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…
“If you want to save the Earth, teach your children to love nature.” For the Sunday before Earth Day, we re-visited the familiar creation story from Genesis. Pastor Tracy argued that this was never intended as a factual explanation of where we came from. Rather, it was meant to instruct us on the importance of cherishing our connection to the…
The Sunday after Easter is traditionally the time to preach on the story of “Doubting Thomas.” However, Pastor Tracy contends that this story is widely misunderstood. If you trace Thomas’s several appearances in the Gospels, it’s clear that doubt is an essential part of a strong, resilient faith. Its opposite, after all, is called “Blind Faith” for a…
On Easter morning, Pastor Tracy explored the other miracle of the first Easter — Mary Magdalene’s story as recounted in John. She also told us of a very real miracle she saw herself one icy morning in Portland.
Scripture: Mark 11:1-11 For Palm Sunday, Pastor Tracy points out that everything about Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem was a clear break with tradition for a champion of the people taking on the Romans. Why? Because that tradition – repeated again and again – didn’t work. She illustrates the futility of trying the same thing over…
Pastor Tracy continues her exploration of the social justice message in the Gospels with the familiar Parable of the Sheep and Goats. She connects this to a life-changing encounter she had with one of “The least of these” while working in a local soup kitchen. Her conclusion: “It is not our job to bring Christ…