localpastor

03/15/2026 ~ Fourth Sunday in Lent ~ 1 Samuel 16:1-13; Psalm 23; Ephesians 5:8-14; John 9:1-41 ~ EKC VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sglSJnUlnM
HARPSWELL TV VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0a07jWED18

Outcast?

“As Jesus walked along, he saw a man blind from birth. The disciples asked, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” — John 9:1-2.

I think that to ask what’s your favorite musical or song or play or movie is to ask a useless question. At the very least ask for a list broad enough to not be confining— ten or twenty of favorite musicals or movies or songs or plays.

While theater is my home, it is my medium, I like movies, especially movie musicals— no surprise there. Certainly among my top twenty is The Wizard of Oz. It might even be on the list of top twenty for everyone here this morning. It is loved. Why is that?

I think there are two basic reasons that movie is loved. I shall address the first reason at length.

Despite its overall sense of fantasy, surrealism, a picture of an unreal world, I think the imaginary found in this Land of Oz that we see in the movie also presents us with a picture of reality, the real world. (Slight pause.)

The real world that we live in and Oz have similarities. They have similarities? Yes and I have personal proof of this, something that happened to me when I was involved in professional theater.

Back in the mid-70s I worked for the Actors’ Fund of America. Word got around theatrical circles that I had a keen sense for estimating the value of memorabilia, putting a price on odd pieces of theater history— determining what old posters, pictures and the like would be worth, especially when connected with a specific famous person. This felt like Oz in part because that reputation was based on just one incident. [1]

The Fund had been given a letter signed by the famous American composer George Gershwin. A decision was made to sell it, get the money. My opinion was this document should go for somewhere between $800 and $1,000, and that’s in 1970s dollars.

However, the board of the Fund had oversight and thought that estimate was inflated, a tad high. It was decided that $250 was appropriate. Well, the document wound up being sold to a dealer in the business of rare autographed documents.

I was present for the transaction with a board member. Since it was being sold to a dealer I asked, “How much do you think you’ll get for this?” (Slight pause.)

The buyer grinned. “Oh, I think somewhere between a one thousand and twelve hundred.” (Slight pause.) The world of professional theater is a small, tight-knit community. My reputation was made and it spread rapidly.

Shortly thereafter, the curator of the Songwriters Hall of Fame asked me to drop by for a cup of coffee. Over some java I was shown a series of documents and asked my opinion about the monetary value of each document in the collection and how much the whole collection might fetch.

There is no doubt about it. I was now in the land of Oz. Why? In the Oz story the straw man needed a brain. So the Wizard goes to a desk, pulls out a scroll and says the straw man is as smart as anyone who has a wall filled with sheepskins. He holds up what looks like a diploma. “This is a credential,” he says, “the only thing you are missing.”

The fact that I had accurately determined the price of the Gershwin letter was my credential. No further certification was needed. It really felt like I was in the land of Oz.

I need to be clear, I’m all for certification. I really do want my physician to have an M.D. I might even want to see that sheepskin hanging on the wall.

But there are times the real world just hands you certification. If, for instance, you fall into a readily identifiable category, easily labeled, you are in that way acceptable. If you are in an acceptable group, your ticket is punched.

If you do not fall into a readily identifiable category or are not easily labeled, in some way you’re unacceptable, your ticket is automatically rejected, denied. The world can be and is sometimes surprisingly surrealistic, just like Oz. (Slight pause.)

I think the second aspect as to why The Wizard of Oz is beloved is it’s a movie about a journey. Many things need to be overcome on the journey— you know— lions and tigers and bears.

And there’s no question about the reality called life. Life is a journey and in the real world lions and tigers and bears abound. The journey in the movie is a metaphor about life’s journey and it’s loved because we realize that. In what may be the pivotal scene which sets up the rest of the movie, Judy Garland sings about that quest.

(Quote): “Somewhere over the rainbow / Way up high / There’s a land that I heard of / Once in a lullaby.” (Slight pause.) If life is a journey, and it is, I believe that adventure does not preclude dreams, nor does it mean dreams can fail to be made real.

Life can be hard sometimes but it does not mean hope is unwarranted nor does it mean hope is shortsighted. I, for one, insist possibilities do abound, even if lions and tigers and bears surround us. (Slight pause.)

I, perhaps personally, deeply identify with the story of Oz because, as many of you know, I grew up on the mean streets of Brooklyn, an inner-city kid. Hope was in short supply. There, in that place, dreams were often destined to be at best difficult to realize, possibilities decidedly limited.

Still, and maybe because of that, I am guilty of a specific crime. I am a dreamer who believes in hope and possibilities. But yet, I know this to be also true: in the real world sometimes dreams are shattered, hope is in short supply, possibilities are limited. (Pause.)

This is what we hear in John: “As Jesus walked along, he saw a man born blind from birth. The disciples asked, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” (Pause.)

Did you notice in the story of the man born blind Jesus is not there for most of it? Did you notice also no one asks the man born blind who it is who has sinned?

Rather, others are invited to bear false witness, to make claims, statements not about themselves, not about their own frailty, but about someone else. They effectively accuse the man born blind of sinning— with no support for the accusation.

Perhaps this illustrates a group dynamic of behavior— sinister— behavior that is sinister— and perhaps all too realistic. If a scapegoat can be found in the midst of a group even though the collective is made up of individuals, somehow and for unjustified reasons, that affords the group an unwarranted sense of arrogance. (Slight pause.) Labels, categories— these are convenient receptacles for prejudice and fear. (Slight pause.)

