Sermon.02.21.21.Lent.I St. Paul’s Episcopal – Brookings Fr. Larry V. Ort Genesis 9.8-17; Psalm 25.1-9; 1 Peter 3.18-22; Mark 1.9-15 Welcome to Lent! Our gospel reading focuses on Jesus’ baptism and temptation in the wilderness. Mark describes the conclusion of Jesus’ baptism as follows: “Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. And a voice came down from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with

Sermon.02.14.21.Transfiguration.Evolution.Sunday St. Paul’s Episcopal – Brookings Fr. Larry V. Ort 2 Kings 2.1-12; Psalm 50.1-6; 2 Corinthians 4.3-6; Mark 9.2-9 Last Tuesday I sent an e-mail to St. Paul’s membership in which I confessed to wrestling with the sermon for I desired to address both the Feast of the Transfiguration and Evolution Sunday. Chuck Berry’s response could be likened to that of a trout rising to a fly. Although Chuck did not write this sermon, he provided

Sermon.02.07.21 Epiphany5 St. Paul’s Episcopal – Brookings Fr. Larry Ort Isaiah 40.21-31; Psalm 147.1-12, 21c; 1 Corinthians 9.16-23; Mark 1.29-39 Last Sunday we noted the peoples’ astonishment that “Jesus taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes” (Mark 1.22; NRSV). While they recognized Jesus’ authority, they questioned its source. By Middle Eastern standards, Jesus should have been a carpenter. Where did he receive such authority? After Jesus had cast out

Sermon.01.31.21. Epiphany4 St. Paul’s Episcopal – Brookings Fr. Larry Ort Deuteronomy 18.15-20; Psalm 111; 1 Corinthians 8.1-13; Mark 1.21-28 Last Sunday, we looked at two radically different responses to God’s call. We considered how Jonah, after attempting to flee God, finally prophesied against Nineveh yet held on to his own idols and resentment. Jonah was truly a reluctant prophet! In contrast, we saw how Andrew, Simon Peter, James, and John, in response to Jesus’ “Follow