Seekers recognizes that any member of the community may be called upon by God to give us the Word, and thus we have an open pulpit with a different preacher each week. Sermons preached at Seekers, as well as sermons preached by Seekers at other churches or events, are posted here, beginning with the most recent.
Click here for an archive of our sermons.
Feel free to use what is helpful from these sermons. We only ask that when substantial portions are abstracted or used in a written work, please credit Seekers Church and the author, and cite the URL.
“A Community of Active Belonging ” by Kolya Braun-Greiner
Recommitment Season
October 2, 2022
At Seekers we talk a lot about accountability. This may scare some out of fear of falling short of whatever commitment one makes. What’s meaningful to me is responsibility or ability to respond, individually or collectively. I understand community as a context for reciprocal relationships in which call upon our ability respond with our unique gifts, callings and mutual support. What if the foundation for accountability within community is the ability to respond to the invitation of commitment to belonging, what I’d like to call active belonging? This is different from what seems common in our society – a kind of passive belonging which I dare say this true for many churches. One’s name is on the roles or membership of an organization, people have paid their dues, but not a lot is expected of people beyond that – especially in hierarchical structures.
M. Scott Peck describes the kind of churches many of us have experienced, I’d call a culture of passive belonging, in which the dreaded coffee hour is when everyone talks about “niceties” and when asked “how are you doing?” the common response is “fine” whether or not they are. He contrasts these “pseudo-communities” of superficial interactions with communities in which the organizational culture promotes honesty and vulnerability. Here at Seekers I affirm that our “do-it-yourself” church promotes active belonging through participatory engagement and intimacy.
A Service of Quiet Prayer
Recommitment Season
September 25, 2022
On this day, Elizabeth led us in a time of quiet contemplation, praying out of the silence as each person was moved. To focus our prayer, at Celebration Circle’s request, Marjory read the gospel reflection “Left Behind” that she had previously posted on Inward/Outward. You can read it here: https://inwardoutward.org/left-behind/
“Recommitment” by Marjory Bankson
Recommitment Season
September 18, 2022
The morning after Pat Conover died, Peter woke up with the hymn that we just sang, It is Well With My Soul, and he said, “It felt like a message from Pat.” That same morning, I woke up from a dream of making a bed on the couch in our living room for Pat’s daughter, Samantha, who was apparently going to be staying with us for a time. It’s clear to me that Pat had a larger-than-life impact on us and, judging from the email tributes this week, on the wider Seekers community.
While this is not a memorial service for Pat, I do not want to ignore the importance of his presence, both in person and with his writing. Although he was a PhD sociologist and an ordained UCC minister, Pat was an ardent advocate for the priesthood of ALL believers and he often gave us language for what we were already doing to make that sustainable.
“Commitment in a Time of Fear” by David Lloyd
Recommitment Season
September 11, 2022
Twenty-one years ago today, the terrorist group Al Qaeda attacked the World Trade Center buildings and the Pentagon. That day is in my thoughts a lot whenever I lead a tour group to the Pentagon Memorial. Then I can see in my mind the side of the Pentagon that had a gaping hole six stories high, 40 yards wide, and about 40 yards deep. How many of you have been to the Pentagon Memorial? It’s easily accessible from the Pentagon and Pentagon City Metro stations.
In this week’s lectionary Jeremiah’s prophecy predicted a Babylonian invasion that would overwhelm the kingdom of Judah. It would be God’s justice visited upon the people due to their faithlessness and injustice. Jeremiah’s prophecy depicted a reversal of the creation story in Genesis, an un-creation in which the earth would revert to being a void without form, the heavens going dark without the light of the stars, the mountains shaken, humans gone, birds disappeared, the land desolate. Jeremiah intended his prophecy to create fear in the people of Judah – king, priests, and everyone else — to stir them to repent and renew their covenant with God.
“It Is Well with My Soul” by Elizabeth Gelfeld
Summer
September 4, 2022
Today is the final Sunday of our Summer season, and for the past six weeks we’ve been exploring the theme of “Faith in Hard Times.” Many of you have shared your reflections on this theme during our Gathering Circles and in various smaller-group meetings of Seekers.
Let us pray:
O God, you have searched me and known me.
You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you are acquainted with all my ways.
How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God!
I try to count them – they are more than the sand;
I come to the end – I am still with you.Amen.
In today’s gospel reading, Jesus continues a series of direct challenges to the people he meets as he travels toward Jerusalem, where he will face his death. In the chapters of Luke that we’ve been reading lately, he tells the parable of the Good Samaritan; he insults the religious scholars; says he has come to divide fathers against sons and mothers against daughters; and publicly breaks the law by healing on the Sabbath. Now, Jesus says that if we want to follow him we have to turn our backs on our families and our precious plans for our own lives, carry the cross, and give up all our possessions.
For insight on this gospel, I refer you to Marjory’s reflection for Inward/Outward, posted yesterday. (https://inwardoutward.org/clearing-space/) This morning, I’m going to turn our attention to the hymn we sang together a few minutes ago, and what it might tell us about faith in hard times.*