And of course, once the man has received sight, lions and tigers and bears just abound. The world is a place where struggle happens. Even his own parents effectively say, “This is not our problem, not our fight.” (Slight pause.)

So, in the real world is it wrong to dream? Is hope a mirage? Are possibilities something over which narrowness will always hold sway?

Perhaps we need to ask, “What are the promises of God?” Is God, as the 23rd Psalm suggests, a Shepherd? Is God, as the 23rd Psalm suggests, to be trusted? Is God, as the 23rd Psalm suggests, a God of dreams fulfilled?

Is God, as the 23rd Psalm suggests, a God of hope unbounded? Is God, as the 23rd Psalm suggests, a God who knows that possibilities are real and justified. [2] (Slight pause.)

The story of a man born blind, I think, makes this clear: God does not set up labels, categories. God does not fuel fear. God does not cast out the outcast. God is a God of dreams, possibilities, hope. (Slight pause.)

I want to reiterate my personal testimony. I am a dreamer. I hope. I believe in possibilities. But perhaps most important, as well as I can, I try to trust God.

After all, if God is unfamiliar with dreams, if God is not conversant with hope, if God denies possibilities, then fear wins. If God is unfamiliar with dreams, if God is not conversant with hope, if God denies possibilities, then the promise of the resurrection comes to naught.

And I know that cannot be true, since I count fear as merely a state of self delusion. And I, for one, rest assured in the hope called resurrection. Why? How? The Lord is my Shepherd. Amen.

Elijah Kellogg Church, Harpswell, Maine
03/06/2026

ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Benediction. This, then, is a précis of what the pastor said before the blessing: “Most people don’t know this: Somewhere Over the Rainbow has an introductory verse which was not in the Oz film. These are the words: “When all the world is a hopeless jumble / And the raindrops tumble all around / Heaven opens a magic lane / When all the clouds darken up the skyway / There’s a rainbow highway to be found / Leading from your windowpane / To a place behind the sun / Just a step beyond the rain. Somewhere over the rainbow…” [3] The first words of the verse say, “When all the world is a hopeless jumble…” And yes, there are times it feels that way— the world is a hopeless jumble. But we need to trust God and realize seeing rainbows is not wishful thinking. They can be seen. They are real.”

BENEDICTION: God of the covenant, show us the light of the resurrection. Remain with us and give us hope that, we may rejoice in the gift of Your Holy Spirit Who gives us life. Accept our prayers in the warm embrace of Your compassion. This is what we pray in the Name of Jesus, the Christ. Amen.

[1] In the 70s I worked at the Actors Fund of America. It is now known as the Entertainment Community Fund.

[2] Note: Psalm 23 was one of the assigned lectionary readings for the day and the Congregation recited the King James version of it as one of the two Scripture readings.

[3] For those who do not know the introduction of Somewhere Over the Rainbow these URLs have several verison of the whole song.

TONY BENNETT:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqXAmFS8bNs

MANDY PATINKIN:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrcGdIzweu4

ELLA FITZGERALD:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hc2rTt74Qys&list=RDhc2rTt74Qys&start_radio=1

JUDY GARLAND IN A RARE RADIO RECORDING:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1lbHgdUI_s&list=RDD1lbHgdUI_s&start_radio=1

03/08/2026 ~ Third Sunday in Lent ~ Exodus 17:1-7; Psalm 95; Romans 5:1-11; John 4:5-42 ~ HARPSWELL TV VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ME9nRjc_UKg

Universal Salvation

“At the appointed time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for godless people.” — Romans 5:6.

I suspect most of you know I’m a member of A.S.C.A.P., the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, as a writer of lyrics. I’ve written lyrics for both hymns and secular songs. I’ve also collaborated on three faith based cantatas.

Over time I’ve written lyrics for new music, church and secular— working with three different composers. Over time I’ve written new lyrics for well known hymn tunes.

And so an article in Christianity Today caught my attention as it asked what hymns continue to be used in churches over the course of time? While some think hymns are sacred, akin to Scripture, the article questioned that premise.

It was, if anything, an academic analysis. It studied the data and asked what hymns have survived in hymnals over time?’

Now, I know people complain about changes in the words of hymns. But change is commonplace. Indeed, in the introduction to the 1913 Pilgrim Hymnal the editors stated they changed the words to match their times.

I also need to note the singing of hymns is fairly new in Congregational churches as the practice was not widely accepted until the early 1800s. Up until theb the standard was antiphonal singing of Psalms. (Slight pause.)

As to that aforementioned article, what hymns made the cut in hymnals of Mainline churches across generations and still appear in today’s versions? Here’s the data. In 28 different editions of hymnals in six Mainline Protestant denominations over the course of years there have been 4,905 hymns.

The denominations are the Episcopal Church, with four different editions since 1892; Congregational, five editions since 1897; American Baptist, four editions since 1883; Lutheran, five editions since 1899; Methodist five editions since 1878; Presbyterian, five editions since 1885.

In the course of 148 years a typical hymnal had between 500 and 700 hymns. Generally in each edition, 250 to 350 of the hymns would be older, 250 to 350 newer.

So the process of constant change is old one. While there was an outpouring of new hymns in the Victorian era, they make up less than 20 percent the hymns now in use. (Slight pause.) Well, I’m sure everyone wants to know how many hymns made the cut, survived in all 28 versions of the hymnals and are still there, right? O.K. (Slight pause.)

This is the list of hymns and the years they were written. I will start with the newest one. There is one caveat: by definition, these all predate 1878 so that eliminates a lot of well known hymns written at a later date. And there are only 13 hymns that survived.

