Tad Hopp graduated in June of this year from San Francisco Theological Seminary and is spending the summer as the administrator of our successful “Summer Camp” edition of the Homework Club. In this, his first sermon since graduating, he takes a look at how people find the courage to stand up for controversial or unpopular…
Pastor Tracy looks at the story of the death of John the Baptist and finds a parallel with the recent violence against black churches in the south: In both cases, the established power structure lashed out against a prophetic voice speaking truth. And, in both cases it was a sign that the powerful felt their grip on power…
For our special Pride Day Celebration, Pastor Tracy explored two passages from the Gospels in which — if you understand the idioms of the era — Jesus explicitly indicates His acceptance of all sexual orientations. (Scripture: Acts 8:26-40 and Matthew 19:1-12) We opened the service with a special litany for Pride Day written by member Michael Meehan and…
Pastor Tracy examines two seemingly unrelated issues: Jesus learning to trust his ability to work miracles (as recounted in Mark 5:21-42) and the possible roots of institutional racism in the conflicts roughly 50 years earlier between Caesar Augustus in Rome and Marc Antony in Egypt. The common thread is the way our actions can ripple through time far beyond…
Rev. Faune Towery is an old friend of FCCSR, having been our Pastoral Intern for two years while in seminary and having celebrated her ordination here in 2007. In this sermon she examines the idea of rest as a necessity in an intentional life – – the time when we take stock of where we…
Pastor Tracy takes on one of the most challenging stories from the gospels, Jesus casting out demons. She finds that, like the book of Revelation, much of it is an encoded, metaphorical commentary on the evils of Roman occupation. She also reports on her experiences with fear of demons today, and its connections to abuse.
Pastor Tracy discusses Pentecost as the moment the Apostles first reached out to the world around them and expressed their authenticity. She finds a parallel today in every healthy church, and even among pre-school kids on a playground. (Scripture: Acts 2: 1-13)
Pastor Tracy looks at the familiar story of Adam and Eve and the serpent, and finds something different from “original sin” and divine condemnation. She finds the universal patterns of parents struggling to protect their kids from danger while preparing them to leave the nest.
Wanting to wait until “the time is right” is a universal human feeling, but real life seldom works that way. Pastor Tracy explores the story of the Wedding at Cana, which was the first of many times Jesus expressed this thought. She matches this with the true story of a ballroom dancing club in college. In both cases,…
Drawing on the Book of Tobit in the apocrypha plus her own adventures in urban chicken-raising*, Pastor Tracy addressed the tragic dilemma that faces people forcibly removed from their homeland. From the Jews of the Old Testament to Africans brought here as slaves, these refugees are told they must assimilate into a new culture while that same culture refuses to accept them as…