The Quiet Center

Luke 20:27-38

Father Mark begins with the Gospel passage where the Sadducees test Jesus with a question about resurrection, trying to trap him in a logical puzzle about marriage in the afterlife. Jesus, however, redirects them to a deeper understanding—resurrected life is not a continuation of earthly patterns but a transformation into divine life. He teaches that those who are “children of the resurrection” are alive in God now, not bound by human institutions like marriage or death. God is not the God of the dead but of the living, and this eternal aliveness is available to us in every moment we dwell in divine presence.

From there, Father Mark turns inward, comparing the Sadducees’ obsession with external arguments to his own distractions—represented by his dog Serena’s tendency to run off, drawn by fleeting scents and sounds. Just as Serena forgets the safety and love waiting at home, we too chase after the noise of the world: news cycles, social media, busyness, and even well-intentioned activities that fill our days but leave little room for stillness. Like the Sadducees, we risk mistaking motion for meaning, activity for aliveness. True life, he reminds us, comes from being rooted in our spiritual home—our center in God.

In closing, Father Mark urges a daily practice of returning to that center. The resurrected life Jesus speaks of isn’t reserved for the afterlife—it’s a way of living now, grounded in silence, prayer, and the awareness of God’s presence. He invites his congregation to find “the quiet center” amid life’s chaos, to live from the soul rather than the surface, and to cultivate practices that nourish this deeper self. Resurrection, then, is not a distant promise but a present reality for those who live awake to God’s love within.

Scripture quotations are from New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Our Nearest Neighbors

Luke 6:20-31

Father Mark’s sermon reflects on Jesus’ teachings in Luke 6:20–31, where Christ presents the upside-down values of the Kingdom of God. The world often prizes wealth, power, and success, yet Jesus blesses the poor, the hungry, and those who weep. He calls his followers to love their enemies, to bless those who curse them, and to live by the Golden Rule. Father Mark contrasts this divine value system with the world’s obsession with status and material gain, reminding us that when we become consumed by the “kingdom of this world,” we risk losing touch with our very soul—the sacred depth of our being.

He then turns to the central question for All Souls’ Day: What is the soul, and where does it go when we die? Drawing on Tom Stella’s reflection, Father Mark describes the soul as the sacred depth within us—the dimension where we find meaning, connection, passion, and compassion. Yet, he warns, we often live disconnected from that depth, caught in the surface busyness of modern life. To reconnect, he offers a simple practice from Brother David Steindl-Rast: “Stop, Look, Go.” Stop the endless inner chatter, look with gratitude at the present moment, and then go—acting from a place of awareness and love. This practice, along with prayer and meditation, brings us back into union with our soul.

Finally, Father Mark explores the mystery of the soul after death. Quoting John O’Donohue and Meister Eckhart, he shares the belief that the soul does not go “somewhere else” but enters a freer, invisible state of being still close to us. “The dead are our nearest neighbors,” he says, their souls interwoven with ours in the communion of saints. Through the refinement of our own souls—our deepening connection with the sacred within—we can sense the presence of those who have gone before us. Thus, All Souls’ Day becomes not only a remembrance but a living communion: soul recognizing soul, here and now, in the eternal presence of God.

Scripture quotations are from New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Humbled and Justified

Luke 18:9-14

In this sermon, Father Mark reflects on Jesus’ parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector, found in Luke’s Gospel. Jesus tells this story to those who “trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt.” The Pharisee stands proudly in the temple, thanking God that he is better than others, while the tax collector, aware of his sinfulness, humbly asks for mercy. Jesus concludes that it is the tax collector, not the Pharisee, who goes home justified. Father Mark emphasizes that this parable’s audience is unique—it is directed not to any particular group but to all who rely on their own righteousness rather than on God’s grace.

Father Mark explains that the Pharisee’s mistake is not his fasting or tithing—both are good practices—but his belief that such acts make him righteous before God. Quoting various theologians, he describes the Pharisee’s “prayer” as more of a self-congratulatory report, with God merely an audience. True righteousness, Father Mark says, is not about obeying external rules but about right relationship—with God, others, and creation. Like a pianist who hits all the right notes but plays without heart, the Pharisee performs religion perfectly yet misses its true music: love flowing from the heart of God.

The sermon concludes with a challenge to modern listeners. In today’s world of boastfulness and contempt, many act from ego rather than humility, justifying themselves and condemning others. Father Mark calls his congregation to abandon self-righteousness and instead live from the humility and openness of the tax collector—to trust and surrender to God’s grace. When we are emptied of ego, God’s love can flow through us, drawing us toward compassion, service, and solidarity with the powerless. True strength, he reminds us, lies not in self-justification but in vulnerability before the mercy of God.