The list: Crown Him with Many Crowns, written in 1851; Abide with Me, 1847; Come, Ye Thankful People, Come, 1844; Holy, Holy, Holy!, 1826; In the Cross of Christ I Glory, 1825; How Firm a Foundation, 1787; Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken and All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name, both 1779; Love Divine, All Loves Excelling, 1747; Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah, 1745; Jesus Shall Reign Where E’er the Sun, 1719; When I Survey the Wondrous Cross, 1707; last and the oldest— O Sacred Head, Now Wounded, written sometime in the 12th Century.

Do note: there have been multiple translations from the Latin of the seven verse poem on which O Sacred Head is based. Each verse has ten lines. And all the translations have a different take on what the Latin says. Just for starters, the Latin title of the poem is Salve Mundi Salutare which means Hail, the World’s Redeemer— not O Sacred Hear— nothing like it. So it seems changing words is not new, is it? (Pause.)

Brian Wren, a British hymn writer, came to Bangor Seminary when I was there. In one lecture he picked up a hymnal and banged on the cover (the pastor bangs on a hymnal cover) like that.

Then he said: “We make a big mistake by putting hard covers on hymnals. It makes people think hymns are permanent, eternal, akin to Scripture. They are none of those. Hymns are cups dipped into the flowing stream of artistic interpretation about Scripture, works of art for today meant to help us understand today.” (Slight pause.)

I sometimes say Scripture can be explained with several crucial points. God loves us and wants to covenant with us, wants be in relationship with us. Therefore, without condemnation, God invites us to love God and to love neighbor. That’s not complex, is it?

However, getting to a place of refined Biblical interpretation, gleaning the subtly of meanings from Scripture can be a complex task. Here’s a brief explanation of one part of that task.

When examining Scripture, one must attempt to seek what a passage might have meant to those who first read it or heard it. Hence, you need to know something about the era in which the passage was written, something about the people, their way of life, the economy, the social structure, etc., etc., etc.

Only when you begin to understand in those ways what it might have meant to the folks who first read it, heard it, can you start to discern any meaning for the world today. Now, if you think understanding the world in ancient times is a tall order, the bigger one is understanding the world today.

The ancient world is in the past tense. It is, therefore, somewhat static. Studying the world of ancient times may be imperfect but it can be done.

But the world today is constantly changing. In short, asking about how something from Scripture might apply for us today is the hard part because the world changes around us daily and we often don’t even notice the change.

So we need to strive to understand the society of yesterday and today because we do not want to the prejudices of either yesterday or today to be involved in God’s message. If we can block out the prejudices of society in ancient times and modern times, then we might hear the message God has for us both in our own situation and for the entire human race.

All that brings us back to the words from the work known as Romans (Quote): “At the appointed time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for godless people.” For me, the meaning of this returns to the simplicity of covenant.

This should be clear: if Christ died even for (quote) for “godless people” Christ died for everyone. This is, therefor, a message of inclusiveness. You see, society in ancient times did have prejudices. Society today does have prejudices. My position is we may have prejudices but God does not.

God does not say ‘if a person is imperfect they are unacceptable.’ God does not say ‘people who are right handed will make the cut.’ So if we do like this hymn and we don’t like another hymn, that does not matter to God. God still accepts us. God listens to our hymns, all of them. And yes, hymns are a cup dipped into the flowing stream of artistic interpretation about God.

And yes, no matter who we are, no matter where we are on life’s journey, God accepts us as we are— each of us, all of us. In fact, God accepts us now and forever, for all eternity. This is a basic Biblical message.

I believe Scripture does not present God as a set of stumbling blocks, a set of tests to be conquered. Scripture addresses what it feels like to be loved by God. (Slight pause.)

I referenced this last week. It seems to me we humans spend a lot of time choosing up sides. Indeed, as a musician, as a lyricist, people sometimes ask me what music I like. I think that’s one of the strangest questions I have ever heard since it’s is a question about choosing sides.

The deciding factor for me, especially when it comes to hymns, is the simple one Brian Wren proposed. Music is that cup dipped into the great flowing stream of artistic Biblical interpretation. Music, hymns are meant to be a work of art for today which strive to help us understand Scripture for today.

So, for me, what Scripture says is simple and is for today: God loves everyone, no exceptions. I think the one thing we need to remember in this time of Lent is that with the advent of the Christ Scripture is about our salvation and about universal salvation. Why? The message with the advent of the Christ is simple: God loves everyone. Amen.

Elijah Kellogg Church, Harpswell, Maine
03/08/2026

ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Choral Response and Benediction. This is a précis of what was said: “Historically hymns are a way people remember theology. There are many hymns which convey very good theology but there are unfortunately even more which convey astoundingly poor theology. So for me as a writer of hymns striving to reflect good theology— that’s a great burden. All of which is to say I do urge you to pay attention to a hymn as it is sung, even if you don’t know it or don’t like it. Ask yourself ‘what is the theology found therein?’ Do I hear theology which I think will withstand the test of time?”

BENEDICTION
Let us rest assured that God is among us and travels with us daily. Let us know that God’s Spirit empowers us to do things in the name of God we did not think possible. Therefore, let us share our love for God with others, confident that God will provide if we are faithful. And may we love God so much, that we love nothing else too much. May we be so in awe of God that we are in awe of no one else and nothing else. Amen.

