St. Francis in the Fields Episcopal Church

Mthr. Barbara lectures on Hebrews, Chapter 9, on October 27, 2026, as we continue our series "Heavenly Temple: The Letter to the Hebrews."

Guest teacher Dr. Duane Garrett, Chair of the Department of Old Testament at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, continues his class on God and the nations in the Books of Psalms and Ruth on October 25, 2026.

Mthr. Barbara White asks how Christians can be a people of hope in a world that hurts us and tempts us to harden our hearts. Drawing on Leviticus 19, she argues that holiness, which in the Old Testament means being set apart for God, is both the origin and goal of God’s calling, and that it is lived out in ordinary justice: refusing to exploit, slander, or nurse grudges, and having the courage to speak directly to a wrongdoer. She warns that our instinct to protect ourselves can calcify our hearts like the rare disease that turns bruises into bone. Her answer is not withdrawal but the open-hearted holiness she sees at the cross, where Christ prays “Father, forgive them,” and where the heart of God is an open wound of love.

Scripture: Leviticus 19:1-2,15-18 (NRSV)

Preacher: The Rev. Barbara White

St. Francis in the Fields Episcopal Church | Louisville, KY

https://www.stfrancisinthefields.org

Guest teacher Dr. Duane Garrett, Chair of the Department of Old Testament at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, speaks on God and the nations in the Books of Psalms and Ruth on October 18, 2026.

Fr. Clint Wilson asks where God is when we feel hemmed in by grief, illness, strain, or exhaustion, and how we can recognize God's presence when we can't see it in the moment. Drawing on Moses's plea in Exodus 33 to be shown God's ways, Fr. Clint argues that God's glory is not an airy spectacle but the weightiest, most substantial thing in the universe, and that it is grounded in grace and mercy. It's just that we often see God only afterward, like seeing God's back, and that the light was on the road all along, even when we were looking down.

Scripture: Exodus 33:12-23 (NRSV)

Preacher: The Rev. Clint Wilson

St. Francis in the Fields Episcopal Church | Louisville, KY

https://www.sfitf.org

Mthr. Barbara lectures on Hebrews, Chapter 8, on October 13, 2026, as we continue our series "Heavenly Temple: The Letter to the Hebrews."

Theresa Wilson, Director of the Louisville Bridge Fellows, speaks on the theological vision of the Fellows program on October 11, 2026.

How can God's grace be simultaneously abundant and boundless—extending to the "good and bad" alike—while still calling us to genuine transformation, rather than cheap acceptance of his mercy? Drawing on the parable of the wedding banquet, Mthr. Barbara White argues that God's invitation is radical and inclusive (like those blind men misunderstanding an elephant, we cannot limit who God calls), yet the man without a wedding garment reveals the warning: grace demands change. God refuses to leave us in our brokenness; he calls us to take off the old robes of anger, despair, and fear, and to respond to his generosity with genuine gratitude and transformation, not mere presence at the table.

Scripture: Matthew 22:1-14 (NRSV)

Preacher: The Rev. Barbara White

St. Francis in the Fields Episcopal Church | Louisville, KY

https://www.sfitf.org

What are we truly holding back from God, and how do we learn to release our grip on the things we cling to? Drawing on the story of St. Francis stripping himself naked in the piazza and the cautionary tale of Ananias and Sapphira in Acts, Fr. Clint Wilson argues that Francis's freedom was not born from willpower or heroic self-denial, but from contemplative prayer that taught him to see the entire world as charged with God's presence and grace. Contemplation is the revolutionary practice that frees us from the noise and distraction that keep us from recognizing we already live in an "unreal world" of endless acquisition, and it alone teaches us that everything—down to the clothes on our back—are gifts from God's hand.

Scripture: Acts 4:32-35; 5:1-11

Preacher: The Rev. Clint Wilson

St. Francis in the Fields Episcopal Church | Louisville, KY

https://www.sfitf.org

Mthr. Barbara continues her teaching series on Anglican worship on September 27, 2026.