Oct 14, 2020 |
Loneliness and Belonging
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
Loneliness and Belonging
"Jesus was profoundly lonely. It’s so obvious when you read the stories about him. Constantly misunderstood, oscillating between seeking connection and trying to find alone time. So many of his parables and teachings are about being misunderstood. Friends, loneliness is not bad or shameful. And it’s not all about being physically isolated – although many of us are that right now."
Oct 07, 2020 |
When Jesus Votes
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
When Jesus Votes
"We are called the Body of Christ. This means that when we vote Jesus isn’t just in the booth with us looking over our shoulder: When we vote, we are representing Jesus in this world. If that makes you uncomfortable, good. Me too. We want to recognize this responsibility. We want to recognize our Christian identity fully in our words and in our deeds – and in our votes."
Sep 30, 2020 |
Why Christians Must Say Black Lives Matter
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
Why Christians Must Say Black Lives Matter
"As The Church of the Redeemer continues its commitment to racial justice, healing, and reconciliation in Jesus’ name, it makes sense for us to work carefully to develop a shared language and to continue to orient our understanding of this commitment in God. It’s especially important when it comes to doing work that is connected to current events, because we want to be very clear about how the work we do is rooted in our Baptismal covenant rather than our desire to appear relevant, urbane, or woke.
It is in this spirit that I say we have a responsibility as Christians to say Black Lives Matter."
It is in this spirit that I say we have a responsibility as Christians to say Black Lives Matter."
Sep 23, 2020 |
Your Commitment in 2021
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
Your Commitment in 2021
"We don’t know what next year will bring, but we do know that Church of the Redeemer will be here to walk alongside you and guide you into deeper connection with God and your neighbor. And we know we will need your help for this to happen. Your giving equips us for the work God is giving us to do."
Sep 16, 2020 |
A Place for This Church in Your Life
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
A Place for This Church in Your Life
"If you want to follow Jesus, if you want to share life with your community, if you want to remember that you are not alone, and if you want to spread love and make a difference in your neighborhood, that is to say, if you are interested in your own discipleship and growth – you will find a number of paths at Church of the Redeemer."
Sep 09, 2020 |
Unity not Uniformity
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
Unity not Uniformity
'We have a problem in a lot of our churches. Many of us have been taught – and many of us have repeated – the idea that politics don’t belong in church. We’ve been told that our relationship with Jesus is spiritual and it shouldn’t be sullied by partisanship or engagement with current events. And I get that sentiment. Or at least I think I do. In our gut we know that Jesus of Nazareth wasn’t a Republican or a Democrat – that his work in the world transcended the boundaries we keep creating. And we know that God loves all of us even amidst our difference, so in a culture as divisive as ours, we want to find comfort in our shared belovedness and say we’ve found a place where we can belong even though we’re not on the same page about everything.
This is a good desire. And also, there’s something wrong with it in practice."
This is a good desire. And also, there’s something wrong with it in practice."
Sep 02, 2020 |
Last Sunday I Stayed Home
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
Last Sunday I Stayed Home
"When I talk about relationships at Church of the Redeemer, this is what I’m talking about. It’s not abstract or hypothetical for me. I am changed by the people with whom I share community. They help me see Jesus. They help me see myself. They help me recognize my belovedness, my belonging, my beauty. They give me eyes for the Kingdom so that God’s presence is manifest, is obvious in this world."
Aug 26, 2020 |
Holy Connection and Communion
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
Holy Connection and Communion
"We know that communion extends beyond the moment we receive the sacrament. We know that communion is a state of being, a spiritual reality that is not exclusive to our liturgy but extends deep into our whole lives and is meant to inform every relationship. We know this. We know that we exist even when we are not participating in this ritual. So, we might be tempted in our inability to celebrate the eucharist to pretend it’s just a symbol of something larger.
But to our church, to you and me, it is not simply a symbol. It is not just a signifier of something deeper: It is the participation in that depth. Holy Communion – what we call the Eucharist - is not a reminder that God is with us and we are with God: It is the experience of God’s presence and our belonging: Our participation in the Eucharistic feast is not a reminiscence of an abstract God, but a reckless, headlong leap into the deepest relationship of all – it is God feeding us in and with Love, and it is our supping and sharing in that Love."
But to our church, to you and me, it is not simply a symbol. It is not just a signifier of something deeper: It is the participation in that depth. Holy Communion – what we call the Eucharist - is not a reminder that God is with us and we are with God: It is the experience of God’s presence and our belonging: Our participation in the Eucharistic feast is not a reminiscence of an abstract God, but a reckless, headlong leap into the deepest relationship of all – it is God feeding us in and with Love, and it is our supping and sharing in that Love."
Aug 12, 2020 |
Building Unity
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
Building Unity
"The way of Love has never been easy, has never been uncomplicated. Throughout our history, joy and sadness have sat side by side in the Christian heart like two faithful people sharing a pew. The God of Love is big enough to hold us in the complexity of our feelings about our current context. After all, as James Baldwin wrote, “Love does not begin and end the way we seem to think it does. Love is a battle; love is a war; love is a growing up.” Just as this church built in Love holds us in the complexity of our growing up into Christ, we are meant to hold and behold our own complexity with steadfast tenderness and loving honesty."
