Authors /
Bruce K. Modahl
Bruce Modahl is a Lutheran pastor living in Fernandina Beach, Florida.
Bargaining with lesser gods: Jephthah's story and ours
We pastors are not likely to encounter Jephthah. But we might encounter someone like the young man who sought me out after a stint in jail.
December 31, 2015
Biblical Prophecy, by Ellen F. Davis
Ellen Davis is full of surprises. Some are delightful, others raise questions for further study, and still others throw up stumbling blocks.
August 5, 2015
The need to blame
I begin sermon preparation by reading through the texts and writing a 200-word summary of the themes I observe in that initial reading. I include this summary in an online publication for the congregation I serve. It's called "Sunday is Coming," a title with an edge for the preacher.
When I do this reading I I look for trouble—for the obvious, palpable problems in the text.
September 22, 2014
Sunday, September 28, 2014: Ezekiel 18:1-4, 25-32; Matthew 21:23-32
Ezekiel steps right into the middle of a group of people busy at that most ancient of activities, going back to Eden: the blame game.
September 16, 2014
Paul's military language
I find more than a dozen military references in the Pauline corpus. In Philemon, Paul includes in his greetings “Archippus our fellow soldier.” In this week's second reading, Paul advises his readers to stand firm and strive side by side. The former Roman soldiers living in Philippi would have heard a reference to a Roman military formation.
September 15, 2014
Sunday, September 21, 2014: Philippians 1:21-30
The Philippians would have read "striving side by side" and thought of a phalanx of infantrymen.
September 9, 2014
Travel narratives
The gospel reading for October 31 comes toward the end of what most Lucan scholars call Luke's travel narrative. It begins ten chapters earlier at 9:51, where Luke tells us, "When the days drew near for Jesus to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem."
One would expect to follow Jesus' progress on a map—but the coordinates make no geographical sense.
October 25, 2010
Sunday, October 31, 2010: Luke 19:1-10
The people of God were slaves in Egypt when God heard their cries and sent Moses to lead them. But their hardships were not over. For 40 years they wandered in the wilderness....
October 20, 2010
Stories that get to us
Words of judgment are difficult to hear. Actually, I have no trouble hearing how they apply to others. And when the preacher gives a logical explanation of how the law applies to me, I understand it and nod my head in agreement. But it often makes little connection with my heart and even less with the way I live.
October 18, 2010
Sunday, October 24, 2010: Luke 18:9-14
Jesus uses this parable to lure us into a trap. Hearing it we cannot help but be thankful we are not like that Pharisee. If we are thankful we are not like him, then we are just like him.
October 13, 2010
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Bread line: Letter from St. Petersburg
When I visited the Cathedral of the Icon of Kazan in St....
October 31, 2006
From wrath to grace: Zephaniah 1:7, 12-18; Psalm 90:1-12; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11; Matthew 25:14-30
A young seminarian could effectively caricature the preaching of his supervising pastor. "Repent!" he would holler at the top of his lungs....
November 3, 1999
At table with the saints: 1 John 3:1-3
Would going to church make any difference in how you live—or die?
October 27, 1999
Why bother with Reformation? John 8:31-36
There was a time when Reformation Sunday provided the occasion for Protestants to get together and say bad things about Catholics. Reformation services were conclaves of smug pronouncements....
October 20, 1999
Christ-haunted landscape: Leviticus 19:1-2, 15-18
Leviticus wants to draw a clear line between God and God's creation.
October 13, 1999