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Preaching Paths 21 December 2025, Advent 4, Year A
Sally A Brown, Professor Emerita, Princeton Theological Seminary Today’s gospel text, Matthew 1:18-25, presents Matthew’s account of the birth of “Jesus the Messiah” (v 18). Matthew’s narrative contrasts strikingly with that of Luke, focusing not on Mary, but on Joseph. Joseph is typically portrayed in Nativity scenes simply standing by, mute and passive as the…
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Preaching Paths 21 December 2025
Sally A. Brown, Professor Emerita, Princeton Theological Seminary Preaching possibilities abound in today’s Gospel reading (Lk 1:39-56). Two unlikely expectant mothers—one long considered barren, the other young and unmarried—join in Spirit-inspired celebration of God’s surprising ways. After the angel Gabriel’s life-changing visit, Mary travels to the far Judean hills to visit her older cousin, Elizabeth.…
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Preaching Paths 14 December 2025 Advent 3 Year A
Sally A Brown, Professor Emerita, Princeton Theological Seminary The gospel reading for this third Sunday in Advent, Year A, Mt 11:2-11, can be jarring for preachers, to say nothing of their prospective listeners. What merit is there in forcing ourselves to grapple with the consternation of John the Baptist, locked and silenced in Herod’s prison,…
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Preaching Paths 7 December 2025 Advent 2 Year A
Sally A. Brown, Professor Emerita, Princeton Theological Seminary Once again, as is customary on the Second Sunday of Advent, John the Baptist strides into our December landscapes of twinkling, colored lights like an unwelcome guest at a party. He is dressed in the shaggy pelt of a camel. He prefers locusts to Christmas sweets (Mt…
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Preaching Paths 30 November 2025 Advent 1 Yr A
Sally A Brown, Professor Emerita, Princeton Theological Seminary Every year, the lectionary opens Advent with a Gospel text replete with eschatological visions and warnings. In Year A, the year devoted to Matthew’s gospel, Advent 1 lands us squarely in the gospel’s fifth discourse, sometimes called “the Eschatological Discourse.” This includes all of Matthew chs 24…
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Preaching Paths 23 November 2025 Feast of the Reign of Christ, Yr C
Sally A Brown, Professor of Preaching Emerita, Princeton Theological Seminary Congregations may be perplexed to find that this year, the gospel text for the Feast of the Reign of Christ is the scene (and soundtrack) of Jesus’ crucifixion (Luke 23:33-43). Why not the story of Jesus’ Transfiguration, where he shines with otherworldly light (Lk 9:28-36),…
Insights into Biblical Greek Grammar and Syntax 