The Pulpiteer

This week’s sermon was part of our stewardship Sunday, and it was on 1 Timothy 6:6-12.  I was losing my voice, so hopefully that doesn’t sound too bad, but I bravely fought through and delivered a message dealing with money on the same week the stock markets fell apart.

I mention four great ministries at the end, and if you are interested in supporting those I’ll give the links here:

1. Nothing But Nets
2. Forgotten Man Ministry
3. Compassion International
4. Heifer International

If you listen via itunes, it would be wonderful if you left a positive review.  Or, maybe it would be funny if I had a ton of reviews on there from parishioners trashing the sermons…  That would be kind of funny.

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There are many ways you can participate in Halloween

And here is the final verdict – just in time!

The history of Halloween is all over the internet, so I won’t rehash that whole deal here. Suffice it to say that the date is the same as some ancient pagan celebrations that center around the dead and how the living deal with the dead. They believed that the boundary between the living and the dead was especially thin on October 31. In the 8th Century, the Pope moved the Feast of All Saint’s to November 1. This feast was basically a way to celebrate and remember the martyrs who gave their lives for the Christian faith. Today we use it to remember those who have died in Christ.
I think the interesting question is why did the Pope (remember there was only one church then, not several denominations) move a feast to this day and why this feast? October 31 was then All Hallow’s Eve, the eve prior to the Feast of All Saints. A similar move was done in regards to Christmas, by the way, when the church made December 25th the celebration of the birth of Christ. That time of year was usually the pagan celebration of the winter solstice. Continue Reading »

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Lucy's first dabbling with Wicca

Here is part 2 of the continuing saga of, “Can we expect treats at the Pastor’s house or what?”

So, does anything go? Absolutely not! You can be full out “Christ transforming culture,” but I don’t think you could ever really do a ‘strippers for Jesus’ ministry, unless it was recovering strippers who stayed clothed. There are elements of culture that are so corrupted that redemption means their absence. However, this means that some things in culture are left alone, but we always hope and pray for the redemption of people. What is the test? I think the right answer for Christians is always, “Jesus.” Jesus ate and spent time with sinners. Jesus was available to the prostitutes. What does this look like for elements of culture such as Halloween? Well, that’s the question, isn’t it? Another piece of scripture before moving on – Philippians 4:8b “if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” The closing of Philippians encourages us to put our minds on things that are good and worthy of praise. As I shared above, the experiences that I relate to Halloween – fellowship, family, sharing, friends – are all things worthy of praise.

So, does anything go? Or, pastor, don’t you believe in the powers and principalities? Continue Reading »

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I am not dressing up like Richard Niebuhr!

We are getting close to Halloween, and I know that you are all waiting very anxiously for my final word on whether or not you can celebrate it. I picture you by the computer, costume in one hand, lighter in the other. Do I do this or not? What does Pastor Andy say? Well, here is the first of three posts on this. I think I’ll do a new post each day, so check back tomorrow for part 2. Enjoy, and if you decide to go with a no on Halloween and have extra candy you need to get rid of please see me.

I received an email this week commenting on the Halloween poll and my upcoming thoughts on participating in Halloween. In the email the person wrote that the blog post really got her thinking, and then she also wrote about the things that could unite or divide us. I include that because I think this is the direction that we need to go in terms of how we engage culture – because after all, that is what this question really is about, right? How does a Christian engage culture with all of its dirtiness, shades of evil, redeemable qualities, etc.

Full disclosure: as a child we always participated in Halloween and it was really more of a family time and fun time. Continue Reading »

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This week’s sermon comes from Matthew 22:34-40 where Jesus answers the question, “What is the greatest commandment?” His answer is that we are to love God with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our mind. This is the first and greatest commandment, and a second is like it, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. Then Jesus says that all the law and prophets hang on these two commands. In this sermon I explore that. I also try to really push for a personal relationship with God – what does it mean to love God? And, what is Christianity all about?
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