Pastor Tracy explores the most pervasive theme in the Hebrew Bible: people as refugees, uprooted and forced to create a home amid people of different ethnic, political and religious backgrounds. She notes that our country’s history as an ongoing gathering of people from diverse backgrounds gives us a unique connection to this ancient story. Also,…
Pastor Tracy examines the familiar Parable of the Talents (Luke 19:11-27,) noting that it has been misinterpreted over the ages by the well-off as a rationale for not helping the poor. She shows that if you understand the historical context and the original language, it is actually the opposite — one of the most forceful…
Pastor Tracy examines the origins of Communion as a worship practice intended to create a single, genuine “community” that embraces all sectors of society. Her starting point is Paul’s angry letter to the church in Corinth, who just don’t seem to understand this essential idea.
For the first Sunday in Lent, Pastor Tracy examined the familiar story of the Devil offering Jesus three temptations. She showed how each of these related specifically to real-world aspects of oppression under the Romans and how Christ’s answers evoked the promise of the Messiah in the Hebrew Bible.
For St. Valentine’s weekend, Pepper Swanson examines The Song of Solomon. Why is this picture of passionate young love in the Bible at all? The old Sunday School explanation that it’s an extended metaphor for God’s love for us doesn’t seem to square with the blush-inducing imagery. . . .or does it? And, why did…
Pastor Tracy tackles an ancient story about the role of two powerful women in the early history of the Israelites (Judges 4:1-24) and finds parallels in her life as a young single mother starting seminary. In both cases, we see that God provides the means, often in unexpected ways, for people to accomplish what He…
Starting from Mark’s description of Jesus recruiting “fishers of people,” Pastor Tracy examines some of the people chosen by Jesus in the parables, and how these choices make clear the meaning of “Love your enemy” . . . a meaning in which acts of love, not emotions, come first.
Pastor Tracy explores the unfamiliar aspects of the story of Jonah – – the historical context of the actual prophet Jonah – – and finds in it a message about God’s love and the Golden Rule this was surprising and revolutionary for its time. (Scripture: Jonah 3:1-10)
Pepper Swanson is a recent graduate of Pacific School of Religion and is currently a candidate for ordination in the UCC. In this sermon she examined one of the most often-quoted passages in the Bible (Psalm 139: 1-6, 13-18) in light of the high incidence of loneliness in today’s world and our need to feel…
Pastor Tracy examines the wealth of symbolism from prophecies about the Messiah found in the story of Christ’s Baptism. She also connects that story to the Orthodox Jewish tradition of a ritual bath shared by a bride-to-be and her future mother-in-law. She finds that ancient ritual surprisingly relevant to our lives today.