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    • Sunday service - Holy Communion December 28, 2025 at 9:30 am – 11:00 am Grace Church 215 Pleasant Street, Sheldon, VT Website: www.gracechurchsheldon.comTime:  09:30 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada)        Every week on Sun.Join Zoom Meetinghttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/83929911344?pwd=alZQTWZMN0ZkWFFPS1hmNjNkZkU2UT09Meeting ID: 839 2991 1344Password: Call for detailsOne tap mobile+13126266799,,83929911344#,,1#,816603# US (Chicago)+19294362866,,83929911344#,,1#,816603# US (New York)Dial by your location        +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)        +1 929 436 2866 US (New York)Meeting ID:…
    • Sunday service - Morning Prayer January 4, 2026 at 9:30 am – 11:00 am Grace Church 215 Pleasant Street, Sheldon, VT Website: www.gracechurchsheldon.comTime:  09:30 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada)        Every week on Sun.Join Zoom Meetinghttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/83929911344?pwd=alZQTWZMN0ZkWFFPS1hmNjNkZkU2UT09Meeting ID: 839 2991 1344Password: Call for detailsOne tap mobile+13126266799,,83929911344#,,1#,816603# US (Chicago)+19294362866,,83929911344#,,1#,816603# US (New York)Dial by your location        +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)        +1 929 436 2866 US (New York)Meeting ID:…
    • Sunday service - Holy Communion January 11, 2026 at 9:30 am – 11:00 am Grace Church 215 Pleasant Street, Sheldon, VT As of January 16, 2022 our service online only (via Zoom). Website: www.gracechurchsheldon.orgTime:  09:30 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada)        Every week on Sun.Join Zoom Meetinghttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/83929911344?pwd=alZQTWZMN0ZkWFFPS1hmNjNkZkU2UT09Meeting ID: 839 2991 1344Password: Call for detailsOne tap mobile+13126266799,,83929911344#,,1#,816603# US (Chicago)+19294362866,,83929911344#,,1#,816603# US (New York)Dial by your location        +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) …

Easter 5B RCL  April 29, 2018

Posted on April 29, 2018 by Beth Crane

Acts 8: 26-40
Psalm 22:24-30
1 John 4:7-21
John 15:1-8

In our first reading today, we meet two extraordinary people.The first is Philip. Philip has been called to serve as one of the first seven deacons in the Church. The new community of Jesus’ followers has been growing, and the apostles need help in taking care of those in need.

Very soon, one of those deacons, Stephen, becomes the first martyr, and the Church in Jerusalem faces persecution. Philip goes to Samaria. As our story opens, an angel tells Philip to go south to the road from Jerusalem to Gaza. Without question, Philip goes.  A wilderness road is a dangerous place. One can encounter robbers or wild animals. But Philip goes anyway. He is constantly seeking the will of God and faithfully responding to God’s call.

Our second character is an Ethiopian eunuch. He is the treasurer for the Queen of Ethiopia. He holds a position of great honor and prestige. Not only does the queen entrust the financial affairs of the kingdom to this man. She is also allowing him to make his pilgrimage to Jerusalem. He has come to Jerusalem to worship. As an Ethiopian and a eunuch, he is considered unclean on two counts, so he would not be able to go into the temple to worship. But he is a seeker who is trying to grow closer to God.  He is also wealthy. We know this because he is riding in a chariot and he has a scroll. These are extremely expensive items. Scholars tell us that, given the state of travel in those days, the Ethiopian eunuch has traveled five months on this pilgrimage. He is reading the prophet Isaiah, chapter 53, on the suffering servant.

The angel tells Philip to go over to the chariot. Without hesitation, Philip obeys that call. Philip asks the Ethiopian official, “Do you understand what you are reading?” The Ethiopian gentleman is well educated. He is reading Hebrew. He is also deeply intelligent, eager to learn, and searching for God. He responds with profound insight: “How can I learn, if I don’t have a guide?”  What wisdom this seeker shows in that statement. We cannot be formed in our faith alone. We need community. We need teachers and guides. We need God and each other.