[1] The article can be found here:
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2011/march/hymnsthatkeepgoing.html

02/08/2026 ~ Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany ~ Isaiah 58:1-9a (9b-12); Psalm 112:1-9 (10); 1 Corinthians 2:1-12 (13-16); Matthew 5:13-20 — EKC VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2WR8GQCd6U ~ HARPSWELL TV VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMjxoHx6GNM

Your Light

“Is not this the fast I choose, / the fast that pleases me: / that the bonds of injustice / be removed, / undo the thongs, / the rope of the yoke! / Let those who are oppressed go free, / and break every yoke you encounter! / Share your bread / with those who are hungry,…” — Isaiah 58:6-7a.

I have said this here before: I think of the Rev. Carol Anderson, one of the first women ordained in the Episcopal Church, as one of my mentors in ministry. In a newspaper interview she was asked how people might address her: Reverend? Mother? Father? Her response: “My name is Carol.”

The interviewer pressed: shouldn’t there be some title? She said nothing has changed with who I am, what I do. I have been working in ministry for years before ordination. And I’m just a woman from New Jersey. My name is Carol. (Slight pause.)

Carol was always clear she understood ministry is simply someone is doing things to help. What had Carol already done? She had gone to the South in the 60s and worked on voter registration. Carol would be the first to say she made a small contribution to a larger effort, registered maybe a little more than a hundred people.

Carol also understood that not for centuries but for millennia many women felt called to ordained ministry while not afforded that recognition. She felt called to ordination but realized she was privileged to live in an era that allowed for it. I might add the first Congregational ordination of a woman was 1858 in Upstate New York.

Carol also felt ministry is about doing just one thing at a time, taking one step at a time. Most importantly, she understood she was… simply and just… Carol— no… big… deal. (Slight pause.)

And so it came to pass that Carol served as Rector— Rector being Episcopal talk for Settled Pastor— Rector at All Angels’ Episcopal Church on the Upper West Side of Manhattan where I was a member. And when I say Carol was a mentor, I tried to take to heart the concept that ministry is about doing one thing at a time, taking one step at a time.

And so it came to pass at that church we began to have a Sunday afternoon hearty soup luncheon for anyone who showed up. That was mostly people who lived on the street. But others came, people who lived alone and simply wanted companionship, social contact.

And so it came to pass I would arrive at church around 8:00 a.m. on a Sunday, grab a push cart, go around the corner to the world famous Zabar’s Deli and pick up their day old bread— boxes and boxes of it. They would no longer sell day old bread to the public but they let the church have it. It was good bread and we served with those Sunday soup meals.

Usually I could not hang out to help with those meals. But I could get the bread at 8:00 a.m. before the deli opened, a time when no one else was available to do it.

And so it came to pass that every Sunday afternoon members of the church fed hundreds. And so I came to pass that I understood ministry is about doing one thing at a time, taking one step at a time, a part of something larger. (Slight pause.)

We hear these words in the Scroll of the Prophet Isaiah: “Is not this the fast I choose, / the fast that pleases me: / that the bonds of injustice / be removed, / undo the thongs, / the rope of the yoke! / Let those who are oppressed go free, / and break every yoke you encounter! / Share your bread / with those who are hungry,…” (Slight pause.)

In my comments a couple of weeks ago I said we are a society that likes big. After all, our baseball championships are called a World Series. And the American football championship game is a Super Bowl. These sound like they may encompass the globe. They don’t. As I also said in those comments a couple of weeks ago, our society is used to big, thinks big, is uncomfortable with small. (Slight pause.)

In the reading from Matthew Jesus says, “You are the light of the world. No one, after lighting a lamp, puts it under the bushel basket but on the lamp-stand,….”

I suspect we moderns think of artificial illumination when we hear those words— a bright, large, intense light. So we think big about that light. But Jesus did not say, “Your light is like the Sun which breaks forth from the clouds on a dreary day.”

Jesus talks about lighting a lamp and putting it on a stand and maybe under a basket. Given that era, even without the basket, how bright would that light have been?

It would not have been bright, large or intense. But it could have been a light to the world because, as dim as it might have been compared to the Sun that small, that tiny light would help people see in the night. (Slight pause.)

To reiterate, we are addicted to big. But I think ministry is often small, one person doing what they can, where they can, when they can, as well as they can, to shine just a little bit of light.

Equally, let me address what ministry is not. Ministry is not hiding in the shadows. Ministry is not avoiding, being afraid or even embracing the night. Ministry means tackling problems.

The problems may be big. Indeed, problems may be and often are systemic, ingrained problems, so ingrained we may not even recognize them as problems— problems like not ordaining women. To be clear, ingrained problems are, by definition, big problems. And the only way to tackle something big is to start small, one step at a time. (Slight pause.)

So guess what we are doing today? We are helping out, doing ministry one can of soup at a time with our Souper Bowl Sunday soup collection. And what’s the problem we’re tackling? The big $8 million for thirty seconds problem. (Slight pause.)

Carol may have helped a little more than hundred people register to vote in her time in the South. And as those things go, that’s not a lot of people. But Carol did her part.

When I scooted around the corner from the church to Zabar’s I picked up 8 or 10 boxes of bread. It took, maybe, half an hour. As those things go, that’s not a lot of time, not a lot of effort. But the church fed hundreds every week. So yes, in the words of Isaiah, I helped, the church helped, share bread with the hungry. All I did or all I tried to do was my small part.

Ministry, you see, happens in small steps. And therefore ministry requires humility— the humility to say I am willing to do something small and not worry if it is or is not a part of something larger. It’s just ministry.

And yes, when ministry is done it is very often done in small steps. It is, hence, often not valued by our society, a society which is used to big, likes big, thinks big and is uncomfortable with small. (Slight pause.)

