Prophesy and Raise the Dead: Joining Ezekiel and Lazarus

Prophesy and Raise the Dead: Joining Ezekiel and Lazarus A sermon for the Episcopal Diocese of Maine, preached by the Bishop, the Right Reverend Thomas James Brown, for the Fifth Sunday in Lent, 29 March 2020. The Bishop of Vermont spoke recently about how this pandemic creates, right now, a sense of being exiled. We …

Seeing Even Now

Sermon Preached on March 22, 2020–Lent IV By The Rev. Dr. Nina R. Pooley St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, Yarmouth, ME Samuel 16:1-13 Psalm 23 Ephesians 5:8-14 John 9:1-41 Seeing Even Now Ken and I went on an unscheduled COVID-19 road trip on Friday, and everything looked different. There was virtually no traffic, even in places …

Unprecedented

Sermon Preached on March 15, 2020–Lent III By The Rev. Dr. Nina R. Pooley St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, Yarmouth, ME Exodus 17:1-7 Psalm 95 Romans 5:1-11 John 4:5-42 Unprecedented What a strange Lenten wilderness we find ourselves stumbling through! The coronavirus has put us in "an unprecedented situation" (at least unprecedented for us). And we …

“Seriously?!”

Sermon Preached on March 8, 2020–Lent II By The Rev. Dr. Nina R. Pooley St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, Yarmouth, ME Genesis 12:1-4a Romans 4:1-5, 13-17 John 3:1-17 Psalm 121 “Seriously?!” This Gospel story always reminds me of my friend's youngest daughter, Mary Elliot. Our families became friends when we lived on Lookout Mountain, and we …

Temptation and Prayer

Sermon Preached on March 1, 2020–Lent I By The Rev. Dr. Nina R. Pooley St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, Yarmouth, ME Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7 Psalm 32     Romans 5:12-19 Matthew 4:1-11 Temptation and Prayer (with a small desert box – actions in italics) I'm a big fan of the Godly Play desert box. One of …

Transfiguration Sunday

Sermon Preached on February 23, 2020 – Transfiguration Sunday By Heather Sylvester St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, Yarmouth, ME Exodus 24:12-18 Psalm 99 2 Peter 1:16-21 Matthew 17:1-9 I’d like to start this morning by sharing with you how things are going and some of what I’ve been learning in Deacon School. In these first 5 …

A Difficult Word in a Difficult Week

Sermon Preached on February 16, 2020–Epiphany VI By The Rev. Dr. Nina R. Pooley St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, Yarmouth, ME Deuteronomy 30:15-20 Psalm 119:1-8 1 Corinthians 3:1-9 Matthew 5:21-37 A Difficult Word in a Difficult Week It's been a difficult week for our community, with three deaths in a few days, Ursula Baier, Becky Wright, …

Fully Salt and Light

Sermon Preached on February 9, 2020 – Epiphany V By The Rev. Dr. Nina R. Pooley St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, Yarmouth, ME Isaiah 58:1-12 Psalm 112:1-9 1 Corinthians 2:1-12 Matthew 5:13-20 Fully Salt and Light I loved celebrating Candlemas last Sunday. It seemed to encompass all of the themes of Epiphany conveniently packaged into a …

Blessing the Light of Candlemas

Sermon Preached February 2, 2020 – Candlemas, Presentation of Jesus in the Temple By The Rev. Dr. Nina R. Pooley St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, Yarmouth, ME Malachi 3:1-4 Psalm 84 Hebrews 2:14-18 Luke 2:22-40 Blessing the Light of Candlemas Today we celebrate the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple, and Candlemas when traditionally, churches would …

The Expansive Kingdom of Heaven

Sermon Preached on January 26, 2020 – Epiphany III By The Rev. Dr. Nina R. Pooley St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, Yarmouth, ME Annual Meeting Sunday -Opening and Closing prayers for annual meeting (below) are meant to be heard in context of this sermon. Isaiah 9:1-4 Psalm 27:1, 5-13 1 Corinthians 1:10-18 Matthew 4:12-23 The Expansive …