Philip hops into the chariot and opens the scripture to this man.

Then the man asks Philip who this suffering servant, this messiah is, and Philip tells him about Jesus. Philip has watched Stephen being stoned to death and asking God to forgive the people who are killing him, so he is well qualified to speak about the suffering servant. When they come to some water, the man asks to be baptized. They go down to the water, and Philip baptizes him. Then the Spirit snatches Philip away. But the man goes on rejoicing.

Here is a man looking for genuine faith. In some ways, he is wealthy and powerful. In other ways, he is excluded. There are many obstacles in his way, but he does not let those stop him.

Here is Philip, a person of profound faith. He has watched Stephen die; he has probably watched Jesus die. He leaves Jerusalem to avoid persecution, but he faithfully goes where the Spirit tells him to go and responds to every opportunity to spread the Good News.

Scholars tell us that Ethiopia was considered to be “the ends of the earth.”This is truly a story of how the good news is spread to the ends of the earth. This story shows us that the good news of Christ is for everyone. No one is to be excluded.

Jesus is the vine. We are the branches. We cannot bear fruit without him. We need him and we need each other. We are all a part of each other. John uses the word “abide.” This word means more than simply resting in Christ. It is an active connection with our Lord. Commentator Nancy Blakely points out that, in his translation of the Bible called The Message, Eugene H. Petersen “uses the words, ‘Live in me. Make your home in me just as I do in you.’” (Blakely, Feasting on the Word, Year B, Vol 2, p. 474. Living in Christ and allowing him to live in us is a dynamic relationship. To abide with Christ is to live in active, loving relationship with our Lord. That is the kind of relationship Philip had with Jesus, and he shared the aliveness of Christ with the Ethiopian eunuch.

The encounter between Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch is one of the most inspiring dialogues in the Bible. They are both so real and so committed to the journey of faith. The Ethiopian gentleman has no hesitation in asking for help. Philip, trusting in the Spirit, guides this courageous seeker into the truth about Jesus, and the Ethiopian is baptized. He has a long journey home, but it will be a joyful one.

Our epistle for today expands on the theme of love. I encourage you to read this over during the week and meditate on it. It is a beautiful theological statement, almost a hymn of praise. “God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. …We love because he first loved us.”

Our readings for today invite us to explore the depth and breadth of God’s love for us.

Blessed Lord, you are the way, the truth, and the life. May we find our home in you. May you find your home in us. May we be as eager to learn about you as the Ethiopian eunuch. May we be as faithful in sharing the good news of your love as your deacon Philip was all those centuries ago. Amen.

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Easter 4B RCL April 22, 2018

Posted on April 22, 2018 by Beth Crane

Acts 4:5-12
Psalm 23
1 John 3:16-24
John 10:11-18

Today is Good Shepherd Sunday. It is also Earth Day, a day to renew our commitment to be good stewards of God’s creation.

Jesus is our good shepherd. In Jesus’ time, a shepherd could encounter wolves, bears, lions, snakes, and all manner of other dangerous animals. The shepherd of those times would go out in front of the sheep and the sheep would follow him. The shepherd knew each sheep very well. And the sheep knew the shepherd’s voice. Sometimes the shepherds would go into a village and put their flocks into a fenced in enclosure for the night. In the morning, the shepherds would go and call their flocks. Each shepherd had a distinct call. His sheep knew that call and would leave the enclosure and follow him.

Sometimes the shepherd has to fight a wolf or a bear or a lion. Some shepherds run away. But the good shepherd fights for the sheep, protects the sheep. Because he goes ahead of us, he has gone through everything we may ever experience. He has gone through torture and death and he has come out the other side—alive and even stronger.

He knows us, with all our idiosyncrasies, faults, gifts, and flaws—and he loves us. He loves us so much hat he is willing to give his life for us. Even though we aren’t perfect and we have made mistakes and will make more, he loves us. He helps us to get to the good water holes and avoid the ones that would make us sick. He leads us to the good pastures and helps us to avoid the noxious weeds that would poison us. Because we are aware of his love, we follow him. When we hear his voice, that distinct call of his, we follow.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Our Good Shepherd is also the eternal Word who called the creation into being. Today, on Earth Day, many people of faith are renewing our commitment to be good stewards of the creation.

