“But now thus says the LORD, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you…” […]
Archives for February 2015
A Mother’s Day Sermon
Sixth Sunday of Easter, 2012 John 15:9-17 9As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. 10If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. 11I have said these things to you so that […]
Washing the Diapers: On gratitude, justice, and living in a broken world
I’d just picked up my daughter Harper from preschool. When she was safely buckled into the car and we were headed toward home, we turned onto the main thoroughfare that runs from downtown to our neighborhood, and there she was: the homeless woman we see standing on that corner nearly every day. She stands holding […]
Faithful Parenting: It’s in the Story!
Economically, emotionally, and socially, they had known mean lives. They practiced the few parenting resources they had received on their children. My parents were capricious, insular, and hard as nails. They choked on compassion and squashed rebellion. They did not go to church. They did not pray or read the Bible. Their social lives and […]
Writing Our Children
This morning, my daughter and I ate yogurt, granola, and plums for breakfast. We sat together on the couch and read The Time of Easter, a rather dry picture book that explains the theological roots of Holy Week via the persona of two church mice. Then Thisbe and I walked to the library and I […]
On the Way: Rise and Fall
In his brief, astonishing novel Waiting for the Barbarians, South African author J.M. Coetzee imagines a town on the frontier of a nameless Empire, in a state of continual hostilities with its “barbarian” neighbors. As the story’s climax nears, the main character—a fallen functionary of the Empire—goes for a sunset walk outside the walls and […]
As I See It: Lutherans Observe Advent
I like every season of the church year when we get to it, but I think I like Advent best of all. It is a season that emerged out of the culture and geography of Western Europe, not the Mediterranean world. It is not observed in the Eastern Churches. In the Western church calendar Advent […]
There’s Good News in Metro Chicago on the First Sunday in Advent!
Like every listener, I bring expectations and assumptions to the preaching I hear, which greatly influence how I respond to sermons.1 So, permit me to lay those out for you, so you know where I am coming from. Preaching is theocentric or christocentric rather than anthropocentric. God is the star of scripture; we are not. […]
Seven Sermons for Advent 1C
Please click on any of the name links below to jump directly to that preacher’s sermon manuscript for Advent 1C. Rev. Kim Beckmann Rev. Melissa Bills Rev. Antonio Cabello Rev. Erik Christensen Rev. Jon Dumpys Rev. Michael D. Fick Rev. Julie Eileen Ryan * * * 1. Rev. Kim Beckmann Grace to you and peace […]
Commentary on the Texts for the First Sunday of Advent, Year C
1 Thessalonians 3:9-13 This passage from 1 Thessalonians, the oldest book in the New Testament, was written by Paul to the people of Thessalonica after he had left that little community and moved on. Paul emphasizes his strong ties with these new believers in many ways. He repeats the word “you” over and over again […]
“Without” Hope? Internality and Externality in Preaching Difficult Texts
Within the realm of Christian theology (both as academic discipline and as reflection that fuels the life of the church), a great deal depends on the intellectual frameworks that are brought to bear on particular issues. As in the sciences, the same data can give rise to differing conclusions depending on the analytical framework to […]
Archive
Brief typed pieces Joseph Sittler, untitled comments on how the church plans for its own future, typescript with secondary comments in two hands, 1 page, undated (text suggests during tenure at U of C, so 1957-73). PDF, 846K Joseph Sittler, “Reflections on Christmas in Church,” typed and hand-marked sermon mss, 4 pages, Dec. 1974. PDF, […]
Joseph Sittler Archives
When we were students at Northwestern University in the early 1950’s, Meta (now my wife) and I first met Joe Sittler. Our Lutheran campus pastor at Northwestern, Clyde McCormack, used to invite Joe up to Northwestern to speak to our student group. We were fascinated by Joe. It was from him that I learned that […]
Book Review: The Eloquence of Grace: Joseph Sittler and the Preaching Life
The Eloquence of Grace: Joseph Sittler and the Preaching Life. Edited by James M. Childs, Jr. and Richard Lischer. Eugene, Ore.: Cascade Books, 2012. xiii +325 pp., refs., index. $32.00 pb. This book is a gem. For both the dried-out preacher who needs some slaking and the one who is forever whittling theological nuances, the […]
Remembering Joe Sittler
During my middler year at LSTC I was a commuter student, which meant that, in order to beat the traffic, I was often sitting in the refectory early in the morning sipping coffee and reading. It was not uncommon in those years to find Joseph Sittler sitting at one of the small tables looking out […]