I want to begin today with a note of thanks for the many of you who helped to celebrate my ordination day last Sunday, be it in person, online, or in spirit. It was a wonderful day, filled with so much love, happiness, and joy, and one that I quite frankly, haven’t quite processed. The … More Our Mothering God
of Elizabeth Baker-Mikesell to the Ministry of Word and Sacrament Sermon by Bishop James S. DunlopMay 5, 2024Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church, Gettysburg, PAIsaiah 40:1-11 How are you? How is your day? We ask these questions to each other all the time. It is often how we greet one another, and frequently we respond, good or … More Rite of Ordination
John 15: 9-17 Most of us, I think, would agree that words are important. What we say and how we say what we say matters, right? Words are important. Our words, in any situation, at any given time, reflecting a piece of who we are. Our words express our beliefs – our thoughts on this … More A Language of Love
What is a job that you’ve thought may be fun to do sometime? It may be a zookeeper, scooping ice cream at a local shop during the summers, or using your Gettysburg history knowledge as a Battlefield Tour Guide. Four years ago, in April of 2020, I found my “fun” job was desperate to find … More Pruning Good Grapes
This past Monday, 30,000 athletes gathered in the streets of Hopkinton, Massachusetts, ready to start their 26.2 mile journey into the city of Boston. Thousands of people watched either along the course, or on ESPN (like I did) with a sense of wonder, determination, and an inkling that “maybe I should do another marathon?” Among … More A Shepherd in the Race
Luke 24: 36b-48 Looking through the pages of history, while I think we’d all agree that every moment bears some measure of significance, there are those moments – those events, those natural occurrences, those human actions – that have measurable significance in much larger ways. Some, for better or for worse, forever changing the course … More A Foundation of Forgiveness
John 20:19-31 Thanks to the writers of our Revised Common Lectionary, year after year, on this weekend, the second Sunday of Easter, the assigned Gospel lesson is always the same. That text you just heard me read, from John chapter 20. This post resurrection story – the risen Jesus appearing to the disciples, minus Thomas, … More Faith in the Face of Doubt
Many of us today will be gathered around a large dining room table, filled with ham, potatoes, green bean casserole, macaroni salad, and a plethora of desserts. Mine was full last Friday, as I went home to celebrate an “early Easter” with my family and some close friends. I love our dining room table, and … More Easter: An Unfinished Story
Maundy Thursday 2024 – John 13: 1-17, 31b-35 We come together this evening for Maundy Thursday – the beginning of the Great Three Days, the Paschal Triduum… With just hours left of Jesus’ earthly life, our Gospel story moves ever closer to its climax as he gathers with his disciples for the final time… As … More Saint Judas
It was a spring day, in the year 33 AD – the beginning of the week of Passover – what was and continues to be recognized as the most sacred week of the Jewish year. Members of the Jewish faithful from all over the Roman world made their way to Jerusalem – the capital city … More Palm Sunday – A Procession of Love
Sermons at St. James Gettysburg 