In the Old Home Day parade of 2016, thanks to Andy and his helpers, the Grace Church float consisted of a beautiful Earth. It was on the back of a truck, but we all could imagine it shining like a jewel in our little solar system in the Milky Way galaxy.

We are called by God to be good stewards of this beautiful earth. Today, on Earth Day 2018, our carbon emissions have risen to over 400 parts per million. We need to reverse that trend, and it’s going to take all of us.  Grace Church has always had a focus on taking care of our beloved planet earth. Way back when, Andy and Michael had a recycling ministry, and now, we are all trying to be part of that ministry in our own homes.

Our Native American brothers and sisters have a deep appreciation of how God expressed God’s love in making this beautiful world and all that is in it. God’s love is shown forth in every tree and flower, every animal, even the wolves, bears, and lions, and every person.

Today, we are going to have some prayers for creation in our Prayers of the People. After the coffee hour and Vestry meeting, I hope some of us will stay to join in some special Interfaith Climate Prayers. In doing that, we will be joining people all over the world who will be praying at noon their time, so the earth will be covered in prayers for our stewardship of the environment.

You will also have an opportunity to sign up to receive emails about the environment and to sign a form committing ourselves to protecting the creation.

Our Good Shepherd is calling us to preserve those clear, good waters and those green pastures and all the beauty of his creation .  Amen

 

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Easter 3B RCL April 15, 2018

Posted on April 15, 2018 by Beth Crane

Acts 3:12-19
Psalm 4
1 John 3:1-7
Luke 24:36b-48

All of our readings today show forth the Easter joy that we share because Jesus is risen. In our reading from the Book of Acts, Peter and his team have just healed a lame man, and Peter makes it very clear that this healing has been done through the power of the risen Lord. Referring to Jesus, Peter says, “And by faith in his name, his name itself has made this man strong.” We, too have faith in the name of Jesus and in his presence.

In our epistle today, John writes, “See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God, and that is what we are. Beloved, we are God’s children now.”

During the Great Fifty Days of Easter, ending with the feast of Pentecost, we are reliving with the apostles and other followers of Jesus the joy of meeting our risen Lord.

Our gospel for today comes from Luke. In order to put this passage into context, we need to realize that this portion of the gospel is preceded by the walk to Emmaus. Two of Jesus’ followers have been in Jerusalem and they have seen the crucifixion in all of its horror. They have remained with the others. The women have gone to the tomb and found it empty. Two angels have told them that Jesus is risen.

That same day, these men are walking to Emmaus, a village about seven miles from Jerusalem. While they are walking on the road and discussing all these things, a stranger appears and begins walking with them. He asks them what they are talking about, and they tell him they are discussing Jesus of Nazareth who has been crucified, and they say that some women of their group have said that Jesus is risen.

They still have no idea that the person walking with them is Jesus, but he begins to teach them the meaning of the scriptures. When they reach their destination, they invite Jesus to stay with them. When he takes the bread and breaks it, they realize who he is, and he vanishes. They rush back to Jerusalem and find the eleven and their companions gathered together, and they tell them how Jesus has become known to them in the breaking of the bread.

Today’s gospel follows these events. Once again, Jesus is with them. He extends his shalom, “Peace be with you.” They think they are seeing a ghost. The reality of the crucifixion is so strong that they cannot comprehend that he has gone through that and come out on the other side. the side of new life. He shows then his wounds and assures them that it is he. He even invites them to touch him. Their terror and doubts begin to melt away.

And then, he says something that would completely dissolve any doubt that it is really Jesus. It’s such a homey, human, ordinary question, Do you have anything to eat around here? Ghosts don’t eat. Ghosts don’t need food. They give him a piece of broiled fish and he eats it.

Then Jesus sits down with them and opens their hearts to a deeper and deeper meaning of the scriptures, a deeper meaning of his life among them and us. He then calls them and us to spread the good news.

