There's a strange story in Genesis 11 that goes like this: The peoples of the earth, wanting to gain fame and power, decide to build a tower that stretches up all the way into heavens. But God confuses their speech, so their venture fails and they scatter across the earth. The whole story of the … Continue reading Babel Revisited
Happy Pentecost! It's a brilliant, beautiful feast. And it's also an important feast for us, this year more than ever. But, before I begin, I have two confessions to make: I came to the readings weary from a week of horrible, frightening, heart-rending news, searching for words of peace and comfort. I didn't find them. … Continue reading Winds of Change (A Reflection for Pentecost 2020)
The Hebrew Bible text assigned for today presents a curious story. Moses is leading the people from slavery in Egypt through the wilderness to the land of Canaan. The journey is hard and the people are complaining. As a result of their complaints, they are beset by venomous snakes until they cry out for help. … Continue reading Deliverance (A reflection on Numbers 21.4-9)
[This is the text of a sermon I gave at Grace Church on-the-Hill in Toronto on August 18, 2019] As many of you know, I work in the public sector. One of the things I love about working in this environment is that it gives me the chance to talk to a lot of different … Continue reading Fire on the Earth (A sermon on Luke 12.49-56)
The great promise of Christianity is that a fundamental change has come into the world. The “normal” ways of the world, whether conceived of as sin or fate or the writing of the stars or the law of karma, have been overturned. We can now opt out of the power of these forces and be … Continue reading A Spirit of Freedom (A Reflection for Pentecost 2019)
Matthew Root 