Author Archives: Avril Hannah-Jones
Zadok the Priest
‘May the king live forever’ struck me as a strange thing to say, so I took a deep dive into whence that line came. Continue reading
Sermon: Life in abundance
Do we use our money in such a way that it leads to the life in abundance that Jesus came to bring, for us and for others? Do we, for instance, give money to causes that bring health and hope to people in need? Do we buy things that have been produced in fair and sustainable ways? Do all the many people involved in getting food to our tables receive a living wage? Can we say with Justin Martyr that, ‘We who once took most pleasure in accumulating wealth and property now share with everyone in need’? Can we say with Tertullian that ‘our care for the derelict and our active love’ identify us? Continue reading
Sermon: On not being terrified of eating and drinking with Jesus
Each month we imitate these disciples on the road to Emmaus. We gather around the Table at which our Lord is the Host, knowing that we are welcome there, and then we leave the table to share God’s welcome with the world. Fed by both metaphorical and literal food, we go out to share both metaphorical and literal food. We receive what we are, and we become what we receive – the Body of Christ. We rejoice as we are regularly reminded that Christ is here: in our hearts; in our lives; and in our midst. Continue reading
Sermon: Where, O death, is now your sting?
If we ever worry that our sins, our faults and failings, make us unimportant, unacceptable, unlovable, that we deserve punishment rather than acceptance, then we can rejoice. Jesus said that he came to bring mercy, not sacrifice, and God affirmed Jesus’ teachings in the resurrection. Continue reading
Sermon: Our Only King
We Christians should be inoculated against such awe. We venerate and revere only God. Our ‘powerful leader’ is Jesus, who is gentle and humble in heart, and whose yoke is easy, and burden light. (Matthew 11:28-30) But we are human beings, and so we are just as prone to revering people for the wrong things – wealth, heritage, title, fame – as Trump supporters. Continue reading
Why I stand with transgender, gender diverse, and non-binary people
Sadly, Christianity has often promoted ideologies driven by supposed superiority and hatred. It has absolutely never gone well. Churches have had to apologise for being involved in slavery and settler colonialism and Nazism and apartheid. Christianity only truly follows Jesus when everyone is both welcomed and able to welcome others, and when Christians both are the oppressed, and those who stand on the side of the oppressed. Continue reading
Sermon: Death and Life
The funeral service used to contain the reminder that ‘in the midst of life we are in death,’ which apparently comes from a battle song by tenth-century monk Notker the Stammerer and, while that might strike our twenty-first-century ears as morbid, it is simply a fact. If we accept that, today’s reading can offer us comfort. Continue reading
Sermon: A man born blind
We are just as prone to blaming the victim as the religious authorities in this story. I have preached before about the deeply human tendency, and we have just seen an appalling example of it in the Robodebt Royal Commission. We will need to wait for the Commissioner’s final report to know exactly how things went wrong, but I have been listening in to the live stream as I have worked, and the apparent attitudes of some politicians and senior public servants to people who need to access Centrelink have been dreadful. ‘Robodebts’ were illegal, unethical, and inaccurate, and yet they seem to have been imposed because of a false belief that welfare recipients must be ripping off the system. Continue reading
Sermon: A woman at a well
Reflection for North Balwyn Uniting Church Third Sunday of Lent, 12th of March 2023 John 4:5-42 Today’s story of Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well is one of my favourite stories in the entire Bible, with one of … Continue reading
Sermon: An imagined community
The church is another such imagined community, and one that is both local and global. Everyone who participates in the service here each Sunday is part of this congregation, whether they attend in person, listen online, or read a paper version. And all these members of North Balwyn Uniting Church are members of an imagined community we call the one holy catholic and apostolic church. Continue reading
Rev Doc Geek 