August 16, 2026 By Kristin Berkey-Abbott Matthew 15:[10-20] 21-28 We have met the Canaanite woman before, and not just 3 years ago when we were last at this place in the lectionary cycle. In Mark, she’s called a Syrophoenician woman. Both of these descriptors—Canaanite and Syrophoenician--are markers that would have been more clear to first century ears than to our own. She is an outsider in all…
Today is one of the many Marian feast days. Today we celebrate Mary's Assumption into Heaven. Here are the readings for today: First Reading: Isaiah 61:7-11 Psalm: Psalm 45:11-16 (Psalm 34:1-9 NRSV) Second Reading: Galatians 4:4-7 Gospel: Luke 1:46-55 I will state the obvious from the beginning. We don't really know very much about the historic life of Mary. That's both a blessing and a problem.…
Today we celebrate our 38th wedding anniversary--38 years! It feels like just a blip. Here is one of my favorite pictures of us, a picture taken at the March 2026 wedding of our nephew, who was born in 1993: This morning in 1988, we'd have been in Greenwood, South Carolina. I'd have slept in the house that used to be a parsonage where my grandfather served a congregation for many years. Thirty…
The readings for Sunday, August 16, 2026: First Reading: Isaiah 56:1, 6-8 First Reading (Semi-cont.): Genesis 45:1-15 Psalm: Psalm 67 Psalm (Semi-cont.): Psalm 133 Second Reading: Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32 Gospel: Matthew 15:[10-20] 21-28 I don't like this picture of Jesus that today's Gospel represents. He treats the Canaanite woman rudely, with a complete lack of compassion. What do we make of this…
Today we celebrate the life of St. Clare of Assisi, one of the first followers of St. Francis, and founder of the Order of the Poor Ladies (more commonly called the Poor Clares). She wrote their Rule of Life, the first woman to have created such a thing, a set of rules for the life of a monastic order. The Poor Clares lived a life committed to poverty, what St. Clare called a "joyous poverty." Why…
We had a really good day at church yesterday at Faith Lutheran in Bristol, Tennessee. I say this with some sense of wonder because I arrived in a grumpy mood: we left ten minutes later than I had requested, which meant I felt frazzled. I prayed for my grumpy frazzled mood to lift as I waited for my spouse to come downstairs and open the door, and happily it did with the first hymn. My sermon went…
August 9, 2026 By Kristin Berkey-Abbott Matthew 14:22-33 We seem to be in the escalating miracles section of the lectionary. We might be able to explain away the miracle of last week’s reading by guessing that the crowds share more food as they are inspired by the actions of a few. But making a storm stop immediately—that miracle reveals the Divine nature of Jesus. No one could doubt after that…
I am always intrigued by how we can see seasons shifting, long before the calendar would tell us to expect these changes. We have to learn to see with new eyes, eyes that focus on what's there, not what we're expecting to see. It's more of a shift of imagination than with our literal eyes, our literal sense: It's similar to how we can see God at work in the world--but it might mean we need to…
Yesterday was a delightful day. Today will be delightful too, although it's a full day on campus, so it will be a different kind of delightful. And I've been awake since 2, so I do worry about how tired I'll be by late afternoon. My brain started churning at 2, churning with all sorts of worries and plans. I need to sit down with a calendar and old syllabi and make some loose plans--or maybe…
In many ways, today is my last day of summer 2026. A year ago, I'd have been going to CPE early and then driving to Williamsburg to help my parents recover from my mom's near death pneumonia hospitalization--I am so grateful that this summer's end is more mundane. Our transition to the school year is a gentle one. Tomorrow we have a very full day of teacher training and meetings. On Friday and…
The readings for August 9, 2026: 1 Kings 19:9-18 Psalm 85:8-13 I will listen to what the LORD God is saying. (Ps. 85:8) Romans 10:5-15 Matthew 14:22-33 This week’s Gospel reading reinforces the themes we found in last week’s lesson. The disciples are in the boat and Jesus walks across the water to them. They don’t recognize him; indeed, they’re terrified. When they realize who it is, Peter, always…
I felt good about my sermon yesterday--it's not likely to go down as one of my best, but it's solid. I tried to do more than just re-tell the Gospel, a problem with many sermons I've heard and one I try so hard to avoid in my own sermons. The Gospels aren't so complicated that most people don't understand. The recording of my sermon is here on my YouTube channel. If you'd like to read along, I…
August 2, 2026 By Kristin Berkey-Abbott Matthew 14:13-21 Last week we had parables of smallness and hiddenness to tell us what the community of God is like. I concluded last week’s sermon by saying that the Kingdom of God, this community that we’re helping to create right here and right now might remain hidden for our whole lives, visible to those around us with eyes to see, but invisible to the…
