Sermons

No matter which side you were on, we all now have the task of trying to create a place that looks more like Isaiah’s vision than Jesus’ premonition. Today's texts - Isaiah 65: 17-25 and Luke 21: 5-19  Talk about a couple of contrasting visions. For Isaiah, it’s a new heaven and a new earth. Babies will survive infancy, adults will live to an old age. People will no longer build for others as slaves but live in their own homes. They will not bear children into a world of horrors and wolves and lambs will graze together. Maybe even Republicans and Democrats will share a common meal....
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Our ancestors in the faith here at Memorial UCC over the past century sang a new song and now we are adding verses with what we do. Today's texts - Psalm 98 and Luke 6: 20-31 The hymn that we sang at the beginning of the service, the reading from Psalm 98, is a hymn filled with joy – “Sing a new song unto the Lord!” It’s what our ancestors in the faith here at Memorial UCC did over the past century. They sang a new song and now we are adding verses with what we do. So today, I’d like to look at the past, look at the present and look to our future. One hundred years ago this ...
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This gets complicated, doesn’t it? We think we are doing our best, forming a vital Christian community, caring for one another, seeking unity with other Christians – and then we remember that we will never say “we’ve always done it that way.” Today's texts - 2 Thessalonians 1: 1-4, 11-12 and Luke 19: 1-10 That letter to the people of Thessalonica we heard a few minutes ago – don’t you wish Paul and his friends would write a letter like that to us? “Brothers and sisters, we must always thank God for you. This is only right because your faithfulness is growing by leaps and bounds, a...
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Where, we might ask, is the line between bragging and self-confidence? The issue is how we balance self confidence with humility. Today's texts: Joel 2: 23-32 and Luke 18: 9-14 When you hear the story of the two men in the temple that Jesus told in today’s Gospel reading, it might bring to mind images from a presidential campaign. A braggart holds forth on how good he is. But for me, the presidential campaign this calls to mind is not the one we are in the midst of right now. It’s a campaign from the 1970s. Actually, two campaigns from the 1970s. And I think the stories from those...
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This is the draft of the social media policies that the church Council is considering for Memorial UCC. Please send comments to the church Council or to Pastor Phil or to Rebecca Malke. Social media, ranging from web sites to Facebook, from text messaging to Instagram and Twitter, is a common part of everyday life for many people and can be a useful part of the life of the congregation. Still, it must be used with care and sensitivity, reflecting the values of Memorial UCC and protecting children, members, friends and our staff. In using social media, staff members and volunteer leaders ...
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How do we live under real or metaphorical exile? Do we adapt or do we resist? How do we hang on to what are our essential beliefs when those beliefs are not shared by those in power or those who live around us? Today's texts: Jeremiah 29: 1, 4-7 and 2 Timothy 2: 8-15 It was not a happy time for the Israelites living in exile that Jeremiah was addressing in that first scripture reading today. They had been taken from their homes, from their religious institutions, from their livelihoods, from any sense of normalcy to a strange land. Some of you may recall the first words of Psalm 1...
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Office Manager Memorial United Church of Christ The office manager at Memorial United Church of Christ is the welcoming face and voice of the congregation for members, guests and the community at large. This person is responsible for providing a wide range of administrative services to the congregation and is a vital communication hub for Memorial. This position requires someone who has demonstrated excellence in interpersonal communications and can exercise discretion, initiative, judgment, time-management and organization and who has strong technical skills. The ability to keep confidenc...
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What, then, is our vision of the Gospel? What’s the vision that we want to pass on to the children in our midst? And how do we do that? Today's Texts: Habbukuk 1:1-4, 2: 1-4 and 2 Timothy 1:1-14 When we have a baptism like we do today, it’s most often because parents are passing on their beliefs to their children and want to formalize that they are bringing them into the wider Christian community. Sometimes, of course, people make that decision themselves as adults, maybe even with no family connection. But the words from the letter to Timothy that we heard today – a letter writte...
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“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone....”  1 Timothy 2.1 Today's texts: Luke 16.1-13 and 1 Timothy 2.1-7 By the Rev. J. Manny Santiago Parables, generally speaking, are not my thing. The imagery utilized on Jesus’ parables is often quite far from our daily lives. For instance, Jesus uses a lot of shepherds in his parable. But, unless you have lived in New Zealand or Ireland, it is very likely that you don’t know many shepherds. I much more prefer the easy passages of Scripture, like the book of Revelation...
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