Jul 28, 2020 |
What Percentage of Your Income Do You Give to The Church?
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
What Percentage of Your Income Do You Give to The Church?
"I cannot stress this point enough, because I have talked with enough of you for whom the process of deciding what to give to your church has been a source of shame, embarrassment, pain, or uncertainty. I get that feeling. I am talking about this because my relationship to giving is itself a process."
Jul 22, 2020 |
Where is Jesus in Your Spending?
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
Where is Jesus in Your Spending?
"What happens when, instead of asking, “What would Jesus do?” you ask the question, “What is Jesus doing?” or “Where do I see Jesus in this?” The emphasis shifts dramatically. “What would Jesus do?” is like a game of make believe – treating Jesus’ presence as hypothetical. “What is Jesus doing?” pushes you to see Jesus working in your life. “Where do I see Jesus in this?” forces you to recognize there is no part of your life where Jesus isn’t Lord, where the life and love and peace and mercy of God aren’t meant to be expressed."
Jul 15, 2020 |
We Sold Our House
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
We Sold Our House
"A budget is a moral document. A person’s budget reflects their real priorities. If we want our priorities to shift towards a deeper response to Jesus, we have to make changes in our budget. These things are not separate. And I can no longer lead this Church with any kind of integrity if my budget does not prioritize giving. The great news is the decisions we’ve made in the last year are making our values come to life: they are no longer ideals sitting on a shelf to point at or aspire to. We are making commitments that are drawing us into deeper unity with Redeemer and with our neighborhood. This is a source of great joy. This is a new kind of peace for us. We are excited to live into this."
Jul 08, 2020 |
Imagination and Regathering
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
Imagination and Regathering
"I know we want to be together. I know we miss sharing Communion. I encourage us to use our imagination in order to see how God is working in our midst during this time. How are you being transformed? What have you begun to see differently? How will you allow this time to change the rest of your life?"
Jul 01, 2020 |
Sharing in the Work with God
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
Sharing in the Work with God
"We see the writing on the wall. We hear the voice of Jesus Christ. We are a predominantly White congregation with a stated desire to make an impact on our city. We are on a mission to promote justice, peace, and love for the purpose of healing and restoration. We work for and with and alongside the God of real and true Love, Mercy, and Justice. This means that work for racial healing must be an intentional part of what we do next."
Jun 24, 2020 |
Justice and Love
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
Justice and Love
"The need to fight systemic racism and dismantle white supremacy in America should not be a partisan issue for Christians. To follow Jesus in this time and in this country is to pursue real, measurable justice and equity for people of every race. And in this particular time, we are seeing an obvious need to seek justice and equity for our Black siblings. If Christian Republicans and Democrats are going to argue about this, they should be arguing about the best ways to destroy racism – not whether or not it exists. They should be debating the government’s role in dismantling a system of white supremacy – not quibbling over whether or not white supremacy is real."
Jun 18, 2020 |
When Love Shows Up: Love and Justice
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
When Love Shows Up: Love and Justice
"You don’t have to opt into being loved, and you can’t screw it up. It’s just something that’s true about you. Zero requirements.
Now look around at your world. This is also true about every other person you see. Literally every single person you know, every person you are thinking of right now is passionately loved by and essentially belonging to God. Are they being treated as if that is true? Does this culture value them the way it values you? Does our legal system protect them and serve them the way it protects and serves you? Do they have the same protection from COVID-19 that you do?"
Jun 11, 2020 |
When Love Shows Up: Words and Deeds
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
When Love Shows Up: Words and Deeds
"The violent anguish of our country right now is nothing less than a full-throated indictment of the chasm between our words and our deeds. We, who love freedom, have the largest prison population in the world. African Americans, who make up a little over 12% of our country, comprise 38% of all incarcerated Americans. We, who trumpet equality, participate in a system in which the median Black household has a mere 1/10th of the wealth of the median White household. Even the distribution of devastation from the corona virus pandemic reveals our society’s inequity – as 33% of all COVID related hospitalizations are African American.
Our words do not match our deeds. Our ways are not like God’s ways. God’s breath gives life, but our way of life takes away the breath of our Black siblings. We can’t keep on like this. So says the Lord."
Jun 04, 2020 |
When Love Shows Up: Rest Here?
| The Rev. Philip DeVaul
When Love Shows Up: Rest Here?
God commanded Israel to build rest into their lives, to cherish rest, and honor it even in the midst of crisis. And the change God had wrought in their life created a crisis. Of course, it was a good change, of course it was a liberating, life-giving change, but it was still a crisis. It still had a catastrophic feeling about it. And it very much required something from them. No, not something: Everything. This change required everything. Not one aspect of their lives was left unaffected. Even though change was freeing, even though it led to their salvation, it was scary and inconvenient. They had to have faith, not just as an idea or a concept, but faith was how they had to live. And they had to work – to constantly be on the move, constantly respond to God, constantly seek a way forward.
