A good friend has spent most of his life outside the Church, though he was raised within its shadow. Through his adulthood, Christian practice has seldom inspired, and Christian doctrine, as he has known it, has too often been a…
When obeying God means disobeying the Bible
Joseph is not a dominant figure in the nativity stories, but in Matthew’s story of his encounter with the angel (1:18-25), he functions as a kind of model for each of us. Consider how Joseph responded when he discovered that…
At Christmas, it’s not we who should be afraid. It’s the powers that seek destruction and preach division.
Amy Butler preached this sermon at The Riverside Church on Christmas Eve this year. Well, here we are, and it’s Christmas Eve, again. On the edge of yet another year, we hear the ancient story read, picture a peace-filled stable…
Fear not: How Linus and his blanket can help us change the world
In addition to being an ordained minister, I am also a standup comedian. One thing I’ve always wanted to do at the end of my set (and my sermons) was a mic drop — that moment when a comedian…
Wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger
If you have seen Will Ferrell’s Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, it’s hard to hear Luke’s Christmas story without thinking of the “baby Jesus grace.” Ricky Bobby is a driver not a thinker, and it shows. “Dear lord…
Advent and prison cells
Every three years, the Revised Common Lectionary takes us to a prison. On the Third Sunday of Advent — a Sunday of Joy, where many churches light a rosy candle and “Joy to the World” resounds in open halls —…
Mary and Joseph — and Kevin
Shivering, wet guests file into the fellowship hall. It is cold and raining on the Thursday before Christmas. Two hundred homeless people have come to church for chicken spaghetti. I pass a marker around my table. We fill out nametags….
God is with us but where?
Another year, another Advent season. God is with us and it is spectacular. Or, maybe it isn’t anymore. Perhaps, we are beginning to feel that God has come and gone due to a political season that has taken a toll…
‘Do you see this woman?’ A model for Christian engagement
Luke 7 tells the story of Jesus being invited for dinner at Simon the Pharisee’s house. During the visit, we’re told that “a woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s…
If I was God, Christmas would be different
We had to take our baby to the hospital this past week. He was having trouble breathing in the middle of the night so we took him to the emergency room at 3 a.m. The doctors at the local hospital…
A Christmas list for Donald Trump
President-Elect Trump, Congratulations on wining this year’s presidential election. As Christians around the country prepare to celebrate Christmas, you are also building your inner circle of advisors who will set policy for our nation in the coming year. As your…
What is a ‘Recombobulation Area’?
I’ve seen a lot of unusual things, people and events in airports. It takes something special to get a reaction from me. Recently, I saw something that stopped me in my tracks. In fact, I took a photo of the…