a part of the process. We can participate in bringing about this creation. The life and ministry of Mister Rogers gives us some insight about how we might do that. 

         First of all – be generous with forgiveness.

         Rogers had a deep respect for a man named William Orr, one of his professors and mentors. When Orr was hospitalized after a stroke, Rogers and his wife went to visit. That morning in church, the congregation had sung the old Martin Luther hymn, “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.” Rogers asked Orr about one particular verse;

         “The prince of darkness grim, we tremble not for him.

         His rage we can endure. For lo, his doom is sure.

         One little word can fell him.”

         Then Rogers asked, “What is that one little word.” Orr thought for a moment and then said, “Forgive,” quoting Jesus’ own words from the cross – “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.” (2)

         So we also should be generous with forgiveness.

         Second – Don’t be afraid to be who you are. Remember, after each day of the 6 days of creation story – God takes a break and considers what has been done. And each time, God says – “Yeah, this is good.” God said that about all of us as well. “Yeah – this person I’ve created, this person is good, just the way they are.” 

         Third – to participate in bringing about God’s new creation, we should strive to see the value, the goodness in other people, especially those people who tend to get overlooked. Rogers often told the heart-warming story about the Seattle Special Olympics featuring nine physical or mentally challenged Olympians about to run the 100-yard dash.

         When the gun went off, one of the boys stumbled at the start line, fell to the ground and hurt his knee. The other eight children ran back to him, helped him to his feet, linked arms with him and all nine finished the race together. The spectators went wild as the kids crossed the finish line. Rogers took the crowd’s reaction as evidence that deep down we all know that what “really matters is helping others win, too, even if it means slowing down and changing our course now and then.” (3)

         The value, the goodness of those competitors had nothing to do with who won – only that they helped each other finish the race. 

         And finally, to live as a good neighbor and participate in bringing about God’s new creation, we need to appreciate and advocate for others and ourselves. If we come to one another without judgment, but acknowledging our need, we will encounter the Spirit of God in our lives.

         Rogers likes to tell the story about an early experience he had during a weekend vacation in New England. He was a seminarian at the time and had gone to hear a visiting preacher in a nearby chapel. “I heard the worst sermon I could have ever imagined,” he recounted. “I sat in the pew thinking – “He is going against every rule they’re teaching us about preaching. What a waste of time!”

         But he soon discovered it was not a waste of time for everyone. Sitting next to him was a woman in tears at the end of the service. “He said exactly what I needed to hear,” she whispered.

         Rogers analyzed the experience by saying that a major difference between his response to the sermon and the woman’s was that she had come in need and he had come in judgment. Because she had come in need, she had opened herself to receiving the sermon as a gift of love, and because Rogers had sat there judgmentally, he heard nothing but the faults.” (4) 

         We live as good neighbors and help bring about God’s new creation when we come before one another acknowledging our need, rather than sitting in judgment.

         When we are generous with forgiveness;

         When we are courageous enough to be who we are and encourage others to do the same;

         When we see the God-given goodness, the inherent value in every person;

         And when we appreciate and advocate for others and ourselves, acknowledging our common need, rather than sitting in judgment;

         Then – we are living as good neighbors.

         Then – we are participating in bringing about the new creation of which Isaiah speaks.

         May God be praised. Amen.

 

1. Michael G. Long, Peaceful Neighbor: Discovering the Countercultural Mister Rogers, Westminster John Knox Press, 2015, p 27.

2. Ibid… p 30-31.

3. Ibid… p 37.

4. Ibid… p 38.

11-09-2025 Home Renovations

Thomas J Parlette
“Home Renovations”
Haggai 1: 15b – 2:9
11/09/25
They say that there are two things you can always count on:
Death and Taxes.
You can’t escape either one. They’re inevitable.
I think I might add one more to that list.
In the waiting room at Olmsted Medical Center, you can count on HGTV being on the TV set.

I suppose this is true in part because of the divided nature of our country these days. You can’t just turn on the news because whether you turn on CNN or Fox News, you’re bound to offend someone.
So, HGTV looks like a pretty good option. Who doesn’t appreciate a good home improvement show to help past the time while they wait 20 minutes or so to see the doctor or get their blood drawn.

One of my favorite HGTV home improvement shows is one called “Help! I Wrecked My House.” I identify with the show because I’m not a particularly handy person when it comes to projects at home – so I don’t have any trouble identifying with these poor people who take on a major DIY project like a bathroom remodel or installing a new kitchen and end up making a mess of things.

The whole premise of “Help! I Wrecked My House” is that the host, Jasmine Roth, brings in her team of professionals to come in and transform these home disasters into dream spaces in record time.

It’s too bad HGTV didn’t exist when he Israelites came back from the Babylonian Exile. They sure could’ve used some help.

Rebuilding and renovating is what lies at the heart of this text from Haggai today. In this passage, we listen to the prophet Haggai speaking to Judah on God’s behalf.

Haggai is another of the Minor Prophets, a contemporary of Zechariah, who brought the word of God to Judah after they returned to their homeland after being taken away in exile to Babylon some 40 years before.

As with most of the other Minor Prophets, we don’t know much about Haggai as a person. We know he was a well - respected prophet, as he is referred to simply as “The Prophet” five times in his short book. He is also noted as someone “who has authority” as well, so he had solid credentials among the people of Judah.

We also know with a good deal of precision, exactly when he was active as a prophet. The Book of Haggai begins with very specific references to the rulers of the day and the festivals going on during the time in which Haggai prophesied. He was active for just a short time – 3 or 4 months between the end of August and mid-December, 520 BCE during the second year of the Persian King Darius’ reign. So right around this time of year, about 2600 years ago was when Haggai was active.

He and Zechariah were contemporaries, and they both shared a common mission, a common goal. Encourage Judah to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem.

Twenty years earlier, King Cyrus of Persia had defeated the Babylonians, and the Israelites were encouraged to go back to their homeland and rebuild their Temple in Jerusalem.

Well, it took a while, but the Israelites, the people of Judah finally went back home and over the course of those 20 years they slowly rebuilt their homes and their lives. Things were not easy. Their economy was in ruins, some of them had no homes or land to go home to. They lived through droughts and famine – but they persevered.

It was to this struggling community, this remnant of the faithful, that Zechariah and Haggai brought the word of God. Haggai starts with a question – “Who among you remembers this house in its former glory?” He’s addressing the older people in the crowd, it’s been 40-60 years at this point, so it’s possible that a couple of people there might have seen the Temple when they were young. “Do you remember the way things used to be?” With tears in their eyes, they shake their heads – yes, we remember, or we’ve heard the stories of how glorious the Temple used to be, and it was nothing like this. Things used to be so much better.

The Spanish poet Jorge Amado, writing a few centuries ago, once said, “Always to our view, time now past was just better to us.” (1)

Apparently Haggai was facing this same sort of nostalgic, romanticized, backward glance as well.

Even in our own time, we have a tendency to look back and think – “Things used to be so much better. We used to have a membership of 1500 people, we had 3 full-time pastors on staff. We used to have 100 kids for Sunday School every week and 50 high-schoolers in the Youth Group. Ahhh – those were the days. How do we bring that back? Things used to be so much better.”

It’s human nature to look back with fondness at the “good old days.” It’s also human nature to forget all the difficulties and problems that were still a part of those good old days – but we block those memories and hold on to the good stuff.

Haggai begins with the memories, the good old days, when the Temple was still there in all its splendor, acknowledging that, yes, you remember the Temple, the Lord’s house as this magnificent worship space, praising God with its awes-inspiring architecture. It was indeed, magnificent. But then we wrecked it by drifting away from the Lord’s way. The Lord’s vengeance came, we were conquered, the Temple was destroyed and we were taken into Exile. But the Lord never left us completely – punished us, yes. But never abandoned us. Now we are back. Over the last 20 years, you have concentrated on rebuilding your own homes and lives – now it is time to rebuild and renovate the Lord’s house, the Jerusalem Temple, and reconstruct God’s community.

True – it does not look as magnificent as it once was. But if you want God’s presence among you – you must make space for the Lord.

The thrust of Haggai’s message can be boiled down to this:
“Take courage, do the work, for I am with you. My Spirit abides with you; do not fear.”
First, he addresses the leaders of the remnant of Judah:
“Take courage, Zerubbabel. Take courage, Joshua.”
Then Haggai addresses the people:
“Take courage, all you people of the land.”
Three times the prophet calls for “courage.”
“Take courage, do the work, for I am with you.”
Why does Haggai call for courage? What exactly were the remnant afraid of? Were they afraid of being conquered again? No, that already happened. They had returned home with the blessing of the most powerful rulers of the day.
No – they were afraid of failing. The Temple had been so magnificent. Look at it now- it was still basically a pile of rocks. What if God’s house was never restored? What if they failed this ultimate test of home renovation?

It is to this fear of failure that Haggai speaks. “Take courage. Do the work that I have called you to do,” says the Lord. “Do not fear – I am with you. Rebuild the Temple – Rebuild the community. My Spirit abides among you, my Spirit dwells with you. Do not fear.”

I hope you hear the relevance in this old prophecy. In our own day, we are being called to renovate God’s house. We are being called to restore God’s community. In Haggai’s day, the center of religious life was the Temple. That was the visible symbol of God’s presence among the people. It is our Christian belief that Jesus came to take the place of the Temple. Jesus, God’s Son, became for us the visible symbol of God’s presence dwelling among us.

So, when Haggai assures the remnant of Judah that God is with them – he assures us of the very same thing. Not even the most difficult circumstances or the most arduous, overwhelming task will persuade God to stay away. Whatever it takes to help the faithful, God is able and willing to do.

Implicit in this prophecy is that God will also provide what the faithful need for the work they have been called to do. The resources they need to rebuild and restore the church – physically and spiritually – will be there, even if they come from unexpected places and even from other lands and cultures. God will provide, even if God “shakes the nations” to do so.

Which brings us to Haggai’s final point. As you rebuild and renovate, don’t worry about what the new Temple looks like. Don’t worry about how splendid and magnificent the new building looks – or doesn’t look as compared to how things used to be.

No – instead, concern yourselves with whether God has decided to make the Divine presence felt among you – in your building, sure. In your programs and ministries, of course. But most importantly, in your community – how you treat each other, how you care for one another. That is where God truly dwells. That is the true splendor that God desires.

As Haggai reminds us, “The latter splendor of tis house shall be greater than the former – and in this place I will give prosperity.”

And for that, may God be praised. Amen.