Jesus is not some historical figure of the past. Jesus is not merely a great teacher or a great prophet. Jesus is alive. He has gone through the worst that distorted power and hate can do to a human being. He is with us now to lead us and guide us.

Risen Lord, Thank you for your presence among us. Give us the grace to follow where you lead. In your holy Name, Amen.

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Easter Day  Year B April 1, 2018

Posted on April 1, 2018 by Beth Crane

Acts 10:34-43
Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24
1 Corinthians 15:1-11
John 20:1-18

“Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” Jesus said this to his closest followers shortly before he died, and it is the theme of our sequence hymn.

John’s gospel takes us back to that first Easter morning. Mary Magdalene goes to the tomb, sees that the stone has been removed, and runs back to Peter and John. Although he denied Jesus three times, Peter is back with the twelve. He denied that he knew Jesus because he was afraid that the authorities would kill him, too.

We can imagine Peter rejoining the disciples, confessing his denial, which he deeply regretted, and then waiting with the others to see what would happen next.

He and John literally race to the tomb, Peter goes in first and sees the cloth that had wrapped Jesus’ head rolled up neatly. One has a vision of Jesus rising and very considerately folding the head cloth before he leaves. Peter and John then go home. They have not grasped the fact that Jesus is risen.

But Mary stays. She can’t leave. And she weeps. They are all shattered by grief, but she is the one who expresses it. She looks into the tomb and sees the two angels. They ask her why she is weeping, and when she says she does not know where Jesus has been taken, there he is. He asks her the same question, “Why are you weeping?”

In all of these post-resurrection encounters, people do not recognize Jesus, and this is true for Mary Magdalene. She thinks he is the gardener.  She asks him to tell her where the body of Jesus is so that she can take it away.

And then he says her name—“Mary!” And she realizes that it is Jesus.

He gives her the profound honor of being the first one to see him risen. Just as she is going to hug him, he tells her that he has to go to be with the Father. She cannot hold onto him. But he gives her another high honor. He asks her to be the one to tell the apostles that he has risen. Immediately, she goes and tells his followers that he is alive.

In all the gospel accounts, those who loved Jesus so deeply and watched his torture on the cross have an extremely difficult time realizing that he has risen. Yet God has brought good out of this horrible event.

When we go through something terrible, when we lose a dear one, or go through a disaster of one kind or another, or receive a serious or even terminal diagnosis, it seems impossible that any good or anything like new life could come out of it.

And yet, “Now the green blade riseth from the buried grain.” A little green shoot rises out of the earth in spring. The grain of wheat has been buried in the earth and now comes to life.

John Macleod Campbell Crum was an Anglican theologian, poet, and hymn writer who lived from 1872-1958. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1900 and served several parishes.He was a canon of Canterbury Cathedral from 1928-1943.

On Easter we know that love is come again like wheat that springeth green. Christ is love. God is love. Love is the strongest force in the world.

“Now the green blade riseth like the buried grain,  wheat that in dark earth many days has lain; love lives again that with the dead has been:  Love is come again like wheat that springeth green.”

Because of God’s unconditional love, we can always have hope. Because God loves us so much that nothing can stop that love, even the greatest brokenness, even the darkest hour, even the most profound and painful suffering, can and often does lead to light and life.

God cannot protect us from suffering, but, in some way that we will never understand, because God has gone though the worst suffering that anyone can endure, because God has taken all that darkness and hatred and brokenness and wrestled with it and worked with it and labored with it, and transformed it into life, we can experience that newness of life. John Macleod Campbell Crum has captured all of that meaning in his wonderful hymn:

“In the grave they laid him, love whom hate had slain, thinking that never he would wake again. Laid in the earth like grain that sleeps unseen, love is come again like wheat that springeth green.”

“When our hearts are wintry, grieving or in pain, thy touch can call us back to life again, fields of our hearts that dead and bare have been: love is come again like wheat that springeth green.”

Alleluia, Christ is risen.

The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia.

 

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