The Adventurous Lectionary – The First Sunday in Lent – February 18, 2018 Bruce Epperly Genesis 9:8-17 Psalm 25:1-10 I Peter 3:18-23 Mark 1:9-15 Lent is a time of creative transformation. We let go what keeps us from experiencing God’s presence in our lives and awaken to God’s new possibilities for us and our communities. During Lent, we need to repent, turn around, and move from deathful behaviors to life-supporting actions and attitudes. Today’s readings can take a preacher and... Read more

The Adventurous Lectionary – The Transfiguration of Jesus – February 11, 2018 2 Kings 2:1-12 Psalm 50:1-6 2 Corinthians 4:3-6 Mark 9:2-9 Today, with rock singer-songwriter Van Morrison, our scriptures invite us to sail into the mystic. All the great religions of the world emerged out of encounters with God, that radically changed the lives of those who encountered the Holy. They were transfigured, and their experiences gave birth to the faith traditions we celebrate today. Transfiguration comes in many... Read more

The Adventurous Lectionary – The Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany – February 4, 2018 Isaiah 40:21-21 Psalm 147:1-1l, 20c I Corinthians 9:16-23 Mark 1:29-39 Today’s readings invite us to look at life from a wider perspective and to go from self-interest to world loyalty. Theology and spirituality are intensely ethical in nature. As Archbishop Oscar Romero asserted, spirituality is not just about hearing God in our inner life, but in the suffering of those around us, especially the poor and... Read more

The Adventurous Lectionary – The Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany – February 4, 2018 Isaiah 40:21-21 Psalm 147:1-1l, 20c I Corinthians 9:16-23 Mark 1:29-39 Today’s readings invite us to look at life from a wider perspective and to go from self-interest to world loyalty. Theology and spirituality are intensely ethical in nature. As Archbishop Oscar Romero asserted, spirituality is not just about hearing God in our inner life, but in the suffering of those around us, especially the poor and... Read more

The Adventurous Lectionary – Fourth Sunday After the Epiphany – January 28, 2018 Bruce Epperly Deuteronomy 18:15-20 Psalm 111 I Corinthians 8:1-13 Mark 1:21-28 Today’s readings may seem irrelevant to many congregants. In mainstream and progressive churches, we don’t spend a lot of time talking about unclean spirits, the authority of prophets, or food sacrificed to idols. We seldom establish theological or doctrinal litmus tests; in fact, many of us, even in creedal churches are open to a variety of... Read more

Third Sunday after the Epiphany Jonah 3:1-5, 10 Psalm 62:5-12 I Corinthians 7:29-31 Mark 1:14-20 All things flow. The historical process moves onward and, as Heraclitus of Ephesus once noted, you can’t step in the same waters twice. In fact, they are new waters even as you dip your toes in for the first time. The author of Lamentations had a similar image in mind, when he proclaimed that God’s mercies are new every morning. Today’s lectionary readings invite us... Read more

The Adventurous Lectionary – Second Sunday after the Epiphany – January 14, 2018 Samuel 3:1-10 Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18 I Corinthians 6:12-20 John 1:43-51 There is a good deal of wisdom in congregational humor. There is a bittersweet joke circulated among members of my denomination, the United Church of Christ. When we proclaim in the spirit of one of our key statements that “God is still speaking,” usually someone responds with a bit of irony, “But is anyone listening?” As members... Read more

The Baptism of Jesus – January 7, 2018 Genesis 1:1-5 Psalm 29 Acts 19:1-7 Mark 1:4-11 Today, the focus is water. But, in a divinely-filled creation. Water reflects divine wisdom and is a medium of salvation. We are creatures of water: from 60-70% of our bodies is composed of water and 70% of the earth is water. National defense experts – the ones who know the true facts – believe that that the next great wars will be about water... Read more

“Joy to the World” – A Christmas Eve Meditation It had been a difficult year for the little boy. Just five years old, he had experienced the impact of his father’s unemployment and his mother’s illness. Kind people brought food baskets to supplement their dwindling reserves; there were few toys and no special outings; his mom was tired, living in the aftermath of her cancer treatments. There were few smiles, and less laughter around his home. Christmas was coming, but... Read more

“Darkness Has a Light of Its Own” On this shortest day of the year, when darkness envelopes the earth, we celebrate the coming light and affirm that within the womb of darkness, light emerges, and growth occurs, often when we least expect it. In the darkness the eye begins to see, so wrote American poet Theodore Roethke. At first, when darkness descends, we feel lost, as if walking through the woods a on moonless night. But, then we discover little... Read more