Confession: I may not know a lot but I know this— every time I’m tempted to think ministry is about big I remind myself of a basic truth. Ministry happens one step at a time. After all, I’m just a guy from Brooklyn so I’ve come to understand I’m just… Joe— no… big… deal. Amen.

02/08/2026
Elijah Kellogg Church, Harpswell, Maine

ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Choral Response and Benediction. This is a précis of what was said: “There is no question about this: there are systemic problems, big problems. But I do not care who you are or how important you think you are, you cannot fix the system from the top/down. But you can help things work when you help from the bottom/up. And bottom/up is the basic definition of two things. Bottom/up is the basic definition of who we are as a church: Congregational. And bottom/up is the basic definition of ministry.”

BENEDICTION: We are commissioned by God to carry the peace of God into the world. Our words and our deeds will be used by God, for we become messengers of the Word of God in our actions. Let us recognize that the transforming power of God is forever among us. And may we love God so much, that we love nothing else too much. May we be so in awe of God that we are in awe of no one and nothing else. Amen.

02/01/2026 ~ Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany ~ Micah 6:1-8; Psalm 15; 1 Corinthians 1:18-31; Matthew 5:1-12 ~ 02/02/2026 ~ Also the Presentation of the Christ ~ Malachi 3:1-4; Psalm 84 or Psalm 24:7-10; Hebrews 2:14-18; Luke 2:22-40 ~ EKC VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pb-hoh3B49k ~ Harpswell TV Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGhqsqr6HGQ

For Good

“Listen, O mortal: / God has made abundantly clear / what “good” is; / what does Yahweh require from you / but to simply do justice, / to love covenant loyalty, / and to walk humbly with your God?” — Micah 6:8.

Neil Cazares-Thomas is the Pastor at the Cathedral of Hope, a large church in Dallas, Texas, a Congregational Church that’s a member of the United Church of Christ. When I say large, there are over 4,000 members and multiple services in a worship space that seats 1,200.

I praised small churches a couple weeks ago and so you may ask how can there be a Congregational Church with more than 4,000 members? I think I said this already: it’s Texas; it’s Dallas. (Slight pause.)

I have never met Neil in person but we are Facebook friends because we have a personal, pastoral connection. When our niece Phoebe lived in Los Angles Neil was her Pastor at a church there.

In a Facebook post Neil said he was participating in a creative writing class. On seeing that my interest perked up right away as my undergraduate degree is in creative writing. This came from Neil’s pen. (Slight pause.)

In our world today we are so busy reacting, we have no time to process, to respond to the Spirit’s call on our lives, listen to one another to hear God, something Jesus often did. And so we need to listen amid the noise of the world which portrays a God in stark contrast to what we see in the life of Jesus.

So… I am here to holler out I have a God who has been misrepresented, misplaced, here to holler out that the real voice of God is little spoken of in a world that’s determined to see God in its image, a secular world who embraces misogyny, racism, sexism, homophobia— everything that separates us, moves us away from love.

I am here to holler out and awake in me, in us, the God who dares me, dares us, to embody, reclaim, proclaim the God of the oppressed, the marginalized, the victimized. I am here to holler out and awake in me, in us, the God who remakes us in God’s image.

You, me, let us holler together and rise again like a phoenix, rise to greet the challenge, rise to holler, riaw to shout, rise to scream, like a voice in the wilderness, in the night, a voice to awaken us from our sleep— words of the Reverend Neil Cazares-Thomas— perhaps sounding like the rap lyrics of Lin Miranda-Manuel from Hamilton— no? Yes. 1

This is what we hear in Micah: “Listen, O mortal: / God has made abundantly clear / what “good” is; / what does Yahweh require from you / but to simply do justice, / to love covenant loyalty, / and to walk humbly with your God?” (Slight pause.)

I think the challenge Micah offers is clear: “do good.” To do good we need to live life in God’s image by doing justice, loving covenant loyalty, walking humbly with God. Now that’s a challenge. (Slight pause.)

These words are recorded in a time of crisis. The armies of the Assyria Emperor were invading Israel. They crushed Israel, reduced Israel to a vassal state.

So these words were addressed to the people of Israel. But they invite us to focus on the response of the individual to the Emperor because they are about moral behavior.

You see, just one person behaving morally is a model that bids others to emulate moral behavior. Inviting others to moral behavior can expand exponentially into larger, more complex factions until the reality of moral behavior overcomes immorality. Moral behavior eventually becomes a message which can even reach an emperor. (P:ause.)

You’ve heard me say this: love God, love neighbor is our calling. I suspect we humans tend to think the love God part is easy. But with the love neighbor part we have a knee jerk reaction. Love neighbor? Who… do… you… mean? The question, itself, defines moral blindness— the question defines moral blindness. (Pause.)

I touched on this theme a couple weeks ago and I will probably again. When it comes to neighbor we need to start small, one on one, with one each other. In so doing perhaps we can avail ourselves with an opportunity to change each other’s lives. If that happens it can expand exponentially into larger, more complex factions. (Slight pause.)

You know this: I’m a musical theater guy. So here’s a lyric from composer Stephen Schwartz. The show is Wicked. The song is For Good.

This song happens when the Good Witch and Bad Witch part for what will probably be the last time and share that an unbreakable bond has developed between them. This is what say this to each other.

“I’ve heard it said / That people come into our lives / For a reason / Bringing something we must learn / And we are led to those / Who help us most to grow / If we let them / And we help them in return. / Well, I don’t know if I believe that’s true / But I know I’m who I am today / Because I knew you.”