1. Nelson Rivera, Feasting on the Word, Year C, Vol. 4, Westminster John Knox Press, 2010, p 266.

10-26-2025 A New Reformation

Thomas J Parlette
“A New Reformation”
Luke 18: 9-14
10/26/25, Reformation Sunday
         Luke makes no secret about where he’s going with his Gospel. He gives us a heads right from the start. Before Jesus is even born, his mother Mary sings the Magnificat, a song about the great reversal that is coming.
         “God has brought down the powerful and lifted up the lowly…
         “God has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty…”
         Luke returns to this theme of reversal throughout his Gospel. Just to remind you of a few stories:
         In Chapter 7, we hear about the woman who was a sinner crashing a dinner so she could anoint Jesus with an expensive ointment from an alabaster jar. The host of the dinner party wanted to send her away, because she was a sinner and did not belong with the righteous people gathered at the table. But Jesus offers a quick story about a creditor that forgave one person a debt of 500 hundred denarii and another person a debt of 50 denarii.
 “Which one will be more appreciative?”
 “I suppose the one who has been forgiven the larger debt.”
 “Good answer” says Jesus. “Since I arrived you have done nothing for me, showed me no hospitality. But this woman hasn’t stopped kissing me and anointing my feet. Therefore, her sins, which are many, are forgiven.”
The lowly sinners are lifted up, and the greatly respected are knocked down a peg or two – a great reversal.
Later in Luke’s Gospel, we read about Lazarus and the Rich Man. In life, Lazarus was the lowest of the low, and the rich man enjoyed all the comforts life had to offer. But in death, Lazarus finally received his reward, and the rich man sat suffering in Hades. He tries to convince Abraham to send Lazarus to give him a drink and then to go warn his five brothers of their impending doom – still seeing Lazarus as a servant and not a person.
I don’t think so, says Lazarus. If they won’t listen to Moses and the prophets, well that’s their problem. There is no getting around the great reversal that is coming, when the powerful will be cast down and the lowly lifted up.
Our story today is one of Luke’s great reversal stories. Jesus has a parable to tell to some of those who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and regarded others with contempt
“Two men went up to the Temple to pray,” says Jesus. “One, a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.”
Already the alarm bells start going off – “Uh-Oh, a Pharisee, we know where this is going.” Whenever a Pharisee enters the picture, we immediately cast him as the bad guy. After years of conditioning by biblical interpretation, we see them as self-righteous, rigid, hopelessly bound to their rule books, blind to human need and lacking in compassion.
         In contrast, we see the tax collector more as a good guy, a regular, blue-collar guy, struggling to get by, doing what he has to do, repentant, meek and simple.
And yet, in Jesus’ world, this was simply not the case. In fact, the Pharisees were the good guys – religious, devout, trying to live out God’s will the best they could. Yes, for them that meant following the rules, but their intent was good. The Pharisees followed the rules because that’s what they thought God wanted.
On the other hand, we have the tax collector. We tend to look at him as the virtuous characters in parables like this – but in reality, in Jesus’ world, the tax collector was the bad guy. Tax collectors worked for the hated Roman Empire, extorting money from their own people. As agents of Rome, they owed a certain amount of money, no exceptions – anything on top of that amount was their profit. That’s how they made a living, so most tax collectors had a reputation for over-charging and ripping people off. Their fellow Jews looked at tax collectors as traitors, as collaborators with an occupying enemy force. And they were hated for it.
So, when Jesus pulls yet another great reversal and holds the tax collector up as the righteous one in this parable – it is yet another stunner that gets people talking.
And why is that exactly? What does the tax collector, this Roman collaborator do that earns him Jesus’ praise?
It all comes down to how he prays. Notice that both the Pharisee and the tax collector as depicted as devout. They are both at the Temple in Jerusalem. They both engage in prayer. But the Pharisee gives thanks that he is not like other people – especially, it seems, that tax collector over there. The Pharisee reviews before God his resume and considers himself righteous by virtue of everything he has done and the way he lives his life.
Whereas, the tax collector prays differently. He approaches God with obvious shame and humility, not even daring to look upwards to heaven. He does not present any sort of spiritual resume, nothing about the good he may have done with his life – he says only, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!”
The great reversal hinges on humility, righteousness hinges on reliance on God’s mercy and grace, not trusting in whatever spiritual and religious resume you’ve built up over the years.
In March of 2022, the Religion News Service reported that when asked in a poll how well Christians represent the values and teachings of Jesus, 29% of religiously unaffiliated respondents said “not at all”, while only 2% said Christians represent Jesus’ values and teachings “a lot.” The numbers were a bit less harsh among respondents of non-Christian religions, but still, 18% said “not at all,” and just 6% said “a lot.”
In response to this rather harsh critique, Episcopal Bishop Michael Curry said, “Closing the gap between people’s perceptions of Jesus and their perceptions of his followers will take a “new Reformation,” one that includes not only “re-presenting” a Christianity that looks more like Jesus to the rest of the world, but also a better “re-formation” of Christians around Jesus’ teachings and way of life.” (1)
Re-presenting and re-forming what people’s perspectives were on what God expects is exactly what Jesus is doing with this parable. It’s not the most obvious choice for a Reformation Sunday – but it is a good one. Jesus, the first and greatest reformer comes not to abolish the law, but to fulfill the law. Jesus came to re-form God’s people.
Instead of rigid adherence to the law, Jesus comes to temper the rules and regulations with love and compassion. To a people who depend on themselves and their own actions to bring about righteousness, Jesus comes to remind us that God is the only one who grants righteousness – and God does so with mercy and grace. This parable underscores one of the bedrock tenets of our reformed faith – nothing we can do will earn us salvation, instead, salvation is a gift from God, given with mercy and grace.
Some 1500 years later. Martin Luther experienced a great reversal of his own. He said of the experience: “Then I had a feeling that straight away I was born again, and had entered through the open doors into paradise itself. The whole scripture revealed a different countenance to me.” (2)
With this parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector, Jesus reminds us once again that:
“I have come to hear and respond to the prayers of sinners who cry for mercy.
I have come to make sinners righteous.
I have come to give you the gift of being justified in God’s eyes. (3)
I have come to re- form my followers into the people God intends them to be. A people who are guided by love, mercy, grace and compassion. A people with open hearts for those who have been neglected, downtrodden and ignored.
For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all those who humble themselves will be exalted.
May God be praised. Amen.
1. Homileticsonline, retrieved 10/6/25.

2. Richard A. Jensen, Preaching Luke’s Gospel, CSS Publishing Company, 1997, p196.

3. Ibid…

10-05-2025 Rekindling the Gift of God

Thomas J Parlette
“Rekindling the Gift of God”
2nd Timothy 1: 1-14
10/5/25, World Communion
          This morning we are continuing to look at the communication between Paul and Timothy – one of the Paul’s closest companions and disciples. As we learned last week, Timothy had probably been the pastor for the Christian community in Ephesus for up to 4 years when Paul starts sending him these letters of advice and support.
          This second letter to Timothy is a very personal one. Paul mentions some of the hardships and challenges he has faced. He alludes to the churches of Asia turning on him and abandoning his teaching. He also speaks of the physical challenges he has faced. Many scholars believe that Paul knew he was close to the end of his earthly existence, so the tone of 2nd Timothy has the air of a farewell address, Paul’s parting words to his close friend and confidante.
          Farewell addresses have a long history in the pages of scripture.
Moses gave his parting words as he stood at the threshold of the Promised Land, knowing that he was not going to enter the Land the Lord had promised to Israel.
Elijah gave some parting words to his protégé Elisha as he literally passed the mantle to him before being swept up into the clouds on a flaming chariot.
Even Jesus gave a farewell discourse, as it is called, in John, spanning chapters 13-17.
That tradition has continued into modern times with books such as The Last Lecture by Randy Pautsch, Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom, and the commencement address Steve Jobs gave to the graduating class of 2005 at Stanford when he was dying from cancer.
The noted Psychologist Erik Erikson offered up an explanation of why so many people feel called to offer up some words. In his book, The Life Cycle Completed, he suggests that “the end stages of human life involve generativity and integrity – making a positive contribution and having the confidence that one’s life has mattered.” (1)
Paul is doing that here with his advice to Timothy. He is looking for the positive contribution that his life and ministry have made. In turn, his advice is designed to help Timothy lead a life of faith that will also be a positive contribution to the Christians in Ephesus.
Paul has four main topics to discuss:
1. Recharge yourself, rekindle your faith.
2. Don’t apologize for the faith you have, be proud of it and stand firm.
3. Hone your teaching skills, so you may present the Gospel effectively.
4. Protect what you have, guard your faith.
Paul starts by expressing his confidence in the faith that has been passed down to him – first from his grandmother, Lois and then from his own mother – Eunice.
The story is told that four preachers were gathered for lunch and the question was posed – what is your favorite translation of the Bible and why?
The first preacher said, “I like the King James version. I like the beautiful use of the English language.”
The second preacher said, “My favorite is the New American Standard. It’s a better translation, much closer to the original Greek and Hebrew.”
The third preacher said, “I am partial to the Good News Translation. It’s easier to read and understand in our modern language.”
After a bit more thought, the fourth preacher offered his perspective, “I like my mother’s translation of the Bible.”
The other three expressed their surprise – “I didn’t know your mother was a Biblical Scholar.”
“Oh, she’s not. But she translated her Bible everyday into her daily life. And it was the most beautiful and convincing translation I ever saw.”
That’s what Paul is talking about when he brings up Lois and Eunice. Paul is confident that the faith Timothy grew up seeing in them, lived out every day, will nourish his own faith and allow him to rekindle and recharge.
In essence, that’s what we do when we gather at the Lord’s Table – we remember the words Jesus taught us. We remember the faith of those who’ve gone before us. We gather around the table and when we celebrate with the two most basic sources of nourishment – food and drink, represented by bread and wine – we rekindle our faith and recharge our spirits for the journey of faith. And today, we get to do that with Christians all over the world.
Once upon a time, there was a minister who got a call about a parishioner who hadn’t been to church in awhile. So the pastor stopped by the see this man.
The man was sitting in his living room in front of a fireplace. The fire was dying down – it was still smoking and giving off some heat but the embers were slowly dying.
The man greeted the pastor – “Hello Reverend, what brings you by today?” The pastor sat down by the fireplace, but didn’t say a word.
After sitting in silence for a bit, the man said – “I know I haven’t been around church much lately. I just can’t seem to get myself there. I feel worn-out – I guess you could say my spirit is tired.”
The pastor nodded his head, and then reached forward for the fireplace poker.
Without saying a word, the pastor poked and prodded the logs on the fire, jostling them around, shifting their positions to allow a little more air to fan the flames. Soon, the fire was raging again, giving off heat for the whole room.
The two sat there for a minute in silence, enjoying the fire. Finally, the man said, “I see your point pastor, I just need a little rekindling to get my fire going again. Thank you – I’ll see you on Sunday.” The pastor smiled, got up and let himself out.
Sometimes we just need to rekindle the faith we’ve got – the faith that’s been passed down from our family and from generation of Christians that have gone before us.
So come to the table today, my friends, with Christians from all over the world – as we rekindle our faith with the bread and the cup.
May God be praised. Amen.

