Sermons

  March 20: The Third Sunday in Lent Prince of Egypt opening At my church in Honolulu I had access to screens that I could project images and even videos on as a part of my sermon. I often took advantage of that ability. It was as if I had a toolkit to draw from as I was preaching. Sometimes that worked to my advantage and sometimes it didn't. I wish I had that option today. You see we have a lesson as a part of our scripture readings that becomes more vivid and I think communicates more fully through a video. a cartoon actually. Some of you may have seen the Disney movie back in the '90's the Prince of Egypt . It was produced with traditional animation techniques. It was old school animation for an old story. The scene in the movie where Moses encounters the burning bush, and meets God. It is a scene that I have viewed many, many times, and every time I find it powerful. The reason I find the scene particularly striking is that I can't imagine a more effective v...

  title: Lent 1 Homily  author: 'St. Paul''s Monroe' date: 'March 6, 2022' Opening Yesterday was an extraordinary time. It was my first visit to Winston-Salem. It was my first time gathering in person with the whole diocese of North Carolina. When I returned to my hotel room on Friday night the neighbor in the room next to me ask me how long I had been a man of the cloth. I had to do a quick think and I realized it's almost 40 years that I have been ordained. The program on Friday was a conversation with two remarkable sisters. They are members of St Michael and all angels in Charlotte. And they talked about how in the last 10 years or so their Christian faith has taking a new and deeper turn in their lives. They are examples of ordinary Christians who by taking their faith seriously make an extraordinary impact on the world around them. I made connections with people in the diocese and it felt natural and empowering. In the months and years ahead I h...

  Actions as loud as words We begin a time when what we do is as important as the words we say. When my oldest son was about five he came to the altar rail on an Ash Wednesday with trepidation. When he looked beside him there at the rail and saw his mother's face with ashes on it he reacted with horror. That is just one among many experiences I've had that convinced me that young children are often much more in tune with spiritual realities than we adults. My son knew that something radical and dramatic was happening when those ashes were crossed on the forehead. All too often adults have had to spend so much energy on "grown-up" things that we become overly rational and too intent on controlling the outcome of things. Later in Lent when we come to holy week each of the liturgies will have actions that often are louder than the words we speak. Waving palm branches. In Honolulu I enjoyed every palm Sunday leading the congregation out on to one of the busiest city st...