by Stephen Phelps | Feb 19, 2012 | interpretation, sermon 2012, suffering
Some Christians believe that after death, they, like all who die, will be subject to the judgment of God. Some do not. Some Christians believe that by suffering a cruel punishment which ought to be visited on all humans for their sins, Jesus saves Christians from hell. Some do not believe the crucifixion works like that at all. . . I do not recommend any of these positions. In the n name of Christ Jesus, I recommend the book of Job to help us feel the depth of our own calling.
by Stephen Phelps | Feb 12, 2012 | race, racism, sermon 2012, suffering, trial
or many Sundays to come, we are going to tune our hearts to hear through the book of Job a word of promise and power for the church of God, for this church, and for any people bereft of what belongs to them; any people kept from sharing in what is good by powers that bind them. When we are done, you will never forget God’s word to you through Job.
by Stephen Phelps | Feb 5, 2012 | freedom, race, racism, sermon 2012
“There is a place in your soul that neither time, nor space, nor no created thing can touch” (Meister Eckhart). There is a part of you you do not need to put behind a hard shell–a part of you that is not wounded and cannot be harmed; a part of you that can love, no matter what happens.
by Stephen Phelps | Jan 15, 2012 | economic justice, militarism, nonviolence, racism, sermon 2012, social justice, spiritual community
n this day of honor for our prophet Martin Luther King, it is well that we remember that no individual, no matter how skilled or gifted, ever simply leads a people out of the valley of the shadow of sleep. No, the rising of a people is a work far more complex. It resists all science and prediction. But this much is sure. The greatness of a leader hangs on the people’s awakening to the severity of their crisis.
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