Sermons on 18th Sunday Ordinary Year C:

Thirty-Second Sunday In Ordinary Time, C--The Sadducees

Contributed by Paul Andrew on Oct 12, 2022

I believe the question I would have asked the Sadducees would be, “Was this woman taking out life insurance policies on all these husbands?”

One of my seminary professors said that it’s easy to remember who the Sadducees were because since they denied that there is a resurrection, they were “so sad you see.” The Sadducees were the ancient version of modern liberal theologians. They were anti-supernaturalistic. They only accepted the ...read more

Scripture: Luke 20:27-38

Denomination: Catholic

Fifth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year C: Fishers: The Call, Objection, Assurance, And Commissioning Stories

Contributed by Paul Andrew on Jan 8, 2025

“You got it bad and that ain’t good. But there is a doctor in the house and his name is Jesus."

Robert Coles, a Pulitzer Prize winner who taught at Harvard, believes that “the characters in novels can be persistent voices reminding us of the constant temptation toward egotism, and self-deception to which the mind is heir,’ and exhorting us to live lives that are morally inspired.”1 For ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 6:1-8, Luke 5:1-11

Denomination: Catholic

Seventh Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year C -- The Word Nonviolent Can Be An Adjective, It Modifies How

Contributed by Paul Andrew on Jan 20, 2025

Jesus is asking us today not so much as “how can I find a gracious God? But “How can I find God in my enemy?” And, how can we be children of God in real life without loving our enemies?

The fictional Klingon language from Star Trek has no words for love. Of course, the Klingons were creatures of pure logic, not emotion. So, the closest words for “love” in their language were “honor” or “unhate.” That would be easy for us if we could define love simply as “unhating” others. ...read more

Scripture: 1 Samuel 26:2-23, Luke 6:27-38

Denomination: Catholic

Ascension Sunday

Contributed by Rev Kenneth Roach on May 11, 2021

On keeping ones soul. Preached on May 18th 1969 at Plymouth Bethesda Church Utica.

And when he had called the people onto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me. For who whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospels, the same ...read more

Scripture: Mark 8:34-37

Sixth Sunday In Ordinary Time - 6th Sunday, Year A-- The Fence

Contributed by Paul Andrew on Jan 20, 2020

Jesus builds a shield around the law or Commandments in order to create more space and distance so that we won’t even bump up against the fence or sit on the fence, but rather keep a healthy distance.

There was a large group of people. On one side of the group stood a man, Jesus. On the other side of the group stood Satan. Separating them, running through the group, was a fence. The scene was set, both Jesus and Satan began calling to the people in the group and, one by one - each having made up ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:17-37

Denomination: Catholic

"He Uses The Ordinary"

Contributed by Ken Sauer on Apr 2, 2004

A sermon for Palm Sunday.

John 12:12-19 “He Uses the Ordinary” By: Rev. Kenneth Emerson Sauer Pastor of Parkview United Methodist Church Newport News, VA www.parkview-umc.org. There is nothing dignified about a donkey. We can look at him from any angle and we will fail to find what we might call a sense of ...read more

Scripture: John 12:12-19

Denomination: United Methodist

Twenty-Second Sunday In Ordinary Time, Cycle Or Year C-- Table Talk: Take The Lowest Place

Contributed by Paul Andrew on Jul 30, 2022

It’s easier to ignore people at rectangular tables.

Recently there was a man from Ireland who became an internet sensation for a silly mistake he made while on vacation. This gentleman was visiting Las Vegas for the first time. So he borrowed his son’s GoPro camera, put it on a stick, and walked all over the Las Vegas Strip. He was filming all the ...read more

Scripture: Luke 14:1-14

Denomination: Catholic

Twenty-Eighth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year C-- The Perfect Thank You Has Four Parts

Contributed by Paul Andrew on Oct 10, 2025

Start with “thank you;” Recognize the Gift; Why you’re grateful, Tell that person what they mean to you.