1. Erik H. Erikson, The Life Cycle Completed, (New York; Norton, 1982).

09-21-2025 The Cunning Manager

Thomas J Parlette
”The Cunning Manager”
Luke 16: 1-13
9/21/25
         This morning we have before us one of those passages that make us wonder – “How did this story ever make it into the Bible?” Are you sure this is something that Jesus really said? One the earliest theologians of the Christian Church, Augustine of Hippo, is said to have remarked, “I can’t believe this story came from the lips of our Lord.” (1) He’s not alone. I’m sure all over the country this morning, this troublesome parable is being set aside for something a little more palatable.
         The New Testament scholar Charles Cousar once said that “Luke 16: 1-13 is one of the great exegetical mountains of scripture.” (2) Even Luke seems a bit uncomfortable with this story as he tacks on a number of sayings about wealth to the end of the story – “Whoever is faithful with a little will be faithful with much…” No one can serve two masters, you can’t serve both God and wealth.” Those sayings might be true – but is that really what this parable is about? It’s seems like an interpretative stretch to make this story reinforce that point.
         There is this manager who oversees his master’s estate. Rumors get back to the master that his manager is mis-managing the estate’s resources. The NRSV says that charges were brought to the owner, but the owner never investigates or asks for his manager’s side of the story. He simply takes the rumors at face value and fires his manager.
         The manager knows that he is ill-suited to do much else, so he comes up with a plan. In order to ingratiate himself to the people he has been taking advantage of - he calls in people who money to the estate and tells them to change the amount they owe – he cooks the books, in modern parlance., so that they might take him in when he gets fired. The owner arrives, takes a look at the books, and he is impressed with his manager’s resourcefulness and cunning, saying “he had acted shrewdly; for the children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of the light. I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes.”
         That’s where most scholars think this parable ended. The next three verses were either later additions to try and make sense of this weird story, or perhaps it’s Luke, leafing through his notebook of Jesus sayings and trying to find something to tie this parable up in a cleaner way.
         One of the earliest methods of interpreting Jesus’ parables was to approach them as allegories – kind of like John Bunyan’s Pilgrim Progress. Every character represents something. So, the first thing early commentators did was go through the parable and figure out – “Okay, which character represents God and who represents us.”
         These days, we now that parables are not allegories. Some modern scholars like to say there are two kinds of parables. Those that say:
        1. “Go and do likewise…” And those that say:
         2. “How much more…”
This parable, misnamed “The Dishonest Manager”, is an example of a “How much more…” parable. I say misnamed because the manager is never proven to be dishonest, he is fired because of rumors and hearsay.
         As for the actions he takes reducing his master’s debtors, scholars have come up with two main ways to explain this.
         1. The manager subtracted the unfairly high interest rate the people working the land were subject to. Technically, this was against the law because in Deuteronomy there were laws against usury – charging interest on moneylending.
         2. Or, some scholars have theorized that the manager reduced the debt by subtracting his own cut of the profit.
         Either way, the manager, dishonest or not, doesn’t exactly come out smelling like a rose. Something seems fishy here. And when Jesus tells us to “make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth…” what are we supposed to do with that. No matter how much scholars try to explain the intricacies at work here, this is a difficult parable to wrap out heads around.
         Recently, Marianne Borg posted on her father’s website, marcusjborg.org, these thoughts on parables:
         “Parables are not journalistic reports. They didn’t really happen… But that doesn’t mean they aren’t telling a truth. They tell a truth but they tell it slant.
         As Emily Dickinson wrote: “Tell the truth but tell it slant, the truth in circuit lies… The truth must dazzle gradually or every one be blind.”
         Jesus’ parables are stories told at a slant. And we may not know what to make of them right away.
         And parables are not tidy little moral tales for us to figure out. Although we tend to work hard saying that they are.
         And there isn’t just one way to interpret a parable or even a right way. Although they may lead us to question what we have always assumed is the right way. They don’t tell us what to do. They don’t give us an answer. Or explain themselves. So why the parable? What good can come out of a parable?
         Well, they invite us to come and see… See another point of view. From another angle of vision. They just might blow the dust from our eyes, as we continue to travel along the way.
         Parables are not about God. I know, I thought they were about God too. How often do we hear or read a parable and ask, now who is God in this story? But Jesus parables are not about God – they ae about the KINGDOM of God.
         And remember that Jesus spoke about the kingdom of God as a sharp contrast to the kingdom of Caesar, the kingdom of Empire. The kingdom of Empire was the oppositional context of Jesus’ day. And Jesus’ parables, in their own way, illustrate the contrast.” (3)
         So what is the truth that Jesus is trying to get at with this “slanted” story.
         When we consider the context of the rest of Luke, chapter 16 and beyond, we see that one of the themes emerging here is wealth, money and how to use it before it uses us. So Jesus is trying to say something about money here.
         The biblical scholar Robert Tannehill notes that this cunning manager has effectively backed his master into a corner. “The master would have two problems with honor…
1. A master who cannot control his subordinates is dishonored. It would not be good for this master’s reputation to let it be known that his manager had swindled him.
2. Trying to take back a gift is a dishonorable thing. The alternative is to ratify the reduction of the debts and take credit for it.” (4)
         You can see why the master recognizes the shrewdness of his manager’s actions. He’s saying – “Ah, you’ve outwitted me. You’ve learned the game well. Good job!”
         A similar thing once happened to Henry Ford when he had become a rich man. It is said that on a visit to Ireland, his ancestral home, in 1912, Ford was staying in Cork. While he was there, a couple of Trustees of the local hospital paid him a call.
         “Mr. Ford, we’re building a hospital here in Cork, and we think it would be a marvelous memorial to your dear departed father – who left his native land for the fair shores of America – if you would make a gift to support this worthy endeavor.”
         So, Henry Ford, took out his checkbook and wrote out a check for 5,000 pounds.
         The next morning, he opened the local paper and saw the banner headline: “American millionaire gives 50,000 to local hospital.”
         Ford wasted no time in summoning the two hospital trustees. He waved the newspaper in their faces. “What’s the meaning of this?” he demanded.
         “Mr. Ford, we apologize. Such a regrettable error! But not to worry, we can fix it. We ‘ll get the editor to print a retraction in the next issue, declaring that Henry Ford had given not 50,000, but 5,000 pounds.”
         Ford again pulled out his checkbook. He wrote a check for 45,000 pounds and handed it to the apologetic trustees. But he didn’t let it go. “I am making this further gift under one condition,” You must erect a marble arch at the new hospital entrance, and place upon it a plaque that contains this verse from the Bible: “I was a stranger and you took me in.” (5)
         A bit shady? – yes. Dishonest? Absolutely. But in the end, Ford’s money went to a good cause. The trustees of the hospital, along with the manager in this parable, were shrewd and cunning in their dealings – but the money was used to do good.
         So, the first point we could take away from this parable could be to use money and wealth to do good, not just to amass more and more wealth.
         Along those same lines, the second point we can take from this parable is that it appears it’s more important in Jesus’ eyes to build relationships instead of building resources. Resources, possessions, wealth – they will all disappear one day. But true wealth lies in building relationships with others. That’s what the manager does, that’s his golden parachute. Invest in those people who work the estate in the hope that they will take him in when he is fired. A little cynical? – yes, maybe. But also pretty practical and cunning.
         I like the way Eugene Peterson puts it in his biblical paraphrase “The Message.” It is not an exact translation, and he takes a bit of poetic license – but I think he captures the spirit of Jesus words well. At the end of this parable, Peterson paraphrases Jesus’ words as:
         I want you to be cunning like this manager, I want you to be “on constant alert, looking for angles, surviving by your wits. I want you to be smart in the same as the manager – but for what is RIGHT – using every adversity to stimulate you to creative survival, to concentrate your attention on the bare essentials, so you’ll live, really live, and not complacently just get by on good behavior.”
         This is a difficult story to come to grips with. But the truth told at a slant here is:
1. Use your wealth to accomplish good things for God’s children.
2. Concentrate on building relationships instead of wealth.
         That is how to live in God’s kingdom.
         May God be praised. Amen.

 

 

 

1. J. William Hawkins, Feasting on the Gospels: Luke Vol.2, Chapters 12-24, Westminster John Knox Press, 2014, p 92.

2. Charles B. Cousar, Feasting on the Word, Year C, Vol. 4, Westminster John Knox Press, 2010, p 97.

3. Marianne Borg, “Parable of the Mustard Seed,” marcusjborg.org.

4. Homileticsonline, retrieved 9?15/25.

5. Ibid…

09-14-2025 The Company You Keep

Thomas J Parlette
“The Company You Keep”
Luke 15: 1-10
9/14/25
         When I was entering Junior High for 7th and 8th grade, my parents started reminding me about the effect that my friend group would have. I remember them saying to me and my sister, “People will make assumptions about you based on who you hang out with – so be careful that you choose the right kind of friends.”
         By that, I know they meant for us to hang out with kids who didn’t do drugs, or drink or smoke. They wanted us to hang around with more clean-cut kids, our friends from church, those kinds of kids. They were reminding my sister and I of the age-old wisdom – “You are known by the company you keep.”
         That bit of wisdom goes back a long way. The oldest mention I found was from the Greek philosopher, Euripedes, who died in 406 BC. His version of the saying, while a bit sexist today, still holds up – “Every man is like the company he is wont to keep.”
         This saying also appears in the Bible, you can find it in Proverbs 13, v. 20- “whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools suffers harm.”
         In other words, “You are known by the company you keep.”
         It’s interesting that Jesus seems to fly in the face of this advice, even though we find it in the Book of Proverbs. Jesus doesn’t seem to care a lick about who he hangs out with. He is perfectly content to spend his time rubbing elbows and raising a glass with the worst sort of people – tax collectors and sinners. I like the way Eugene Peterson puts it in The Message – “By this time a lot of men and women of “doubtful reputation” were hanging around Jesus…”
         The Pharisees, the important religious leaders and the upstanding members of society were not pleased with this. They started whispering behind Jesus’ back, or as Peterson puts it, “they growled.”
 “Look at him,” they whispered – “he takes in sinners and eats with them. He treats them like old friends. What does he think he’s doing?” Their complaining, whispering, growling and grumbling is not lost on Jesus. As he looks around the room and sees all the grumbling and growling going on, he decides – it’s time for a couple of stories.
He stories we hear this morning, starting with Chapter 15 and continuing through the first 10 verses of Chapter 19, make up what the prominent biblical scholar Luke Joseph Fitzmyer refers to as the “Gospel of the Outcast.” (1) The stories in this section of Luke show God’s concern for those who tend to be despised, excluded or condemned. Stories included in these 4 chapters are ones like the dishonest manager, the dishonest judge, the rich man and Lazarus, the 10 Lepers, the Pharisees and the Tax Collector and the well-known story of Zaccheus. These stories form the heart of Gospel of Luke.
The stories from Chapter 15, continuing into chapter 17, appear to be told on a single occasion. The over-arching theme of the three stories in Chapter 15 is the theme of repentance – but perhaps not quite in the way we expect. When we hear that word “repentance”, we likely jump to advent or lent when we are called to change our ways or turn back to God. That’s how we usually see repentance – an activity that we make an active choice to participate in. We choose to repent – or we don’t. But these stories change the definition of repentance just a bit. As usual, Jesus has some surprises in these two short parables for today.
The first story is about a shepherd who goes off looking for 1 sheep who is lost, leaving the other 99 to fend for themselves. As I said, there are some surprises in this story.
Surprise #1 – God is likened to a shepherd. This would have offended everyone in the room. Shepherds were considered to be like those people we see with cardboard signs asking for money. They were of the lowest social caste, akin to a vagrant and quite possibly a petty criminal. In our modern interpretation, we have romanticized shepherds as clean-cut, blue collar, everyday sort of guys – but that wasn’t the image that came to mind for people in Jesus’ day.
Surprise #2 – the shepherd leaves 99% of the flock on their own while he goes off in search of the 1 who is missing. Most people in Jesus’ audience would have thought to themselves – “What? What’s he doing? You can’t leave all those sheep on their own. Sheep are dumb, they’re going to get themselves in trouble. What kind of a shepherd is this guy?”
Then, there’s surprise #3 – After finding the 1 lost sheep, the shepherd throws a party to celebrate. Jesus wraps up his parable by saying, “Just so, I tell you there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous people who have no need of repentance.” So, who repents in this story? The sheep?
The second story has some surprises in store as well.
Surprise #1 – This time God is likened to a woman. Again, this would have offended everyone in the room. How could this be, God as a woman? No – that can’t be. In fact, this is the only time that Jesus tells a story that casts God as a woman. There are several parables that feature women as the hero – there’s the story of the persistent widow who demands justice, the widow who puts all she has into the Treasury at the Temple, and the woman who changes Jesus’ mind when she points out that “even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from their Master’s table.” But this is the only time that Jesus likens God to woman.
Surprise #2 – When she finally finds the lost coin, she does the same thing the shepherd did when he found his sheep. “She calls her friends and neighbors and invites them to rejoice, I have found the coin that I had lost.” Both stories feature parties and celebrations when the lost are found.
Surprise #3 – We return to the theme of repentance. In the first story, it appeared that the sheep repented – which is kinda strange. But the surprising weirdness of this second story is that a coin – an inanimate object – is what is lost, and apparently repents. A sheep and a coin repent – is this what Jesus is saying? Very strange.
These two little parables challenge us to reconsider how we approach the idea of repentance. Ken Bailey is biblical scholar who spent his career teaching the bible at Seminaries in Egypt, Lebanon and Jerusalem. This gave Bailey the unique opportunity to connect with Middle Eastern scholars and students who gave him a different outlook on familiar bible stories. He has written numerous book, such as Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes and Paul Through Mediterranean Eyes – but one of his main scholarly interests have been the stories in the Gospel of Luke, especially Jesus’ birth narrative and the 3 stories of Luke, chapter 15, in particular, the story of the Prodigal Son, which follows up these stories for today.
Bailey points out that since sheep and a coin cannot actually repent, the possible action in these stories which could constitute is the finding of the lost. Repentance, therefore, could be defined as our acceptance of being found. (2) That’s radically different from our usual approach to repentance. Usually we think of repentance as an action WE decide to take. We initiate repentance. And that is one aspect of it.
But that’s not what happens in these stories. In these stories, repentance is defined as our acceptance that God has found us in Jesus Christ. So, repentance is not a decision WE make, but an action initiated by God. It is God, through Jesus, that initiates repentance. Through Jesus Christ, God has found the lost.
Of course, this means that we must acknowledge our own “lostness.” If you’ve ever been in the position of having to ask directions, you know how difficult this is to do.
In the days before we all had GPS on our phones, we would occasionally be put in the position of having to ask for directions. Men in particular had the reputation of never asking for directions. Oh no – that would be admitting weakness, not something that men, or women for that matter, like to do.
I can remember sitting in the backseat of our family station wagon and listening to my mother and father discussing how to get somewhere unfamiliar. My Mom would ask, “Why don’t we just stop and get directions?”
“Because I don’t need directions,” my Dad would say. “I know where I am.”
“I know you know where you are,” my Mom would answer, “but we don’t know how to get to where we want to go. Let’s just stop and ask for directions.” That last comment was not a question.
Eventually, my Mom always won out and we stopped at some gas station in the middle of the nowhere and got directions. Sometimes the directions we got where wrong – and my Dad would just smile.
Nobody likes to admit they are lost. Nobody likes to admit that sometimes we all just need to be found. The good news for us today in these two little parables, is that God will always come find us. When we wander off from the flock – God is like a shepherd who comes looking for us. When we are lost like a single, silver coin – God is like the persistent woman who will not rest until she finds it. And in the end, God rejoices, God throws a party – because the lost have been found.
During the children’s time this morning, I read a book called The Runaway Bunny. It’s a simple story that’s been around since 1942 – but I think it tells of a profound theological truth. I think Jesus would have been proud to have told it himself. The little bunny wants to run away – be on his own.
“If you run away,” says the mother bunny, “I will run after you.
Then I will become a fish and swim away.
And I will become a fisherman, and fish for you.
Then I will become a rock on the mountain, high above you.
And I will become a mountain climber, and climb to where you are.
Then I will become a bird and fly away.
And I will become a tree that you come home to.” (3)
Whatever escape plan the little bunny comes up with. Mom has a plan to come find him.
God is the same way with us. Whatever escape plan we come up with – God, through Jesus, will come looking for us. No matter how lost we are, intentionally or not, no matter how stubbornly we refuse to ask for help – God will come looking.
It is said that we are known by the company we keep. Jesus knew this. He wasn’t contradicting what is found in Proverbs. He was just putting his own spin on it. He chose to be known by the company he kept – the sinners, the outcast, those who were lost and needed to be found. In his life and the company he kept, Jesus demonstrated that God will always come looking for those who are lost. And nothing makes God happier than when the lost are found.
May God be praised. Amen.

