Sermons from First Presbyterian Church Palo Alto, CA

What is the story of the events in the Garden of Eden really about? Is Eve as bad as many of us have been taught? Is the story about original sin? Or could it be a wisdom tale?In this participatory sermon from July 26, 2026, Rev. Diana Gibson, Pastor Emerita, invites us to examine Genesis 2 and 3 more closely, and have some fun with it. She offers insights from feminist and queer biblical theologians, and prompts the congregation to contribute.Looking at some Hebrew words, we discover that the word to describe Eve (frequently translated “helper”) is also used to describe God. From a queer reading we notice that when searching for a suitable partner for the first human, God creates, and let’s the human decide who their appropriate companion is. There are also good reasons to challenge the traditional notion that this story is about sin. With new perspectives on the story, Gibson suggests that Eve can help us face the losses and endings in our personal and political lives. Eve’s models the gospel song, “Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me ‘Round.”

In this sermon, Rev. Harris reflects on the sixth requirement: Do not kill. This is one of the requirements Jesus quotes directly. But, Jesus calls us to look within and examine not just our behavior but our feelings, thoughts, and motivations. Angry feelings can lead to angry words that can lead to angry actions. Violence starts within. Rev. Harris invites us to see the requirements as signs that point us away from the action they describe. So this requirement calls us to live non-violently and aim toward love.

Welcome to Sermons from First Presbyterian Church Palo Alto. Each week we share a recording of the Sunday sermon, offering theologically progressive, social justice–oriented reflections grounded in Scripture and what’s happening in our lives and in the world. Most weeks the sermon is preached by our pastor, the Rev. Tom Harris, and from time to time we’re joined by guest preachers.What does it mean for adult children to honor their parents at the end of life?

Modern medicine allows people to live longer than ever before, but often with declining health and increasing care needs. As a result, caring for aging parents has become one of the greatest challenges many families will face.

In this sermon from July 12, 2026, Rev. Tom Harris reflects on his own experience of caring for an aging and dying parent. He invites us to face the realities of aging and death honestly—not only for the sake of our parents, but also for those who will one day care for us.

When the Fifth Commandment was first written, honoring one’s parents may not have meant loving them. Yet by accepting our parents’ mortality and the suffering that may accompany it, we may discover new and deeper ways to love them.

In this sermon from July 5th, 2026, Rev. Harris explains how the Book of Exodus and the  Book of Deuteronomy give different reasons for observing the Sabbath. Exodus says we should observe the Sabbath because God rested on the seventh day of creation. Deuteronomy says we should observe the sabbath so that others don’t have to work for us. 

One is a theological reason. The other is a social justice reason. For those who do have the economic power to spend money in a way that causes others to work, the social justice reason may be even more motivating than the theological reason.

In this sermon from June 28th, 2026, Rev. Harris gives the sermon in the form of 19 Haikus. This form is inspired by the third requirement: Do not use the name of God lightly. God will not acquit anyone who misuses their name. We hope you enjoy Rev. Harris’s shortest sermon ever!

In this sermon from June 21st, 2026, Rev. Harris reflects on Exodus 20:4-6, commonly known as the second commandment. This sermon continues the summer series entitled, “The Ten Requirements for the Flourishing of God’s Kin-dom.” The second commandment or requirement warns against making idols and worshipping them. Rev. Harris explains how the Cranberries’ song “Zombie” helps us see that the idols we worship are not usually made of wood or silver or gold. Instead they are often in our heads.

In this sermon from June 14th, 2026, Rev. Harris continues his summer sermon series entitled, “The Ten Requirements for the Flourishing of God’s Kin-dom.” Today we reflect on the first requirement from Exodus 20:2, “I am Yahweh your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. You shall have no other gods before me.” Pastor Tom offers us a theological “choose your own adventure” for navigating this first requirement. In the end, the invitation is to choose the highest values in our lives and consciously place them first and foremost in all our affairs.

In this sermon from June 7th, 2026, Rev. Harris begins a summer sermon series on the 10 Commandments. In the sermon he suggests that we refrain from calling them commandments at all but instead call them “requirements” Requirements in the sense that just as living things need certain requirements to thrive so do we need to practice these principles in order to flourish in God’s kin-dom. Then he focuses on God’s self-identification in Exodus 20 verse 2 and what this self-identification tells us about God and the purpose of these 10 requirements. 

In this sermon from May 17th, 2026, Rev. Harris offers a path to ending domination and war. These are lofty goals and he begins by suggesting that we will be disappointed by the solution. The solution he offers is that people follow the Ten Commandments. Then he makes the case that in the Bible, the Ten Commandments are given as an alternative to systems of domination such as Pharoah’s enslavement of the Hebrew people. And the work of following them is not about just doing the minimum but examining the deeper principles underlying each one. If we can’t do that ourselves, can we really expect others to do it?

In this sermon from May 10th, 2026, Rev. Harris reflects on the story of Cain and Abel as a story about domination, and by extension hierarchy. Citing Octavia Butler he suggests that unchecked hierarchy is the disease that causes the symptom of war and the other evils of our time. This sermon is an introduction to next Sunday’s sermon that suggests a path to ending hierarchy and therefore war.