---

She was there at the beginning of creation,  

She was with God at the dawn of time.

Wait a minute now,  

hold on.

She was there?

Who is this she?

In our first reading today from Proverbs 8,  

“Woman Wisdom” stands alongside God at creation.  

As Christians, we see in her a foreshadowing of the Triune God

—Father, Son, and...

[Sing:]

Love, love me do

You know I love you,

I'll always be true,

So please, …

love me do

Many of you could sing along with that early Beatles classic from 1963.

And in a bit of a sacrilegious imagination,  

I picture Jesus and Peter singing this song to each other  

with Thomas on harmonica and Nathanael on drums.

Of course they...

The Conversion of St. Paul

Galatians 1 and Acts 9

Preached at First United Church, Waterloo (March 25, 2025) as part of the mid-week Lenten Series

I want to start by thanking Pastor Hoeun and the good people  

of First United for hosting our service this evening.  

It’s nice to be back preaching here  

after our pulpit exchange in...

The Canadian Black History Month “honours the legacy and contributions of Black people in Canada and their communities” and the 2025 theme is “black legacy and leadership: celebrating Canadian history and uplifting future generations”.

On this Black History Sunday I’ll present two great examples of black legacy and leadership.

You can see their...

—

Back in High School, a song popular with myself  

and my classmates was

Haddaways: “What is Love, (baby don’t hurt me)  

don’t hurt me no more.”

This Eurodance classic was made even more popular a while later  

by comedian Jim Carrey, just Google “Jim Carrey head dance”  

and you’ll know what I mean.

While the lyrics are...

—

I want to begin by saying what an honour and privilege it is  

to be invited by your minister Hoeun to preach and lead worship  

here at First United,  

while he is busy at St. Matthews.

Thank you.

Thank you also to Kathleen for the invitation to perform some pieces  

I’ve wanted to play for some time.

Pulpit exchanges are...

The song I played earlier,

You raise me up https: www.youtube.com watch?v=4skT6igCK7g

is a song composed by Norwegian artist Rolf Lovland with lyricist Brendan Graham in 2002.

“You Raise me up” was performed first at Lovland’s mother’s funeral.  

It’s a very popular song,  

having been covered by over five...

Today we have the first of a two-part sermon on the hidden women in the Bible:

Women who are hiding in plain sight, right behind the main character of the story.

Today we focus on Elizabeth.

I find it interesting that we hear about Elizabeth only one single time  

in the three-year Lectionary, or reading cycle.  

One Sunday out of 156.

...

If you were looking for a modern-day John the Baptist, who would be an acceptable candidate?

I’d like to propose

Pussy Riot

Pussy Riot is a feminist punk rock  

and performance art collective from Russia,  

known for their outspoken activism and provocative performances  

that combine music, visual art, and political...

Instead, we need to remember Jesus’ way was that of servanthood, 

The suffering servant is lifted up on a cross, the tree of shame,

Where God comes nearest identifying with the distressed and the outcast.