Second Sunday of Advent (Year A, RCL)

Sometimes it’s hard for us to remember who we are.

A magnificent tree is reduced to a stump. But it’s still alive.

Even if repentance begins right now, it feels too late for anything to change.

His followers realized there was no quick exit from the discomfort of his words.

John is thinking about Jesus arriving as an adult, not a baby.

John the Baptist is calling for more than a cognitive recognition of wrongdoing.

Blessed are those who read this wise and lovely book.

My daughter wants to know. Even as a biblical scholar, I don’t have a good answer.

I'm always amused when folk are keen enough to notice the worship whiplash to which the tradition so often subjects them.

Preachers who value their pulpit would be wise to avoid Isaiah 9 this Christmas Eve.

In the stitched-together story of Advent, we wrestle with each other’s certainties.

It's Advent, and accusations against prominent men are shaking things up like a highway construction project in the wilderness.

I am grateful for John the Baptist's indictment.

The Bible uses the word fear both for fright and awe. This week's texts reveal the difference.

I am lucky enough to serve a church, in Chicago, where people are excited about coming to worship. I teach new member classes, in which many people cite worship as the thing that has really drawn them to want to get better connected with the church.