The Butterfly Effect

In 66 c.e. the Jews of Judea hatched a plan that history has judged to be one of the worst ideas ever. They rose up against Rome. By the time it ended, untold numbers of Jews had been killed. Jerusalem had been laid waste and the Temple, the Footstool of God, had been burned to the ground and desecrated by a Roman soldier. The Jews did not come together again in Judea until 1948. That was, indeed, a cracking bad idea.

Matthew's Gospel, scholars tell us, was written between perhaps 80 and 90 c.e. That is after the disaster, after the Temple was no more, after the time Jerusalem was laid flat. The birth of Jesus, if during the reign of Herod, must have been perhaps 6 or 7 b.c.e to 4 b.c.e. during the time when the Temple stood. How could so tiny a thing as the birth of a child in a remote part of Judea have changed the world such that it would be remembered through the utter destruction which was Rome's response to the Jewish rebellion? Join the congregation of Community Presbyterian Church of Bellefonte, Ky. for this week's sermon, The Butterfly Effect 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.

THE Story

You hear a lot of people going on at this time of the year about the need to "Keep Christ in Christmas". This year, at the Chapel of St. Arbuck's, I have heard several conversations about parents who have decided not to tell their children about Santa Claus. I think both groups are responding to a massive collision between the story of the birth of Jesus and the stories we love so well. Read or listen to the rest of what I think 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.

Chill

The world laid Nelson Mandela to rest this week and gave itself time to consider what a change he had accomplished in the world. His life spoke both of the cruelty which lives in all of us when we think we have perceived evil, and the power of the individual called to remind us of what we can be if we will simply listen. Join the congregation of Community Presbyterian Church of Bellefonte, Ky. for this week's sermon, Chill 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.

David

Some days it's the theology, some days it's the weather. This was one of those days. We had to cancel church for the first time since I've been with Community Presbyterian.

I recorded the sermon in my man cave, which is why it sounds funky, but here it is.

Jesus' ministry began with a call to repent. I wonder if we all mean the same thing by that word? This Sunday, we look into the life of a man from my county, David Edwards, who died this week. David's life was tragic, and we bring a load of baggage to our consideration of what happened to him. I would suggest that we have much need to repent of of our treasured baggage. Join the congregation of Community Presbyterian Church of Bellefonte, Ky. for this week's sermon, David 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.

And So, It Begins

Christmas is one of the two times of the year when the church calls her ministers to be ever the slightest bit...er...grinchy. Easter is the other one. 

As we celebrate the first Sunday in Advent, the church teaches that the coming of the Lord is a time for reflection and penance at just the time that everybody else wants a time of celebration and gifts. This is why the church doesn't get invited to any fun parties.

Grinchy or not, the first Sunday in Advent is a time to remind ourselves that the Communion liturgy, "Christ has died. Christ has risen. Christ will come again." has real meaning. The first Sunday in Advent is a time to remind ourselves that the story we exist to tell didn't end at the Resurrection. There is more to come, and it matters if we get it right. 

Join the congregation of Community Presbyterian Church of Bellefonte, Ky. for this week's sermon, And So, It Begins 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.