• Content

  • Pages

  • Upcoming Events

    • 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) …

Advent 2C December 5, 2021

Posted on December 5, 2021 by Beth Crane

Baruch 5:1-9
Canticle 16, p. 92
Philippians 1:3-11
Luke 3:1-6

Our first reading today is from a book of the Bible attributed to Jeremiah’s secretary, Baruch. Scholars tell us that Baruch was not the author, and we really do not know who wrote this beautiful passage. Scholars tell us that it was written well after the lifetime of Baruch by someone who was very familiar with the work of Isaiah.  

“Take off the garment of your sorrow and affliction O Jerusalem, and put on forever the beauty of the glory from God.” The book is addressed to people who have been in exile, and God is telling them that they will return home. Jerusalem is pictured as standing on a high spot, looking out on all her children returning from the four corners of the earth.

In an echo of Isaiah, the mountains and hills are made low, and the valleys are filled up so that the path toward the holy city is level. The journey home is easy. There are no climbs or descents.The text tells us, “God will lead Israel with joy, in the light of his glory, with the mercy and righteousness that come from him.”

For this second Sunday in Advent, we have a choice between two readings from the Hebrew scriptures, and I chose this one because it gives us such a vivid and moving picture of our own return home to God in this holy time of Advent. It is a return full of joy, and God makes it much easier by leveling the ground! 

This image of the mountains being made low and the valleys filled is also symbolic of the shalom of God. In God’s shalom, there will be a level playing field. Justice will prevail.

Our Canticle for today, the Benedictus, is the song of Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, celebrating the birth of this very special child who was called to be the forerunner of the Messiah. “In the tender compassion of our God, the dawn from on high shall break upon us, to shine on those who dwell in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace.” We are walking the way of God’s shalom.

Our epistle is from the letter of Paul to his beloved community in Philippi. Paul begins with gratitude: “I thank my God every time I remember you, constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of your because of your sharing in the gospel from the first day until now. I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ.” Paul is reminding us that we are living in that in-between time. The kingdom of God has begun but is not yet complete, That will happen when Jesus comes. Paul reminds the Philippians and us that God has begun this good work and God will complete the work of creation.

Paul says that the community in Philippi “holds [him] in [their] heart” because they all share in God’s grace.  This means that we, here in Sheldon two thousand years later, hold each other in our hearts because of God’s grace, and God holds all of us in God’s heart. Paul prays that their and our “love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight to help [us] determine what is best,” so that when our Lord comes to complete the creation, we will have borne good fruit in helping to build his shalom. There is work to do, and there are moral and ethical decisions we will need to make, and Paul is telling us that God will be with us every step of the way to help us stay on the path of shalom.

In our gospel, we meet that great Advent figure, John the Baptist. Notice that Luke carefully places John’s ministry in its historical context. It’s the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius; Pontius Pilate is the governor of Judea, and Herod is ruler of Galilee. All the rulers are named. The word of God comes to John, the son of Zechariah, the priest in the Jerusalem temple. In the words of Isaiah, John is “the voice of one crying out in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord.” Everything is made level. Everything is being straightened out. Everything is being set right. All is being made clear. We are going to see the salvation of God. We are going to meet the Messiah face to face. God’s loving and merciful and just reign is going to prevail.

John is preaching a repentance, a changing of our life and priorities, a metanoia, a transformation, a forgiveness of sins, a course correction, a possibility of freedom and release. No wonder people flocked to see and hear him. After all those years of doing things that were destructive and not doing things that were creative and life-giving, at long last there is help. There is hope.

In this year 2021, our readings today are filled with hope. The hope of returning home after an exile. The hope of living lives based on love for each other and for all people. The hope of love overflowing more and more. The hope of creating a world in which the shalom of God is more fully realized. That is a hope we can have because of the abundance of God’s grace, and the fact that God is with us. God has given us a vision, and God is helping us to fulfill that vision of shalom.

At this time of the year, when the days are so short, the light is overcoming the shadows. God is calling to us in love and joy. Our King is coming. May our hearts be filled with light and joy. May we keep each other in our hearts. May we remember that we are being held in the loving heart of God. Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Advent 2C RCL December 6, 2015

Posted on December 6, 2015 by Beth Crane

Baruch 5:1-9
Canticle 16
Philippians 1:3-11
Luke 3:1-6

Our opening reading takes place in the time of the Babylonian Exile. Jerusalem has been devastated. Many people have been deported. The temple is in ruins. Jerusalem is addressed in this passage. She is in mourning because of this terrible defeat and destruction. The prophet calls her to “take off the garments of sorrow and put on forever the beauty  of the glory from God.” The exiles, her children, are going to come home in safety. God’s mercy and righteousness will fill the land.

