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Joseph wept, his brothers found him
Joseph wept, his brothers found him
by Andrew Pratt
Hymn: Joseph wept, his brothers found him Proper 15 year A Genesis 45: 1 – 15 Joseph wept, his brothers found him, found the one that they had sold, stunning grace would now confound them, family bonds would last and hold. Famine brought them to his table, desperation drove them …
Monologue/Meditation : ‘I’m good’
Monologue/Meditation : ‘I’m good’
by Andrew Pratt
Monologue/Meditation : ‘I’m good’ 'How are you?' 'I'm good'. It's a common greeting these days, but call me old-fashioned, every time I hear that, I'm brought up short. We used to say, 'I'm fine' or I'm well'. But 'I'm good'? No, that doesn't work for me. Let me run that by you a…
Now take away the stone, he is not dead
Now take away the stone, he is not dead
by Andrew Pratt
Hymn: 'Now take away the stone, he is not dead', Fifth Sunday in Lent John 11: 1 - 45 'Now take away the stone, he is not dead', the people looked amazed, yet some with dread. For Lazarus was buried four long days, the stench said this was more than just a phase. Yes dead is dead…
Job for Everyone - Insight Lies in Submission to the Lord
Job for Everyone - Insight Lies in Submission to the Lord
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Insight Lies in Submission to the Lord Job 28: 1-28 In two weeks I have to preach at the seminary’s baccalaureate service (a kind of commissioning service, I could call it for U.K. readers). Each year as I have listened appreciatively to the baccalaureate sermon, I have wondered …
Gazing on the Gospels year c - The Third Sunday of Epiphany Year C
Gazing on the Gospels year c - The Third Sunday of Epiphany Year C
by SPCK - Judith Dimond
The Third Sunday of Epiphany Luke 4.14-21 Gaze on the scene in the synagogue. The men crowd in, some who normally wouldn’t bother to attend, but today have rediscovered their piety in the urge to see what the fuss is about. They arrive early so they’ll get a seat with a view. The…
1 and 2 Kings for Everyone - When the Apostate King's Son Gets Sick
1 and 2 Kings for Everyone - When the Apostate King's Son Gets Sick
by SPCK - John Goldingay
When the Apostate King’s Son Gets Sick 1 Kings 13:33-14:20 Last night a friend of mine was blowing a fuse concerning the sermon at her church a couple of Sundays ago. The preacher was talking about Jesus’ healing of the man who had been lying sick by the Pool of Siloam for thirty…
Gazing on the Gospels year c - Easter Day Year C
Gazing on the Gospels year c - Easter Day Year C
by SPCK - Judith Dimond
Easter Day Luke 24.1-12 Gaze on the early dawn. Each time we see it, it is as if we live through all the stages of creation again. First all is chaos and confusion, the stars are obscured by cloud and so is the moon. One moment nothing is visible, all is dark and we stumble about…
Gazing on the Gospels year c - The Second Sunday of Lent Year C
Gazing on the Gospels year c - The Second Sunday of Lent Year C
by SPCK - Judith Dimond
The Second Sunday of Lent Luke 13.31-35 Gaze on Jerusalem today, in greater need than ever of her children being gathered together in harmony. It is a city divided between Jew and Muslim, Jew and Christian, with no-go areas armed by guns. Churches are locked. Doubt and suspicion …
Lectionary Reflection Year C - The Second Sunday Before Advent Year C
Lectionary Reflection Year C - The Second Sunday Before Advent Year C
by SPCK - Jane Williams
The Second Sunday Before Advent Malachi 4.1–2a 2 Thessalonians 3.6–13 Luke 21.5–19 The material in today’s reading from Luke can be found in a very similar form in Mark 13 and Matthew 24, and all are agreed that the temple is the trigger for these terrible sayings. Jesus seems to…
John for Everyone Part 1 - Children of Abraham - Or of the Devil
John for Everyone Part 1 - Children of Abraham - Or of the Devil
by SPCK - N T Wright
Children of Abraham – Or of the Devil John 8.37-47 The famous psychologist Carl Jung published, among his many works, a picture-book illustrating the main points of his thought about the strange ways in which the human mind works. One of the most striking pages is a picture of Ad…
Paul for Everyone The Prison Letters - God's Hidden Treasure - King James
Paul for Everyone The Prison Letters - God's Hidden Treasure - King James
by SPCK - N T Wright
God’s Hidden Treasure – King Jesus! Colossians 2.1-7 In many adventure stories such as Robert Louis Stevenson’s famous Treasure Island, the plot hinges on the discovery of an ancient chart or map. The people who have found it realize that, if only they could understand and follow…
2 Corinthians - The God of All Comfort
2 Corinthians - The God of All Comfort
by SPCK - N T Wright
The God of All Comfort 2 CORINTHIANS 4.13-18 ‘To Carthage then I came,’ wrote T. S. Eliot in one of his famous poems. One can imagine someone picking up the poem in a bookshop and wondering what on earth he was talking about. Had he gone to the real Carthage, in North Africa? If …
Matthew for Everyone Part 2 - The Priests and the Guards
Matthew for Everyone Part 2 - The Priests and the Guards
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Priests and the Guards Matthew 28.11-15 In the world of science, there is a particular form of behaviour that occurs when a long-held belief is under attack. The most famous instance of it was when Copernicus (1473–1543) argued that Earth and the other planets go round the su…
Gazing on the Gospels year c - The First Sunday of Lent Year C
Gazing on the Gospels year c - The First Sunday of Lent Year C
by SPCK - Judith Dimond
The First Sunday of Lent Luke 4.1-13 Gaze on Jesus in the wilderness. Gaze on the harsh monochrome of fear and confusion, on the hard bed of stones that brings no comfort. Imagine forty days without the scent of grass, his feet cut raw against the ragged paths, as he searches for…
Lectionary Reflections Year A - The First Sunday of Epiphany Year A
Lectionary Reflections Year A - The First Sunday of Epiphany Year A
by SPCK - Jane Williams
The First Sunday of Epiphany - Year A Isaiah 42.1–9 Acts 10.34–43 Matthew 3.13–17 Matthew’s is the only Gospel that shows any embarrassment about Jesus’s baptism by John the Baptist. In all of the Gospels, John knows that his baptism is a temporary measure, but he also knows that…
Poem: Father of Jesse and father of David
Poem: Father of Jesse and father of David
by Andrew Pratt
Father of Jesse and father of David, born of a foreigner here in their midst: Ruth would nurse Obed, then comfort and nurture. Boaz brought safety it seemed she had missed. Now as we listen we re-tell this story, try to untangle the mystery and worth, one thing is certain: a love…
Poem: Hear the echoes of the scripture
Poem: Hear the echoes of the scripture
by Andrew Pratt
Poem: Hear the echoes of the scripture Hear the echoes of the scripture in the parting of the waters, see Elijah in the whirlwind, see Elisha, looking, waiting. See Elisha take the mantle, see Elisha strike the water, faith and action moving forward, faith is passed from hand to …
Poem: Wine maker, bread breaker