Sermon 16 Pentecost—18-C September 4, 2016 William Bradbury Jeremiah 18:1-11, Psalm 139:1-5, 12-17, Philemon 1-21, Luke 14:25-33 Given what he says in the gospel today it appears that Jesus would not have been a successful pastor of a modern church! He’s got a large group of followers, but instead of praising them and making...

Sermon 14 Pentecost—16-C August 21, 2016 William Bradbury Jeremiah 1:4-10, Psalm 71:1-6, Hebrews 12:18-29, Luke 13:10-17 When I was in Nicaragua in 2004 and 2005 the people of Managua were still talking about the 1972 earthquake that hit that city the night before Christmas Eve. 10,000 people were killed and 250,000 were homeless....

Sermon 12 Pentecost—14-C August 7, 2016 William Bradbury   Isaiah 1:1, 10-20, Psalm 50:1-8, 23-24, Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16, Luke 12:32-40 In Through the Looking Glass the Queen says to Alice: “I’m just one hundred and one, five months and a day.” “I can’t believe that!” said Alice. “Can’t you?” the Queen said in...

Sermon 11 Pentecost—Proper 13-C July 31, 2016 William Bradbury Hosea 11:1-11, Psalm 107:1-9, 43,  Colossians 3:1-11, Luke 12:13-21 As you know I’m a big believer in the importance and of reading the Bible—whether in great chunks or in small bits. God’s Word unleashes the power of the Spirit in a person’s soul—offering...

Sermon 9 Pentecost—11-C July 17, 2016 William Bradbury Amos 8:1-12, Psalm 52,  Colossians 1:15-28, Luke 10:38-42 I was never a big fan of the movie Jaws, the 1975 Blockbuster, about a rampaging Great White shark off the east coast—but I love one line from the movie: Roy Scheider is throwing chum off...

Sermon 8 Pentecost—10-C July 10, 2016 William Bradbury Amos 7:7-17, Psalm 82, Colossians 1:1-14, Luke 10:25-37 The lawyer asks Jesus the same question the whole nation is struggling with, “And who is my neighbor?” Is a Black man selling CDs outside a convenience store in Baton Rouge my neighbor? Is a...

Sermon 7 Pentecost 9-C July 3, 2016 William Bradbury 2 Kings 5:1-14, Psalm 30, Galatians 6:1-16, Luke 10:1-11, 16-20 When I was doing my seminary fieldwork at St John’s, Georgetown, I became good friends with a woman who in the 1980s would be part of the advance team for President Reagan. When the...

Sermon 6 Pentecost—8-C June 26, 2016 William Bradbury 2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14, Psalm 77:1-2, 11-20, Galatians 5:1,13-25, Luke 9:51-62 Swing low, sweet chariot! Great hymn based on our reading from 2 Kings where Elisha cries out, “Father, father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!”  Clearly this is an indescribable...

Sermon 5 Pentecost–Proper 7-C June 19, 2016 William Bradbury 1 Kings 19:1-4, (5-7), 8-15a,  Psalm 42 and 43, Galatians 3:23-29, Luke 8:26-39 I first learned of the tragedy at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando as I drove from All Saints last Sunday on my way to my son’s house in Connecticut. 49 dead...

Sermon 4 Pentecost–Proper 6-C June 12, 2016 William Bradbury   1 Kings 21:1-21a, Psalm 5:1-8, Galatians 2:15-21, Luke 7:36-8:3 When we come into this world our parents already have a story about who we will be and as we grow up they tell us this story over and over: If our parents are...