 

1. Joseph Fitzmyer, The Gospel According to Luke, X-XXIV (new: Doubleday, 1985), p 1072.

2. Kenneth E. Bailey, Finding the Lost: Cultural Keys to Luke 15 (St. Louis: Concordia, 1992.

3. Margaret Wise Brown, The Runaway Bunny 1942, HarperCollins Children’s Books

08-31-2025 Assigned Seats

Thomas J Parlette
“Assigned Seats”
Luke 14: 1, 7-14
8/31/25
         As many of you know, our oldest son Grafton is getting married at the end of September. It’s a fairly small and simple wedding – but still, it’s a wedding, so there are things to plan and details to take care of.
         One of the details is figuring out the guest list. Oh, sure, you can say “it’s going to be a small service, just family and a few friends.” But then you sit down to make a list, and suddenly the numbers add up fast. If you invite uncle Joe, then you have to invite all your cousins, and their spouses. And what about their children? Are you going to include them in the service, provide childcare, or perhaps a special kid’s menu.
         If you invite one or two of your work friends, then you’ve got to invite them all. And then you’ve got to think about your boss and your most important clients. Maybe you should invite them too. And then there are your high school friends – how many of them make the cut.
         All of a sudden the list grows from 30 or 40 people to 200 or more. Things get complicated very quickly when you’re making wedding plans.
         Once you get the guest list sorted out, then you get to make the seating chart. For this task it would be very helpful if you had a degree in international diplomacy. You’ve got to consider who gets along with who, who are the introverts, unlikely to interact with their tablemates, and who are those people with the social skills to keep the guests their seated with entertained. Who needs to sit near the head table and who could sit a bit farther away. This process is best done with a large white board and maybe a couple dozen sets of magnetic game pieces so you can make all the necessary adjustments in your seating arrangements. And don’t forget to take a picture of your final chart.
         Looking after your guests and putting together a good seating arrangement is a challenging task in the planning of any wedding.
         Things were just as complicated in Jesus’ day. This morning Jesus gets invited to a Sabbath dinner at the home of a leader of the Pharisees. Out text tells us that the Pharisees were watching him closely. And they had good reason, Jesus had a rather checkered past when it came to the Sabbath – especially in regards to all the rules and laws you had to follow.
         This is the fourth time Luke tells us about Jesus breaking the rules on the Sabbath. The first time Luke tells us about Jesus’ troubled relationship with the Sabbath regulations, he and his disciples are traveling together through a field of grain, and his disciples pluck some grain to have as a snack. Some Pharisees hear about this and mention that harvesting grain is a violation of the rule against working on the Sabbath. And Jesus responds, “The Son of Man is the Lord of the Sabbath.”
         This response is interesting to the Pharisees. Whenever Pharisees enter the story, we tend to immediately cast them as the villians, dressed in black and twirling the ends of the moustaches as they await a chance to tie Jesus to the train tracks.
         But the truth is, the Pharisees were both concerned and curious about Jesus’ teachings. After all, interpreting the laws of the Torah is what they had devoted their lives to. So they wanted to hear more from this itinerant preacher. Not that they always agreed with Jesus – but he made some good arguments, and they were curious. So they paid close attention.
         Then, right after the plucking grain story, Luke tells us the story of how Jesus healed a man with a withered hand – again, on the Sabbath. This time, when the Pharisees pointed out the he was breaking the Sabbath law, Jesus countered by saying, “I ask you, is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath – to save a life or destroy it.” I mean, what do you say to that. Nothing – and the Pharisees knew it. They had no answer to Jesus’ question.
         Another Sabbath arrives and Jesus is in the synagogue, and a woman appears who is bent-over, unable to stand up straight. Again, Jesus heals her and the Pharisees object. And Jesus answers, “You take care of your oxen and your donkeys on the Sabbath – why shouldn’t you take care of this woman – a daughter of Abraham, on the Sabbath.” Again – no good answer from the Pharisees – tensions escalate.
         Which brings us to today’s episode. It is the Sabbath once again, and a leader of the Pharisees invites Jesus to his home for the Sabbath meal.
         For some reason, the lectionary omits the healing story that happens next, as Jesus heals a man had dropsy. Most biblical scholars think this referred to swelling in the feet or legs – like gout or edema of some sort. Jesus asked those lawyers and Pharisees present of it was lawful to sure people on the Sabbath or not. But, at this point, the Pharisees seem to have learned their lesson – they are silent. They say nothing.
         So Jesus heals the man, and answers his own question, perhaps muttering under his breath a bit, “If one of you has a child or an ox that has fallen into well, you would pull it out immediately, wouldn’t you, even if it was the Sabbath.” Again, the Pharisees say nothing.
         Then Jesus’ attention shifts back to the table. In Jesus’ day, meals like this were extremely important. They were social events that determined your place in the community. One of these dinners would be set up around a U-shaped table, with the host at the top of the U. The guests would then be seated by importance, reclining on cushions around the U. The closer you were to the host, the more important you were, or the richer you were.
         So as Jesus watched the dinner guests jockeying for the best seats around the table, he offers some advice. “When you are invited to a wedding banquet, don’t sit down at the place of honor, in case someone more distinguished than you has been invited. You might be asked to get up and move down to a lower place. Instead, when you arrive, sit in the lower place, so that your host might say, “Friend, move up closer to me.” For all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” A sense of humility – that’s what drives this whole passage.
         Sometimes we think everything Jesus says is original to him. But most of the time, Jesus is drawing on scripture that is well-known to his audience – then he twists it just a bit to make his point. Such is the case here. What Jesus says here about seating arrangements at a dinner party, can actually be found in the Book of Proverbs.
         Proverbs has many sayings prohibiting arrogance and recommending a sense of humility. The book also has lots of advice about table etiquette. But the proverb that most closely resembles what Jesus says here is found in Proverbs 25: 6-7: “Do not put yourself forward in the King’s presence or stand in the place of the great; for it is better to be told “Come up here”, than to be put lower in the presence of a noble.” Very close to what Jesus advises – and the Pharisees would have known exactly where he was quoting from.
         A sense of humility, an attitude of selflessness – that’s what drives this story. Jesus continues this idea when he offers his second piece of advice – this time to his host. “When you invite people for a meal, don’t just invite those people who can repay you with an invitation to their house. Instead, invite those people who could never pay you back. For that you will be blessed, and you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
         Humility and selflessness – that’s what Jesus emphasizes at this Sabbath meal.
         Humility can be a tough concept to come to grips with, especially in our modern world where we grow up being taught that we can do anything, that we are special and we can be whatever we want to be. That attitude, while wonderful in many ways, is tough to reconcile with some of traditional definitions of humility. Here are just a few samplings I found on a quick Google search:
         Humility is “a modest or low view of one’s own importance.”
         Or this – “Humility is characterized by a low self-regard and sense of unworthiness.”
         Interesting, but those definitions are hard to live with in our modern context.
         Here’s one I like a little better:
         Humility is “the feeling or attitude that you have no special importance that makes you better than others.” The key to that definition of humility is that phrase at the end, “that makes you better than others.”
       Or consider this definition, the one most likely to be found on an inspirational poster. “Being humble is thinking of yourself less, not less of yourself.” Short and sweet, and I think it captures what Jesus meant very well.
         But the definition of humility I like the most was one I found on Easyllama.com. It’s a bit long, but I think it’s a nice explanation of humility:
         “Humility is… the quality of having a modest and respectful view of one’s self. It involves recognizing and acknowledging one’s limitations, weaknesses and accomplishments, without arrogance or self-importance.”
        “Humility encourages openness to learning from others, empathy towards others perspectives, and a willingness to admit mistakes and seek improvement. It is characterized by a balanced sense of self-worth and an ability to value and uplift others.”
         That’s what I think Jesus is getting at here, that’s why he offers this reminder about what Proverbs says about humility in the presence of the King. The Pharisees were full of themselves when it came to the interpretation of the law, especially the laws around proper conduct on the Sabbath. They considered themselves the authorities, and Jesus wanted to remind them to have a sense of humility when it came to questions about God’s will. They still had more to learn.
         Once upon a time there was a student who had studied all the great philosophies of the world. He thought he knew everything there was to know. But he had heard rumors of an especially wise man that lived alone in a temple on top of the tallest mountain in the land. So, this young man decided to visit this wise man and see what else he could learn.
         The journey was long and difficult. When he finally reached the Temple, he pounded on the front door. A little old man opened the door.
         “I have come to meet the wise man who lives here. I would like to see if he has anything to teach me.”
         “Come in, come in,” said the old man. “You must be tired from your journey. Let me offer you some tea.”
         So the old man brought out some tea cups and saucers and a teapot filled with freshly brewed tea. He handed a tea cup and saucer to the young man and began to pour.
         When the cup was full, the old man kept pouring. The tea spilled over the cup and onto the saucer and onto the floor.
         “Stop you fool” shouted the young man. “What’s wrong with you, you’re spilling tea everywhere. I came to see what the wise man who lives here could teach me, not to have a cup of tea with his servant.”
         “I see,” said the old man. “I am the one you seek, but I can teach you nothing. Your problem is that your cup is already full. Come back with an empty cup, and I will teach you what I know.”
         The Pharisees were full of themselves – their cups were full. They thought they already knew God’s will. Jesus talked to them about humility so that they could make a little room in their cups to hear about God’s will from the Son of Man himself.
         As it says in my favorite definition of humility from EasyLlama.com – “Humility encourages openness to learning from others, empathy towards others perspectives, and a willingness to admit mistakes and seek improvement.”
         That’s all Jesus is asking from the Pharisees – a little humility like that. That’s all Jesus asks of us as well. Just make a little more room in your cup to hear what Jesus has to say.

         May God be praised. Amen.

