On the Sunday before Pentecost Pastor Barbara shared her long-standing fascination with the unnamed, enslaved female fortune-teller (in Acts 16: 16-34) whose actions precipitated one of the important episodes in the first days of the church. This was also only 5 days after the shooting tragedy in Uvalde TX, and Barbara addressed that too, reading…
In her first sermon as our new Pastor, Rev. Peronteau takes a deep dive into the central issue of this season: the nature of Grace, as promised in Easter. Scripture: Revelation 21:9-10; 21:22 – 22:5 and John 5:1 – 9
Nichola Torbett is a spiritual seeker, gospel preacher, podcaster, writer, resistance fomenter, dog-walker, and nonviolent direct action trainer. Driven by her passion for both spiritual formation and social change, she co-founded Seminary of the Street, a training academy for love warriors, in 2009 and Second Acts, a liturgical direct action affinity group, in 2014. She…
Rev. Julianne Stokstad was our pastor from 2004 through 2008 and has returned often over the years since. In this sermon, she introduces a concept from her days teaching biology: the “search Image,” which she suggests can help us see and feel the deeper gifts of Easter.
Garrett House is a lifetime California resident born in San Mateo. He has spent the last 16 years as a member of The Congregational Church of Belmont, California where he has served as Moderator, on The Board of Trustees, and on The Board of Christian Education. Presently, he is working on his master’s degree on…
Kim Williams is a Member in Discernment in the NCNC-UCC, and is a member of First Congregational Church of Fresno and associate member of Grace Community Church. She serves as the authorized lay minister at Grace Community Church in North Fork, CA and is an MDiv student in her third year at Pacific School of…
Rev. Elisabeth Middelberg left her native land, the Netherlands, in 1984 to come to the United States. Here she completed her license as an Art Therapist, a Marriage and Family Therapist and she finished her Master’s degree in Theology at Pacific School of Religion in 2001. She started the spiritual care department at Kaiser San…
Today’s visiting Pastor, Rev. Kristi Denham, started her career in ministry as a seminary intern 25 years ago here at FCC San Rafael. On this first Sunday in Lent, her sermon examines the idea of a call to ministry . . . Jesus’s call to his disciples in today’s scripture, similar concepts in other religions…
On the fourth Sunday in Advent, Pastor Jeffrey took a serious, affectionate look at the traditional manger scene and explored some of the many, many meanings of the Baby Jesus surrounded by domestic animals. (Scripture: Isaiah 9:2-3, 6-7 and Luke 2:8-12)
For the third Sunday of Advent, Pastor Jeffrey examines the prophesies of a savior for Israel, both the ancient one (Isaiah 7:10-16) and the actual account (Matthew 1: 18-25) almost 700 years later. Turning to today’s world, he suggests that miracles are happening all around us, but, like the birth at Bethlehem, their significance may…