The Dignity of Every Human Being

Last updated on: August 25, 2023 at 11:26 am By Frederick Schmidt

I am not a big fan of Prayerbook revision. And for a variety of reasons. One, I think that the modern church is addicted to theological and liturgical revision. Breaking with the conciliar caution of centuries gone by, a political mindset now dominates: Seize control of the national apparatus and compel everyone to think what the winners think. That mindset is strengthened by the presumption that those of us who are now alive represent the pinnacle of theological development. Everyone... Read more

Don’t make me go all Rachel on you.

Last updated on: August 21, 2023 at 6:20 am By Frederick Schmidt

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30 When Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, she envied her sister; and she said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I shall die!” 2 Jacob became very angry with Rachel and said, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?” 3 Then she said, “Here is my maid Bilhah; go in to her, that she may bear upon my knees and that I too may have children through... Read more

Where should I live as I age?

Last updated on: August 15, 2023 at 6:45 am By Frederick Schmidt

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Zippia, an online career website shares some interesting facts about American nursing homes, the people who occupy them, and the future of the “nursing home industry”: There are over 810,000 people living in assisted living facilities in the United States. 4% of U.S. seniors live in nursing homes. 2% of U.S. seniors live in assisted living facilities. 52% of the U.S. assisted living population is over the age of 85. The number of nursing home residents has risen to... Read more

The Transfiguration: A Vision that Centers Our Lives

Last updated on: August 7, 2023 at 11:41 am By Frederick Schmidt

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Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they... Read more

ChatGPT and Sermon Preparation

Last updated on: July 28, 2023 at 1:51 pm By Frederick Schmidt

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Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash In a recent article on preaching and ChatGPT, Kate Spelman, explores the question, “Could ChatGPT write your sermon?” Spelman acknowledges that there are those who argue that preachers should never use ChatGPT in sermon preparation. Citing Micah Jackson at Bexley-Seabury, she notes that ChatGPT may be able to write a competent sermon but it cannot write a pastoral sermon. And citing Bill Brosend, former director of EPF, she admits that ChatGPT cannot answer... Read more

Failing the Seeker – Again

Last updated on: July 24, 2023 at 1:24 pm By Frederick Schmidt

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roman-kraft-X1exjxxBho4-unsplash.jpg In the late 20th century when the language of spirituality gained currency, people often discovered that their clergy were ill-prepared to help them navigate their spiritual lives. Seminary education had celebrated prophetic preaching and ministry in the 1960s. Attention turned to therapeutic categories and counseling in the seventies. And leadership became all the rage in the eighties. Those who could speak to the spiritual life often “discovered” prayer and meditation by looking to the East. The sole exceptions were... Read more

The (Almost) Sacrifice of Isaac

Last updated on: July 3, 2023 at 1:59 pm By Frederick Schmidt

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Making sense of the sacrifice of Isaac is like wrestling alligators. And its interpretation is made that much harder by the free-floating nature of the story, the subsequent religious influence it has had, and the centuries of interpretation that has grown up around it. Known as “The Akedah” or “The Binding” in the Jewish tradition, the story is celebrated in the Jewish tradition as “the supreme example of self-sacrifice in obedience to God’s will and the symbol of…martyrdom throughout... Read more

Entrusted to the Triune God: On Baptism

Last updated on: June 21, 2023 at 9:04 am By Frederick Schmidt

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Photo by Josh Applegate on Unsplash This sermon was preached at the baptism of my granddaughter, Ellie Lynn Lacey on Sunday, June 18, 2023. As many of you know – because I have told you over and over again – today, we will be baptizing my granddaughter, Ellie Lynn. The only excuse I have to offer is the that I I am no different in this regard from any other grandfather. As Ogden Nash once observed, “When a grandparent enters... Read more

Women in a mindless cultural moment

Last updated on: June 16, 2023 at 8:44 am By Frederick Schmidt

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Ex Nihilo, the Western Facade of Washington National Cathedral, by Frederick Hart They retracted it but the fact that Johns Hopkins University defined women as “non-men” is appalling. NBC News reports: Johns Hopkins University removed an online glossary of LGBTQ terms and identities this week after its definition of the word “lesbian” used the term “non-men” to refer to women and some nonbinary people and fueled an online uproar. Screenshots of the glossary before it was taken down showed... Read more

Caring for the Poor and the Mission of the Church

Last updated on: June 13, 2023 at 9:07 am By Frederick Schmidt

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connor-hall-r-HLeGnbY-8-unsplash-scaled.jpg In watching the church assist the poor, I have noticed that there is always a substantial number of people who surface, over and over again. Their circumstances never change. They seemingly make little or no progress in rebuilding their lives or in moving forward. This troubles me. It feels right and good to help people who are struggling to meet their basic needs. But when people become dependent upon that help and fail to make progress in transcending... Read more