Summertime Sermons
Beginning last Sunday (June 1) and continuing until September 14, the Revised Common Lectionary affords the opportunity to read, study and hear significant portions of St. Paul's Letter to the Romans.
Hailed by many scholars as Paul's magnum opus, Romans is a tour de force of theology. The longest letter in the New Testament, Romans is a fascinating study in the way one of the early followers of Jesus wrestled with significance of Jesus' life, death and resurrection...both for the fledgling church and in relationship to God's covenant people Israel. A close reading of this text also gives us a glimpse into the intellectual rigor of one of the early church's most influential thinkers.
So...I'm going to try an experiment for the next three and a half months. Rather than reading all of the lessons appointed for a particular Sunday and listening for which one of them "speaks" to me, I'm going to base each week's sermon on the assigned reading from Romans.
I'm also intending to provide some background material in the Sunday bulletin so that folks can have some assistance in locating "where we are" each week. I think this will be particularly helpful given the ways in which Paul structures his arguments, as well as the twin realities of the brevity of Episcopal sermons and the attendance patterns associated with summer.
And now, I'm off to find my Greek New Testament and collect the commentaries from the shelf in my study!!!
Beginning last Sunday (June 1) and continuing until September 14, the Revised Common Lectionary affords the opportunity to read, study and hear significant portions of St. Paul's Letter to the Romans.
Hailed by many scholars as Paul's magnum opus, Romans is a tour de force of theology. The longest letter in the New Testament, Romans is a fascinating study in the way one of the early followers of Jesus wrestled with significance of Jesus' life, death and resurrection...both for the fledgling church and in relationship to God's covenant people Israel. A close reading of this text also gives us a glimpse into the intellectual rigor of one of the early church's most influential thinkers.
So...I'm going to try an experiment for the next three and a half months. Rather than reading all of the lessons appointed for a particular Sunday and listening for which one of them "speaks" to me, I'm going to base each week's sermon on the assigned reading from Romans.
I'm also intending to provide some background material in the Sunday bulletin so that folks can have some assistance in locating "where we are" each week. I think this will be particularly helpful given the ways in which Paul structures his arguments, as well as the twin realities of the brevity of Episcopal sermons and the attendance patterns associated with summer.
And now, I'm off to find my Greek New Testament and collect the commentaries from the shelf in my study!!!
posted by FrGaryB | 5:25 AM
7 Comments:
Hey Gary,
Sounds like fun. Sorry I won't be around to catch them; do you think you might also include the background material in the weekly e-News?
Speaking of sermons, my friend Kristie sent me links to a couple great ones by Alan Jones, Dean of Grace Cathedral, San Francisco. Thought you and your readers might appreciate a listen. They certainly spoke to us.
May 18
May 25
Kyle:
Alan Jones is a master of the serpentine sermon. He takes the hearer on a journey of literature, poetry, history, scripture, theology and current events. Somehow, he holds these twists and turns together until he reaches conclusion...and usually with a deftness that is unforced and conversational. He balances his own curiosity and imagination with a keen understanding of the context within which he is preaching. I've heard him numerous times and read several of his books beginning with "Soul Making" published 15 or more years ago.
On a humorous note, I did have to wonder if his English accent is what helps him consistently preach twice as long as most priests do and get away with it.
On a theological note, while I enjoyed listening to his Trinity Sunday sermon, I felt his overt anthropological starting point ran the risk of a utilitarian understanding of this key dogma of the faith, that in the end, made the Trinity more about "us" than about the Glory of God's Own Self.
(But, of course, Alan hasn't called me up seeking homiletical advice!)
Wow, I'd completely overlooked that point, but it's well taken.
Is that risk just part of the territory when you preach any "topical" sermon? It seems that attempting to explore how theology should inform our actions could become almost impossibly difficult if we allow ourselves to overly obsess about any and all perceived "reverse implications" of the decision to deploy a certain doctrine in a certain situation.
That is, saying "let's try to emulate this characteristic of the Trinity in our relationships with each other" doesn't commit us to the position that the Trinity is "more about 'us' than about the Glory of God's Own Self," does it? Is this possible misunderstanding just a rhetorical problem with a rhetorical solution (e.g., "Now don't misunderstand me; I'm not claiming...but rather...")? It seems like a shame to pass on using this metaphor drawn from Trinitarian imagery rather than just noting that it is indeed a metaphor.
Or am I misunderstanding your point? Is your critique rather that he chose to preach a topical sermon at all, instead of exploring the dogma of the Trinity from a purely theological perspective on the day we specifically set aside to reflect on it?
Gary,
I listened to Rev Alan Jones' sermon regarding the Trinity. Being the southern Bubba (redundant) that I am I often feel like I might be in China and need an interpreter when I listen to what I call "high sermons." And those are important.
It sounded to me like his basic premise is that we need to listen each other and not discount another. It sounded at times like he was also tying us all back to Adam and Eve. If these are true then I agree with him.
However, some of the terms did bother me. To me it did sound like he was getting the focus more on us and less on God. I also had some trouble with this statement "that which unites us is far greater than that which divides us." There is a dangerous aspect to the commonality of faith/spiritualism. At times it is almost as though you can hear the hiss of a serpent as he speaks (the serpent). Please do not take this as any statement against Alan Jones' spirituality; just against the commonality doctrine.
God, the Trinity, is Holy. Our main goal is to glorify Him and enjoy Him forever. The focus on Him. We like it on us.
Be blessed,
David
Coincidence alert!
The Chesterton quotation about dogma has appeared twice recently on this blog. Lyndon used it in the "public ministry" comment-a-thon, and Alan Jones used it in his 18 May homily.
Cue Twilight Zone theme...
Kyle:
I think what I was responding to in the Jones' Trinity Sunday sermon was my own awareness of how easily preachers (myself included) can drift toward making the congregation the center of God's attention instead of taking an opportunity to focus the congregation's attention on God.
I understand that Jones is working several angles in this sermon at once...and by employing the doctrine of the Trinity as a relational metaphor, he's engaging the hearers in a reflection about some serious issues extant in our world today.
And...my guess is that many in the congregation were much more engaged with the way in which he preached this sermon than, say, if he'd offered a history lesson of the development of the doctrine of the Trinity.
Lately, though, I've been wondering a good deal about how we converse with a culture about God when the culture (inside and outside the church), encounters everything, God included, as a consumable for the benefit of satiating the individual's perceived wants/desires -- be they social, spiritual, intellectual, psychological or financial.
What would it be like if every once in a while we could look around, be stunned by the gift of life itself, and offer up a breathless thanks to the God who created it all (us included)?
What would it be like if within congregations we could turn our attention (for a few seconds anyway) in the liturgy to an awareness that through the self-giving of the Son for the glory of the Father, the Spirit has been sent to empower the Church to witness, through word and deed to the glory of the Triune God?
Brother Dave:
Thanks for the comment...I appreciate your concern about a blurring of theological categories.
Given so much of the rhetoric of late (in any number of societal venues), I think Jones' is advocating a softening of our edginess so that we might actually talk with one another instead of lob invectives at each other.
I also think that until we have engaged another person or group from a standpoint of respecting their dignity as human beings, we have little hope for embodying the ministry of reconciliation that is incumbent upon those who would claim to be a part of "the church".
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