07-20-2025 The Hope of Glory

Thomas J Parlette
”The Hope of Glory”
Col. 1: 15-28
7/20/25

         One of my favorite places to go for continuing education is an out of the way little place on the grounds of the Washington National Cathedral in Washington D.C. called The College of Preachers. It is run by the Episcopal church, as the cathedral is as well, but they offer some really great week-long seminars by some of the top scholars in the country. I was fortunate to take two seminars led by Dr. David Buttrick – a leading preaching professor, that I thoroughly enjoyed. In fact, one year, I took a reading week at the College and Juliet came down to visit – and we got engaged in the Rose Garden of the National Cathedral.
          Stepping into the College of Preachers is like stepping back in time. It’s medieval design and atmosphere easily takes you back 800 years to some monastery in England.
          Every morning and evening, we would gather in the ancient looking chapel for prayers and vespers. In the middle of the intimate chapel was a tall cross, not unlike the one we have here in our sanctuary. This cross was made of wood and a unique depiction of Jesus on it.
          Most crosses in Protestant churches are empty, as opposed to crosses you will see in Catholic churches, and many Episcopal churches as well. Protestants emphasize that Jesus died for our sins, but does not remain on the cross, but is now in heaven at the right hand of God. Catholics emphasize the sacrifice of Jesus on our behalf, and usually depict Jesus still hanging on the cross, an atonement for our sins.
          The cross in the chapel of the College of Preachers though is unique in that it depicts Jesus reaching out his arms to wrap around a human figure, whose head and shoulders appear to be pressing deeply into the chest of Jesus – like a big bear hug. (1) Instead of the face of Jesus hanging from the cross, contorted with pain, with blood streaming from the hands and feet – this is a picture of Jesus reaching out to humanity, welcoming us into the fold of God’s good graces with a big hug. This cross does not depict sacrifice and atonement – but rather reconciliation, God’s welcome home bear hug as given by Jesus.
          Reconciliation is an important theme in Paul’s letter to the Colossians. This morning’s passage comes to us in three distinct parts. The first part – verses 15 -20, is actually an early Christian hymn, perhaps the best example of high Christology found in the New Testament. This hymn recognizes Jesus as the image of the invisible God and the first born of creation, extolling the person of Jesus as the “one in whom the fullness of God was pleased to dwell – and through Jesus, God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things.”
          Jesus is the head of the church and all things are held together through him. It is through Jesus that God embraces humanity and all creation in a great bear hug of welcome home reconciliation.
          The second section, verses 21-23, addresses the Gentiles, who were “once estranged and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds.” Paul assures these new, non-Jewish converts that there is good news for you too – because you have been included in God’s bear hug of reconciliation as well.
          The third part of this passage encompasses verses 24 – 28, where we find Paul in a bit of a reflective mood. Imagine if you will, Paul as a grandfatherly figure, sitting on his front porch in a flannel shirt and some khaki pants. He is filling his pipe with tobacco as he launches into some of his favorite memories – “I am now rejoicing in my sufferings… I am so proud of how Christ’s body, the church, is coming along. I went into church work, for one reason – to make the word of God fully known. And now, the mysteries of God are being revealed to the saints. To them, God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery – which is Christ, in you, that is the hope of glory. Christ in you. It is Christ whom we proclaim.”
          So, here is Paul, looking back over his decision to follow Jesus, remembering fondly all the adventures he’s had, and yes, the sufferings he has endured, he leans forward and lets us know that our central purpose is to proclaim Christ, the source of our reconciliation with God. The hope of touching this glory of God, is to know that Christ is in you.
          Our central purpose as a church, is to proclaim Christ. Proclaim Christ in all the ways he is pictured in the Christological hymn that opened this passage from Colossians – the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of creation, the one who holds all things together, the beginning and the end, the one who has reconciled us to God. That sounds pretty clear – but it can be complicated.
          Theologian Brian McLaren, in his book A Generous Orthodoxy, writes about his journey in understanding this Jesus whom we are called to proclaim. He writes about the “seven Jesus’s I have known.”
          As a child, he first met the “Conservative Protestant Jesus”, the Jesus who was born to die.
          As a young adult, McLaren met the “Pentecostal/Charismatic Jesus.” This personal Jesus was involved dramatically in everyday life, but for McLaren, he had questions about God’s involvement not just with individuals, but with the whole world.
          This led him to the “Roman Catholic Jesus”, intimately connected to ancient tradition through the Eucharistic and religious ritual.
          For a time, McLaren turned to the “Eastern Orthodox Jesus”, with it’s emphasis on the Trinity. Along the way, he met the “Liberal Protestant Jesus”, focused on social justice, the “Anabaptist Jesus”, emphasizing peace and nonviolence, and from there the “Liberation Theology Jesus,” who confronted societal injustice and stood with the poor and oppressed. (2)
          That’s a lot of Jesus’s. All of them are legitimate and biblically based – none of them are wrong. All seven Jesus’ that McLaren has met on his journey reflect a different aspect of who Jesus is. When we say our central purpose as a church is to proclaim Jesus – we are proclaiming all these aspects of Jesus, no just one to the exclusion of the others.
          This Christ that we proclaim is in you, the hope of glory, says Paul.
          Linda McKinnish Bridges was working in China a number of years ago, visiting local Chinese high schools, helping students and teachers improve their skills in preparation for university studies in the United States. She says, “I spoke the language but was cautioned by friends to be careful and not enter into any discussion about the Christian faith, either in Chinese or English. I honored that request. After spending an entire day with a group of young teachers, one of them followed me to the bus and lingered by the door, as if she wanted to tell me something very important. In Chinese, she quietly spoke, “I want you to know that I see the “shen-gwang” in you.”
          I politely thanked her, bowed and began to leave. Then the Chinese word “shen-gwang” became clear to me. I originally thought that it was just a word that I did not know in that particular dialect or region. As the bus was leaving the parking lot, the meaning became clear. “Shen” means God – and “Gwang” means light. Although I had never heard those words placed together before, this new meaning hit me. She has just told me that she had seen the God-light in me.” (3)
          This Christ we proclaim is in you, the hope of glory, said Paul.
          I just finished watching a Netflix series called “North of North.” It’s a quirky little comedy about life in a small, artic community called Ice Cove. Siaja, a young Inuk mother, is trying to build a life of her own and as part of her job, she has to give a presentation to some visiting government officials about why her town of Ice Cove would be a better choice for a Conservation office that some neighboring villages that have more resources.
          During her presentation, she says, “For years, the people from the south have been coming here and saying that the light they bring shines through our community’s cracks and imperfections and improves life for us. But I want to say that the opposite is also true. The light inside us also shines through our cracks and imperfections and can make life better for you. Our imperfections are what makes this town great.”
          Our central purpose as a church is to proclaim Christ, in all his complexity. For, as Paul says, “Christ is in you, and that is the hope of glory.” The light of Christ within us, shining through our cracks and imperfections, are what makes Christ church great.
          May God be praised. Amen.

 

 

 

1. Linda McKinnish Bridges, Connections, Year C, Vol. 3, Westminster John Knox Press, p 171.

2. Rodger Y. Nishioka, Feasting on the Word, Year C, Vol. 3, Westminster John Knox Press, 2010, p 256, 258.

3. Linda McKinnish Bridges, Connections, Year C, Vol. 3, Westminster John Knox Press, 2019, p 171 – 172.

07-13-2025 When a Parable Becomes a Cliché

Thomas J Parlette
“When a Parable Becomes a Cliché”
Luke 10: 25-37
7/13/25
          What happens when a parable becomes a cliché?  Can we know a parable so well, heard it so many times, that it has nothing new to say to us?
          I would bet that more than half of us gathered here today could re-tell this story from Luke from memory and we’d get pretty close to how we find it in the Bible. Oh, we might get the names of the characters a little confused – but the jist of the story would be there. Man travelling to Jerusalem, beaten by robbers and left for dead. A Priest sees him and passes by on the other side. A Levite sees, and passes by on the other side. But a Samaritan passes by, takes pity on the man and stops to help.
          And we know the moral of the story right – stop and help those in need. That’s the point of the story right? We’ve heard it before, so many times it has become a bit of a cliché. In fact, a whole travelers organization, complete with bumper stickers -  “The Good Samaritan Club” -  has grown out of our understanding of this story.
          But living in a litigious society as we do, people got a little wary about stopping to help strangers – I mean, if something went wrong, if what you meant as assistance actually made the situation worse, you might get sued. So, maybe it was wiser to pass by on the other side and keep going.
          That’s why all 50 states have enacted Good Samaritan Laws that codify the point of this parable. (1)
          The finale of the popular sitcom “Seinfeld” played on the passage of these laws when the main characters witness a crime, even videotaping it – but they don’t stop to help. As a result, they are arrested and thrown in jail because they weren’t “Good Samaritans” It was one of the most divisive series finales in TV history.
          But, as I understand them, Good Samaritan Laws are meant to protect people who DO step in and help in an emergency, shielding them from lawsuits if things don’t work out – not penalize people who choose not to get involved.
          But stopping what we are doing and dropping everything to help someone out in an emergency situation – is that really the point here? Or is Jesus getting at something more?
          This story comes during a time in Jesus’ ministry when he has “set his face to Jerusalem.” Meaning, he was determined to go to the center of it all and preach his message. On the way, a group of his followers went ahead of him to scout out the local villages. They came across a Samaritan village that refused to welcome them.
          This infuriated some of the disciples, especially the Sons of Thunder, James and John. They wanted to give them permission to call down fire from heaven and destroy the village – the nerve of those Samaritans, how dare they!
          But Jesus said, “No – leave them be. Let’s move on to another village.”
          Not long after that incident, a lawyer stood up at one of Jesus’ lectures and asked, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
          Sensing a possible trap, Jesus asks the lawyer, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?”
          And the lawyer says, “You shall love the Lord your God with everything you’ve got, and your neighbor as yourself.”
          “Bingo,” says Jesus. “You’ve given the right answer. Do this, and you will live.”
          But then the lawyer pushes just a little bit farther. Wanting to justify himself, wanting to show how much he knows and how skilled he is at these kinds of debates, he asks Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
          The lawyer is looking for loopholes, he is looking for ways to make this charge of “love your neighbor”, something that can be managed. He is really asking, “Who is NOT my neighbor?” Who do I not have to worry about here? Where are the limits on this idea of neighbor?” (2)
          Frederick Buechner writes: “When Jesus said to love your neighbor, a lawyer who was present asked him to clarify what he meant by neighbor. He wanted a legal definition he could refer to in case the question of loving one ever happened to come up. He presumably wanted something on the order of: “A neighbor (hereinafter referred to as the party of the first part) is to be construed as meaning a person of Jewish descent whose legal residence is within a radius of no more than three statute miles from one’s own legal residence unless there is another person of Jewish descent (hereinafter referred to as the party of the second part) living closer to the party of the first part than one is oneself, in which case the party of the second part is to be construed as neighbor to the party of the first part and one is oneself relieved of all responsibility of any sort or kind whatsoever.”
          “Instead,” says Buechner, “Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan, the point of which seems to be that your neighbor is to be construed as meaning anybody who needs you.” (3)
          After Jesus tells this story that we know so well, he turns back to the lawyer with one more question. “Who do you think was a neighbor to the man who was beaten up and robbed.” The answer is obvious – “The one who showed him mercy.”
          And Jesus said – “Go and do likewise.”
          Two little things to take notice of – first, Jesus never refers to the Samaritan as being “good.” There is not mention of his character or his intentions. We have come to know him as “good” simply by what he does. His actions tell us all we need to know. The Samaritan, a member of that hated tribe, the one you wanted to rain down heavenly fire on just a few days ago – he is the one who shows kindness. Which brings us to the second little detail we might overlook because we know this story so well. Notice that the lawyer, in answering Jesus’ final question, can’t even bring himself to say the word, “Samaritan.” He only says, “The one who showed him mercy.”
          Kurt Vonnegut, the best-selling author and noted Christian was once asked by a young American from Pittsburgh, named Joe, “Please tell me it will all be okay”- perhaps the contemporary American equivalent of asking “what must I do to inherit eternal life.”
         And Vonnegut, in his no-nonsense style said, “Welcome to earth, young man. It’s hot in the summer and cold in the winter. It’s round and wet and crowded. At the outside, Joe, you’ve got about 100 years here. There’s only one rule that I know – you’ve got to be kind.” (4)
          That in itself is a worthy goal. That’s a good note to leave this story on – approach life with kindness. Help those in need. That’s the moral of this story that has become a cliché.
          But Jesus subtly pushes this parable to an uncomfortable place. Yes, the biblical ethic of kindness is important here, but so is the recognition that such behavior frequently comes from unexpected sources.
          Amy-Jill Levine, a Jewish biblical scholar who specializes in bringing a Jewish perspective to Christian scripture, encourages us to think of ourselves, not as the one who stops to help, but as the one in the ditch, near death and desperately needing help. She challenges us to ask, “Is there anyone, from any group, about whom we’d rather die than acknowledge, “She offered help”, or “He showed compassion?” More, is there any group whose members might rather die than help us? If so, then we know how to find the modern equivalent for the Samaritan. To recognize the shock and possibility of the parable in practical, political and pastoral terms, we might translate its first-century geographical and religious concerns into our modern idiom.” (5) If we can imagine ourselves in the ditch, this parable is rescued from becoming a cliché.
          Imagine that you’re walking downtown, and you start to feel funny. You collapse to the ground – you’re having a stroke. A businessman approaches, engrossed in a very important phone call. He sees you are in distress – he crosses to other side of the street and keeps walking. A priest, dressed in black and sporting his white collar, approaches. He too, sees you on the ground and crosses the street and keeps walking. Finally, a woman approaches, wearing flowing robes, her head and face covered with a scarf – she stops and helps.
          Kindness from an unexpected source. We assume this parable is about us, we are called to stop and offer assistance. And that is true. But we are also called to accept assistance as well. Who is our neighbor? The one who shows mercy – whoever that is.
          In 2018, a man named Robert Bowers entered the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and brutally killed 11 people before being subdued by the police.
          In the emergency room at Allegheny General Hospital, he was shouting, “I want to kill all the Jews.”
          If he only knew that at least three of the doctors and nurses working to save his life were Jewish, according to the hospital’s President, Jeffrey K Cohen.
          “We’re here to take care of sick people,” Cohen, who is a member of the congregation where the massacre happened, said in an interview with the local news. “We’re not here to judge you. We’re not here to ask, “Do you have insurance?” We’re here to take care of people who need our help…
          Cohen was personally connected to the shooting beyond his role at the hospital. He lives in the neighborhood, he heard the gunshots, he knew 9 of the people who were killed.
          Still, that did not stop him from going to check in on Bowers, to ask him whether he was in pain.
          “He asked me who I was, I said, “I’m Dr. Cohen, the President of the hospital.”
          “And I turned around and left.”
          An FBI agent who was guarding Bowers said, “I don’t know that I could have done that.” (6)
          It was probably tempting to say some choice words to this vicious murder who had just killed 11 people at your church. But Dr. Cohen simply showed kindness, and did what he could to help. Who was the neighbor in this story? The one who showed mercy, not revenge.
          We think we know this story so well, so well that it almost becomes a cliché. But there is always something new to consider. One of the best known interpretations of this story is by Martin Luther King Jr. He referenced it during his last sermon – the “I’ve been to the mountaintop” sermon. King interprets the story to encourage his audience to overcome fear and cultivate what he called “a kind of dangerous unselfishness.” He imagines that the two who pass by recognize the man who was injured and probably wanted to help – but because of the dangerousness of the territory, they were afraid for their own lives. And so the Priest and Levite thought to themselves, “If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me?” But the Samaritan reversed the question, and exhibited a dangerous unselfishness, asking, “If I don’t stop to help this man, what will happen to him?” (7)
          Stop to help those in need – that seems to be the clichéd point of this parable. But Jesus was subtly saying some other things too. Extending kindness is a good thing – yes. But acknowledging that even your most hated enemy can also show mercy, that’s the kind of dangerous unselfishness that this story calls us to exhibit.
          May God be praised. Amen.

