[RCL] Esther 7:1-6, 9-10; 9:20-22; Psalm 124; James 5:13-20; Mark 9:38-50 The theme of God’s people struggling to survive in a sophisticated, alien culture appears throughout the Bible, especially in the Old Testament. This theme is central to the Book of Esther, which supplies today’s first reading. Today is the only Sunday in our three-year…

RCL: Proverbs 31:10-31; Psalm 1; James 3:13-4:3, 7-8a; Mark 9:30-37 In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. One of the unique literary elements reported throughout Mark’s gospel is the disciples’ lack of understanding. At times, the disciples are depicted as confused, challenged, and even discouraged by…

RCL: Proverbs 1:20-33; Psalm 19; James 3:1-12; Mark 8:27-38 There are countless ways we expect the story – our stories – to end. “And they lived happily ever after.” “All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.” “Well done, good and faithful servant.” “And one day…

RCL: Song of Solomon 2:8-13; Psalm 45:1-2, 7-10; James 1:17-27; Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23 Author Anthony DeMello tells a story about an ashram cat. He writes, “When the guru sat down to worship each evening, the ashram cat would get in the way and distract the worshipers. So he ordered that the cat be tied…

RCL: 1 Kings 8:[1, 6, 10-11], 22-30, 41-43; Psalm 84; Ephesians 6:10-20; John 6:56-69 If it’s October and your yard is full of maple oaks, you could spend days or even weeks, engaged in the backbreaking work of bending down to pick up each leaf and put it in a trash bag, but if you…

RCL: 1 Kings 2:10-12; 3:3-14; Psalm 111; Ephesians 5:15-20; John 6:51-58 What does it mean to have eternal life? Is this simply going to Heaven and living forever? Intuitively, eternal life seems like an unlimited number of days — our lives extended over an infinite expanse of time — but that’s not actually what eternal…