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Sermons

Resurrection Stories

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These are stories that might give us hope at a time when hope can seem in short supply. Today's texts - John 20: 1-18 and Acts 10: 34-43 For Morgan William, new life came on a basketball court. For Billie Moore, new life came on death row. For Garry Civitello, it came in conversation with a woman named Heather McGhee. I’m going to tell you a bit about their stories today because I think that in a variety of ways, they illustrate some of the central themes of Jesus’ resurrection story: life emerging out of death, goodness overcoming evil. I think their stories might give us h...
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Words of hope in a time of transition

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By Jacy Boldebuck and Sonjia Short Jacy: We join a church not to be served but to serve. Joining a congregation is like joining a family, and like with any relationship you get out of it what you put into it….and MUCC happens to be a hard working family. I know some of you are worried about what happens next when Phil retires in June…I understand….I get nervous about it too…I love predictable…I love comfortable.. …and some of you have only experienced memorial with Phil as our pastor so I imagine it is especially difficult for you.  I want you to know that it is normal to feel a bit of a...
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I Can See Clearly Now

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Noel Paul Stookey's story also offers us an opportunity to reflect on the blind spots in our lives and where the impact of Jesus’ message, God’s love and the care of those around us can bring light into our world. Today's text - John 9: 1-41 A man who could not see. Another man who invited him to open his eyes. People amazed and divided by the transformation that had taken place. And a new way of seeing the world and living in it. Those are some of the elements of that story of Jesus giving sight to the man born blind. They are also some of the elements of the story of Noel Pau...
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Still Thirsty

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These stories are about more than the politics of water and the failures of leadership, though. They are also very personal stories about despair and hope, about deception and honesty, about living water – we might call it grace – that provides life in moments when it is least expected. Today's texts - Exodus 17: 1-7 and John 4: 5-34; 39-42 May the words of my mouth and the meditations of all our hearts be acceptable to you, O God, who sent your word to live among us. Amen. We just heard about the Israelites wandering in the wilderness, having fled from slavery in Egypt. The journ...
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Quest for God

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I’d like to take a little time to explore the story of Abraham, to enter into Nicodemus’ encounter with Jesus and then ponder a bit how these stories might be guideposts on our quest for God. Today's texts - Genesis 12: 1-4a and John 3: 1-17 Sometimes I feel like Abraham. Sometimes I feel like Nicodemus. Or as singer/songwriter Mary Chapin Carpenter once put it, “Sometimes you're the windshield / Sometimes you're the bug.” Sometimes I am trying to understand what God wants of me – I am looking through the windshield of our sacred writings trying to make sense of God. Sometim...
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Entitlement Meets Vulnerability

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Entitlement and vulnerability are characteristics we need to pay attention to in so many phases of our lives. Both can cause us lots of trouble. Today's texts - Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7 and Matthew 4:1-11 Two stories. Two really familiar stories. Adam and Eve decide they are entitled to be like God. Jesus decides that he is not entitled to act like God, that he can be vulnerable in a harsh world. Two more stories, less familiar, also about entitlement and vulnerability. Two women met with a group of guys – including me - this past week at Domestic Abuse Intervention Service...
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Making Connections

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This morning I want to explore where our food comes from, because it matters, and because that journey has been both exciting and rewarding for me. Today's texts: 1 Corinthians 11:17-29 and Matthew 14:13-21 By Marty Smith Food is essential for life, so it’s not surprising that the Bible is full of references to food, both actual and metaphoric. Jesus often used the sharing of food in a communal setting as a means of connecting people from all walks of life and social classes. After his death the common meal became an important way for early Christian communities to share their lives, ...
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Face-off with enemies

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The story of Howard Thurman is instructive for us in our time, for us as followers of Jesus, for us as people trying to figure out how to confound oppressors while still seeing our enemies as people made in God’s image and therefore worthy of our love. Today's texts - Leviticus 19: 1-2, 9-18 and Matthew 5: 38-48 Howard Thurman knew something about dealing with enemies. He was the grandson of a slave, a black child growing up in a highly segregated Florida city at the very beginning of the 20th century. He was sent 100 miles away to attend one of only three high schools for African...
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That’s kind of harsh

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These readings are not about the specifics of the law. They are about how we approach laws, how we live in ways that deepen our relationship to God and to each other. Today's texts - Psalm 119: 1-8 and Matthew 5: 17-32 Let me start with a question – one that I am looking for you to answer. Were there statements, images in our two scripture readings today that jumped out at you, that surprised you, that made you squirm? …. Both of these readings focus on lot on our behavior. And those kinds of readings can make us either uncomfortable – or if we are perfect, they can make us ...
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Finding Salt, Seeking Light

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I think today’s readings offer us some guidance from other eras when things were pretty fractious. And I think there are stories from our own times that might offer us a bit of inspiration. Today's texts - Isaiah 58: 1-12 and Matthew 5: 13-16 If you have been wondering what to do in this extraordinarily fractious time in our nation’s history, if you have been ricocheting between calling elected representatives and arguing with relatives, marching down State Street or crawling under the covers, I think today’s readings offer us some guidance from other eras when things were pretty fra...
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