“Like a comet pulled from orbit / As it passes a Sun / Like a stream that meets a boulder / Halfway through the wood / Who can say if I’ve been changed for / the better? / Because I knew you / I have been changed for good.”

“It well may be / That we may never meet again / In this lifetime / So let me say before we part / So much of me / Is made of what I learned from you / You’ll be with me / Like a hand-print on my heart.”

“And now whatever way our stories end / I know you have rewritten mine / By being my friend… / Because I knew you / Because I knew you / I have been changed for good.” (Slight pause.)

The reality of our broken-ness, our humanity is then addressed as one of them says, “And just to clear the air / I ask forgiveness / For the things I’ve done you blame me for.” And the other then says, “But then, I guess we know / There’s blame to share.”

And together they sing, “Like a comet pulled from orbit / As it passes a Sun / Like a ship blown from its mooring / By a wind of the sea / Like a stream that meets a boulder / Halfway through the wood / Like a seed dropped by a bird / In the wood.”

“Who can say if I’ve been changed for the better? / I do believe / I have been changed for the better / And because I knew you / Because I knew you / Because I knew you / I have been changed / For good.” 2

I think one of many things Micah addresses is when we strive to do justice, love covenant loyalty and walk humbly with God, one on one with each other, then we do love God and we do love neighbor, a moral act and a moral action. And by the way, loving God and loving neighbor can expand exponentially, far beyond us, into larger and larger more complex factions. Who knows who will hear the idea that loving God and loving neighbor can be a reality. Amen.

02/01/2026
Elijah Kellogg Church, Harpswell, Maine

ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Choral Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “The words from Micah are about doing good by seeking justice, loving covenant and walking with God. And we also heard the passage known as the Beatitudes. If I were to sum up the Beatitudes into a single sentence it would ‘Blessed are those who do good.’”

BENEDICTION: Through God’s grace, by being attentive to God’s will, our deeds and our words will change our world for we will discover ways to proclaim release from the bondage of narrowness. Let us seek the God of Joy whose wisdom defines our God. Let us go in peace to love and serve God. Amen.

[1] Note: these words are not surrounded by quotation marks because they were slightly edited for this context. Any alteration in meaning is the fault of the one offering the sermon as opposed to the original author.

[2] The lyric has been slightly edited. One brace was cut for the sake of brevity. If you look at the video you will see the pastor accidently changed some words. The original words have been left in the text.

01/18/02025 ~ Second Sunday after the Epiphany ~ Isaiah 49:1-7; Psalm 40:1-11; 1 Corinthians 1:1-9; John 1:29-42 ~ Weekend of the Federal Holiday known as Martin Luther King Jr. Day ~ EKC VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLwgiYYKtlU HARPSWELL TV VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TyEhvbJ4ajg

Small

“Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, together with our brother Sosthenes, to the church of God that is in Corinth, to those who are sanctified, consecrated, in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, a people set apart for the work of God, together with all those who, wherever they may be, call on the name of Jesus, the Christ, who is both their Savior and ours:…” — 1 Corinthians 1:1-2.

I have on several other occasions started my comments the way I am about to start them. “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away….”

If my math is right a long time ago would be fifty-one years ago, 1975. A galaxy far, far away would be New York City— not a galaxy but at least a different planet.

As a theater professional in order to kept food on the table, one of the many very odd jobs had while I did that was being a tour guide at South Street Seaport Museum in New York. And yes, the museum is about ships but it’s about more than that. A significant part of the grounds are buildings on very dry land.

One of the sst structures is known as the Schermerhorn Row, six brick buildings built by one Peter Schermerhorn in 1811 to serve the growing seaport. They were called counting houses.

The modern term for counting houses is warehouse. Please note: each of these structures is small and take up only a little section of a city block. These structures were not at all the way we think about warehouses today.

Today a warehouse often covers an area of several city blocks. So what they thought of as large in 1811 is what we think of as quite small, tiny.

Back then the population of the United States was just over 7,000,000. Today it’s about 340 million, nearly 48 times larger than 1811. In drawing this parallel I’m trying to help us understand how different things are— at least in terms of small verses big— in just a little more than 200 years. How about that? (Slight pause.)

We find these words in First Corinthians: “Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, together with our brother Sosthenes, to the church of God that is in Corinth, to those who are sanctified, consecrated, in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, a people set apart for the work of God, together with all those who, wherever they may be, call on the name of Jesus, the Christ, who is both their Savior and ours:…” (Pause.)

You may have heard me offer some of the statistics I’m about to use before but repetition is not a bad idea. We, today, live a society that’s used to big. These days the seating capacity of stadiums for sports events is at least 50,000. Big is what American society likes. Big is how we think. In a cultural sense, we are uncomfortable with small.

The same was true of Roman society in New Testament times. That society thought big. Big is what they liked. The population of the city of Rome— not the Empire, just the city of Rome— the population was about one million people. In fact, the seating capacity of the Coliseum was about… wait for it… 50,000.

That sounds pretty modern, does it not? Indeed, in a cultural sense Rome was uncomfortable with small. (Slight pause.)

You’ve heard me say this: at least 90% of that population lived under conditions that you and I would call slavery. Hence, the economic system could only be described as one based on domination— humans dominating and enslaving humans.

Now it seems to me, humans enslaving other humans might just be a by-product of big. How? Why? Big lacks intimacy. When you don’t deeply know the people you are enslaving, it becomes much easier to enslave them. (Slight pause.)

