George Hermanson

Being A Light In Difficult Times

Year A, Season of Advent
Advent 1
Sunday Between November 27 and December 3 Inclusive
November 28, 2010

Faith-provoking, historical insights into the lesson by David Ewart, Matthew 24:36-44.

December 2, 2007
Edwards (Knox) United Church
Advent 1

Isaiah 2:1-5
Read the passage: The Message   or   The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

Matthew 24:36-44
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The Rev. Dr. George Hermanson

There is a building on Bank and Somerset that is in the news. You know the one - the old heritage building where the interior collapsed and left the outside walls, the facade, standing.  No one seems to know why it happened. But the building is so unstable that they have had to close the street to traffic.  The slightest vibration could bring the rest crashing down.  From the outside it looks fine - red brick and white plaster.  A lovely old building, a heritage building, so of course we must keep it, no matter how long it takes to repair and rebuild.

Christ The King

November 25, 2007
Edwards (Knox) United Church
Reign of Christ Sunday

Luke 23:33-43
Read the passage: The Message   or   The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

Jeremiah 23:1-6
Read the passage: The Message   or   The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

Colossians 1:1-20
Read the passage: The Message   or   The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

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The Rev. Dr. George Hermanson

Our narrative today focuses on Christ the King.  A different kind of king - a king whose function is to bring compassionate/justice.  A king  whose very way of being is one of redemption and care of the least.

Promise and Paradise

November 18, 2007
Edwards (Knox) United Church
Twenty-Fifth Sunday After Pentecost

Luke 21:5-19
Read the passage: The Message   or   The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

Isaiah 65:17-25
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The Rev. Dr. George Hermanson

When times are out joint and world seems to be in danger we have turned to two images to explain the world.  Those explanations have informed us, shaped us, and created the underlying assumptions we have about reality.  We find these images in art and music.  We find them in political philosophies.   In the crisis of the environment they have emerged again.  The images are of destruction or renewal.  They are pessimistic or optimistic.  They are fatalistic or we can overcome.

Geography of Wonder, Vancouver, Nov 9-10

There will not a sermon for Sunday, November 11, 2007, as George will be in Vancouver to attend a conference, Geography of Wonder, November 9 - 10.

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A Lunch Invitation

November 4, 2007
Edwards (Knox) United Church
Twenty-Third Sunday After Pentecost

Luke 19:1-10
Read the passage: The Message   or   The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

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The Rev. Dr. George Hermanson

This morning we have this story of Zacchaeus.  We often use it as as a cute children’s story about having faith.  We tell how short little Zacchaeus climbed a tree to see Jesus.   However, this is not how the story goes. The thing is, Zacchaeus wasn’t a cute little Danny DeVito type character. He was a short, nasty man, who was a dirty collaborator with Rome. He was the chief tax collector, which meant he had many more dirty stealing tax collectors working for him. In a busy cosmopolitan place, he got rich by collecting tolls from all who traveled the roads.  He did this for the hated empire.  He was part of the reason why life was so miserable for the people of his time.