Our psalm this morning is Canticle 16, the Song of Zechariah. Let us think about the story of Zechariah for a moment. Zechariah was a faithful priest in the temple of the Lord. He was married to Elizabeth. They had no children, and they were “getting on in years,” as the NRSV says.

One day, Zechariah is serving at the altar and offering the incense when suddenly something very strange happens. There is an angel standing on the right hand side of the altar. Zechariah is terrified. The angel tells him that Elizabeth is going to have a son and that Zechariah is to name him John, meaning “God is gracious.”

The angel goes on to say that John is going to be a prophet who will bring many people to God. Zechariah asks how this can happen, since he and Elizabeth are old, and the angel Gabriel assures him that  this is indeed going to happen. From that day until after John is born, Zechariah is unable to speak. Our canticle for today is the prophecy which Zechariah utters after John was named.

Now we have two powerful bursts of light and hope in the face of darkness and despair: against all odds, the exiles return and John is born.

Let us look at our next reading. Paul wrote this letter to the Philippians from prison.  The community in Philippi was the first church Paul had founded on European soil. They have supported him throughout his ministry, and he thanks God for them every day. They pray for him, and he prays for them. They have a close relationship because they are members and ministers together in the Body of Christ. There is an abundance of love between Paul and these people, and they are looking forward to the day when Jesus will come to complete his shalom. They call the time of his second coming the “day of Jesus Christ.”

What does Paul pray for these wonderful people and for us? He prays that our “love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight to help you determine what is best….” Paul is praying that, in all the love God showers on us, God will help us to determine what is best. God will help us sort out our priorities. God will help us focus on the things that are most important and not focus on things that are less important. God will help us to get into harmony with the values of God’s kingdom.

In our gospel, we focus on one of the great Advent figures: John the Baptist. Luke makes sure that we know exactly when John’s ministry took place. He names all the worldly rulers; he names the high priests. And then Luke tells us what is really important: the word of God came to John the Baptist in the wilderness. Far, far away from all this worldly power and empire, out in the wilderness where God can speak to us, the wilderness where the people of God journeyed for forty years from slavery into freedom, the wilderness where priorities become clear, where there are no distractions. John comes to us. He calls us to repent. He calls us to prepare the way of the Lord. He calls us to do whatever we need to do to get our lives in order so that we can follow our Lord into freedom and wholeness.

John is quoting the prophet Isaiah (40:3-5) when he calls us to prepare the way of the Lord, and John calls us to the vision of God’s shalom in an earlier chapter of Isaiah: “the wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the failing together, and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze, their young shall lie down together. They will not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11: 6, 7a,9.} Peace comes to the world. Former enemies live together in harmony. All creatures and humans and the whole creation can grow and flourish as they should.

How can we prepare the way of the Lord? Some of us work to protect our environment, That is one way of helping God preserve and restore this beautiful creation. Some of us help children and young people to move from abusive homes into safer settings. Some of us work to help people who are trying to free themselves from domestic violence. Some of us work to help people recover from addictions. We have recently sent an offering to help refugees who are fleeing from terrorist attacks. These are all ways to help God build God’s kingdom of peace.

This past Wednesday, fourteen people were killed and twenty-one people were injured when a husband and wife opened fire on a group of people at a holiday gathering in San Bernardino, California. Once again, we are horrified. I ask your prayers for those who were hurt and killed, and for their families. I also ask your prayers for our leaders, local, state, and national, and for all of us, that we may follow God’s leading in finding ways to bring peace rather than violence.

The prayer of St. Paul for us today is that God will help us to determine what is best. Syed Farook went to the mosque and prayed every day. The morning service was at 4 AM. The leader of the mosque said that Syed was quiet and appeared to take his faith very seriously. He also said that a person would have to be crazy to murder people as Farook did. Muslim leaders have condemned this horrible act and are offering prayers and support to the families and loved ones. All of the major religions of the world, including Islam, are religions of peace.

What is God calling us to do—or not do— in this tragic situation? What actions will help to stop this tragic repetition of mass killings?  Several observers have said that we are in danger of becoming so numb to this violence that we might accept it as the “new normal.” I hope and pray that we will not do that.

What actions and attitudes can we take in order to help God to build a world of peace instead of this world of increasing violence and bloodshed? I do not pretend to have an answer. I do think that we are called to ask God for guidance in deep and intense prayer, as individuals, as faith communities, as a nation, and as a world community.

In spite of almost impossible odds, the exiles came home; Elizabeth and Zechariah had a son, who is now leading us to prepare the way of the Lord. Even now, our Lord is quietly building his shalom. Even now, in the face of this horror.