Well, Paul writes to this church in Corinth, a city which is a thriving commercial hub in this society. It’s a city versed in Roman culture and that culture is enthralled with big. So, how many people belonged to that church in Corinth? How big was it? Hundreds? Thousands? (Slight pause.)

No one really knows exactly how big that church was but we do have a very educated guess. The church in Corinth was not just small. It was tiny— perhaps 50 people or less. In fact, all the churches to which Paul writes are small.

How do we know that? Biblical scholars are fairly confident about two dates and one fact— that’s how they’re confident about it. The dates: this letter to the Church in Corinth was composed in the year 54 of the Common Era. Paul died in the year 64 of the Common Era.

The fact: in the year 100 of the Common Era— 36 years after Paul died— the number of Christians in the entire Mediterranean basin was still very small. It numbered less than… 10,000. To reiterate— the population of Rome: about a 1,000,000— seating capacity of the Coliseum: about 50,000. The entire Christian population in the Mediterranean basin in the year 100: 10,000. (Pause.)

At the end of this reading we hear these words (quote:) “For God, through whom you have been called into intimacy with Jesus, our Savior, is faithful.”

Intimacy— now that’s an interesting word. Here’s one definition of intimacy: an interpersonal relationship that involves emotion.

Emotional interaction demands a close relationship. Intimacy, therefore, is not having lunch with 50,000 of your closest friends. Intimacy demands small. (Pause.)

This weekend we remember the legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Often what we remember about Dr. King is big— the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, the “I have a dream…” speech, the Nobel Prize speech— big things.

But I think King’s most important contributions may have had a much smaller feel, such as the one on one interactions it’s likely he had with parishioners as a pastor in times of crisis. As a pastor, I know that’s true for me. So perhaps what we need to realize is at times things over which we have no control can become big and make a splash and make a noise. But small is where real things happen.

However, these days there seems to be a lot of noise from a lot of people. And those folks are trying to make noise, sound big. But we need to be wary of noise since noises often drowns out reality. Perhaps that’s the point of those making noise— they like the idea of drowning out reality.

On top of that, when there’s a lot of noise it can result in us, each of us, losing our own voice… our real voice. Why? It can feel like the big stuff all around us, that noise which can drown out reality, requires us to get loud also.

And I think when we get too loud, when we make too much noise, we lose our real voice, lose our one to one touch with others since noise actually demands that we lose intimacy. And intimacy is more real, more vital, than having lunch with those 50,000 close friends. But here’s the paradox: intimacy can be and I think is much harder to accomplish than mere noise making. (Slight pause.)

All that leads me to this question: what is our real voice? What is our true self? Well, Paul says Jesus is faithful. And perhaps that is the key.

You see, I think when we emulate Jesus in faithfulness we can discover and rediscover our own real voice. We need to be aware the call of God on our lives is to walk in the will of God, express the love of God, seek knowledge concerning the path of God. That is faithfulness.

I think the path God would have us trod, the path to which God calls us is intimate, small, one on one. Therefore, instead of thinking about the world in big ways perhaps what we need to do is seek the justice God seeks one on one, person to person, one step at a time.

Indeed, Paul tells us we are called to be saints, people set apart for the work of God. And I believe that work means faithfully— faithfully seeking justice one step at a time, one person at a time.

So, this is where I’m at: seeking justice is a small act. And it is a small act because it’s done one on one, face to face. Indeed, it’s hard— or at least it’s hard for me— to deny another person justice when you are looking them in the eye, when you know them one on one.

And when each of us seeks the justice of God, when each of us acts in small ways, when each of does our own part, when each of us takes personal responsibility to seek justice— that is when seeking justice becomes big. Indeed, I believe when we seek justice in this way, one on one, we also are faithful disciples of Christ. Faithful disciples— faithfulness— now there is a really big idea— faithfulness. Amen.

01/18/2026
Elijah Kellogg Church, Harpswell, Maine

ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Choral Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “Scripture tells us— First Kings 19 to be precise— Scripture tells us the voice of God comes in a gentle whisper. I, myself, tend to be wary of loud. So please do listen for gentle whispers. A seminary professor of mine published a book about small being the right size for a church. So I don’t think it’s wise to follow what I see as a too often practiced American trait, rejecting small simply because it’s small. Or as a pastor friend of mine once said, it’s better to do something good than it is to do something big”

BENEDICTION: Let us learn as faithful disciples of Christ. Let us know that God is available to us at any time and in any place. Let us give thanks for the grace of God in Christ, Jesus. Let us trust in God for all time and for all eternity. Amen.

01/04/2026 ~ Second Sunday after Christmas Day ~ Jeremiah 31:7-14 or Sirach 24:1-12; Psalm 147:12-20 or Wisdom of Solomon 10:15-21; Ephesians 1:3-14; John 1:(1-9), 10-18 ~ EKC VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHFiskZv9-s
HARPSWELL TV VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hr_xva_LLWY

Your People

“Thus says Yahweh, God: / Sing aloud with gladness, joy for Jacob, / and raise shouts for the chief of nations; / proclaim, make your praise heard, and say, / ‘Save, O God, your people, / the remnant of Israel.’” — Jeremiah 30:7.

Sone of you will embrace what I am about to say. Others will say, “He’s at it again.” Why? Today I once again want to talk about the famous Broadway composer Stephen Sondheim and address one of his musicals, Into the Woods. I apologize— it’s just my background rearing it’s ugly head.

Unlike the last Sondheim show I addressed, this one, Into the Woods, is well known. Even though Sondheim’s music can be complex, this score is quite accessible. Indeed, the show was adapted for a popular movie which stared Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt, James Corden, and Maine native Anna Kendrick.

