2 sermones de Navidad
Do What Young Jesus Did: Listen and Ask Questions, Christmas 2 – January 4, 2026
[RCL] Jeremiah 31:7-14; Psalm 84 or 84:1-8; Ephesians 1:3-6, 15-19a; Matthew 2:13-15, 19-23a or Luke 2:14-52 or Matthew 2:1-12 It happens sometimes, even to responsible parents: The mother assumes the child is with the father; the father assumes the child is with the mother. When they compare notes, there is calling in every direction, searching in…
Where Is the Child?, Christmas 2 – 2025
[RCL] Jeremiah 31:7-14; Psalm 84 or 84:1-8; Ephesians 1:3-6,15-19a; Matthew 2:13-15,19-23 or Luke 2:41-52 or Matthew 2:1-12 The only goal for the Magi who followed the star to Bethlehem was to find and worship the Christ with all their souls, bodies, and worldly goods. The trek of the wise men as a spiritual journey is…
Whose Voice Do We Hear?, Christmas 2 – 2022
[RCL] Isaiah 9:2-7; Psalm 96; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14 (15-20) Amidst all the packages, wrappings, ribbons, get-togethers, cookies, and whatever is left of the puddings and roast beast, Matthew’s story of the first Christmas turns suddenly dark and foreboding. Above all the comings and goings of Magi and shepherds, Matthew, and only Matthew, calls us…
Will You Follow?, Christmas 2 – 2021
[RCL] Jeremiah 31:7-14; Psalm 84 or 84:1-8; Ephesians 1:3-6,15-19a; Matthew 2:13-15,19-23 or Luke 2:41-52 or Matthew 2:1-12 There is a traditional Italian story about an old woman named La Befana who was the most renowned housekeeper in her entire village. She would happily spend the day with her broom sweeping the floor, cupboards, and front…
Love Defeats Evil, Christmas 2 – 2020
[RCL]: Jeremiah 31:7-14; Psalm 84 or 84:1-8; Ephesians 1:3-6,15-19a; Matthew 2:13-15, 19-23 or Luke 2:41-52 or Matthew 2:1-12 On this Second Sunday after Christmas, Matthew recounts the narrow escape of the Holy Family when King Herod ordered the execution of all the babies in and around Bethlehem, two years old and younger. Joseph is warned…
Zigs and Zags, Christmas 2 – 2015
The start of this new year invites us to take out the map of our life and look at it carefully. This is a time to recognize where we have been, so that we may be better prepared for the future that awaits us. Where have you traveled in your life during these past 12…
Joined by Jesus, Christmas 2 – 2015
The Christmas season is a period in which the Church celebrates that God unites God’s self to humanity in the person of Jesus Christ. At the very heart of Christmas is the birth of our divine Savior, Christ the Lord, who is the Word made flesh. As Christians, we believe that the Son of God…
Welcoming the Light, Christmas 2 – 2014
We find ourselves in the gospel landscape of Matthew. It is a story of angelic messages delivered in dreams. It is a story without shepherds, without a manger, with no mention of other animals. It is a story that features some strangers, undocumented aliens from Persia or thereabouts – “Magi,” whatever such a word might…
Where Is the Child?, Christmas 2 – 2011
The only goal for the Magi who followed the star to Bethlehem was to find and worship the Christ with all their souls, bodies, and worldly goods. The trek of the wise men as a spiritual journey is captured well by T.S. Elliot’s poem “The Journey of the Magi”: A cold coming we had of…
The Terror by the Name of Herod, Christmas 2 – 2010
The gospel reading today reminds us that Jesus was born at a time that held little to no regard for human life. Emperors and kings reigned supreme, considering themselves equal to gods. They held the power to kill, and there was no one to hold them accountable. We like to think that eventually Christianity changed…
Why Frightened?, Christmas 2 – 2009
When Herod heard about the child who had been born King of the Jews, we read in Matthew that “he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him.” Isn’t that odd? All Jerusalem was frightened with Herod. It’s not like they had our technology that’s capable of getting news from one end of the planet to…
Endings and Beginnings, Christmas 2 – 2006
Our life is filled with endings and beginnings. Today is the last day of the calendar year. Yet we know in the church calendar that we began a new year on December 3rd, Advent Sunday. The federal budget year began on October 1st and many institutions have a fiscal year beginning on July 1st. Sometimes…
Following the Tsunami, Christmas 2 – 2005
(Note to the reader: This sermon is written for use the Sunday after the tsunami disasters in the Indian Ocean. While it makes reference to the lessons for the Second Sunday after Christmas Day, it is topical in nature). As we gather in worship today we have to remember before God the mounting numbers of…
The New Gentiles, Christmas 2 – 2004
Where should we look to see the magi, the wise men, the Gentiles of today, the people perhaps different from us who are following the star to Jesus? May we consider this question with open hearts. In the name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Today’s Gospel presents an epiphany. Epiphany comes from a…
No Coincidences, Christmas 2 – 2003
There are no coincidences. Each of us has had times when we have been struck by the oddness of events in our lives. An unexpected visit or a chance meeting connects us with people we haven’t been in touch with for many years; we apply for a job and discover the interviewer knows a mutual…
Home, Christmas 2 – 2000
Last Sunday we focused on the reality that we are allowed little time at the manger. If the Christmas créche is still placed in the liturgical space of your church, today might be a good time for moving the Holy Family to another place in the building, symbolizing their journey to Egypt. Children would especially…
The Church Continues, Christmas 2 – 1999
Most of us are still recovering from the busy-ness of ending an old year on our civil calendars, and of launching a new one. The beginning of a New Year invariably calls for taking stock; for determining whether we are still afloat or not. We look back over “the changes and chances” of the past…
Adolescence, Christmas 2 – 1998
This Gospel lesson is the one window we have into Jesus’ life in early adolescence. But we really can’t appropriately use the term adolescence in this context. Entrance into adulthood was pegged at the 12th year in that culture. So the visit to the Temple in Jerusalem was a time of transition for the 12…
A Little Bit of Joseph, Christmas 2 – 1996
The gospel reading for this Sunday is the story of the Holy Family’s flight to Egypt, trying to avoid the evil clutches of King Herod. An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph as he was sleeping, and warned him in a dream that King Herod would stop at nothing to get his hands on…
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