Early August is a hinge point in the calendar. In some ways, it's not as obvious a hinge as the autumnal equinox or the summer solstice; in fact, it's the time directly between those two hinges--we're as far away from the start of summer as we are from the start of autumn. But in some ways, it's just as significant a point of seasonal shift. If we lived in medieval England, we would be celebrating…
ELCA Stewardship specialist Tim Brown made this Facebook post today: In the heat of waning July days, the ancient Celts would ready themselves for the August festivals and the beginning of the harvest. They would take these final days to spend intentional time resonating with the world around them, relaxing in the earth and seeking out sacred spots to bless and in which to be blessed. You might…
In the decades/centuries before 1969, on July 29, we would have celebrated Saint Martha, one of few named women in the Gospels. Now we celebrate not only Martha, but also her sister Mary and their brother Lazarus. Their story is in the eleventh chapter of John. In a way, I think it's a shame, as each of these siblings deserves their own feast day. But today let us ask if we can we learn something…
The readings for August 2, 2026: Isaiah 55:1-5 Psalm 145:8-9, 15-22 (Psalm 145: 8-9, 14-21 NRSV) You open wide your hand and satisfy the needs of every living creature. (Ps. 145:17) Romans 9:1-5 Matthew 14:13-21 The story in the Gospel lesson is familiar; indeed, a version appears in each Gospel, which may mean it’s more likely to be a factual reporting, or it may mean that each Gospel writer…
As we drove across the mountain to Bristol, Tennessee yesterday, we wondered if we would have worship in the outdoor pavilion, the way we had planned. Our weather apps told us that the rain would be going away in time for worship, but the dark clouds suggested otherwise. We got to church, where everyone gathered early to set up was checking their weather apps. The teenagers encouraged us to go…
July 26, 2026 By Kristin Berkey-Abbott Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52 During Music Week at Lutheridge, Carl and I went to a workshop for people who are part of small choirs. I’m no trained musician, but even I could tell that my version of a small choir is very different from those folks in charge of the workshop. My version of a small choir is the type you’d find at a church that only has 70 or so…
Today we celebrate the life of James, one of the 12 disciples, the first to be martyred (Acts 12:1 tells us by Herod's sword). He's known as James the Greater (to distinguish him from James the Lesser, James the son of Alphaeus). He's the brother of John. He was one of the first to join Jesus, and Jesus chose him to go up the mountain to witness the Transfiguration. He is the patron saint of…
This week's Gospel reading revolves around small things (mustard seeds and yeast) and hidden things (treasure and pearls of rare price and fish that are worthy hidden around a net full of sea creatures). I have preached on mustard seeds and weeds before. I'm always on the lookout for new metaphors and symbols. I've used symbols like mold in a bathroom as a synonym for yeast. This year, I thought…
Decades ago, many of us might not have heard of Mary Magdalene. When I went to undergraduate school, in the mid-80's, we didn't know about many women in the Bible outside of Mary, the mother of Jesus. Maybe we had a vague memory of a woman with demons that Jesus healed. Now it's a different story. We've had decades of feminist theology that has opened our eyes and our theology to the presence of…
The readings for Sunday, July 26, 2026: First Reading: 1 Kings 3:5-12 First Reading (Semi-cont.): Genesis 29:15-28 Psalm: Psalm 119:129-136 Psalm (Semi-cont.): Psalm 105:1-11, 45b Psalm (Alt.): Psalm 128 (Psalm 128 (Semi-continuous) NRSV) Second Reading: Romans 8:26-39 Gospel: Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52 Today we have a series of interesting parables which Jesus uses to explain the Kingdom of Heaven.…
I thought my sermons, both the youth sermon and adult, went well yesterday. Then my spouse and I listened to the adult sermon on the drive home, and had a rollicking discussion about whether or not it worked. We agreed that my approach to weeds and wheat wasn't true to the parable, which tells us that you're born a wheat seed or a weed seed. But as a sermon, it works. I think. You can view the…
July 19, 2026 By Kristin Berkey-Abbott Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 If Jesus was going to explain parables, there are other parables that need more explaining than today’s parable and last week’s. These parables of seeds, sowing, good soil, and sorting don’t really need additional explanation, not from Jesus, not from generations of preachers that have come after Jesus. You might be objecting to this…