reverendjaneausten

SERMON WEDS. WEEK OF PROPER 29-LAST PENTECOST YEAR 2 11.26.08 I am sure most of us know the children's song that goes with this Gospel. I will not sing it! But it has always made me happy---at least until I really unpack it. To unpack it, I have to remember another time someone came to my house. When my husband and I bought Pine Gables, where we live now, our eldest two boys were 8 and 11. Their main attraction to the small ranch house was the creek down below. You might imagine what fodder that provided for our washer and dryer. One early Fall Saturday, I had just had it. I told them the whole family was going to get this laundry done by staying on top of it all day. Their rooms were at one end of the house and the laundry closet at the other, outside of our room. I told them to do the big sort and to line up the piles of laundry across the library (our front room.) I think there were at least ten small mountains in various shadings. Since I would not let them go outside unt...

This will actually go out as a letter later this week but I thought I would post it here as well since most of the recipients are not blog readers! SERMON FOR LAST SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST- CHRIST THE KING Since the Small Church Ministry Consortium priests are off on Sunday November 23rd, the Feast of Christ the King, I wanted to reflect with you about the lessons for that day. Rather than reproduce them here, I will give you the References, and encourage you to spend some prayerful time with these readings. They are: Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24, Psalm 100, Ephesians 1:15-23, Matthew 25:31-46. Where Shannon, Graff and I live in Berea, we are privileged to have as neighbors a small farm. There are a few cattle, about 6 horses, cats, dogs and two goats. We have watched these goats since they were adopted as orphans, bottle fed and raised in the pasture that is nearest to the road. We walk our Border Collie, Seabury, there, and she is always so concerned that they need herding! One day recentl...

I know. Amazing. Probably will never happen again! ;-)) Sermon Proper 27 Year A, St. Mark’s Hazard November 9, 2008 May our work in the world be a vehicle for Your Love; May it shine and light up all darkened places. Be with us, O Lord, Amen. (Adapted from Marianne Williamson’s Illuminata.) As soon as the results of the presidential race were looking definite last Tuesday evening, comments on blogs, news sites and Facebook came alive with words from both those who were ecstatic and grateful, and those who were bitter and determined to continue the fight. Responses from “Glory Hallelujah” to “He will never be my president,” made it clear that even such a definitive settling of the vote does not begin to unite the two camps that have existed in conflict for so many months. Do you think anyone noticed that we have been so much about the race that we have forgotten what the race is actually supposed to accomplish? Neither candidate, (arguably more embroiled in the divisiveness than a...

is still breathtaking. I love where we live! These are just scenes from the windows and the first one is from the street looking at Pine Gables (our house.)