Sermons

We have had to give up so many of the things we cherish and have always taken for granted: seeing our aging or dying parents; hugging our newborn grandkids if we are so lucky; the contact we crave and miss with dear friends and family…It would cause Jesus immense agony to accept and bow down to his Father’s wish for him. Jesus had free will to accept or reject. Seems to me that what God asks of us is a far sight easier to say “yes” to.

The Rev. Joseph Peters-Mathews is the vicar of St. Hilda St. Patrick. The sermon for Sunday, December 26, 2021 was preached extemporaneously as a response to John 1.1-18.

Regardless of how you count time, we’ve been walking in loneliness, or may have felt like we have been at least from time to time…If we feel like we’ve been walking alone
or that we’ve had extended periods of gloomy time. I’ve got good news for you beloved. Unto us is born today in the city of David a savior who is the Messiah the Lord.

Throughout her song, Mary gives thanks to God speaking not of what God will do but of what God has done. She speaks in the past tense because she is so confident in her faith and hope that God is making all things well. It is eternally true, past, present, and future, so true that it can only be spoken of in the past tense.

The Rev. Joseph Peters-Mathews is the vicar of St. Hilda St. Patrick. The sermon for Sunday, December 12, 2021, was preached extemporaneously based on the notes below as a response to Luke 3.7-18. Still in Luke –> Continuation of the John the baptizer story / message Luke gives the most detailed telling of John’s message

The Rev. Joseph Peters-Mathews is the vicar of St. Hilda St. Patrick Episcopal Church. This sermon was preached extemporaneously based on the notes below, as a response to Luke 3.1-6. Grounding again in history –> Luke 2, birth Baptism of repentance, transformation of hearts Preparing for God’s arrival in history Mostly quote from Isaiah about

So where does this leave us? What are we to do until the end of this age and the arrival of an entirely different world? Advent offers us a time to live in the tension between fear and hope. Between fear and hope. It may be a week from now that all ends; it may be another 2000 years. And we continue to harm one another, the planet, the creation.
In the meantime,…… we have been told what to do – love our neighbor, love ourselves, love God. Do not be weighted down by the justifiable fear.

Whether grieving or celebrating right now, we follow a savior whose kingdom is not of this world because all the kingdoms of this world are so incurably sinful and corrupt. As we listen for Jesus’ voice, we hear that as a truth to which he’s come to testify. Christ is risen from the dead trampling down death by death and to those in the tombs bestowing eternal life. Yet God’s reign is not fully manifest.

As we celebrate St. Hilda again, we wonder how we can attune our lives and hearts to her example. While it’s fun to use so-called “Celtic” worship on this day, what would truly living like a community she oversaw look like? How might we corporately and individually live in strict obedience to Hilda’s rule of justice, devotion, chastity, peace, and charity as we follow Jesus, giving up everything that holds us back? What systems are we part of that are inherently unjust and perpetuate injustice? Where does our devotion to God shine through? How can it grow?

As we celebrate all the saints and pray for all the souls, we may not necessarily consider ourselves exemplars of faith…When cry out in lament, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died” — about the Conference of Parties or systemic racism in policing or housing or so-called “critical race theory” or, or, or, we have the examples of the saints those who believed and saw the glory of God.