There are a few “arguments with God” in the Bible. I have always found these stories fascinating. In the Hebrew Bible, the protagonist is a chosen friend of God, holy and righteous. When the LORD threatens destruction to human life, the protagonist protests and attempts to persuade God. The human protagonist in these stories temporarily appears to have a better grip on God’s essential character – righteous, generous, and merciful – than the LORD himself! On August 14, we meet a New Testament version in the person of the Canaanite woman.
Read moreCategory: Homiletics
Smarter Than You Think
“Sheep can perform executive cognitive tasks that have never been shown to exist in any other large animals apart from monkeys.”
Read more“When they had sung the hymn…”
“How is it possible to be truly human without ever making music?”
Read moreNew Praenotanda, new RCIA, new Congregation department for art and music?
Are the future actions mentioned in Llovera’s interview with Tornielli just the final convulsions of an unhappy reign, or might they actually come to pass?
Read moreCongregations gone wild
The unspoken reason why American clergy are burned out is that their congregations want sermons that entertain rather than offer moral counsel.
Read moreDo homilies work ‘ex opere operato’?
Could it be that it doesn’t matter how well or poorly prepared or preached a homily is, since the homilist is acting not as himself but in persona Christi? I don’t buy it.
Read moreUnholy Trinity
Let me end by quoting from the well-loved Athanasian Creed; so beloved in church lore that it’s relegated to page 846 of the Book of Common Prayer.
Read morePreaching Easter Eve
Preparing to preach for the Easter Vigil? Preaching the rites of the Holy Night might just be the way to go!
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