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Proper 23 (A) A Wedding -- An Invitation

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Proper 23 (A) A Wedding -- An Invitation October 11, 1987 By Rev. Ernest F. Campbell Today’s Gospel really consists of two parables. The story about the wedding banquet which, it seems, everyone who was originally invited to…. was too busy to attend. And the second story about the guest who showed up improperly attired. The first story is easily applied to our too busy or poorly prioritized lives. In the process of meeting all the demands of our business, organizational and social obligations, we too often miss the best that life has to offer. We are too easily distracted from the banquet of relationships at which each of us may honor and be honored by simply offering the gift of our presence. You know, when you stop to think about it, that there has been a lot of thought and preparation that has taken place before you read your name printed on a wedding invitation. Two individuals and two families have chosen you to help celebrate and support their marriage. Our presence at that wed...
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Proper 22 (A) The Self-Importance/Humble Servant Interface

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  Proper 22 (A) The Self-Importance/Humble Servant Interface October 4, 1981 By Rev. Ernest F. Campbell God, in His wisdom, chose the Israelites to be His ambassadors to the world. It was God’s hope that  through the Jews He would be able to convey His purpose and love toward human beings. His divine commission to the Israelites was…. To be a holy nation. To be a kingdom of priests (Exodus 19) To be God’s witnesses (Isaiah 43) To be a blessing to all mankind (Genesis 12) To be a channel of God’s revelation (Romans 3) To be the channel of God’s manifestation in the flesh (Romans 9) To be the instrument of the kingdom’s proclamation (Isaiah 12) This holy awesome responsibility…carried with it the highest trust imaginable. In short – the Jews were chosen to be the stewards of God’s vineyard…. the conveyers of His redeeming love and truth….to…. the…. world. God surely must have realized the risk. The Jews were not robots…they struggled with doubts about their calling just like we...
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Proper 21 (A) Your Sins Are Forgiven

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  Proper 21 (A) Your Sins Are Forgiven September 27, 1987 By Rev. Ernest F. Campbell From the point of view of the Jewish law , unless you made restitution for your sins you could not be forgiven. In other words, unless you could come up with an equivalent or compensation for loss, damage, or injury caused , there was no way you could ever even hope for forgiveness. Restitution is fairly simple – if; my baseball goes through your window and I pay to have the window replaced.  But it is next to impossible if I tell a lie about you that quickly spreads throughout the community. You can never get a lie completely back to the truth. Example: Feathers in the Wind—a story: A Jewish man is nearing the end of his life. He tells his Rabbi that he wants to make amends to all those about whom he has spoken ill. The Rabbi instructs him to take a bag of feathers and put one feather at the doorway to the homes of everyone he has slandered. Thinking this a pretty easy task, the elderly...
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Proper 20 (A) Fair Deal or Loving Gift!

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  Proper 20 (A) Fair Deal or Loving Gift! September 19, 1987 By Rev. Ernest F. Campbell In today’s lectionary we are presented with two skillfully crafted stories calculated to disturb us into a new way of living. The Old Testament story of Jonah is aimed at those Jews who rejected the hope that God’s love and forgiveness was a gift to all . The Gospel story of the last-minute workers is aimed at those in the Church who reject the concept that God cares for all and in His sovereign wisdom can include who He wants, when He wants them, and under what conditions. Both stories are intentionally unfair. Jonah would say it is not fair for a city with a notorious reputation for bloody violence and murder to go unpunished. And the early workers would say that it is unfair for the last-minute workers to receive equal pay with those who worked twelve hours through the heat of the day. Both stories allow us to examine our attitudes and beliefs in contrast to God’s concern and response to H...
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Proper 19 (A) The Forgiveness Initiative

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  Proper 19 (A) The Forgiveness Initiative September 16, 1990 By Rev. Ernest F. Campbell The theme of Sunday’s propers is forgiveness. With that in mind I would like to begin my sermon with a confession. When I sang in the Men and Boys’ Choir at Christ Church Winnetka , I can remember hearing sermons on sin. After several sermons, I figured out that sin was bad. I also know that bad people were put in jail. I was not in jail; therefore, the sermon, I presumed, was not for me. What was my sin? I was in a spiritual coma . A coma is a physical condition in which one is conscious of nothing. It is a very serious state and can lead to death. From a spiritual point of view, according to Louis Evely in his book The Word of God , there are innumerable souls in a state of “coma.” The process of sin goes something like this: We think of something that will not be good for us, or some other person. We savor the possibilities. We act upon the idea. We form a habit of acting. We fall into a...
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Christian Conflict Management Proper 18 (A)

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Christian Conflict Management Proper 18 (A) September 7, 2008 By Rev. Ernest F. Campbell We live in a contentious world. We contend with each other; group “A” gets up early and creates a plan for the day. Group “B” gets up at a more reasonable hour and decides that it doesn’t like Group “A’s” plan. The day is then spent, some would say wasted, arguing over which plan is best. We contend with ourselves. I go to buy a new suit and I hear my mother’s voice saying, “Make it practical.” I hear my father’s voice saying, “Make it affordable.” I hear my sister’s voice saying, “Make it stylish.” And, I hear my wife’s voice saying, “Make it soon!” I can tell by the clerk’s expression that I need to make up my mind! I hear myself sighing; it’s not as easy as it looks. When the church meets, be it vestry or bishop’s committee, keeping in mind (plan “A” versus plan “B” and the many voices we each bring to the table), it is no wonder that meetings run late. Then there are the “parking lot meetings”...
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Proper 17 (A) Transformed

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  Proper 17 (A) Transformed August 29, 1999 By Rev. Ernest. F. Campbell The verse I want to focus on is from today’s Epistle to the Romans : “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God – what is good and acceptable and perfect.” The same verse reads like this from The Message : (keep in mind this is a paraphrase and not a strict translation) – “Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out.” I might express the same thought like this: I try – we all try – to fit in where we live. Where that promotes God’s purpose…. good. Where it gets in the way…. help us to change, to be converted, to be transformed. Transformed into recognizable disciples.  One of my favorite hymns says it like this: “Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord to thee.” Becoming a Christian disciple i...
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