Author: Joanna Lawrence Shenk

  • Sermon: The Shadow of American Exceptionalism

    By Joanna Lawrence Shenk This is the fourth sermon in a Lenten series entitled “Shadow Dancing: Pulling Back the Veil.”  Matthew 5:13-15 The year is 1989. The setting is the White House. Ronald Reagan is offering his farewell address after 8 years in office. “The Great Communicator,” as he was called, waxes eloquently: The past…

  • Sermon: An Inconvenient Hero

    By Rev. Kamal Hassan Rev. Hassan was our guest preacher on Martin Luther King Jr. Sunday 2021. Rev. Hassan is the pastor of Sojourner Truth Presbyterian Church in Richmond, Calif. He is a powerfully gifted preacher and Christian educator whose message is rooted in the African American prophetic tradition. He is a community organizer who has toiled…

  • Sermon: Called to be light-bearers

    By Joanna Lawrence Shenk Matthew 2:1-12 We made it! It’s 2021! Finally! I mean it was the strangest New Years Eve ever, but that’s how 2020 rolled. I imagine we rang in the new year in lots of creative ways. For example, I did handstands with some friends over Zoom. With the new year under…

  • Sermon: Testifying to the Light

    By Joanna Lawrence Shenk John 1:6-8, 19-28 It’s the third Sunday of Advent, which is traditionally the Sunday to rejoice in our waiting, and a pink candle is often lit to symbolize this. So far this advent we have talked about what it means to live in kairos time, which is the new age of…

  • Sermon: We Are The Ones

    This sermon, by Joanna Lawrence Shenk, was given on the Second Sunday of Advent during our worship series, “Wilderness and Womb: We are the Ones Being Born.” The scripture text is Mark 1:1-8. We are the ones being born. I love this thought put forward by Worship Committee in planning our Advent series. It’s also…

End of content

End of content