In case you’re unfamiliar with the show here’s a brief outline. The piece takes several well known fairy tales— The Baker and His Wife, Rapunzel, Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, Little Red Riding Hood— and weaves all the stories together as the characters of these stories interact with one another. Each character has a wish which needs fulfillment.

In order to get the specific wish they want granted, they need to go on an adventure, go into the woods, in pursuit of that wish. However, the woods in this telling are a metaphor for facing the reality of life. And this is a truth: we must all at some point go into the woods, face reality, face real life with all its dangers, joys, pains, triumphs.

In real life sometimes we get what we need. Sometimes we get what we want. Sometimes what we want and get is not really what we need. Of course, sometimes what we want, get and even need turns out to be a disappointment— that’s real life.

But each and every day we do set off on a new journey in life and face the good, the bad and the indifferent. Stephen’s lyrics say just that.

(Quote:) “Into the woods, / It’s time to go, / I hate to leave, / I have to, though. / Into the woods— / It’s time, and so / I must be on my journey. / Into the woods / And down the dell, / The path is straight, / I know it well. / Into the woods, / And who can tell / What’s waiting on the journey?”

“Into the woods, / It’s time to go, / It may be all / In vain, you know. / Into the woods— / But even so, / I have to take the journey. / The way is clear, / The light is good, / I have no fear, / Nor no one should. / The woods are just trees, / The trees are just wood. / No need to be afraid there— / There’s something in the glade there…”

“Into the woods / Without regret, / The choice is made, / The task is set. / Into the woods, / But not forgetting / why I’m on the journey. / Into the woods / to get my wish, / I don’t care how, / The time is now. / Into the woods— Then out of the woods, / And home before dark!” (Slight pause.)

These words are from the Scroll of the Prophet Jeremiah: “Thus says Yahweh, God: / Sing aloud with gladness, joy for Jacob, / and raise shouts for the chief of nations; / proclaim, make your praise heard, and say, / ‘Save, O God, your people, / the remnant of Israel.’” (Slight pause.)

The 30th Chapter of Jeremiah, taken as a whole, presents us with a picture of real life and the reality of real life can be frightening. In this case Jeremiah presents us with pictures of a time of exile— that is frightening. But the reading in its entirety encompasses danger, triumph, pain, joy as real life often does.

Jeremiah seems to understand and insist no matter what real life brings, God is to be praised. Why? God is with us. God is with the people.

And if God is with the people it begs this question: who are the people of God? For Israel the answer was the members of the tribe. But that answers begs a second question: who really belongs to the tribe of God? (Slight pause.) My answer is simple: with the advent of the Christ, everyone— all humanity, whole human race, belongs to the tribe of God.

And that’s yet another reason the 30th Chapter of Jeremiah— and by the way when you have a chance you should read the entire 30th Chapter of Jeremiah; you only heard a portion this morning— that’s another reason the 30th Chapter of Jeremiah taken as a whole presents us with a picture of real life. These words are a reminder. If we break ourselves out into tribes, deteriorate into tribalism, then we’ve missed the part of the covenant God makes with humanity: to love neighbor.

And the part of the covenant which says love neighbor can also be said this way: we are all in this together. So if we do not understand that the life of each of us is to be treasured, we do not understand covenant.

If we do not understand thinking about only ourselves and no one else, understand that radical individualism is a dead end, we do not understand covenant. If we do not understand the covenant of God includes being in relationship with others, we do not understand covenant.

If we do not understand that together we need to work for the common good, we do not understand covenant. So the message of covenant is simple: we are not alone. We need one another. We, together, need to be a community of faith, a community of God.

That leads to another question: when community gathers will there be people in that community with whom we do not agree, even with whom we do not get along? Yes. But despite that, we are, all of us, one people— the people of God. (Slight pause.)

Coming back to Into the Woods, when each of us goes into the woods to face the ups and downs of life, in a real sense we face giants. And Jack of Jack and the Beanstalk says (quote:) “There are Giants in the sky! / There are big, tall, terrible, awesome, scary, wonderful / Giants in the sky!” And yes, we face giants every day. And that’s not easy.

On the other hand, with whom do we face giants? Cinderella says this to Red Riding Hood whose mother has just died (quote:) “Mother cannot guide you. / Now you’re on your own. / Only me beside you. / Still, you’re not alone. / No one is alone.”

“Truly. / No one is alone. / Sometimes people leave you. / Halfway through the wood. / Others may deceive you. / You decide what’s good. / You decide alone. / But no one is alone.” (Slight pause.)

In community we are surrounded by the people of God. And in community God is with us. And in community everything is possible because God is with us encouraging us to rely on each other. We are not alone. Amen.

01/04/2025
Elijah Kellogg Church, Harpswell, Maine

ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Choral Response and Benediction. This is a précis of what was said: “One seminary professor told us we must learn to think theologically. We need to think theologically because Scripture is not about the stories or history. We should not read it that way. Scripture is about theology because it is a reflection offered by the people of God on their experience of God. And imagine how out theology would change if we did not look to heaven for God but looked in the faces of our neighbors. I think that’s the place to which God calls us.” [1]

BENEDICTION: Hear now this blessing: Let us treat all God’s children as our next of kin. Let us praise God for the people all around us. Let us praise God for the fulness of time. And may the peace of Christ which surpasses our understanding keep our hearts and minds in the companionship of the Holy Spirit and the love of God this day and evermore. Amen.

[1] The last sentence is a paraphrase of something said by the Rev. Dr. Caleb J. Lines, a United Church of Christ Pastor.