Scripture quotations are from New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Pray and Not Lose Heart

Luke 18:1-8

In this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus tells the parable of the persistent widow and the unjust judge, urging his disciples to “pray always and not lose heart.” Father Mark reflects on how the widow—vulnerable and without worldly power—embodies both tenacity and faith. Despite her weakness, her persistence triumphs over an unjust authority. This is not simply human determination, Father Mark notes, but divine energy working through her openness to God. Her continual pleading becomes a living prayer—an unbroken connection with God that channels His justice into the world.

Father Mark explains that to “pray always” does not mean constant recitation, but living in a continual state of openness and communion with God. Drawing on Franciscan and biblical scholars, he reminds us that prayer in Jesus’ native Aramaic literally means “to be open.” True prayer is vulnerability, a willingness to remain connected to God’s flow even when we feel powerless. Like the widow, those who seem weak can move mountains when their hearts remain receptive to divine strength, which empowers them to bring justice and hope into seemingly hopeless circumstances.

Finally, Father Mark urges his listeners not to “lose heart,” which means keeping one’s heart expansive, loving, and unblocked by bitterness or ego. Through daily stillness, reflection, and “heart checks,” we can stay open to the Holy Spirit’s life-giving flow. In a world often hardened by selfishness, partisanship, and indifference, the call to pray always and not lose heart becomes a radical act of faith. When our hearts stay open to God’s Spirit, the dishonest judges of the world cannot prevail—because God’s justice, mercy, and peace will ultimately flow through us into the world.

Scripture quotations are from New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

You Are My Child

Mark 1:9-11

Father Mark begins by reflecting on the baptism of Jesus, when the heavens opened and God declared, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.” He connects this moment to the Disney film The Lion King, using it as a modern parable about baptism and identity. Just as Simba forgets who he is—the son of the king—until he looks into the water and remembers his true heritage, so too are we called through the waters of baptism to remember who we truly are: beloved sons and daughters of God, made in His image and pleasing to Him, not because of what we do, but because of who we are.

Father Mark warns that, like Simba, we can easily lose sight of this true identity by becoming too comfortable in a “faraway land”—our culture, with its values and priorities often at odds with God’s kingdom. In baptism, we are invited to live out our divine identity by embodying Christ’s teachings: forgiving, loving our enemies, serving others, and living as citizens of God’s kingdom rather than as products of a divided world. Our baptismal vows remind us that our worth comes not from achievements or social standing, but from being God’s beloved children.

Finally, Father Mark speaks of baptism not just as a personal identity but as a communal calling. In being baptized, we join the “communion of saints,” a diverse and unified body that transcends time, race, politics, and nationality. Just as Simba returns to his community to serve the kingdom in love and unity, we too are called to build up the body of Christ, celebrating diversity without division. The sermon closes with the image of Mufasa and Simba lifting their children high—a beautiful parallel to God lifting each of us, declaring with joy: “You are my child, my beloved. With you I am well pleased.”

Scripture quotations are from New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Increase Our Faith

Luke 17:5-10

Father Mark’s sermon begins with the apostles’ plea, “Increase our faith,” a request born from their fear that Jesus’s call to endless forgiveness and compassion was too difficult to live out. In a world that prizes revenge and retaliation, Jesus’s teaching seems foolish — even weak — but He challenges that instinct by reminding His followers that they already possess the faith they need. Faith, He says, need not be grand or dramatic; even the tiniest amount — the size of a mustard seed — holds the divine power to transform hearts and the world itself.

Father Mark goes on to show that Jesus never grants His disciples “more faith” because faith isn’t a commodity to acquire; it’s a partnership between divine power and human willingness. He recalls the story of the feeding of the multitude — how the disciples thought they lacked resources, but Jesus urged them to look within, to recognize that what they already had, offered in faith, was enough. Jesus sees more in His followers than they see in themselves. Faith, therefore, is the quiet courage to open one’s heart, to trust that even the smallest gesture done in love can become part of God’s great work.

The sermon closes with an invitation: to notice how faith shows up in the ordinary. Acts of care, service, and forgiveness — the unseen, everyday things — are the real evidence of faith at work. When multiplied across a community, these small acts of grace create light in a world darkened by anger and vengeance. Father Mark ends with a striking image: if every believer opened their heart just a little more, the Spirit of Christ would ripple through the earth — and we would see “mulberry trees marching toward the sea.”

