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The Reverend Jeffrey C. Johnson
Assisting Minister: Sue Newberg
Lay Eucharist Minister: Jeanne Govoni
As Solomon prays for wisdom, we seek to more deeply know the treasures of faith. In today’s gospel Jesus offers everyday images that reveal to us the reign of God: a tree that becomes a sheltering home, yeast that penetrates and expands, a treasured pearl, a net that gains a great catch. Even as we seek the riches of God’s reign, the great surprise is that God’s grace finds us first!
The Reverend Jeffrey C. Johnson
Assisting Minister: Chris Newman
Lay Eucharist Minister: Jeanne Govoni
It is an age-old question: why is there evil in the world? In the parable of the wheat and the weeds Jesus suggests that both grow together until the harvest. With Paul, we long for the day that all creation will be set free from bondage and suffering. Having both weeds and wheat within us, we humbly place our hope in the promises of God, and from the Lord’s table we go forth to bear the fruit of justice and mercy.
The Reverend Jeffrey C. Johnson
Assisting Minister: Jeanne Govoni
Lay Eucharist Minister: Jeanne Govoni
God’s word is like the rain that waters the earth and brings forth vegetation. It is also like the sower who scatters seed indiscriminately. Our lives are like seeds sown in the earth. Even from what appears to be little, dormant, or dead, God promises a harvest. At the Lord’s table we are fed with the bread of life, that we may bear fruit in the world.
The Reverend Jeffrey C. Johnson
Assisting Minister: Nina Sousa
Lay Eucharist Minister: Jeanne Govoni
At this celebration of the nation, we join the psalmist in offering thanksgiving to God: “You crown the year with your goodness, and your
paths overflow with plenty.” We are grateful for the abundance of the good things of God’s creation. As the body of Christ in the world, we give ourselves away as bread for the hungry.
The Reverend Jeffrey C. Johnson
Assisting Minister: Pete Randall
Lay Eucharist Minister: Jeanne Govoni
The welcome of baptism is for all God’s children. This baptismal gift sets us free from the power of sin and death. In today’s gospel, Christ promises that the disciple who gives a cup of cold water to the little ones serves Christ himself. From worship we are sent on our baptismal mission:to serve the little ones of this world and to be a sign of God’s merciful welcome.
The Reverend Jeffrey C. Johnson
Assisting Minister:Jeanne Govoni
Lay Eucharist Minister: Jeanne Govoni
The central characters of today’s gospel are the Ethiopian Eunuch and Philip, an apostle, deacon, and follower of Jesus. The Ethiopian Eunuch, having been sexually mutilated, cannot enter the Temple in Jerusalem for worship. He indeed, is a “stranger at the gate.” Upon a Spirit-filled meeting between the
Eunuch and Philip, the faith demonstrated by the Eunuch compels Philip to baptize him. Both depart from each rejoicing and spreading the good news of Jesus Christ.
The Reverend Jeffrey C. Johnson
Assisting Minister:Peter Randall
Moses tells the Israelites that they are called to be a priestly kingdom and a holy people. Jesus sends out the disciples as laborers into the harvest. In baptism we too are anointed for ministry, sharing God’s compassion with our needy world. From the Lord’s table we go forth to proclaim the good news, to heal the sick, and to share our bread with the hungry.
The Reverend Cassandra Chavez,
Assisting Minister:Sue Newburg
Though Jesus was a devout Jew who practiced his faith, he was criticized for eating with tax collectors and sinners—the religiously nonobservant. Jesus criticizes the self-righteous and reminds us that mercy is to be at the heart of our religious practices. God continues to be made known in those on the margins of society, like Matthew the tax collector and the hemorrhaging woman. As we gather each Lord’s day we receive the
healing that makes us well and sends us forth to be signs of God’s mercy for the world.
The Reverend Beatrice Michels Brown
,
Assisting Minister:Sue Newburg
Though the word trinity is not found in the scriptures, today’s second reading includes the apostolic greeting that begins the liturgy: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. In the gospel Jesus sends his disciples forth to baptize in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. More than a doctrine, the Trinity expresses the heart of our faith: we have experienced the God of creation made known in Jesus Christ and with us always through the Holy Spirit. We celebrate the mystery of the Holy Trinity in word and sacrament, as we profess the creed, and as we are sent into the world to bear witness to our faith.
The Reverend Jeffrey C. Johnson,
Assisting Minister: Dawn Caffelle
Lay Reader: Weston Pearson
Confirmands: Addison Pellerin,
Dashwan Pinto, Avandro Goncalves,
Justin Dahlgren
Pentecost derives its name from the Jewish festival celebrating the harvest and the giving of the law on Mount Sinai fifty days after Passover. Fifty days after Easter, we celebrate the Holy Spirit as God’s presence within and
among us. In Acts the Spirit arrives in rushing wind and flame, bringing God’s presence to all people. Paul reminds us that though we each have different capacities, we are unified in the Spirit that equips us with these gifts. Jesus breathes the Holy Spirit on his disciples, empowering them to forgive sin. We celebrate that we too are given the breath of the Holy Spirit and sent out to proclaim God’s redeeming love to all the world.
The Reverend Jeffrey C. Johnson,
Assisting Minister: Pete Randall
Lay Eucharistic Minister: Jeanne Govonni
In these days between Ascension and Pentecost, we gather with the disciples in the upper room, waiting for the Spirit to transform the church around the world. In today’s gospel Jesus prays for his followers and for their mission in his name. Amid religious, social, and economic divisions, we seek the unity that Jesus had with his Father. Made one in baptism, we go forth to live our faith in the world, eager for the unity that God intends for the whole human family.
