Purim

The Jewish celebration of Purim, which falls in the spring, is a pretty lively affair. It's sometimes called the Jewish Mardi Gras, so it's not real clear what the connection between Purim and the gloomy Puritans might be, but that's what this week's sermon is about. The Puritans managed to do some frankly awful things to each other and to the Native Americans because they were very confident that John Calvin's teaching "explained" God. Mordecai in the story of Esther was very clear that God is not to be explained, telling Esther, "For if you keep silence at such a time as this, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another quarter ... Who knows? Perhaps you have come to royal dignity for just such a time as this." Which leads me to think, "When something unlikely happens which we have prayed for, we call it a miracle. When something unlikely happens which we did not pray for, we call it a coincidence. Nevertheless, God has plans for us He hasn't shared with us yet, to do us good, and not evil." Join the congregation of Community Presbyterian Church of Bellefonte, Kentucky by clicking HERE for audio or HERE for text.

Community Presbyterian Church of Bellefonte, Kentucky, was built on the casting floor of a 19th Century iron blast furnace. We use "The Casting Floor" as an image for the power of the Spirit to form us. Visit us at http://communitypresbyterian.org.

Promise

We had a Baptism today, the first in years! Ann Reed Stone, daughter of Keith and Holly Stone was baptized into God's promises and we, the congregation, promised her and God that we would always be with her. Unfortunately, the service exceeded the capacity of the recorder, and there is no recorded sermon. Click HERE for text.

Community Presbyterian Church of Bellefonte, Kentucky, was built on the casting floor of a 19th Century iron blast furnace. We use "The Casting Floor" as an image for the power of the Spirit to form us. Visit us at http://communitypresbyterian.org.

The Cheraw Brickworks

We hear a good deal of discussion among contemporary Christians as to the nature of God. Bumper stickers all over proclaim that "God is Good!" and nobody ever questions our right to judge God in this way. Whatever would lead us to stand in judgment of God and proclaim Him to be anything? Where is our sense of awe? Why is it that so few Christians pay attention to Pseudo-Dionysius the Aeropagite? Maybe because no one ever teaches the thoughts of Pseudo-Dionysius the Aeropagite. Come join the Congregation of Community Presbyterian Church of Bellefonte, KY to learn that to seek wisdom, you must ask a woman by clicking HERE for audio or HERE for text.

Community Presbyterian Church of Bellefonte, Kentucky, was built on the casting floor of a 19th Century iron blast furnace. We use "The Casting Floor" as an image for the power of the Spirit to form us. Visit us at http://communitypresbyterian.org.

Superficial Christianity

Sometimes, if a preacher is to be faithful to the teaching of the church, he or she must actually preach the teaching of the church. Nobody likes to hear that, so some left to day...discomforted. Today's passage is concerned with a meeting between Jesus and a Gentile woman referred to only as "the Syrophoenician Woman". It is a harrowing tale. The woman has a desperately ill daughter. Jesus has traveled into Gentile territory, and has gone into a house, so that no one should know He is there. The woman, however, hears of him, comes to the house, throws herself in the dirt before Him, and begs that her daughter be healed. What do you think Jesus did? He told her healings were for Jews, and called her a dog for asking.
How do you explain that?  The answer I offered made several people unhappy. Perhaps it will make you unhappy, too. I can't apologize for that, because the Gospel is about leading people to change, and change cannot be made without discomfort. Come join the Congregation of Community Presbyterian Church of Bellefonte, KY for this week's sermon, "Superficial Christianity" by clicking HERE for audio or HERE for text.

Community Presbyterian Church of Bellefonte, Kentucky, was built on the casting floor of a 19th Century iron blast furnace. We use "The Casting Floor" as an image for the power of the Spirit to form us. Visit us at http://communitypresbyterian.org.

Hoppy

I spent many a happy hour as a child in the Capital Theater, watching Westerns. It was a simple sort of world portrayed. The bad guys did bad stuff because wardrobe had issued them black hats; the good guys blew the bad guys down at high noon because that's what they do, and the townspeople swooned in gratitude.

We live in a world shaped by those westerns -- a world where people believe they are called to violently expunge people who believe differently than they from creation. Where in the world did we ever get the idea that what someone else believes is any of our business? Join us for this week's sermon, "Hoppy" by clicking HERE for audio or HERE for text.

Community Presbyterian Church of Bellefonte, Kentucky, was built on the casting floor of a 19th Century iron blast furnace. We use "The Casting Floor" as an image for the power of the Spirit to form us. Visit us at http://communitypresbyterian.org.