Category: SERMONS, WORSHIP, MEDITATIONS

Dec. 31, 2015 My Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ: Greetings in the precious name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. As we celebrate the arrival of 2016, I recall with gratitude that I began 2015 with a group of teenagers from the Northeastern United States, fellow bishops, and other lay and clergy leaders in…

“So – Now What?” Isaiah 60:1-3 Luke 2:41-52 Chilmark Community Church December 27, 2015 Re. Vicky Hanjian Quite few years ago now, Armen and I spent a wondrous Christmas in Toronto when our grandchildren were 2 and 4 years old. Most of the activity around the holiday centered on their church’s celebration of Christmas. On…

“Getting Down To Earth“ Micah 5:2-5 Luke 1: 39-45 Chilmark Community Church December 20, 2015 Rev. Vicky Hanjian I love the story of Mary and Elizabeth. In my memory banks there is a painting of the two women, one slightly stooped, older, with somewhat wispy, scraggly graying hair, visibly pregnant, reaching out to embrace a…

“It’s Hard To Stay In Exile” Zephaniah 3: 14-20 Isaiah 12:2-6 Chilmark Community Church Rev. Vicky Hanjian December 13, 2015 Across the past week, as I have immersed myself in the rhythms of Advent, I have been impressed by how closely this time of year in the Christian tradition resembles the dynamic time that leads…

What Are We Waiting For? Luke 21:25-36 Chilmark Community Church December 6, 2015 Rev. Vicky Hanjian What are we to do with the dire warnings of the end times that appear in the 21st chapter of Luke? Why do we read these warnings and admonitions right before Christmas? I have never like these apocalyptic scenarios…

Prepare The Way of The Lord Perhaps some of you watched the coronation of Queen Elizabeth in the early fifties on TV. You may have missed this aspect of it – just before the service in Westminster Abbey, right after the congregation was seated, there suddenly appeared a whole squad of workers with brushes and…

“And why do you worry…….? Matthew 6:24-34 Chilmark Community Church United Methodist Rev. Vicky Hanjian November 22, 2015 Way back in 1988, a simple song flooded the airways for a period of time – Bobby McFarrin’s – – “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”. Some days, just listening to it would lift my spirits. But on other…

“Harmonizing With Hannah” Chilmark Community Church United Methodist Church November 15, 2015 1 Samuel 1:4-20; 2:1-10 Rev. Vicky Hanjian Rev. Dawn Chesser, Director of Preaching Ministries for the United Methodist Church reminds us that there are many things to admire about Hannah.  What she finds most compelling is Hannah’s audacity before God. “Hannah is frustrated…

A Grandmother’s Story Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17 Chilmark Community Church United Methodist November 8, 2015 Rev. Vicky Hanjian I have come to love the story of Ruth as a story about one of my grandmothers. Indeed, I have met her in the lives of my actual grandmothers. So I wonder if we can imagine that kind…