Tag Archives: Jesus

Easter 4B: Good Shepherd Sunday and Earth Day

Posted on April 20, 2021 by John

The Gospel reading for this Sunday is part of John chapter 10–Jesus discourse on himself as the Good Shepherd (John 10:11-18). Wendell Berry distinguishes between farmers who are married to the land and others who rape the land. I see … Continue reading →

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Transfiguration B: Listen through Unprecedented

Posted on February 9, 2021 by John

Today on one more day of an unprecedented stretch of super cold temperatures, we look out on unprecedentedly huge drifts of snow, in the midst of a pandemic that has infected and killed unprecedented numbers of people worldwide, and listen … Continue reading →

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The Household Power Structure Changes!

Posted on December 16, 2020 by John

Pictured here are Connie, with Sméagol the cat, and Nell the sheepdog. I’m John, taking the photo. In the life of Heatherhope Farm, over the 18 years of its existence, Sméagol has run things inside the house. He meows like … Continue reading →

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Like Goliath, They’ll Be Conquered

Posted on September 1, 2020 by John

Depicted here, on the high utility post in front of our farm, is a scene that we see often: The tiny takes on the mighty. If you look close you will see a tiny red-winged blackbird sitting on top of … Continue reading →

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Nicodemus and Us

Posted on March 17, 2020 by John

This is my second “blog in a time of pandemic.” And it fits also in my ongoing series of reflections on the Sunday readings. (I rely greatly in these comments on the scholarship of the late Raymond E. Brown, and I love his idea … Continue reading →

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Pentecost 8: What Does Greatness Look Like?

Posted on July 10, 2018 by John

What constitutes greatness? In this week’s gospel we see a study in contrasts that helps us understand. In Mark 10 Jesus teaches the disciples and the church in simple terms. Two millennia later we still have a long way to … Continue reading →

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Refugees, Trump and the Light of the World

Posted on February 5, 2017 by John

Several months ago a team of people went into my heart and fixed it. They, in fact, probed with wires right up through both an artery and a vein in both of my upper thighs, right up into my heart, … Continue reading →

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Evangelism as Deprogramming

Posted on March 17, 2015 by John

    Last night was a night of inspiration. Six motivated laypeople and I were discussing what good doctrine might teach us about current practices in our congregations, and the conversation turned to evangelism. We returned to two ideas we … Continue reading →

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Joseph’s Fear and Ours

Posted on December 26, 2013 by John

The following is a sermon I prepared for Advent 4–December 22 at First Lutheran Church in Lee, Illinois. Icy roads caused the cancellation of the service, so, I offer this sermon for the members of Lee and for anyone interested. … Continue reading →

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He Touched the Pain: God and Suffering

Posted on October 12, 2010 by John

Iris DeMent’s song, “He Reached Down,” expresses the way God relates to our suffering and the way we relate to God in faith. Continue reading →

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