As we begin our Lenten pilgrimage, my theme is the borrowed title of Alice Walker’s novel, The Color Purple. Because I do believe that “it pisses God off if you pass by the color purple and don’t even notice,” I chose a text that I know no one ever preaches for Lent, if at...... Read More

(Image of Assyrians torturing Israelites from Lachish, 6th century BCE Turn That Motha Out Jonah 3:1 The word of the FAITHFUL ONE came to Jonah a second time, saying, 2 “Get up, get yourself to Nineveh, that great city and proclaim to it the proclamation that I speak to you.” 4 Jonah…  preached and said,...... Read More

Joshua 2:1 Yehoshua ben Nun, Joshua the son of Nun, sent from Shittim two men, spies, secretly saying, “Go, survey the land including Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a woman, a sex-selling woman, a prostitute, a harlot, a whore, a ‘ho – her name was Rachav, Rahab – and they lay...... Read More

A Liturgy and brief homily in honor of the Feast of Hildegard of Bingen, 17 September Collect: O Fire of Love by whose grace your servant Hildegard, kindled with the fire of your love, became a burning and shining light in your Church: Grant that we also may be aflame with the spirit of love...... Read More

From Nehemiah 8, verses 2 and 8: …So Ezra the priest brought the Teaching before the assembly, both women and men and all who could hear with understanding… they read from the scroll, from the Teaching of God, making it plain. They gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading. [Watch sermon here]...... Read More

(A sermon remix.) Ezekiel sees zombies, the walking dead. Lazarus is wrapped up like a mummy. To the rotting dead and walking dead the living God speaks a living word: …hear the word of the Holy God…I will cause spirit-breath to come into you and you shall live. Let us pray: Open our eyes that...... Read More

A miracle happened today. We will see it in nine months on Christmas Day. In reflection an Annunciation sermon (from 2004). [On this day when people are arguing for the right to prevent women from accessing health services under the rubric of birth control (and abortion) because of their own religious biases, I am mindful...... Read More

You shall be called the repairer of brokenness, the restorer of neighborhood streets. Let us pray: Holy One of Old, open our eyes that we may see. Amen. (sermon audio here) Free at last! Free last! Thank God almighty we’re free at last! Our people are free. We have the right to vote. One of us...... Read More

A sermon on the Purification of the Virgin Mary from Luke 2:22-39 Hymn of Preparation: “Home,” from the Wiz. There’s no place like home. There’s no place like home. There’s no place like home. For good and for ill, there’s no place like home. Sometimes we just want to go home. Sometimes we just want...... Read More

From Isaiah: Come, let us walk in the light of the Living God. From Matthew: The Son of Woman is coming at an unexpected hour. Let us pray: Brukhah at Yah HaShekhinah eloheteinu Malkat HaOlam she’astah nisim le’imoteynu vela’avoteynu bayamim hahem bazman hazeh. Blessed are You Holy One our God, Sovereign of Eternity, who performed miracles...... Read More