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Why I Voted for a Sinner
“I’m not voting for him because he was a jerk,” several of my seminary comrades posted in reply to my Facebook post in which I urged them to vote for Samuel Seabury in the latest Lent Madness vote....
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How bad evangelism is like a bad haircut
I got a really bad haircut the other day. No te preocupes–I will live. But there I was, literally cringing in the chair as I watched the substitute hair stylist (my regular one is on maternity leave)...
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How good evangelism is like a great massage
If you have never had “deep tissue” or “sports” massage, I highly recommend it. It has a way of reaching deep into the muscles and tendons and sinews and healing tight places and old hurts that keep...
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Lazarus Is Alive!
(This sermon was preached on March 17, 2013 at Christ Church, Bronxville, NY, and posted at the request of a parishioner.) Matt Schenone, 1963-2003 My friends in Christ, I find the Gospel reading today...
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Sermon on Easter Vigil, 2013
The women at the tomb What would you say to someone who does not believe? What would you say to someone who does not believe the most amazing thing that has ever happened? This is the situation in...
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Easter to Go!
On the list of things that Episcopal priests fight about, we’ve had a recent entry: whether priests should be dispensing “ashes to go” on Ash Wednesday. Before I get into what the fight is about, I...
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In Security
15th-century painting of St. Francis meeting with the Sultan Al-Kamil in a gesture of peacemaking. During troubled times when life seems more dangerous than usual, words having to do with security are...
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Yes I said yes I will Yes.
Just four months ago, my friend, the Rev. Beth Tjoflat, was preaching at my ordination to the priesthood, and she said something about my being a scholar priest, someone called to be a theologian, but...
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How much space do we need?
How much space do you need to live? It probably won’t surprise Americans to hear that we have much more space per capita in our homes than most people. But I think that disparity between Americans and...
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Living REALLY Simply
Little did I know, when I packed up my stuff in New York City, that I wouldn’t see it again for three weeks. (The promised date of delivery was June 14, but it arrived on June 25.) All we had brought...
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¿Y quién es mi prójimo?”
Predicado en la misa en español a La Iglesia Todos los Santos, Pasadena, CA, 14 julio, 2013. Mis amigos y amigas en Jesucristo, es difícil predicar hoy. Es difícil predicar sobre el Buen Samaritano el...
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“And who is my neighbor?” Caring for our neighbors north of the 210
(Preached in Spanish at our 1 p.m. Spanish service at All Saints Church in Pasadena, CA on July 14, 2013. Posted in English at parishioners’ request.) My friends in Christ, it is difficult to preach...
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Ask for help. Really. Then rinse and repeat.
As a church member and now clergyperson, I have collected stories about ways in which churches have or have not reached out to members who are in crisis or simply hurting. In church communities, we...
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Sermon: This Ain’t Your Mama’s Mary Magdalene
[Preached on the Feast of Mary Magdalene at All Saints Church, Pasadena, CA. A video version of this sermon can be viewed via YouTube: My friends in Jesus Christ, this ain’t your mama’s Mary...
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Where everybody knows your name…
One of the amusing things that happens at my new position as a priest at All Saints Church is that people like to quiz me on whether I know their name yet. They cover their name tag if they’re wearing...
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“Serás como un jardín bien regado”
[Predicado el 25 de agosto, 2013, a la Iglesia Todos los Santos, Pasadena, CA] Mis amigos y amigas en Jesucristo: En el medio del verano, cuando las montañas de San Gabriel están muy secas, y el clima...
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“You will be like a well watered garden”
[Preached in Spanish at the Spanish service at All Saints Church, Pasadena, CA, on August 25, 2013] My friends in Jesus Christ: In the middle of summer, when the San Gabriel Mountains are very dry and...
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Watching Slavery
When a friend invited me to a Screen Actors’ Guild screening of Twelve Years a Slave, I was excited at the prospect of having a Q&A session with the director and lead actors. But when I read a...
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When You’re Not Feelin’ It
Of all the prayer requests I receive, there is one in particular that causes me to ponder: ”I want to have faith.” The main reason it causes me to ponder is that, in order to hunger for faith, you must...
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