Tag: christianity

  • 23rd November 2025 (24th Sun. after Pentecost)

    St Luke 23: 33-43 Jesus crucified with two thieves 23:33 When they came to the place that is called The Skull, they crucified Jesus there with the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. 23:34 Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they…

  • Preaching Paths 16 November 2025 Proper 28C

    Sally A Brown, Professor Emerita, Princeton Theological Seminary In today’s gospel reading (Luke 21:5-19), Jesus continues to teach a mixed crowd of disciples and other listeners in the magnificent Temple in Jerusalem, a building project of Rome’s appointee, Herod the Great. In Jesus’ time, its expansive outer courts and lavish embellishments were still under construction.…

  • Preaching Paths 9 November 2025 Proper 27C

    Sally A Brown, Professor Emerita, Princeton Theological Seminary After several weeks of Luke’s action-filled parables and stories, today’s Gospel text, Luke 20:27-38, may strike some preachers—and their listeners!—as odd or simply irrelevant. To open a pathway to  the pulpit, a first step is to review the setting and timing of the debate presented in this…

  • Preaching Paths 26 October 2025, Proper 25C

    Sally A. Brown, Professor Emerita, Princeton Theological Seminary Luke 18:9-14, another parable unique to Luke, continues the theme of prayer introduced in last week’s reading (18:1-8), but with a different emphasis. Last week’s reading underscored the need for steadfastness in prayer. This week, Jesus again sets side by side two contrasting individuals—this time, a law-observant…

  • Preaching Paths 12 October 2025 Proper 23C

    Sally A Brown, Professor Emerita, Princeton Theological Seminary In today’s gospel lection, Luke 17:11-19, we find Jesus traveling the borderland between Galilee and Samaria, a region many Jewish travelers avoided, owing to the deep animosity between Jews and Samaritans. Unsurprisingly, ten men made ritually “unclean” because of skin disease chose to take refuge there. Many…

  • Preaching Paths 5 October 2025, Proper 22C

    Sally A Brown, Professor Emerita, Princeton Theological Seminary A helpful step toward preaching from today’s text, Luke 17:5-10, will be to begin reading at v 1, both for study and in the worship service. The high bar of addressing and forgiving others’ offenses that Jesus sets in vv 1-4 is the impetus for his disciples’…

  • Sunday,12th & 5th October 2025

    12th October 2025, 18th Sunday after Pentecost Luke 17:11-19 The healed leper gives thanks to Jesus 17:11 On the way to Jerusalem Jesus was going through the region between Samaria and Galilee. 17:12 As he entered a village, ten with a skin disease approached him. Keeping their distance, 17:13 they called out, saying, “Jesus, Master,…

  • Preaching Paths 21 September 2025 Proper 15C

    Sally A. Brown, Professor Emerita, Princeton Theological Seminary Preachers and scholars agree: the parable of the “dishonest manager” (Luke 16:1-13) is arguably the most difficult of Jesus’ parables to interpret. Consternation centers on vv 8-9. In v 8a, the master commends the cleverness of the “dishonest” account manager he intended to dismiss. In v 8b,…

  • Preaching Paths 14 September 2025 Proper 19C

    Sally A Brown, Professor Emerita, Princeton Theological Seminary Context matters for rightly interpreting the first two of Jesus’ three parables of God’s persistent seeking of that which is lost (Luke 10:1-15). Jesus is responding to grumbling Pharisees and scribes who criticize his habit of dining with the tax collectors and “sinners” who follow and listen…

  • 28th,21st,14th,& 7th September 2025

    28th September 2025 Luke 16:19-31 Poor Lazarus and the rich man 16:19 “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 16:20 And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, 16:21 who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell…