Harrowing Of Hell

Category: Belonging & Inclusion

God is Surprising

Sermon | September 18, 2016

September 18, 2016, The Rev. Kate Wesch preaching

Throughout the Bible, and especially in this parable, we are confronted with a God who takes our norms and expectations and tosses them upside down. Jesus praises the manager’s insane behavior and urges us to act more like him! You see, Jesus wants us to use the tools of this world, be it money, privilege, voice, opportunity, whatever it is, to flip things on their head, to build relationship, to make the earthly realm a better place for all.

The Kingdom of God is like a Banquet

Sermon | August 28, 2016

August 28, 2016, The Rev. Todd Foster preaching

Today’s Gospel tells of when Jesus attended a dinner party hosted by a leader of the Pharisees. The guests are all concerned with status, with hierarchy. Where you sat at the table signified something about you, about your importance. It still does, doesn’t it? Formal dinners aren’t perhaps as common today as they were in first-century Palestine or in the era of Downton Abbey, but everywhere you look, there are other signifiers of worth we think about and obsess over: things like clothes, cars, neighborhoods, professions. Often our satisfaction with a paycheck depends not on whether it suffices for our needs for food, shelter, and clothing, but on how my check compares to your check.

Being All in All the Time

Sermon | June 26, 2016

June 26, 2016, The Rev. Kate Wesch preaching

I wonder—how might we be all in all the time? What are those obligations in your life that pull you away from your relationship with God, away from your work and passions, away from self-care? What are the things that take you out of relationship?

We are not done with our changes

Sermon | May 29, 2016

May 29, 2016, Emily Linderman preaching

The Gospel reading we hear today is a continuation from the passage Kate preached on last week from John 13–17 referred to as Jesus’ Farewell Discourse. In these chapters he’s saying a profound and deeply moving goodbye for now and letting himself and his relationships change.

Whom Are We Inviting to the Party?

Sermon | February 14, 2016

February 14, 2016, The Rev. Kate Wesch preaching

When you have a party, he tells them, you don’t just invite your family and wealthy friends who will return the invitation. You, invite those who are different from you, “the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind” to quote the text. That’s the kind of party Brigid would have thrown for sure!