Sermons

Perseverance, Patience, Joy (video)

Perseverance, Patience, Joy (video)

I was invited to share a sermon for Intercultural Church Sunday on a shared worship experience for congregations of the Presbytery of New Brunswick - Presbyterian Church, USA (the presbytery in NJ that serves Mercer Co. and parts of Hunterdon, Middlesex and Somerset Cos.). This was also during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic in which faith communities had to find new ways of being church in worship and witness. And even in times of pandemic, the Holy Spirit calls the church to be in relationship with others, especially those we were taught to consider as “other”. What if those relationships were to change us? What is needed to be faithful in pursuing those relationships? What does love look like for all?

Being Fully Oneself (video and audio)

Being Fully Oneself (video and audio)

One cannot be anything else than what one is. And when we are called by God - in baptism, communion and community - God does not expect us to bring anything else but what and who we are. Anything else we will need to be faithful witnesses, the Holy Spirit will give us.

This was a sermon shared with the community of the First Presbyterian Church in Jamestown, NY, based on the gospel lesson in Matthew 5:13-20

La Iglesia, Mayordoma de la Paz

La Iglesia, Mayordoma de la Paz

Celebrando el 2do domingo de Adviento, el domingo de la paz, reflexioné con la congregación de la 3ra Iglesia Presbiteriana en Aguadilla sobre como el profético en Isaías 11:1-10 le provee una imagen para la iglesia sobre esa paz que se puede añorar, una paz que la iglesia está llamada a ser gestora para y con el mundo. También tomando alguna inspiración de II Corintios 9:6-15, acompañé en esa oportunidad a esta congregación al cierre de su campaña de mayordomía. La Iglesia es llamada a ser mayordoma de paz.

Would you be a Neighbor? (video link)

Would you be a Neighbor? (video link)

When preaching on the story commonly known as "The Good Samaritan” we often miss that this parable is in response to an intense conversation between Jesus and an expert in religious law. I had the opportunity to preach this sermon during the opening worship service of the 2019 Big Tent (video link), the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s biennial learning and fellowship gathering. I preached it originally in, both, Spanish and English.

Unexpected Acts: Called to Shop at the Local Bodega

Unexpected Acts: Called to Shop at the Local Bodega

Rules and regulations. Social expectations and theological interpretations. For many these are all but set in stone. Allowing ourselves to engage with another that is different to us can (and should) change to shifting idiosyncrasies and keeping biases in check. And if more deeply, engaging the other can change one life and witness all together.

I preached this sermon to the congregation of the First Presbyterian Church in Albany, NY.

Truth will Out

Truth will Out

To stand trial is to be in a dialogue. The party in authority is seeking to convince others that the party accused is guilty. The purpose of a dialogue is to convince, to sway. Jesus is not about dialogue. He is about conversation - being with others in life together. And Jesus take every opportunity to be in conversation with others, even while standing trial.

This sermon was preached in two versions, first at the installation of Elder Warren McNeill as stated clerk of New York City Presbytery, and this version to the congregation of First Presbyterian Church in Albany, NY.

The War Economy is Immoral

The War Economy is Immoral

In this sermon I engage the text of II Samuel 11, and the otherwise unrelated stories of war, lust, murder if not seen through the historical and contemporary lenses of the war economy. This was also a nudge of support to the Poor Peoples’ Campaign: A National Call for a Moral Revival and its New York State organizing.

This sermon was originally preached at the Presbyterian New England Congregational Church in Saratoga Springs, NY.