Sermons
Hope in the Journey: YHWH is Our Justice
Speaker: Cynthia Lapp
The word of God in scripture is very present in our worship today. It is a lot to digest and understand: a beseeching prayer in the Psalm; words of hope from Jeremiah; apocalyptic images and advice from Luke; gratitude and blessing in Paul’s letter to the church at Thessalonica. Instead of trying to tackle all […]
Visions of a Royal Reign
Speaker: Cynthia Lapp
The Lord be with you. (and also with you.) I am grateful to be back among you after missing two Sundays, one for travel after the Women Doing Theology Conference and then last week because I was sick. Gathering for worship with you anchors me and reminds me who I am and what I am […]
Bridges of Nurture
Speaker: Michelle Burkholder
Oh, Hebrews. What a book of the Bible you are. We don’t know exactly who wrote you – although your words have at times been attributed to Paul. We don’t know quite when you were written – but probably before the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem in 70AD, otherwise you would most likely reference […]
“I want to see”: Resilience, Survival, and Hope
Speaker: Cynthia Lapp
Mennonite Heritage Sunday: Lamenting the Doctrine of Discovery It is three and half weeks since my second cataract surgery. I see more clearly than I have for many years: colors and patterns that eluded me, now delight and surprise me. What is still hard to see or what I would rather not see is the injustice […]
God’s Word: Living and Active
Speaker: Cynthia Lapp
God’s word is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword. Hebrews 4 Carry the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Ephesians 6 Swords do not play a big role in my life. My kids were not really into sword play – and anyway, those would have been Nerf swords right? […]
Fire Hit Them From Above and Devoured Them
Speaker: Tony Brun
(An English translation of this sermon follows the Spanish; this sermon was presented in Spanish). “Fuego se abatió sobre ellos desde lo alto y los devoró” (Apoc.20:9) Introducción Mis palabras no serán ni pueden ser un sermón expositivo ni un mensaje inspirador. Más bien, comparto con ustedes unas palabras heridas. Hablaré como lo haría en […]
Faith In Action
Speaker: Cynthia Lapp
It is pledge season, and not just for National Public Radio stations and PBS television stations. Churches all over the country are putting together their budgets and gathering pledges. In this way, we Mennonites who have been known to say we are “in the world but not of the world,” well, we may be more […]
The Whole Armor of God
Speaker: Cynthia Lapp
The whole armor of God. Such a strange idea and image for Anabaptists who are proud to claim we are people of peace. It all sounds way too militaristic for our delicate, pacifist ears, doesn’t it. Other than wrestling my younger brothers to the ground and fighting until there were tears all around, I had […]
On Pilgrimage
Speaker: Michelle Burkholder
[Note: this is an adaptation of the sermon I preached at the Allegheny Mennonite Conference summer session held August 3-5 at Laurelville. Apologies for the repetition to those of you who were there – I invite you to listen for some new things – for the rest of you – enjoy!] I want to start […]
Wrestling Match
Speaker: Madeline Kauffman
This past weekend was the annual summer gathering of Allegheny Mennonite Conference. It was a good weekend. I feel privileged to have been able to join Cindy, Michelle, and the other pastors of the conference in their pastor peer meetings, as well as sit in on the work and seminars of the conference. From my […]