Below are links to sermons and pastoral messages delivered during the week of October 28, in most cases less than 24 after the shootings at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh’s Squirrel Hill neighborhood.
They are posted in the order received.
The Rev. Lennel Anderson, St. Francis-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church, Somerset
“…That takes courage to confront evil. That takes self-examination to root our your prejudices. That takes divine love within us overcoming our reticence, hopelessness, and anxieties.” Click here for more. (Web link)
The Rev. Dan Isadore, All Saints Episcopal Church, Brighton Heights & University Chaplaincy
“…We aren’t in the driver’s seat folks. He is. We’re along for the ride. But our driver is good… in spite of what we see. And he promises to get us home.” Click here for more. (.mp3 audio file)
The Rev. Annis Rogers, St. Thomas Episcopal Church, Northern Cambria
“…Jesus asks us, “What do you want me to do for you?” Really? Isn’t it obvious? We want the senseless killing to stop. We want an end to the hatred that divides us. Jesus already knows that.” Click here for more. (PDF)
The Rev. Jonathon Jensen, Calvary Episcopal Church, East Liberty
“…Thoughts and prayers are powerful. Prayer and action, from enough people who work for good, can stop a bullet. Show the world that hate will not win here. Pittsburgh does not quit. We are black and gold and brown and white.” Click here for more. (PDF)
The Rev. Sara Irwin, Episcopal Priest Serving St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church, Carnegie
“My new favorite image for the Kingdom of God is having one dry and one wet shoulder, which is what happens when more than one person tries to share an umbrella. Did my nine-year old understand why we dragged her and her brother (11, he rarely admits to being cold) out for the service? I have no idea.” Click here for more. (Web link)
The Rev. Dr. Bruce Robison, St. Andrew’s, Highland Park
“There is no such thing as Christian antisemitism. There cannot be. Paul, as a matter of fact, says that we as Christians are grafted into the life of God’s holy people.” Click here for more. (.mp3 audio file)
The Rev. Regis Smolko, St. Brendan’s, Franklin Park
“This is why community is so important. There’s always someone up when we are down, and there’s others taking action when we seem unable to do so, we get by with ‘a little help from our friends.'” Click here for more. (PDF)