Seattle Mennonite Church Sermons

The Empire tried to squash the Jesus Way of liberating love by killing him, and failed... miserably. Because life rose up. People, empowered by the Spirit of God, rose up. To proclaim and LIVE liberation and revolution and powerful insurrections of love together. Led - always - by women of color. Pastor Megan shares under-told stories of prophet-sisters leading uprisings of life from this world&ap...

Hosanna! Save Us!  The cries carry Jesus from the donkey on the road into the temple, where he answers the call to save by with healing.  Children and youth are even now calling out "save us".  How may we respond with Christ-like action of action for justice and healing?  (Sermon bonus: Pastor Amy sings Whitney Houston and Jesus Christ Superstar) Image: Micah Bazant

Ye ol' sheep & goats. Pastor Megan shares how this passage meant so much to her in a time of shifting theologies and a changing faithview. Also making an appearance: Menno Simons, Mother Teresa, chevre, and #notallgoats. [Photo by Peter Lloyd on Unsplash ]

It's our Gifts Discernment Sunday so there's only time for a brief homily, but Pastor Megan dips her toes in yet another "weeping & gnashing of teeth" kin-dom of God parable from Matthew and wonders if what sounds like punishment might, in fact, be grace?? Listen for how a circle of (mostly) women inspired this new possible interpretation...

Pastor Megan dives into both the thorns and roses of Matthew 18 and dares to say a few things about the fraught and tender topic of forgiveness. [Photo by Megan Ramer, Warm Beach WA]

"I gotta say: I really hate it when one of Jesus’ stories ends with evildoers getting thrown into fire. Don’t get me wrong, I dislike 'evildoers' as much as the next person, but burning them alive seems a little extreme..." Pastor Megan dives into some challenging parables, searching desperately for some good news, and wondering what each parable might contribute to our composi...

Pastor Megan took us on a journey in this sermon. It is - to start - an invitation to prayer, then a snapshot, a wondering, a snippet, a slippery word, a preference, a story, a question, a complication, an affirmation, an encouragement, and - at last - a prayer. Come along for this exploration of generosity in the spirit of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount and the prayer he taught in Matthew 6. [Ph...

"We want our forbears to stand on the right side of history...perhaps these cognitive gymnastics are a vain attempt to justify what is actually untenable."  Jennifer Delanty talks about her realization as an adult the way the stories she'd been told as a child about one grandfather's infidelity and another's profitable land dealings erase the victimization and appropriatio...

Jesus is baptized by John the Baptist in the River Jordan. This water ritual does more than simply mark his shift to public ministry; it effects that significant transition. Pastor Megan explores the inherent power in ritual to help effect transition in our lives - from the big to the small. And yes, pour over coffee is involved... [Photo by Tyler Nix on Unsplash .]

Jesus was a refugee. Jesus IS a refugee (and their name is Jakelin Caal Maquin, Felipe Gomez Alonzo). A weeping mother refuses to be consoled. What if the truest thing we can say from this Scripture is that we too ought to be inconsolable in the face of the horrific? Pastor Megan preaches a word of lament. [Image = detail from "Refugees: La Sagrada Familia" icon by Kelly Latimore]

Matthew's first verses may sound like a list of boring names.  But these names tell the story of where Jesus came from.  They tell the story of brokenness and triumph of loss and discovery, of exile and return.  And especially when you look at the stories of the women, they tell the future of who Jesus will be and be with.  

Here in Seattle, we've experienced an unusually windstormy couple of weeks, which makes an apt metaphor for our lives of gusty national politics, devastating news cycles, and the sturm & drang of December activities, expectations, and negotiations of awkward or painful or painfully nonexistent family dynamics. What will root us in these days? Pastor Megan mines Matthew's narrative of...

Esther was more than just a vapid beauty queen.  When her people were in danger she put her life on her line and used her power and privilege to accomplish justice.  Esther's risk can teach us something about when and how we can examine our privilege and risk our comfort, security and power for the sake of a just peace.

A sermon from the depths of my soul for my favorite season of the year, Advent. On the lovely (accompanied by strings) and dangerous (banned by Nazis) Habakkuk, waiting, and the purest form of faith and hope summed up in a single word: nevertheless. ~Pastor Megan

Like a good spiritual director who knows we are both tender (in need of care) and infinitely fallible (in need of challenge), the prophet Jeremiah attends to a people in despair, and Pastor Megan invites us to receive his care and challenge in our own time and place.

What does it mean to be Christians in an age of perpetual war? Seminary Intern Christie, explores this question as we hear the words of the Prophet Isaiah, of swords to garden tools and nation not rising sword against nation; juxtaposed with a story of Assyria conquering Judah, a political circus of taunting and violence. Within this question, Christie explores the invitation to creative peacemaki...

We hear the story, rich with details and characters, of Naaman seeking a cure for his leprosy. Naaman's dogged pursuit of a cure is transactional and full of all the power plays he's accustomed to utilizing to his advantage, and it turns out he needs to be healed from all that at least as much as he needs a cure. Listen as Pastor Megan wades into delicate waters and reflects on her own e...

"To the angel of the Mennonite Church of Seattle..." Our 50-year-anniversary celebration weekend built toward our All Saints worship in which we heard letters of greeting, remembrance, and blessing from many of our former pastors. Pastor Megan shared her own epistle, honoring the saints whose vision gave birth to our church community, the saints who have walked alongside for the past 50...

King Solomon plays a deadly game of chicken, with an infant's life at stake, and for this is he is called wise. Pastor Megan explores the anti-monarchy sentiment buried within this and other stories related to ancient Israel's kings, and considers the rotten-to-the-core empires of our own day. What are Mennonites, traditionally "in but not of this world," to do? Listen as she r...

 A story that moves from the quickstep to the tango.  I the first minute or so of the recording is missing, with Rita's introduction of that key image of formality to freedom that she uses throughout her story.

Every woman has a story in which her body was in some way violated by a man.  In which her consent was not sought.  For Bathsheba her #MeToo moment changed the entire direction of her life.  When David assaulted her she had no recourse.  While there's very little redemption in this story, there's a little good news if we can learn from the prophet who confronted David in his sin.  We too...

We continue our journey with the Narrative Lectionary into Joshua. Pastor Megan reflects on Joshua's final oration to his beloved people. You'll have to listen to figure out what on earth Yoda's got to do with it.

Hannah shares her experience in community, benefiting from the fruit that other's planted and nurtured, and in turn sowing seeds that will grow plants from which others can harvest.