Matthew 5:1-12. In verses 3-5, Jesus presents us with three unconditional blessings: for the poverty in spirit, mournfulness, and "meekness" (gentle strength) in each of us. Can we find his blessings in those places - so we can accompany others that they might find theirs?
January 22 - "BPC 300: Our Calling Forward"
Jesus frames his Good News message - "the kingdom of God is at hand!" - and calls his first disciples. What can his Good News mean for our congregation, in our 300th year, as we look ahead to a fourth century more participatory, present, and involved in spiritual practices?
January 15 - When Aged and Infant Meet, Part 3 of 3: "From Professional to Presence."
Bethesda (MD) Presbyterian Church - Rev. Chuck Booker, Pastor. Scripture: John 1:35-39. The DC area is heavily "professionalized" - an easy place to become siloed into one's specialty, unmoored from a broader, deeper presence in our world. Jesus' example that puts a premium on presence - "Come and see" where I am staying, he says - stands as a glorious antidote to a life that would be defined by one's profession.
January 8 - "When Aged and Infant Meet, Part 2 of 3: From Performance to Practice"
Matthew 3:13-17. In eschewing a divine performance and insisting he be baptized, Jesus joined the human journey of spiritual practice. Can we likewise move from performance to practice - this 300th anniversary year of our congregation?
New Year's Day - "Simeon & Jesus: Where Aged and Infant Meet"
Luke 2:25-35. Our Bethesda Presbyterian Church turns 300 years old in 2023! How do the wisdom of the ages and a new vision for our fourth century meet and greet and form and inform our future as the resilient congregation we are?
Christmas Eve: "Is There Room in Our Inn?" - Rev. Chuck Booker
Is there a room in our inn this Christmas for Mary – for Joseph – for Jesus? In the midst of our echo chambers and relational circumscriptions? Or in the garishness, the glut, the cultural illusions that pass for Christmas and that confuse our acquisitiveness with God’s abundance? There is Hope - and in that Hope: Joy! Watch - and listen ...
Sunday, December 18 - The Most Powerful Four-Letter Word in the English Language (Besides Love)? Isaiah 7:10-16
The child shall be called Immanuel: God-With-Us. Too often, we settle for God for us. What if we were to engage God with us? This Christmas: What if we were to exchange our petitionary faith for participatory trust?
Sunday, December 4 - "The Giving Stump" (Isaiah 11:1-10)
"A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse ..." (Isaiah 11:1a) After our Giving Tree is felled and we have grown old: What Advent hope could our stump provide?
Sunday, November 27 - "A Sanctuary's Vigil" (Isaiah 2:1-5)
In these words of Advent hope, the prophet invites his community - and us - to "see" the "word" in creating a sanctuary for justice. Can we imagine what "sanctuary" does and can mean for our community? Rev. Chuck shares a story how it has already happened here - and how it once happened in another church.
Sunday, November 20 - "Thanksgiving: Enough - Already!"
Scripture: Philippians 4:4-7. Tired of being told to be grateful? Enough already! Well: exactly. As the Apostle Paul shares, God has provided us enough already - though we may not see or feel it.
Sunday, November 13 - "The Serenity to Accept - and The Courage to Resist" - Rev. Chuck Booker
Scripture: Luke 21:5-19. The Serenity Prayer teaches us, "God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." Yet, as Jesus teaches us, in the shadow of his cross: when all the courage in the world cannot change matters, how can we either accept or resist them?
Sunday, November 6 - "Witnesses to Resurrection" - Rev. Chuck Booker
Scripture: Luke 20:27-38. When Jesus defends resurrection to the Sadducees, he does not play out how eternal life awaits us or our loved ones. Instead, Jesus cites the presence of his spiritual ancestors as proof. How can we today draw from our ancestors' wells and serve as witnesses to their resurrection - providing hope for the present struggles of history?
Sunday, October 30 - "The Power of Vulnerability, Part 2: Making Amends" - Rev. Chuck Booker
For church people, the story of Jesus and Zacchaeus teaches us the power of vulnerability in making amends in two ways: (1) seeing Jesus in our midst from a new vantage point, and (2) hearing his cry for hospitality on his own terms.
Sunday, October 23 - "The Power of Vulnerability - Shared" - Rev. Chuck Booker
Sunday, October 16 - "Nevertheless, She Persisted"
Rev. Chuck Booker Long before this feminist movement theme, the widow in Jesus' parable (Luke 18:1-5) confronts entrenched male power with fierce persistence. In Rev. Chuck's message, he calls us to celebrate her perseverant action based neither on dreaminess or resentment.
Sunday, October 9 - Let Us Give Thanks - Because, We Remember (Luke 17:11-19) - Rev. Chuck Booker
It is so easy to forget the moments of healing in our lives when, like the lepers in this narrative, "as we went, we are made clean". Can pausing to give thanks for these forgotten moments transform our lives?
World Communion Sunday, October 2 - "Justa: Precursor of the Church Universal" - Dr. Ruben Arjona
Justa - a traditional name for the unnamed Syrophoenician woman in Mark 7 - transforms Jesus: not the other way around. How does this transformation form and inform our present understanding of the Church universal?
Sunday, September 25 - "Seeing the Stranger at the Gate" - Rev. Chuck Booker
How can we be poor in spirit enough to see that we rich - because, others are poor? And, how are we to respond to that stranger at our gate?
Sunday, September 18 - "The Shrewdness of Forgiveness" - Rev. Chuck Booker
In our unjust world - if we wish to discover God’s mercy in our lives - the time and energy we invest on life’s rickety porch with humbled friends beats any time we spend in life’s plush resorts with privileged strangers.