Scripture quotations are from New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

A Different Lens

Luke 16:1-13

Father Mark begins with Jesus’ parable of the dishonest manager, which at first glance seems puzzling. Looking through a purely worldly lens, the parable appears to commend dishonesty and cunning, suggesting that worldly people are more shrewd than spiritual people. But this interpretation contradicts the broader message of the Gospel. Instead, Father Mark invites us to look through a different lens—the spiritual lens of the Kingdom of God—so that the story reveals its deeper meaning.

Seen through this spiritual lens, wealth is called “dishonest” not because it is necessarily stolen, but because it cannot provide what it promises. Money, power, and possessions promise security, happiness, and lasting fulfillment, but these are illusions. Jesus’ warning is that disciples, the “children of light,” must be as vigilant in protecting their spiritual life as worldly people are in protecting their social and physical life. For following Christ threatens the systems of wealth and power, which is why spiritual life is constantly under attack.

Father Mark concludes by reminding us that we live with two sets of eyes: one that sees worldly reality and one that sees spiritual reality. Too often, our “worldly eye” dominates, while our “spiritual eye” is weak, like a lazy eye. Through prayer, worship, Scripture, meditation, and service, we can strengthen our spiritual sight until it becomes dominant. In the end, only God—not wealth, power, politics, or ego—can provide enduring joy and eternal life.

Scripture quotations are from New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Seeking the Lost

Luke 15:1-10

The sermon contrasts the Pharisees’ fixation on righteousness with Jesus’ mission to seek and restore the lost. The Pharisees equated righteousness with strict obedience to the law, which excluded tax collectors and sinners from fellowship. Jesus, however, welcomed these outcasts, showing that God’s concern is not with labels of righteous or sinner, but with finding what is lost and rejoicing in its restoration.

Father Mark highlights the radical nature of Jesus’ table fellowship. To eat with sinners and tax collectors was to declare their full acceptance, undermining cultural and religious boundaries that defined community identity. In Acts, Peter faced criticism not for preaching to Gentiles but for eating with them. Likewise, Jesus redefined belonging by embracing the excluded, making joy in restoration the heart of the gospel.

The sermon closes with the question: can someone be righteous and still lost? Father Mark explains that people may appear morally upright yet be consumed by ambition, ideology, or perfectionism, leaving them spiritually adrift. God’s focus is not on tallying righteousness but on seeking the lost—whether sinner or seemingly righteous—and restoring them to relationship. The church becomes the place where all who feel lost can be found, celebrated, and enveloped in God’s mercy and love.

Scripture quotations are from New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Above All Else

Luke 14:25-33

Jesus’ words in Luke’s Gospel confront the crowd with the hard truth of discipleship. He warns that following him requires radical reordering of allegiances, even above family ties and personal identity. In the first-century world, family defined one’s very being, and loyalty to Caesar was expected. Jesus’ demand for absolute allegiance to him was shocking, because it meant shifting the center of one’s identity and potentially losing status, relationships, and security.

Father Mark compares this to his own experience of disciplined piano practice. Many admire the results but ignore the cost. In the same way, many admire Jesus’ miracles without grasping the suffering and sacrifice that come with discipleship. To “hate” one’s family and life is not about emotional hostility, but about preferring Jesus above all else. It is about loosening the grip of ego, possessions, and worldly attachments, so that God alone defines one’s life. True discipleship requires letting go, emptying oneself, and turning one’s will fully over to God.

The sermon challenges modern Christians to examine divided loyalties—family, work, politics, status, comfort—that subtly displace God. Father Mark admits that many of us settle for a diluted faith, “three dollars’ worth of God.” But Jesus calls for wholehearted commitment, even if it is costly. The paradox is that by losing the false self, we find our true selves. By carrying the cross, we enter into deeper life in Christ, becoming “little Christs,” as C.S. Lewis put it. The cost is great, but the eternal reward is greater.

Scripture quotations are from New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Deep Within the Heart

Luke 13:10-17

Jesus heals a woman bent over for eighteen years on the Sabbath. The synagogue leader objects, citing the commandment. Jesus exposes the gap between the law’s outer form and its inner purpose, saying the Sabbath serves human need and liberation.

Scripture gives two grounds for Sabbath: God’s rest in creation and Israel’s release from slavery. Healing on the Sabbath fulfills both by restoring rest and freeing from bondage. The woman’s longtime suffering shows the urgency of mercy, which aligns with God’s ongoing work of setting people free.

The sermon warns against rigid rule-keeping that ignores people’s burdens, noting contemporary parallels like immigration debates. It proposes a biblical image: stone tablets on one side, a living heart on the other. Jeremiah’s new covenant writes God’s law on hearts, guiding compassionate action over mere external compliance.

Scripture quotations are from New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.