Sermon Christmas 1 January 1, 2017 William Bradbury John 1:1-18  “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God…and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” This is, as C. S. Lewis calls it, the Grand Miracle: “the Christian story...

Sermon Christmas Eve 2016 William Bradbury   Isaiah 9:2-7, Psalm 96, Titus 2:11-14, Luke 2:1-14(15-20) I love all the outdoor lights and decorations that people put out. I love the reindeers, and sleighs, even Charlie Brown and snowmen—the gaudier the better! My wife really got into the spirit and came home from Lowes with...

   Sermon Advent Four—A December 18, 2016 William Bradbury Isaiah 7: 10-16, Psalm 80, Romans 1:1-7, Matthew 1:18-25 In 2006 I would drive twice a week from New Bedford to Chestnut Hill to see a Jungian analyst who had been trained in Switzerland at the institute founded by Dr. Carl Jung in 1948....

Sermon Advent Three—A December 11, 2016 William Bradbury Isaiah 35:1-10, Psalm 146:4-9, James 5:7-10, Matthew 11:2-11 A few years ago I am watching on TV a soccer match in the English Premier League, and the referee makes several terrible calls—seeing a penalty where there is none and not seeing a penalty where a...

Sermon Advent Two—A December 4, 2016 William Bradbury Isaiah 11:1-10, Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19, Romans 15:4-13, Matthew 3:1-12 One of the great gifts of the Bible is its honesty about the heroes of the faith: it tells us that Abraham was a liar and that Moses was a murderer. It reveals that Tamar seduced...

Sermon Advent 1—Year A November 27, 2016 William Bradbury Isaiah 2:1-5, Psalm 122, Romans 13:11-14, Matthew 24:36-44 As you know clergy occasionally end up leading funerals for people who haven’t been in church for decades. This doesn’t make them bad people and it certainly does not mean they are not loved by God....

Sermon Christ the King November 20, 2016 William Bradbury Jeremiah 23:1-6, Psalm 46, Colossians 1:11-20, Luke 23:33-43 On May 24, 1946 a group called the Emergency Committee of Atomic Scientists, under the leadership of Albert Einstein, sent a telegram to several hundred prominent Americans with an urgent plea that reads in part: “We...

Sermon 26 Pentecost—Proper 28-C-2 November 13, 2016 William Bradbury Malachi 4:1-2a, Psalm 98, 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13, Luke 21:5-19 On Wednesday morning after the election someone emailed me an article with the title: “Today is a difficult day to be a Christian in America.” As I thought about that, two things occurred to me. First,...

Sermon All Saints’ Sunday November 6, 2016 William Bradbury Daniel 7:1-3,15-18, Psalm 149, Ephesians 1:11-23, Luke 6:20-31 I was with my grandkids in Connecticut last Monday and so had the great fun of celebrating Halloween with them. Their parents made bat costumes for the three kids and told them what Halloween was and...

Sermon 24 Pentecost—26-C—2 October 30, 2016 William Bradbury Isaiah 1:10-18, Psalm 32:1-8, 2 Thessalonians 1:1-4, 11-12, Luke 19:1-10 Have you enjoyed the moves you have made in your life, moving from one city to another, one house to another? I haven’t. First there is all that work to pack up your belongings and then you...