O God our Creator, O Jesus our Redeemer, O Holy Spirit, Heavenly Dove, lead us, we pray. Give us the grace to be agents of your peace and healing. We pray in the Name of Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Christ the King Sunday—November 24, 2013

Posted on November 24, 2013 by Beth Crane

Jeremiah 23:1-6
Canticle 16, p. 92
Colossians 1:11-20
Luke 23:33-43

Today is Christ the King Sunday, the day when the season after Pentecost comes to an end. This is also the end of the Christian year. Next Sunday is the first Sunday of Advent, the Church’s New Year.

Today is also the Sunday before Thanksgiving, a time when families and friends gather to give thanks for all the many blessings God showers upon us.

In our first reading, the prophet Jeremiah is already pointing us toward Advent. Jesus, our Good Shepherd, is the branch from the house of David. His leadership is the model for all leadership in the Church.

In our reading from the Letter to the Colossians, Paul tells us how Jesus has rescued us from darkness and brokenness and called us to live in his light and healing. He is the head of the Church. We are members of his living, vibrant Body, reaching out to extend his love to others. In Jesus we see God walking the face of the earth. We see the fullness, the wholeness of God.

In our gospel for today, we see very clearly that our King is different from earthly kings. Jesus was crucified because his teachings threatened all those who depended on earthly power. They had to get rid of him. Certainly we humans can use power to try to control others and lord it over them, but that power is destructive. The love and healing of Jesus is stronger than all the earthly power of the Roman Empire. Love is stronger than earthly power, stronger than hate, stronger than efforts to control people, stronger than fear. Earthly powers may have crucified Jesus, but he is alive, and we are alive in him.

And we gather to give thanks. Eucharist is the Greek word for Thanksgiving. Every time we share in the Eucharist, we are having a Thanksgiving dinner, and Jesus is our host. He is feeding us with his own loving, healing, courageous energy so that we can serve others in his name.

God has given us so much. God has given us everything that we have.  We live in a beautiful place. We have loving friends and families.  God has given us gifts, so many gifts—of music, listening to others, sewing, cooking, carpentry, athletic ability, helping to make spaces accessible to all, community organizing, praying, working with young people, rescuing dogs and horses,  teaching, coaching,  paying the bills, keeping the books, assisting elderly folks, building beautiful crèches, serving as  EMTs, nursing, caring—the list goes on and on.  This community of faith has so many gifts.

God has given us everything we need to do our ministry.

We have an abundance. Even if we are going through tough times, we have an abundance. We have what we need. And we have the gifts and the abilities to do what God is calling us to do.

Perhaps the greatest gift that God gives us is God’s amazing and unfailing love.  We are well aware that we have made mistakes in our lives. Sometimes we have felt ashamed of our behavior. God has given us the gift of free will and sometimes we have made  choices that aren’t the most creative. Sometimes we think that we’re not worth much. But that’s not what God thinks.

The greatest gift is that God loves you. God loves me. God loves you just the way you are. God knows you. God knows everything that you have done. After all, God created you. And God loves you. Nothing that you can ever do will ever make God stop loving you.

And God is with you and me right now, God is with us every step of the way on our journey in life. God will guide us. It’s a partnership, We ask God for guidance, and, with God’s grace, we can do what God calls us to do.

What is our response to God’s love and generosity and care? What is our response in the face of all this abundance of grace and gifts? Our response is to be thankful to God. We show our thanks by trying to live as God calls us to live.

Out of gratitude to God, we also return to God a worthy portion of the time, talent, and treasure that God has given us. We offer back to God some of the time and talents God gives us to help and serve others. I know that all of you do this all the time. You help neighbors. You volunteer. You work in your communities. There are many ways to do this.

We also give back to God a portion of the treasure that God has given us.  This can be done by contributing to charities and organizations that we care about, such as the Red Cross or the Nature Conservancy

And I also encourage everyone to consider making a pledge to Grace Church. This is something to pray about in the next couple of weeks, Beth will have pledge cards for us to fill out. It does not have to be a great deal of money. The amount is between you and God. The important thing is that we are returning to God a portion of what God has given us because we are thankful to God. Then we put the pledge card in the collection plate and offer that pledge to God. We are saying “Thank you” to God. Thank you, God, for your love, your grace. Thank you for leading us out of the darkness into the light. Thank you for leading us beside the still water. Thank you for restoring our souls. Thank you for giving meaning to our lives.

So we think of our pledge of time, talent, and treasure. Just being here to join in worship every Sunday is a way of thanking and praising God. It feels so wonderful when everyone is here. We need everyone. So, if money is tight, remember, your gifts of time and talent are very important. One of the most beautiful things about Grace Church is that folks are so deeply committed to being here every Sunday.

God loves each of us more than any of us can comprehend. You are the apples of God’s eye. Always remember that, You are God’s beloved child. Christ is alive and he welcomes you to his Thanksgiving feast.

Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: , , , , | Leave a comment »