April 12, 2023
Jesus
“We Rise” – Easter Service 2022
April 17, 2022
- Monica Pilman
- Rev. Lara Hoke
- Thea Shapiro
- The Underground Church: Reclaiming the Subversive Way of Jesus
- early Christianity
- Easter
- Jesus
- resurrection
Another look at Easter — we rise together. Lots of influence from Robin Meyer’s work.
“Easter Somewhere Up the Road”
April 12, 2020
- Lezli Whitehouse
- Rev. Lara Hoke
- Vicki Merriam
- Gospel of Luke
- coronavirus
- covid-19
- Easter
- Jesus
- online worship
- resurrection
- Road to Emmaus
- Time for All Ages
Our 5th online-only worship service, and the first-ever online-only Easter Sunday Service for First Church Unitarian in Littleton, Massachusetts! If you watch this on Youtube and click on “see more”, you can use the blue time stamps to skip forward (or back) to any particular worship element.
Maundy Thursday Service, with Tenebrae
April 9, 2020
First Church Unitarian in Littleton, Massachusetts, had a virtual Maundy Thursday Service (with Tenebrae) using the Zoom platform. This video begins with an original piece of music by FCU’s Music Director, Molly Lozeau (“Starlight Song” (c) 2020 Molly Lozeau). I light the chalice and welcome all. FCU Deacons Lynn Courtney, Andy Leyenaar, and Cindy Malley lead communion and much of the service, as is the FCU tradition.
“An Apocryphal Christmas”
December 22, 2019
- Cindy Malley
- Rev. Lara Hoke
- Arabic Infancy Gospel
- Gospel of James
- Apocrypha
- Christmas
- Jesus
- nativity
On Sunday, December 22, 2019, my short sermon was “An Apocryphal Christmas”. This video starts with two excerpts from “apocryphal” nativity stories, the first from the Arabic Infancy Gospel (at 0:00, read by Deacon Cindy Malley), and the second from the Gospel of James (at 3:52). The short sermon begins at 9:38.
“An Esoteric Easter”
April 21, 2019
- Rev. Lara Hoke
- Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas
- Christianity
- Easter
- Elaine Pagels
- Gospel of Thomas
- Jesus
On Easter Sunday, I preached about the non-canonical Gospel of Thomas, with help from the work of scholar Elaine Pagels, to think about what it might add to our understanding of “resurrection”.
“Let Every Heart Prepare Room”, a Christmas Eve Homily
December 24, 2018
My Christmas Eve homily for 2018. Is your heart prepared to do the work of Christmas?
A Story is Born
December 24, 2017
As for the Bible’s stories, like every story their truth depends upon their listeners.
If Jesus Hadn’t Been Born…Would We Have Made Him Up?
December 10, 2017
While we do not know who Jesus really was, this does not mean he was made up out of thin air. He is not a complete invention or fabrication. What the New Testament gospels and letters give us is an interpretation of a man who will always remain hidden behind a veil of history, never to be fully revealed.