 

 

 

1. Homileticsonline, retrieved 6/23/25.

2. Stanley P. Saunders, Connections, Westminster John Knox Press, 2019, p 157.

3. Frederick Buechner, Beyond Words: Daily Readings in the ABC’s of Faith (Harper One, 2004) p 281.

4. Douglas John Hall, Feasting on the Word, Westminster John Knox Press, 2010, p 240.

5. Cynthia Jarvis, Feasting on the Word, Westminster John Knox Press, 2010, p 242.

6. Eli Rosenberg, “I’m Dr. Cohen”: The powerful humanity of the Jewish hospital staff that treated Robert Bowers,” The Washington Post, Oct. 30th, 2018.

7. Homileticsonline, retrieved 6/23/25.

06-29-2025 Guided by the Spirit

Thomas J Parlette
Guided by the Spirit”
Gal. 5:1, 13-25
06/29/25
          I remember when I was in Seminary, the President of Princeton Theological Seminary was a man named Tom Gillespie. He was a former pastor who also enjoyed teaching a course now and again in addition to his administrative duties as President. I remember one of the courses he taught was on Galatians. The title was something along the lines of “Galatians: Paul’s Gospel of Freedom” – or something like that.
          Of course, Galatians is not a Gospel, it’s a letter – a letter to the churches in what is now central Turkey. Paul was staying with one of the churches in the area because he was suffering from an illness or an injury of some kind. And while he was there, these other preachers came through town – Paul calls them “agitators, or troublemakers” – apparently teaching that Jewish laws, traditions and customs were still in effect.
          We don’t really know who these agitators were, but the best theories revolve around them being Jewish-Christians, probably from Jerusalem, who were supporting the teachings of James that the Jewish ceremonial laws, including circumcision, were still needed to be obeyed by converts to Christianity. (1)
          This infuriated Paul. In his opinion, in Christ, we are set free from bondage, or slavery as he sometimes put it, to the Law – including all the customs and ceremonies that went with it. Instead, we now live in a state of grace, brought to us by our faith in Christ – not adherence or bondage to the Law. So, Paul wrote this rather intense, emotional letter to the churches in the area refuting what these agitators were teaching. In Paul’s opening sentence of our passage today, he lays out a very important theme of Galatians – “For freedom, Christ has set us free.” He goes on to refer to “freedom” two more times in verse 13 – four times in all. No wonder my former Seminary Professor Dr. Gillespie titled his course “Galatians: Paul’s Gospel of Freedom.” It’s a good title, for freedom is a major theme in this letter.
          “For freedom, Christ has set us free.”
          When we hear that word freedom, we usually think in terms of being able to do whatever we want. We point to our freedom of speech as the right to say whatever we want, even if our words are hurtful or demeaning or encourage violence. We think of our constitutional right to bear arms as the freedom to own operate whatever kinds of weapons we want, whether they’re designed for sporting use or military use. Or, there’s not segment of the population that would like to exercise their freedom by living off the grid, free from government influence or corporate domination.
          I sometimes worry about this phrase from Galatians. I worry that the Christian Nationalist movement will co-opt what Paul says here and turn it into justification for violence. When Paul says, “For freedom, Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery…” If you were to lift just those two sentences out of what Paul says here, you could justify all sorts of behavior as “standing firm and refusing the yoke of slavery.”
          But that is not the kind of freedom Paul is talking about here. In fact, Paul gives a pretty clear warning about the kind freedom he is talking about. He says, “… do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence.” In other words, the kind of freedom Christ gives us is not so we can do whatever we want or cut ourselves off from any kind of relationship by living off the grid of society.
          So, for Paul, it boils down to a simple “either – or” choice You can use your freedom to live according to the desires of the flesh – or you can use your freedom to be guided by the Spirit. It’s one or the other.
          I’ve never been a big fan of Bob Dylan. I will admit that he has written so pretty good songs – but I just don’t like to listen to him singing them. His voice just doesn’t do it for me. But one of his songs, called, “Gotta serve somebody,” fits well with what Paul says to us today. In part, the lyrics say:
          “You may be an ambassador to England or France
          You may like to gamble, you may like to dance
You may the heavyweight champion of the world
You might be a socialite with a long string of pearls
But you’re gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed
You’re gonna have to serve somebody
Well it may be the Devil or it may be the Lord
But you’re gonna have to serve somebody.” (2)
           “Live by the Spirit,” says Paul, “and do not gratify the desires of the flesh.” You gotta serve somebody – it may be the Spirit, it may be the Flesh, but you gotta serve somebody. The choice is yours.
          Paul includes a long list of what you’re going to run into if you choose to be guided by the flesh – meaningless sex, impurity, putting other things ahead of God, living a life guided by anger, revenge and jealousy, dominated by quarrels, dissensions and factions. Paul is clear, “I’ve warned you before, those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”
          But if you choose to live guided by the Spirit, you receive the gifts of the Spirit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
          There are some preachers that like to try and group these gifts into triads. Some say love, joy and peace deal with our relationship with God. Patience, goodness, and kindness speak to our connection with others. And faithfulness, gentleness and self-control address issues in our own character.
          Others disagree and say that the first triad is about self, the second about others and the third is about God. (3)
          It’s an interesting way to think about the gifts of the Spirit, but I prefer to look at Paul’s list as gifts that the Spirit bestows upon us so they can be applied to all our relationships in life.
          The freedom that Paul speaks about is the freedom we have to choose the gifts of the spirit over the desires of the flesh.
          Some of the greatest spiritual thinkers of our time agree.
          Peter Marshall, the Presbyterian minister who was once the chaplain to the US Senate, once said: “May we think of freedom not as the right to do as we please, but as the opportunity to do what is right.” (4)
          Nelson Mandela puts it this way: “To be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.” (5)
          And finally, Pope John Paul II said: “Freedom consists not in doing what we like, but in having the right to do what we ought.” (6)
         Paul would agree with them all – “Yes, that’s what I’m saying.”
For freedom, Christ has set us free – so we may choose to be guided by the Spirit and live our lives guided by love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
          In the early years of our nation’s history, a young man was ready to start out on his life’s work. He went to an old family friend – a canal boat captain – to ask his advice about what he should do with his life.
          The captain responded with a question, “What do you know how to do?”
          The young man had experience working in his father’s trade of making soap and candles.
          “Then do that, and do it well,” the captain said, “but do one other thing. Take the Lord into partnership with you. Give God at least 1/10 of what you make – and know that it’s God who is in charge of the partnership – not you.”
          The young man, named William Colgate, took this advice to heart. He took an apprenticeship at a rival soap-making plant and learned the in’s and out’s of the business. Specifically, he took notice of how he would improve the process of making soaps and candles.
          In 1806, he started his own business in New York City. His little storefront eventually grew into the Colgate-Palmolive Corporation. (7)
          Now, at this point William Colgate was making millions. He joined the great industrialists and bankers of the day like Carnegie and Rockefeller and Vanderbilt. He could have exercised the freedom that great wealth brings. He could have done anything he wanted.
          But William Colgate was a deeply religious man. He had always followed that canal boat captain’s advice about tithing and living in partnership with God. He made the choice to be guided by the Spirit. He became a philanthropist and lived his life guided by the gifts of the Spirit, especially love, generosity, kindness and faithfulness. He would go on to become one of the founders of the American Bible Society, and Colgate University was named for him.
          For freedom, Christ has set us free. We are freed from slavery or bondage to the Law so we can make the choice to be guided by the Spirit and receive the fruits of the Spirit.
          May God be praised. Amen.
1. Charles Cousar, Galatians, Interpretation Series, John Knox Press, 1982, p 4-5.

2. Bob Dylan. “Gotta Serve Somebody,” Musixmatch.com.

3. Homileticsonline.com, retrieved 6/24/25

4. www.brainyquotes.com, retrieved 6/23/25.

5. Ibid…

6. Ibid…

7. Homileticsonline.com, retrieved 6/25/25

06-22-2025 Interview with the Demoniac

Thomas J Parlette
“Interview with the Demoniac”
Luke 8: 26-39
6/22/25
 

          Reporter - “Hello, and welcome to this special report from GNN – the Galilean News Network. I’m field correspondent Juliet Parlette.”
 

          “Today we are in Gergesa, on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee. We’re investigating a story about a mysterious teacher and healer who recently caused quite the uproar in the region. Joining me today is the man known as the Gerasene Demoniac.”
 

          Demoniac – “Bob is fine – I go by Bob now.”
          Reporter – “I’m sorry – Bob the Demoniac?”
          Bob – “No – just Bob is fine. I don’t identify as a Demoniac anymore.
          Reporter – “Alright – very good. Thanks for joining us today Bob. I wonder if you could share a little bit about your home town here.”
 

          Bob – “Sure. Gergesa is a nice little town, it’s just across the way from the Jewish side of the Sea. Most of the people who live over on the east side of the Sea are Gentiles, you know, non-Jews. I enjoyed growing up here. Most of the people make their living from the Sea as fishermen, just like most of you do on the west side. We also have some farmers who grow wheat and other grains and we’ve got a fair amount of people who raise livestock, mostly sheep and pigs. I know the Jews consider pigs unclean, but over here, it’s a pretty big business.
 

          Reporter – “So Bob, we’ve heard some stories from your neighbors about how you used to live. Could you tell us about that?”
          Bob - “Sure. I led a pretty normal life, I guess, until I was about 13 years old maybe. It was right around then I started to have these weird urges. Thoughts would pop into head – troubling thoughts about hurting people or doing destructive things. These urges slowly turned into voices, telling me I was no good, that I was evil. They tried to convince me to do all these terrible things. It was torture. Especially at night. The voices would not let me alone. I couldn’t sleep – I was afraid too, because my dreams were awful.
 

          Then the spasms started. First it was my hands – they got all cramped up for no reason. My fingers would get contorted in all these weird shapes and no matter I did, I couldn’t get them back into a normal shape. It was very painful.
 

          Then the spasms spread to my face. My mouth would make all these strange sneering expressions and my neck would tighten up and my head would tilt to one side or the other.
          Then it started affecting my speech. I would make sounds that I thought were going to be words – but they just sounded like jibberish. Sometimes I could only make grunting sounds.
 

          Then my body would start convulsing with no warning. It felt like someone was twisting my arms and legs into shapes I had no control over. That was the scariest part – I felt totally out of control.
 

