Preaching the Scriptures

The Rt. Rev. Jeremiah Williamson Matthew 18:15-20 & Romans 13:8-14   A New Perspective/A New Commandment St. Sacrement, Bolton Landing   The pants were navy blue.   I was almost definitely sure of that.   I think.   And so I was confused about my wife’s outfit – an outfit seemingly coordinated around black pants, which she was almost definitely not wearing.   Except that she was wearing black pants – and she was almost definitely sure of that.   But I could not see it.   We simply could not agree on the color of those pants.   They were navy blue, for sure – unless they were black.   Of course, in the grand scheme of things, it was no big deal.   She’s allowed to clash if she wants to.   But, it was further proof that people see the same things differently.   It happens all the time – in big and small ways.     This morning, these pews are filled with people who see and experience the worl...

The Rev. Jeremiah Williamson Matthew 18:15-20 Communities of Reconciliation It is not uncommon for one to long for an earlier age.   We have all heard it, I'm sure: that sweet nostalgia for the simpler days of the 1950's, for example – with its slower pace of life, rudimentary technology, clean-cut television families, packed churches, and mama's good ol' home cookin'.   And with that earlier age, those kinder, gentler, friendlier people, those Mayberry people.   The good old days.   There is always some truth in the nostalgia – lazy Sunday afternoons were actually a thing 60 years ago and no one walked around with a computer in their pocket, there were no answering machines or voice mail and it took like a week to send someone a message and maybe week to get a response.   There are days when all of that sounds amazing.   But also the past is seldom as simple as it is remembered.   The 1950's in our country were certainly not the goo...