Sermons And Gubbins

This sermon was preached at our Sunday morning service on November 19th. The Gospel was Matthew 25:14-30 ; commonly known as The Parable of the Talents. In the news recently had been fresh allegations of tax avoidance by the rich, royal and famous , including particular stories of the Queen's Duchy of Lancaster estate having invested in BrightHouse ; a rent-to-own company, accused of irresponsible lending . In researching this sermon, I am indebted to  this sermon from 2007 I found online when looking up an interpretation that fit a more- Liberation Theology perspectice. I hope you enjoy...  # Apprentice Theme Music # Dum, da dum, da dum, da dum, da dum, da dum, da dum DUUUM NARRATOR:            Previously on the Apprentice…  Our three remaining candidates were all given large sums of Lord Shudder’s own personal wealth whilst he went away on a business trip. The dividing of the money was determined by how many tasks th...

This sermon was preached on the morning of 10th April 2016, in the wake of the breaking of the story of the Panama Papers. In preparing for the sermon, I realised that it would feel somewhat divorced from reality if it did not deal in some way with the news that has dominated the media and conversations all around the world this week. The readings were Zephaniah 3:14-end , Psalm 30 , Acts 9:1-20 and John 21:1-19 . What a week it’s been for the world’s elite. Of course, by ‘elite’, I, like most of the English speaking world, mean the super-rich. It’s funny that we don’t really use the word to refer to the most faithful people in the world, or the most hopeful, or most charitable and loving.  No – this week has not been especially remarkable for them ; but, for the wealthiest people in the world, it’s been somewhat of a worrying one. I refer, of course, to the leaking of the Panama Papers to the media. These papers showed how many world leaders and movers and shakers used ...

This sermon was preached on the morning on November 15th 2015, a few days after the terrible attacks in Paris on the night of November 13th. The sermon was written before those attacks, but required some last minute tweaks to take them, and their effect upon us, into account. In researching and writing it, I am indebted to another sermon I found online preached by the Rev'd Dr Willimon in 2012 - A World Rocked by God . If you have the time, I highly recommend reading it. Part of me toyed (for a moment only, mind) with reading out his sermon instead of writing my own. I'm sure you'll see the sermon below owes much to it. The readings were Daniel 12:1-3 , Hebrews 10:11-25 & Mark 13:1-8 . Before I start my sermon, I’d like to invite you to take some time to look around you. Notice the walls, the ceiling, the beautiful stained glass, the intricate tiling on the floor, the pew on which you are sitting. All this? With all the years it has been here, and...