Faith – The Rev. Beverly Patterson

Proper 25 2022

In our Gospel lessons for the last few weeks, Jesus has been teaching about faith. The writer of the Letter to the Hebrews gives us a nice succinct definition for faith. “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Heb 11:1). He then goes on to illustrate his point by naming someContinue reading “Proper 25 2022”

Proper 23 2022

Last week we heard Jesus telling the disciples that they did not need more faith, what they needed was action, and by that action the power present in faith would become visible. Today Jesus is presented with an opportunity to point out an illustration of that kind of faith. Luke tells us that Jesus was headedContinue reading “Proper 23 2022”

Proper 22 2022

I was playing a violin piece for my teacher one day and I kept hitting the wrong string. I stopped and told Todd that I must need more rosin. He laughed and gently said, “It sounds good to me. I’m always ready to find a reason it is not me.” Rather than admit my bow control was notContinue reading “Proper 22 2022”

Last Epiphany 2022

Grant to us that we, beholding by faith the light of his countenance, may be strengthened to bear our cross, and be changed into his likeness from glory to glory. When I lived in Tennessee, one of my favorite pastimes was hiking in the mountains. Where the highway went through the town at the bottomContinue reading “Last Epiphany 2022”

4 Pentecost 2021

Fear is one of those English words that has a broad range of meanings, especially when it comes to translating the Hebrew and Greek scriptures into English. But perhaps that is not entirely the fault of the English. It appears the Hebrews and the Greeks used their words rather broadly as well. It can meanContinue reading “4 Pentecost 2021”

2 Easter 2021

It is odd, and a little sad, that what history – the human memory of the past – remembers is when someone stumbled or fell, when they made a mistake, an incorrect statement, or even just hesitated. And right now, it seems that we go out of our way to look for people’s errors toContinue reading “2 Easter 2021”

2nd Sunday after Easter 2020

Labels are a tricky thing. When I go to the grocery store, I want my food to be labeled clearly and accurately. For people with food sensitivities, this can be a life or death matter, but when we label people, we tend to put emphasis on something that is often irrelevant to the current situationContinue reading “2nd Sunday after Easter 2020”