Harrowing Of Hell

Friendship and Mutuality

September 1, 2013, The Rev. Doyt Conn preaching

God is always near, this near, in fact, but people who ignore God or pretend God isn’t real, or even believe God isn’t real, can’t know friendship with God. It requires mutuality, and if there is no mutuality, it is as if God isn’t there.

Bishop’s Visit

June 16, 2013, The Right Rev. Gregory Rickel preaching

This past Thursday we ordained five priests for the Church at St. Mark’s Cathedral. The day the Church was celebrating happened to be the day we celebrate the life of GK Chesterton. He was an amazing servant of God, who was known for his wit and candor. He has many great quotes, and I have lots of favorites, like “The Bible tells us to love our neighbors and to love our enemies. probably because they are generally the same people.”

But the one he is most famous for and is so often misquoted or paraphrased is this one: “Christianity has not been tried and found wanting, it has been found difficult and not tried.”

But perhaps my personal favorite quote of chesterton is one I left the new priests with Thursday night, “Let your religion be less of a theory, and more of a love affair.”

Evensong

February 10, 2013, The Rev Kate Wesch preaching

Today, evensong, or “evening song,” is said or sung daily at many cathedrals. Essentially, it thanks God for the day just past and asks God’s protection during the coming night. It is a quiet, reflective set of prayers, songs, and psalms, asking the worshiper to be still in spirit. In its full expression, the choir sings much of the service on behalf of the congregation.

Pattern Matching Life in the Kingdom of God

January 27, 2013, The Rev Doyt Conn preaching

What I’d like to do now is share some kingdom of God patterns that I have seen emerge at Epiphany over the past few years and reflect on how these patterns give us a road map for how church is meant to work. The three examples I’m going to give mirror the three words we used to frame our parish conversations: worship, formation and community.

The Ingathering

December 16, 2012, The Rev Doyt Conn preaching

It is times like these when we gather at church. It is where we come when we don’t know what to think and when we are uncertain about how to feel. It is where we come when we are not quite sure what to believe… we come here because we belong here. It is our place, this holy space. This is where we gather, where our souls sync together, unified through the power of liturgy.