          That was when it was scariest for my friends and neighbors too. It wasn’t easy for them to watch me go through all this. They were afraid I was going to hurt myself. So they took turns keeping watch over me. The convulsions were so violent at times that they had to physically restrain me with ropes and chains.
 

          Eventually though, I would break the restraints and work my way free and I started living outside of town in the tombs. Even though I wasn’t in my right mind and had no control over myself – I knew I couldn’t live in town anymore. People were afraid of me, and I was dangerous.”
 

          Reporter – “So what happened when Jesus and his followers came ashore that day?
          Bob – “Well, the people of the village could see them coming from a long way off. The Sea of Galilee is not a big body of water and we know all the boats from our village. The people of the village had heard of Jesus’ reputation as a great healer. So when this little fishing boat from the other side of the Sea pulled up close to shore and Jesus and some of his followers waded onto the beach, the villagers immediately brought Jesus to the cemetery to see what he could do with me. Jesus saw me from a distance, and I could hear him say – “Come out of him!”
           “I could feel the spirits stirring within. I could feel them gathering together into a tight little ball – and then, like the rush of  great wind, they exploded out of me, the voices shouting in unison – “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me.”
          “Then Jesus asked, “What’s your name?”
          And again, I could feel the spirits gathering within me, although now there were more of them. I tried to hold them back, but their voices rushed out like a fire hydrant opening – “Legion”, they said. I could feel their sense of dread at being sent back into the darkness of oblivion, and they begged Jesus to send them into a herd of nearby pigs instead.”
          “So, Jesus commanded the Spirits to enter the pigs. I could feel their presence gather within me even more powerfully than before. They gathered in the pit of my stomach, and when Jesus sent them into the pigs – they left my body with such force that everything went black, and I passed out.”
           “I’m glad you mentioned the pigs. As I’m sure you know, the pig farmers who were watching over that herd have filed a law suit against Jesus, his followers and you for damages over the loss of their pigs. Do you mind if I read you a piece of their complaint?

          Bob – “Sure.”
          Reporter – “My co-workers and I were standing about 100 yards away from the cemetery watching over our herd of pigs on the hillside, when this man named Jesus approached the village demoniac. They exchanged some words – we couldn’t hear exactly what was being said – and it all happened pretty quickly. We watched Jesus make a sweeping gesture with his arm and point toward our herd of pigs, and the demoniac fell to the ground. We thought maybe he was dead. Just as Jesus did this, our pigs started acting strange. They all looked up from their grazing and had these “crazy eyes.” I’d never seen them look that way before. They jostled around, bumping into each other for a bit and then they started stampeding down the hillside toward the water. My friends and I, we chased after them with our herding sticks, but it was no use. All the pigs ran into the sea and drowned.”
          “Now, keep in mind we had a couple hundred pigs in that herd! They were worth a pretty good sum of money. Who is going to pay us for our pigs!? That was enough money to keep my friends and I afloat for the whole year! Somebody’s got to pay. We demand justice.”
          What do you have to say to these charges?
 

          Bob – “Well, I understand why they’re upset. But I didn’t have anything to do with it – I was passed out at the time. I didn’t see anything. I will say that Jesus was from the Jewish side of the Sea, and the Jews consider pigs to be unclean. So from Jesus’ perspective, maybe he wasn’t considering the value of the pigs, he was just thinking of where to send the spirits that were tormenting me. I guess it goes to show that there is a price to pay for healing. I have friends that have gotten addicted to drinking too much wine. When they finally get sober, the price they pay is that they lose some of their old friends. I know that may sound harsh – but I hope they get some justice. In fact, I intend to help in that regard.
          Reporter – “How so?”

          Bob – “Well, when I came to, Jesus was sitting there on a rock near the cemetery. So after I had some bread and a drink of water, I sat at his feet and listened to what he had to say. He told me how God wanted to heal us from whatever ailed us – in my case, the demons that controlled me – and that God forgives us our sins. He also told me how the most important thing was to love God with everything in your being, and love your neighbor as yourself. That’s why I’m going to try to get some justice for my neighbors the pig farmers.
 

          Reporter – “I see, I think that’s great Bob. So what’s next for Bob the former demoniac?”
          Bob – “Well, after I listened to Jesus for awhile, my friends and neighbors came up to us, and they were a bit panicked about the whole episode. They didn’t know what to make of Jesus. So they told him and his followers to go because they were afraid. I asked Jesus if I could go with him – but he said “No, I want you to stay on this side of the Sea and tell everyone what happened and what I have said to you. Let everyone know how much God has done for you.”
 So that’s what I do now. I am a preacher on the East Side of the Sea of Galilee. I tell all the gentiles on this side of the Sea about this Jewish teacher and healer who saved my life, who healed me of all my ills, and how God wants to heal them too.”
Reporter – “Very admirable Bob – I wish you well. I’m Juliet Parlette, and this has a been a special report from GNN. Thank you for joining us this morning.”

06-15-2025 A Holy Day Built on Metaphor

Thomas J Parlette
“A Holy Day Built on Metaphor”
John 16: 12-15
6/15/25
           Last week, was Pentecost Sunday, the day we celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit and the inheritance we receive as heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ.
          This week, on Trinity Sunday, we continue with some more Spirit-speak as we consider the Holy Spirit’s relationship with God and Jesus. Today, we join a conversation that has been going on since the early days of the Christian community. And yet, if you do a google search on where to find the word “Trinity” in your Bible, you will come up empty. The word Trinity does not exist in our scriptures.
           What you will find is a bunch of verses that mention the three persons of the Trinity, many of them in Paul’s writings – such as 2nd Corinthians 1: 21-22, 3: 17 and 13:4. You would also find references in the Gospel of John, the Gospel of Luke and the well-0known reference in Matthew 28 – Go therefore and make disciples of all nations in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. But the word “Trinity is not in the Bible.
          So why do we place such importance on the Trinity?
          Well, let me give you my 5 cent hi8story tour of how the doctrine of the Trinity came to be.
          At the end of the First century, after Jesus had departed and Paul and his friends had started some churches, references began to pop up in sermons from the Early Church Fathers. Preachers such as Clement of Rome, who died in 100 AD, has a line in one of his sermons that says – “Do we not have one God, and one Christ, and one gracious Spirit that has been poured out upon us, and one calling in Christ.” All three persons of the Trinity are named.
          Ignatius of Antioch, somewhere around 110 AD, encouraged obedience to “Christ and to the Father, and to the Spirit.” Again, all three persons of the Trinity are named.
          And finally, Justin Martyr, who lived from 100-165 AD, once wrote what sounds like a benediction, “in the name of God, the Father and Lord of the Universe, and of our savior Jesus Christ, and of the Holy Spirit…”
          So Trinitarian language has been around as part of the church’s preaching since the beginning. But the doctrine of the Trinity had not taken shape yet.
          Somewhere between 168 and 183, the theologian Theophilus introduced the term “Trinity” in Greek to describe the relationship between the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. About 40 years later, in 220 AD, the theologian Tertullian introduced the word for Trinity in Latin. And since the church at the time favored Latin in the worship of the church, Tertullian usually gets most of the credit for introducing the Trinity as a concept.
          After the term Trinity had been introduced, both Athanasius and Augustine had a hand in shaping it into a doctrine. It wasn’t until 325 AD, during the First Council of Nicaea, in what is now Turkey, that the doctrine of the Trinity was formalized into our Christian theology. That Council produced what is known as The Nicene Creed – we use it often during our worship services. The creed grew out of the need to more fully explain the person of Jesus as both God and human. But it also included a traditional Trinitarian concept.
          Part of the Creed goes like this:
“We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ,
          The Son of God,
          Begotten of the Father,
          Light of Light,
          Very God of very God,
          Begotten, not made,
          Being of one substance with the Father.
And we believe in the Holy Ghost.”
          I hope you see how heavily The Nicene Creed leans into the identity of Jesus, as well as establishing the three persons of the Trinity.
          In our own day, the generally accepted Doctrine of the Trinity would be something along the lines of “There is one God in whom there are three “persons” who share one substance.” (1) This is where we have some major disagreement with our Muslim and Jewish friends, the other two religions based on Monotheism – the worship of one God. They look at our Doctrine of the Trinity and say – “Well look right there, you Christians worship three Gods, not one. You worship God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit – three gods. We worship one God.”
          I can understand their point. I’m not agreeing with them, but I can understand their viewpoint – it does sound like we worship three Gods. But we don’t. The Trinity is confusing, even for those of us who have grown up in the church. To try to alleviate the confusion and explain what we mean about “God in Three persons, blessed Trinity,” we have come up with countless metaphors.
          The most well-known explanation of the Trinity is as “Father, Son and Holy Spirit.” Over the years, I have also heard the Trinity described as the “God who Was, who Is and who Is to Come,”
 or God “Above us, Among us and Beyond us.”
There’s also God as “Parent, Friend and Companion.”
 Or, my personal favorite, God as “Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer.”
All of those metaphors are appealing in their own way, but they are all basically re-naming the Persons of the Trinity based on their relationship to each other and to us.
Another strategy to help us understand the Trinity is to focus on what “one substance” means. For instance:
An egg has three parts. The shell, the whites and the yolk – but it’s one egg.
Water – H2O – can come in three forms, a liquid, a solid – like ice, or a gas – like steam. But it’s still one substance, H2O, water.
A woman can be a wife, a mother and a business owner – but she is still one woman. (2)
A man can be a husband, a father and an employee – but he is still one man.
Or, there’s always my favorite – the Trinity is like a piece of candy corn. Candy corn is made up of three sections – white, orange and yellow. But they all taste the same, they are of one substance – waxy, corn syrup.
Poet and Theologian Maren Tirabassi took a different tack in her thinking about the Trinity when she posted the first part of a poem she wrote called “Theology for Trinity Sunday” on her Facebook page in 2023:
“God is not like a braid, not a tousled lob.
God is like a symphony, not a soloist.
God is like a family, any shape family –
Steps and blends and chosen,
 water cooler family and
 recovery group family…
 not like a hermit.
God is like a soup kitchen
 where everyone eats together,
 worker and guest.
God is not like take-away.
God sounds like the United Nations
Or a really big airport,
God doesn’t sound
Like a national anthem,
Anyone’s national anthem… (3)
Rebekah Le Mon once preached a sermon called “Circle Up” on Day 1.org in which she recalled being in a theology class many years ago.
“The professor put out a challenge: to try and think of something – anything – that could serve as an adequate metaphor for a divine being that is simultaneously, eternally, three distinct and equally necessary persons.”
“The answers were earnest, but inadequate – water can exist in three states of ice, liquid and steam and retain its substance as water. Yes, but not at the same time, and ice, water and steam don’t depend on each other.”
          “A stool has three legs – separate, coexisting, all necessary for the stool to stand. Yes, but they are identical parts, not distinct, and well surely, we can come up with something better than a stool.”
          “Triplets!” someone said. I thought that was clever. Triplets share genetic traits, but are different persons… but they don’t have to live together in order to be whole.”
          “Finally, a voice offered this image, which has become a mental picture for me of this holy and unique mystery; the Trinity is like a circle dance.”
          “I pictured in my head that classic moment on playgrounds and parks when a group of kids around 8 years old form a circle and clasp hands. They promise that none of them will let go and then they all lean back just far enough that they are all supporting and being supported at the same time. And then they spin, leaning back, gripping tightly to one another, knowing that the exhilaration of this union comes from the fact that none of them could have this experience if the others weren’t there. Or, if heaven forbid, someone dropped hands. They can know the joy of this particularly freeing dance because they are all there.” (4)
          The Doctrine of the Trinity, God in Three Persons - Father, Son and Holy Spirit, only holds together if all three are present, holding hands, connecting us all as we whirl and spin in the dance of life. If we lose one “person”, the dance collapses.
          So when we speak of the Trinity, we speak of the three ways that God makes God-self known to us:
God, the Creator of all that is, including us, as God relates to us as a parent figure.
God, as one of us, who is intimately familiar with what it is to be human.
God as a continuing presence that walks with us in every situation we face.
Yes, that is a mystery that is difficult to wrap out heads around. We as a church have come up with many different metaphors to explain what we mean, and I’m sure that every generatio9n will add to that collection of metaphors.
But God and the Trinity will always remain a mystery. That is just something we’ll have to live with. As one of our great Trinitarian hymns puts it:
“Holy Father, Holy Son, Holy Spirit;
Three we name you, while in essence one;
Undivided God we claim you, and adoring,
Bend the knee while we own the mystery.” (5)
May God be praised. Amen.

