The Adventurous Lectionary – Trinity Sunday – June 15, 2014

Last updated on: June 10, 2014 at 12:05 pm By Bruce Epperly

Lectionary Reflections for Trinity Sunday June 15, 2014 Genesis 1:1-2:4a Psalm 8 2 Corinthians 13:11-13 Matthew 28:16-20 With summer on the horizon, the scriptures celebrate creation and our place in it. It’s not about us. We have a unique mission but it is part of a larger holy adventure of divine wisdom and creativity. We share in God’s creativity with all creation, and have the vocation of becoming imaginative and healthy creators ourselves. Many churches will celebrate the reality of... Read more

The Adventurous Lectionary: Pentecost Sunday, June 8, 2014

Last updated on: June 3, 2014 at 3:54 pm By Bruce Epperly

Lectionary Reflections on Pentecost Sunday June 8, 2014 John 20:19-23 Acts 2:1-12 The back to back celebrations of Ascension and Pentecost surely give us something to think about. Incomprehensible to “moderns,” there is a chance that postmodern pluralists might get the wild message of clouds, wind, and fire. But, it won’t be easy, especially if we demand to have worship and church as usual. First, we are confronted by the vision of a three story universe and Jesus ascending into... Read more

What’s a Church to Do? A Response to Naomi Shaefer Riley’s “Got Religion?”

Last updated on: June 2, 2014 at 4:44 pm By Bruce Epperly

As the pastor of a mid-sized congregation, South Congregational Church, United Church of Christ, on Cape Cod, I am as perplexed as most of my colleagues about how to reach out to twenty and thirty-year-olds in our community. With the exception of the children of long-time members or persons planning to get married at our church, members of the millennial generation seldom darken our doors. A recent article in a local magazine described the apparently successful outreach to millennials of... Read more

Slow Church and the Transformation of Time

Last updated on: June 2, 2014 at 3:10 pm By Bruce Epperly

A Response to Slow Church: Cultivating Community in the Patient Way of Jesus, by Christopher Smith and John Pattison In a recent conversation, a young adult noted, “I’m not interested in going to the big church down the road, with its band and big screen. It’s just like the mall. When I go to church, I want a few minutes of calm and peace. All week I’m texting and on line. I spend most of my day in front of a... Read more

The Adventurous Lectionary — June 1, 2014

Last updated on: May 27, 2014 at 12:55 pm By Bruce Epperly

Lectionary Reflections for June 1, 2014 Acts 1:6-14 I Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11 John 17:1-11 Today’s readings are about height and depth. Jesus is no longer on the earth. He has ascended. But, this is no cause to abandon our planet. It is an opportunity to take our place as Jesus’ companions in creative transformation. God is in us and with us, and is luring us forward toward new adventures in faithful discipleship. You will receive power from the Holy Spirit!... Read more

The Adventurous Lectionary: May 25, 2014

Last updated on: May 20, 2014 at 1:04 pm By Bruce Epperly

Lectionary Reflections for May 25, 2014 Acts 17:22-31 Psalm 66:18-20 Today’s scriptures invite us to consider the scope of divine revelation and salvation. As the reality in whom we live and move and have our being, God’s wisdom touches all of us. Death and the afterlife are part of God’s vision of salvation. Those presumed lost and unaware of Jesus’ mission are still objects of God’s love and recipients of Jesus’ ministry. Our hope is not in our own efforts... Read more

Guided by a Gentle Providence: A Response to Vinh Chung’s Where the Wind Leads

Last updated on: May 20, 2014 at 1:25 pm By Bruce Epperly

As I read Vinh Chung’s memoir, Where the Wind Leads, I was reminded of the words of the African American spiritual, “My Soul Looks Back”: How I got over How I got over My soul looks back and wonders How I got over. Vinh Chung muses about the providence that brought him safely to the United States. The journey was dangerous, with many hardships, but unlike countless others, he and his family made it to their own promised land of... Read more

Jesus in Our Genes: A Response to Christian Piatt’s “Blood Doctrine”

Last updated on: May 12, 2014 at 7:09 pm By Bruce Epperly

Does carrying Jesus’ DNA imply that you will embody Jesus’ spiritual unity with God? Was Jesus’ own unity with God a matter of nurture as well as nature? Read more

The Adventurous Lectionary: The Fifth Sunday of Easter – May 18, 2014

Last updated on: May 12, 2014 at 4:24 pm By Bruce Epperly

When we interpret John 14:6 imaginatively and inclusively, then it becomes our fourth promise: God guides us on the pathway wherever we are on our journey; God’s energy enlightens all persons in all cultures; makes a way where there is no way; and leads all creation in all of its diversity to wholeness. Read more

The Adventurous Lectionary: Fourth Sunday of Easter – May 11, 2014

Last updated on: May 12, 2014 at 4:33 pm By Bruce Epperly

Lectionary Reflections for May 11, 2014 John 10:1-10 Acts 2:42-47 “I have come that you might have life, and have it abundantly.” This was one of Jesus’ mission statements. He is affirming that while there are pathways that lead to destruction, the good shepherd seeks only the best for his sheep. The good shepherd wants us to flourish, to live joyfully, and grow into full humanity. There is a pathway that leads to abundant life and we catch a glimpse... Read more

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