Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered; and being made perfect he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him….

In the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

As we come today to the final Sunday in Lent, we find the hour has come for the Son of man to be glorified. It is the hour when the purpose for which Jesus came into the world is now ready to be fulfilled: Father, glorify thy name. Our Lord has received his cue. His final act to play on the great stage of the world has come. 

Gracious Father, whose blessed Son Jesus Christ came down from heaven to be the true bread which giveth life to the world: Evermore give us this bread, that he may live in us, 
and we in him….

In the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The Fourth Sunday in Lent is known as “Laetare Sunday” and is a brief moment of levity and celebration in an otherwise austere season of fasting and penitence. Laetare is the Latin word for “rejoice” -- so this is literally “Rejoice Sunday.” For those churches that have them, it’s an option today to switch out the Lenten array of the vestments and altar furnishings you see up here for a rose-colored set to highlight the mood. And then there’s yet another title for today, “Refreshment Sunday” --- which gets at the same point -- but also directs our attention to the Gospel lesson appointed this morning, where we hear of Jesus’ feeding of the five thousand, as recorded in John’s Gospel. 

Keep us both outwardly in our bodies and inwardly in our souls, that we may be defended from all adversities which may happen to the body, and from all evil thoughts which may assault and hurt the soul.

In the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

For human beings, architecture has never been just about the need for shelter. It’s way more than that, because the buildings we construct are expressions of our deepest values. It’s why we feel personally offended if a certain space we cherish is neglected or used inappropriately. Buildings are reflections of our selves, and so the way that a space is treated likewise reflects the way that we desire to be treated. For example, while we could theoretically teach our children in a metal shed with a couple heaters and a window unit, the fact that we can do better than that means that such a space would suggest an unacceptable lack of care for the value of education. Schools should look like we consider education to be as important as it is. 

​And he began to teach them that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. And he said this plainly.

In the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

As those who know how the story of the Gospel ends -- who know that the tomb is empty -- the season of Lent could seem unnecessary, perhaps even like a distraction from the grand finale. So, it’s worth asking why we have to rewind the tape and go through Lent every year?

For Christ also died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit….

In the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

On this First Sunday of Lent, I want to do some teaching on the Sacrament of Reconciliation -- otherwise known as confession or penance. In my experience, confession is not something that tends to get a lot of attention among Episcopalians, even though it’s right there in the middle of our Prayer Book. And even when it does come up, it’s often explained by the well-known cliché that some of you perhaps have heard before: that confession is an “all may, some should, and none must” sort of affair. It’s catchy, for sure, and it’s true enough on its own. The point is that while confession is “available for all who desire it” [1], there are also probably some whose sins are of such a serious nature that making an explicit confession to a priest would at least be highly recommended. But in practice, I’ve found that it’s the “none must” part that actually determines our popular opinion on the matter, effectively crowding out the other two. As a result, the unspoken assumption is often that the most important thing to know about confession is that you don’t have to do it. So it’s hardly a surprise that the Sacrament of Reconciliation is often neglected by Episcopalians. Because things that are thought to be unnecessary are soon considered superfluous, and things that are superfluous are ultimately dispensable.