by Anne Robertson | Sep 12, 2021 | Sermons
This week, the nation is focused on the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attack, which remains the deadliest terror attack in world history. Across the two towers, the Pentagon, and the Pennsylvania field, 2977 people were killed and more than 6,000 others were injured. We have only just now ended the war that attack began.
But while 9/11 was a single day of terror, we are still in the grips of something infinitely worse. Over 650,000 Americans have died from Covid since the start of the pandemic. Over 32,000 have died in the US just in the past 28 days. And the war on science, truth, and compassion that has ensued is merely in its infancy.
This Sunday we are going to talk about the ways that grief and traumatic events dismember us and how we can heal through re-membering instead of merely recalling those wounds. When done with love, we can re-member the past in a way that creates a strong foundation for moving into the future, whether we have been dismembered by events in our world or in our individual lives. It takes us all, together. Will you join me?
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by Anne Robertson | Aug 29, 2021 | Sermons
People ask questions related to heaven and/or hell, so I try address them with the only time Jesus gives us any detailed picture of how such judgments are made. The Bible passage is probably familiar to many of you; it’s Matthew 25: 31-46.
While we’ll focus on those verses, passages of the Bible should always be read in context. Jesus has not been in a good mood since his triumphal entry into Jerusalem in Matthew 21; and between there and the end of chapter 25, there is a lot of anger and parables that end with a good bit of woe-unto-you and gnashing of teeth. So, if you want to prep for this sermon, read from Matthew 21 through Matthew 26:4 to get a sense of the broader context.
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by Anne Robertson | Aug 22, 2021 | Sermons
On this particular Sunday we welcomed two people into membership at Crawford and had the enormous privilege of baptizing their daughter. This provides not only a wonderful time of celebration (cake at coffee hour!) but also an opportunity to consider what we believe is happening at the time of a baptism.
As you watch you can think more deeply about this foundational sacrament of the church.
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by Anne Robertson | Aug 15, 2021 | Sermons
“What’s wrong with calling God ‘Father?’” My response is nuanced, so I invite you to read and think about this old Indian folktale (below), told in verse by John Godfrey Saxe.
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The Blind Man and the Elephant, by John Godfrey Saxe
It was six men of Indostan, to learning much inclined,
who went to see the elephant (Though all of them were blind),
that each by observation, might satisfy his mind.
The first approached the elephant, and, happening to fall,
against his broad and sturdy side, at once began to bawl:
“God bless me! but the elephant, is nothing but a wall!”
The second feeling of the tusk, cried: “Ho! what have we here,
so very round and smooth and sharp? To me tis mighty clear,
this wonder of an elephant, is very like a spear!”
The third approached the animal, and, happening to take,
the squirming trunk within his hands, “I see,” quoth he,
the elephant is very like a snake!”
The fourth reached out his eager hand, and felt about the knee:
“What most this wondrous beast is like, is mighty plain,” quoth he;
“Tis clear enough the elephant is very like a tree.”
The fifth, who chanced to touch the ear, Said; “E’en the blindest man
can tell what this resembles most; Deny the fact who can,
This marvel of an elephant, is very like a fan!”
The sixth no sooner had begun, about the beast to grope,
than, seizing on the swinging tail, that fell within his scope,
“I see,” quoth he, “the elephant is very like a rope!”
And so these men of Indostan, disputed loud and long,
each in his own opinion, exceeding stiff and strong,
Though each was partly in the right, and all were in the wrong!
So, oft in theologic wars, the disputants, I ween,
tread on in utter ignorance, of what each other mean,
and prate about the elephant, not one of them has seen!
by Anne Robertson | Aug 8, 2021 | Sermons
Did you know that the Sabbath commandment is not only the longest of the ten, but also the only one that is unique among ancient law codes? Why would resting for one day a week rise to the level of the top ten laws of the God of Israel? And what does it mean to rest anyway? What can and can’t we do on the Sabbath?
To answer that, we’ll look at what the Bible tells us about the nature of work, look at the direct connection of the Sabbath commandment to both Creation and the liberation from slavery, and see how keeping just this one commandment can ensure that we keep what Jesus calls the greatest commandment: To love God and to love our neighbors as ourselves.
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by Anne Robertson | Aug 1, 2021 | Sermons
This Sunday we celebrated Holy Communion as we normally would, but we also talked about a Bible passage about Communion that I think is frequently misunderstood and why fixing that issue might provide us with an anchor in these destabilizing times. The Scripture passage we’ll be talking about is 1 Corinthians 11:17-34 if you want to read before you watch.
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