Sermons

Because we are a community with a strong focus on study, service and community, we deeply appreciate challenging weekly sermons on these topics. (We call them “Promptings.”)

Below is a sampling of sermons offered in recent weeks by our talented and devoted preachers, Jessica Moore and Carl Hilton VanOsdall, as well as others who join us as guest preachers.

March 29, 2026

Rev. Carl Hilton VanOsdall

“The Good News Is Inspiring Us to Act”

A fair number of us, I’m sure, attended a No Kings Rally yesterday.
Pro-love. Peace & Justice-Seeking. Non-violent gatherings of people who say, “No.”
No Kings – and no…
To…king-like decisions in a democracy. No,
To unilateral decisions to go to war. No,
To…decisions to discontinue funding for
To…dictatorial practices. No,
To…the use of constant coercion to get one’s way. No.

March 15, 2026

Rev. Jessica Moore

“Toxic Empathy?”

“Toxic Empathy” is a new term for an old idea. I’ve been learning something about Toxic Empathy, the belief that, as a culture, we have become overly permissive regarding the behavior of the people and life styles of the people we care for and help; that if we are empathetic and give help to “sinful” people (addicts, LGBTQ+ community, etc.) we are giving “sin” a pass, we’re not encouraging personal responsibility, and we’re not thinking critically.

March 8, 2026

Kristabeth Atwood, M.Div.

“The Good News Is…….Together the Impossible Is Possible”

Sometimes the math just doesn’t work.

There are too many needs and not enough resources. There are too many problems pressing in at once and not enough solutions in sight. There are too many people who are hungry ~ hungry for food, hungry for safety, hungry for belonging ~ and not enough bread to go around.

March 1, 2026

Rev. Jessica Moore

“Wasteful Love”

Today it’s all about love – high risk, excessive, wasteful, God-centered love. Episcopal Bishop John Shelby Spong writes of this kind of love:
For one to abide in love is to abide in God; for one to give love away is to give God away. That is why when one sees a life that loves wastefully, it is said of that person, ‘God was in that life.’ …Love touches something external. When we enter love, we find ourselves caught up in its power. Love lifts us beyond our quest for survival. Love enables us to transcend our limits. Love frees us to give ourselves away. “