 

1. Philip Turner, Feasting on the Word, Westminster John Knox Press, 2010, p 44.

2. Homileticsonline, retrieved May 20th, 2025.

3. Maren Tirabassi, “Theology for Trinity Sunday”, posted on the author’s Facebook page, 2023

4. Rebekah LeMon, “Circle Up”, June 4th, 2023, Day1.org.

5. Ignaz Franz, “Holy God, We Praise Your Name” Glory to God: The Presbyterian Hymnal, Westminster John Knox Press, 2013.

06-08-2025 Heirs

Thomas J Parlette
“Heirs”
Romans 8: 14-17
6/8/25, Pentecost
 

           Cathy Boone did not have an easy life. In 2020, Cathy died in a warming shelter in Astoria, Oregon. She was homeless, and had been struggling with her mental health and a drug abuse problem. Hers was a sad story that plays out all too often.
 

          Unbeknownst to her, when Cathy’s mother passed away in 2016, she left her daughter a substantial inheritance – $884, 447.00. But no one had been able to locate her. So her inheritance went unclaimed.
 

          Her father, Jack Spithall, said, “It just didn’t make any sense to me. That money just sitting there – and she needed help in the worst way.” (1)
 

          An unclaimed inheritance – a sad situation, but one that happens more often that you might think.
 

           According to a free report from Western & Southern Financial Group, over the next few decades, trillions of dollars of wealth is due to change hands from one generation to the next – so it’s likely that we’ll see more unclaimed inheritances on the books.
 

          The laws vary from state to state, but an unclaimed inheritance usually goes to state government agencies, who absorb the funds into the state bank accounts after three years or so, depending on their laws.
 

          The National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators estimates that 1 out of 7 Americans is owed some type of unclaimed property, including inheritances. It could be money, it could be real estate, it could be jewelry or furniture or whatever. Most of the time, it’s a few thousand dollars at best – but there have been cases where people have been able to recover unclaimed inheritances worth six figures or more. In New York alone, the state government estimates it’s holding onto $355 billion dollars! (2)
 

          So, it’s always a good idea to have a will in place and let your loved ones know where to find it, so they can claim their inheritance.
 

          My own parents have been quite diligent in this area. My three sisters and I each have copies of the will and the trust my parents have established and we know where to find the appropriate documents and passwords and such.
 

          After my mother passed away, my father recently moved to a smaller community and he wanted us to claim what we wanted from the house. So my youngest sister, who was living nearby at the time, organized a three ring notebook with a list of all the things my dad wanted us to have – complete with pictures.
 

          Then, when we could each come down to Florida, we put what we affectionately called “death stickers” on the back of paintings, furniture and other such household items, as they had meaning for my two sisters and I.
 I know – it sounds a bit morbid, but largely due to my youngest sister’s efforts, we know exactly what each of us will inherit upon my dad’s final move.
 

In today’s passage from Romans, Paul is talking about the themes of being adopted as a child of God, and as such, being added to the will, so to speak. That we might receive an inheritance as an heir of God along with Christ.
 

Over the course of the first eight chapters of Romans, Paul has demonstrated that Gentiles and Jews alike need a savior, and that God’s righteousness comes not through the Law, but through faith in Jesus. We are saved therefore, not by adhering to the Laws, but by the grace of God.
 

Romans chapter 8 begins with the idea that there is now “no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” The Law of the Spirit is what Paul wants to emphasize – not the rules and regulations that have been built up around explaining the 10 Commandments.
 

Paul assures us that because of Jesus’ resurrection, we are now born of the Spirit – “The Spirit of God dwells in you,” he says, a phrase that Paul repeats twice in Chapter 8 – first, in verse 9, and then again at the end of verse 11.
 

If you sitting in the pew wondering – “Where have I heard that before,” let me point out that a very similar phrase is found in the movie, The Lion King. It’s the scene where the voice of Rafiki, the prophet-like Mandrill, is heard reminding the young runaway lion Simba who he is.
 

Simba is staring at his reflection in a pool of water and all of a sudden his father Mufasa’s image appears over his own, and the voice of Rafiki is heard saying – “His spirit lives on in you.” And Simba knows he must go back home and save his people from the evil Scar. It is the turning point of the movie.
 

Likewise, Chapter 8 is a turning point in Paul’s letter to the Romans. Consisting of 16 chapters in all, we are at the exact center of Paul’s letter.
 

So now Paul brings up the themes for today – If we are led by the Spirit that now dwells in us, we are adopted as children of God… and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ.
 

When we think of adoptio9n these days, we usually think of two people that, for whatever reason, can’t have children on their own. So, they often look at adoption – usually babies from this country or other countries depending on their situation.
 

In other cases, older children might be adopted from foster care situations. The topic of adoption is often a touchy one for parents to bring up with their adopted children because there is often a sense of shame attached to being adopted in our culture.
 

But things were different in Paul’s day. In ancient Rome, it was common for wealthy Roman families to adopt someone, often an adult, to carry on the family name – especially if that family had no male heirs. It was a great honor, a real point of pride to be adopted as an heir. So, for Paul, being adopted by God meant being welcomed into the most important family of all – the family of God.
 

So, if we are heirs of God, joint heirs with Christ – what is it exactly that we inherit. My sisters and I used our color-coded death stickers to delineate what each of us would inherit – but what do we inherit as heirs of God?
 

Well, in our passage from Acts today, we heard from Luke about the first disciples receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit – that’s our inheritance. What comes along with that? Luke mentions a few things:
 

First, we inherit the gift of communication. The first disciples suddenly found that they could speak in whatever language they needed to be able to communicate the story of Jesus.
 

Second, we are gifted with the enthusiasm that is needed to spread the good news. The first disciples had the fire of enthusiasm that touched them all – a gift from the Holy Spirit. Being able to speak all those languages – that’s great! But if you don’t have the drive, the excitement, the enthusiasm to use those language skills – it doesn’t amount to much.
 

And finally, it seems that the Holy Spirit us the gift of power – or perhaps empowerment would be a better word. The first disciples were given the tool of language, they had the fire of enthusiasm and now that’s been paired with the gift of empowerment to get out there in the streets of Jerusalem and share the good news of Jesus’ triumph over death, so that “everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
 

In his letter to the Galatians, Paul will add to Luke’s list and tell us about some other gifts of the Spirit like – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. But that’s a sermon for another day.
 

For today, the Day of Pentecost, we celebrate that we are children of God, heirs to the gifts of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit who empowers us with all we need to share the good news of Christ, so that all may be saved.
 

And for that, May God be praised. Amen.
 

 

 

 

1. Jenna Romaine, TheHill.com, June 4th, 2021.

2. “What Happens to an Unclaimed Inheritance?”, www.westernsouthern.com, updated August 14th, 2024

06-01-2025 It Opens at the Close

Thomas J Parlette
“It Opens at the Close”
Rev 22: 12-14, 16-17, 20-21
6/1/25
 

          People come to church for a lot of different reasons. I know many people come for the donuts. Over the last couple of Sundays, I know many people also came for the cake – as we received the Confirmation class and celebrated our graduates.
 

          Some people come to have their morning coffee with their friends, or perhaps it’s out of habit – they’ve been church-goers all their lives and Sunday just doesn’t feel like Sunday unless they go to church. Honestly, I’m grateful that people come whatever their reason.
 

          But there are deeper reasons that draw people to church:
-         Something happens that serves as a reminder of just how uncertain and fragile our lives can be.
-         Sometimes people all of a sudden realize their own shortcomings and imperfections, and they come here for some reassurance of God’s love and grace.
-         Still others come because they have a hunger to follow Jesus and deepen their spiritual lives.
-         Others are here in the pews because they see what’s going on in the world – foreign policies guided by ego, domestic policies fueled by revenge, wars that we can’t seem to stop, a roller coaster economy that changes almost daily, progress we thought had been made in the area of racial justice going in reverse, medical research and educational grants suddenly cut – they see all this, and they come before God out of confusion, frustration, fear and anxiety.
 

There are all sorts of reasons people come to church. But we all have one thing in common. We all want to hear some good news – in truth, we all want to hear THE good news.
 

And this passage from Revelation today does not disappoint. Actually, this isn’t really one cohesive passage – it’s a collection of quotes and sayings that come to John’s mind that sum up some of the major themes of his vision, his Revelation. All of chapter 22 is often referred to as an Epilogue, like you’d see at the end of a movie that tells you want happened to all the various characters
 

     So in this verses, as selected by the Lectionary writers, we can find five themes that after us some good news at the end of the Bible.
    

     First, we jump right in with the assurance that Jesus is coming soon, and we will be rewarded for our work. Whatever we have done to help bring about the Kingdom of God, we will be rewarded for our efforts. That’s good news. Whenever we feel overwhelmed by our personal challenges or the situations we around us, we find assurance here that our labors are not in vain – there is a reward. Our Reformed heritage tells us that’s not the reason we should do good deeds, but it’s good news that those good deeds will not go overlooked.
 

In the very next verse, we have another assurance that is at the center of John’s vision – Jesus is “the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” This 3-part proclamation shows that Jesus is there throughout the range of human experience. In everything we face – Jesus is there. Nothing lies outside of Jesus’ presence. Christ is everywhere, at all times, in all situations. We are never alone. Good news, indeed.
 

Now, the next piece of assurance sounds a little odd. “Blessed are those who wash their robes…” So if you are very conscientious about doing your laundry, that’s a requirement for your heavenly reward? All I can say, is I hope not. This bit about the robes is actually a nod to the robe as a symbol of worthiness, of holiness. If you have washed your robe, you are worthy of being in the presence of God.
 

The Jewish theologian, Abraham Heschel, had some interesting things to say on this topic. He described a person who lives a life of holiness as “pious.” Today, we often associate some negative connotations to that word – if you call someone “pious”, you might do so in a slightly negative way, like that person is doing it all for show.
 

But for Heschel, it refers to a person whose life is lived in a manner that is “compatible with God’s presence.” (1) For Heschel, piety ultimately means that we are aware that we are creatures entirely beholden to the God who has created us. (2)
 

So if we live as pious people, our salvation is coming and “we will have the right to the tree of life and may enter the city by the gates.” Yet another piece of good news.
 

The next few verses, 16. 17 and 20, contain some Messianic imagery that John wants to remind us of. He refers to Jesus sending an angel to testify to the churches. Jesus reminds he is “the root and descendant of David, the bright morning star.” All images meant to conjure visions of the Messiah, who was coming to bring justice to the land. Finally – justice will come. And we all are invited. The Spirit and the Bride, referring to the city of the New Jerusalem, who only speaks in this passage Good news, invites “everyone who is thirsty to come.” And an invitation is always a good thing.
 

And that brings us to the last assurance in these verses – indeed, the last words of the Bible as it has been assembled.
“The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all the saints.”
What a wonderful way to close out the Bible – a word of grace.
 

Some of you have no doubt seen the Harry Potter movies – they are favorites in our household. There is a scene in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows where Professor Dumbledore leaves Harry a gift in his will – it’s the Golden Snitch that Harry caught to win a Quidditch match in his first year at Hogwarts. At first, Harry has no idea why Dumbledore has left him this.
 

During their adventures seeking horcruxes as a way to destroy the evil Voldemort, Harry’s friend Hermione mentions that some of the horcruxes respond to touch. And suddenly Harry remembers that when he caught the snitch, he didn’t catch it with his hand, he caught it in his mouth. So he touches his lips to the Golden snitch, and a clue appears – “I open at the close.”
 

What it means, and Juliet and I had to google this a bunch of times to find out how this happened, is that the snitch, which contains the Resurrection Stone, will only open when Harry is willing to close out his own life. He must be willing to die to defeat Voldemort and save the wizarding world.
 

But then we find out that the snitch did “open at the close,” and the resurrection stone worked, and Harry received new life, and evil was defeated in a grand cinematic battle.
 

It opens at the close. As we reach the close of the Bible with the ending words of Revelation, we are promised new life as well. Not in the form of Resurrection Stone – but in the form of God’s grace.
 

So as we gather at the Lord’s table, let us remember this new life we receive from Jesus’ resurrection. Let us remember that at the close, God opens the gift of grace for all the saints.
 

May God be praised. Amen.
 

 

 

1. Joseph H. Britton, Feasting on the Word, Year C, Vol. 2, Westminster John Knox Press, 2009, p536.

2. Ibid… p538.

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