George Hermanson

You Have To Sing The Blues To Feel The Joy

February 28, 2010
St. Paul's - Richmond United Church
Second Sunday in Lent

Philippians 3:17--4:1
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Luke 13:31-35
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The Rev. Dr. George Hermanson

Lent is the time in the church year when we practice the spiritual gifts of letting go. They are the gifts particular to this season. The spiritual path we walk in Lent is the path of renunciation, the way of emptying, the way of subtraction. Yet the gifts that the discipline of Lent shows us should never be confused with austerity, impoverishment, or mere denial for the sake of self mastery.

An orientation of self-emptying and renunciation is for the sake of the kingdom of God and its gifts. It’s important to remember that the point of renunciation is not for its own sake, but in order to make room for something else.

One of the ways we achieve the self-emptying is through lament. Lament is weeping over the things that stand in our way of a new way of being. Lament is the moment of tears over the loses we have experienced. Lament is a time of feeling that things will never be the same again.

Times of Testing

February 21, 2010
St. Paul's - Richmond United Church
First Sunday in Lent

Luke 4:1-13
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The Rev. Dr. George Hermanson

If you have been watching or reading about the Olympics, a constant narrative is this is a time of testing. All the preparation leads up to a moment or moments where the athlete is tested. The outcome leads to another level of testing, which is character. This is how one deals with winning or losing. We can identify with those moments because there are moments in our experience where testing is hard and we find a strength we did not know we had. As well in those situations we have discovered we were not alone for we came through because of others. This has been a recurring response from the athletes. They acknowledge their skill and those who helped develop it.

Then is another type of testing. This is testing the water before we jump in. We use our insights, past histories, the wisdom of others to prepare ourselves for a new situation. We test out ideas to find those which will lead us in the future. There is provisional nature to this testing, for more than one option is open, and we test all the options to find the best.

Fresh Visions

February 14, 2010
St. Paul's - Richmond United Church
Last Sunday After Epiphany
Transfiguration Sunday

Luke 9:28-36
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The Rev. Dr. George Hermanson

Vistas are crucial to our seeing. Vistas create our perception. Vistas and geography give us metaphors for living.

I grew up on the Prairies and I could see for miles. A friend said I had flat land thinking. By that he meant, I was always extending my perception of the world. There was no end to the geography. I moved on to the next rise in the ground, looking far and wide. In a sense there was nothing that blocked my vision - there was no end in sight - so let us move on and on into the unknown.

The Call

February 7, 2010
St. Paul's - Richmond United Church
Fifth Sunday After Epiphany

Luke 5:1-11
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Click here for the Holy Textures background commentary on Luke 5:1-11.

The Rev. Dr. George Hermanson

There you are. Quietly minding your own business. Doing your job. Cleaning out your nets. Tired and frustrated for things had not gone as well as they could have. As you felt the sweat run down your face, you looked around and saw the crowd. You knew that you could not join unless you first purified yourself, for your very vocation had made you ritually unclean. Yearning for more, and then - this man walks up and demands a boat ride.

You had not asked for this. You were relatively happy doing what you did, as your father did before you. You had your brother with you. Friends to share the work. Then this guy says, "Lower your nets." A thought floated through your mind, "Doesn’t his guy understand what effort we have put in for nothing?" Then to everyone’s astonishment the fish overflowed. What was going on?

Before you could catch your breath this man tells to drop what you doing and follow him. Sounds crazy, yet you do. You and your friends drop their nets and follow this way into the unknown, to participate in something that is still to become clear.