John Kralik, a lawyer, found his life at a terrible, frightening low at age 53. He was twice-divorced, out of shape, had money troubles, and he had grown distant from his two older children and was afraid he might lose contact with his young daughter. But during his tough circumstances, an idea ...read more

Scripture: Luke 17:11-19

Denomination: Catholic

Ash Wednesday, Year C

Contributed by Garth Wehrfritz- Hanson on Feb 24, 2001

The Lenten Journey involves repentance, prayer, fasting, almsgiving, deeds of loving-kindness.

Sermon for Ash Wednesday, Year C Based on Isa. 58:1-12 By Pastor Garth Wehrfritz-Hanson There is a novel by Muriel Spark called Memento Mori. It tells about a group of friends, all over sixty-five, who one by one receive anonymous phone calls telling them, “Remember, you must die!” The novel, ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 58:1-12

Denomination: Lutheran

Thirteenth Sunday In Ordinary Time B--- Bleeding For 12 Years

Contributed by Paul Andrew on Jun 24, 2021

As we felt new power flow in, as we enjoyed peace of mind, as we discovered we could...

[Jail Ministry homily 13th Sunday B] Under Mosaic law, that woman was unclean all those years. Twelve years of medical treatments with no cure corroborates her once-significant financial status. Alcoholics Anonymous refers to, “the insanity of our disease.” i.e. an impaired ability to stop or ...read more

Scripture: Mark 5:21-43

Denomination: Catholic

Thirty-First Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year A- Hypocrites

Contributed by Paul Andrew on Oct 8, 2023

We ask for the daily grace to walk the talk.

Have you heard the one about the priest, the minister, and the rabbi?” A rabbi and a priest were talking about the perks of each job. The priest mentioned that he gets a rectory to live in that comes with a housekeeper and a cook, all paid for by the church. The rabbi responded by asking if ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 23:1-12

Denomination: Catholic

Seventeenth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year B--Spiritual Multiplication

Contributed by Paul Andrew on Jun 24, 2024

“Gift” is only gift if we give all the pieces.

Percent means “parts per hundred,” from the Latin, per centum. Edward Denison, in 1060, thought of a neat phrase, “Three percent is greater than two percent by fifty percent. I have math anxiety but there are listed several ways to prove this, including that the reason that 3 is 50% bigger than 2 ...read more

Scripture: John 6:1-15

Denomination: Catholic

Nineteenth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year B: Food For The Journey

Contributed by Paul Andrew on Jul 5, 2024

[Bless those] who…know the depths of [the] sacrament.

Elijah went a day's journey into the desert, until he came to a broom tree and sat beneath it. He was the last remaining Prophet of the true religion left. He had just stood his ground against four-hundred pagan prophets of the fertility god Baal. Today’s pagan fertility god is In-Vitro ...read more

Scripture: 1 Kings 19:4-8, John 6:41-51

Denomination: Catholic

Twentieth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year B: Eucharistic Fix

Contributed by Paul Andrew on Jul 14, 2024

Transformation by an alternative Eucharistic consciousness in Jesus Christ.

We just heard John 6:52, “The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying, "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?" That reminds of me two men who lived in a small town who got into a terrible dispute that they could not resolve. So, they decided to talk to the wisest man in town. The ...read more

Scripture: John 6:51-58

Denomination: Catholic

Tenth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year B: Combat Boots

Contributed by Paul Andrew on May 4, 2024

“feet shod with the kind of shoe created for the Gospel of peace.”

General Douglas MacArthur wrote that there are 4 things necessary to win any battle. One is strength-- We hear Mark 3:27 in our Gospel, “no one can enter a strong man's house to plunder his property unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can plunder the house.” Jesus explains that ...read more

Scripture: Mark 3:27, Genesis 3:15, Ephesians 6:15, Ephesians 4:27

Denomination: Catholic