Author: The Rector

Sermon on Matthew 4:1-11

Canon Claude Schroeder

Lent has arrived! I know it doesn’t look like it much outside today, but Lent is the Church’s springtime. It’s a time when new life begin to appear, and as we begin our journey with Jesus to Jerusalem.

Our Gospel for today: after His Baptism by John in the River Jordan, Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil, and he fasted 40 days and 40 nights. It’s this temptation that I want to talk to you about this morning.

Continue reading “Lent 1 March 1, 2020”

Sermon by Canon Claude Schroeder

We come today to the final Sunday in this season of pre-Lent: Quinquagesima, from the Latin word tor 50, in anticipation of the 40 days of Lent which starts on Wednesday.

“Then Jesus took unto the 12 aside and said to them, “See ​we are going up to Jerusalem, and everythinq that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished.”

Lent is a journey with Jesus and his disciples to Jerusalem.

Continue reading “Quinquagesima Feb 23, 2020”

Canon Claude Schroeder. Luke 20: 27—38

At the end of the service today we will be calling to mind and grieving the loss of the millions of war dead in conflicts past and present, and offering prayers for them and for the world. You know the older you get, the more funerals you end up going to, and after a while you have more friends and family who are dead than alive. You are reminded of the prospect of your own death, and the need to prepare.

Continue reading “Trinity 21 – November 10, 2019”

So, tomorrow is the BIG DAY, when Canadians go to the polls. I have been mulling over the Collect in The Book of Common Prayer for an election, where we ask that God to “which guide and direct the minds of those who are called at this time to elect fit persons to serve in the Parliament… that in the exercise of their choice they may promote God’s glory and the welfare of this Dominion.” (BCP p. 50).

Continue reading “Trinity 18 – October 20, 2019”

Revd Canon Claude Schroeder

So today is Harvest Thanksgiving, and it’s a signal to us of the importance the Church attaches to this celebration that the furnishings in the church and the clergy are vested in white, which of course is the color for Christmas and Easter. So what’s the connection between the coming in the flesh of the God/ Man Jesus Christ, His death and resurrection, and Harvest Thanksgiving? I’ll come back to this a little later in the sermon.

Continue reading “Harvest Thanksgiving October 13, 2019”

Canon Claude Schroeder

Sermon on Luke 16. 1-13

Well, this is one strange story Jesus tells us here in Luke, Chapter 16. A story that stinks to high heaven of corporate greed and corruption. I have been banging my head against the wall all week over this one, trying to answer the question, Where is God in all of this?”

Continue reading “Trinity 14 – September 22, 2019”

Sermon on Luke 15. 1-10

So we are at a point in the story today in St. Luke’s Gospel where Jesus is on the road to Jerusalem to be crucified and on the third day rise again. His ministry moves between blocks of teaching on what it means to follow Him, in the way of the Cross, and responding to the mounting opposition and criticism from the religious leaders, who are becoming increasingly disturbed and alarmed by the things Jesus is saying-. and doing.

Continue reading “Trinity 13. Sept 15, 2019 Canon Claude Schroeder”

St. Mary’s Anglican Church, Trinity 6, July 28.2019. Canon Claude Schroeder. (Luke 11. 1-13)

“Jesus was praying in a certain place, and after He had finished, one ofthe disciples said to him, Lord, teach us to pray.”

So today it’s going to be all about prayer, and the three part teaching on prayer which Jesus gave his disciples in today’s Gospel reading. In the first part, we have the words of a prayer Jesus gave his disciples to pray, what we call the Lord’s Prayer, which we should actually call “The Disciples’ prayer.” Then we have a parable about prayer. Jesus preferred method of teaching was to tell a parable. Here it’s the story of the man who when to his friend at midnight to ask for bread, and then, thirdly, we have some sayings on prayer.

Continue reading “Trinity 6, – July 28, 2019”

Canon Claude Schroeder (Luke 9-51-62)

In our Gospel today Luke tells us, “When the days drew near for Jesus to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.” This marks the beginning of what the bible scholars call the “Travel Narrative” in St. Luke’s Gospel, in which, over the course of ten chapters Luke tells us what happened as Jesus left Galilee with his disciples, and walked down the pilgrimage route to Jerusalem. Starting today and continuing to the end of November, we are going to be taking in some of the highlights of Luke’s Travel Narrative, which is for us an extended teaching on the Christian life, what does it mean for us to follow Jesus on His journey to Jerusalem?

Continue reading “Trinity 2 – June 30, 2019”