Sermons

Sunday 8th October, 2017

Pentecost 18: "Living in the Kingdom: Love, Welcome & Renewal"... read here.

 

Sunday 1st October, 2017

Pentecost 17: "Authority & Humility"... read here.

 

Sunday 24th September, 2017

Pentecost 16: "Generosity & justice"... read here.

 

Sunday 17 September, 2017

Pentecost 15: Forgiveness & reconciliation"... Guest Preacher (sermon not available).

 

Sunday 10 September, 2017

Pentecost 14: Living forgiveness, creating reconciliation... read here

 

Sunday 3 September, 2017

Pentecost 13: Taking up the cross and finding life... read here

 

Sunday 27 August, 2017

Pentecost 12: "Who do you, and the Church, say that I am?"... read here

 

Sunday 20 August, 2017

Pentecost 11: Change of mind, change of heart... read here

 

Sunday 13 August, 2017

Pentecost 10: Walking on water... read here

 

Sunday 6 August, 2017

Pentecost 9: Loaves & Fishes - fed with compassion... read here

 

Sunday 23 July, 2017

Pentecost 7: Seeds & Weeds... read here

 

Sunday 16 July, 2017

Pentecost 6: Nurturing the seed, growing in faith ... read here

 

Sunday 9 July, 2017

Pentecost 5: In Shared Humanity... read here

 

Sunday 2 July, 2017

Pentecost 4: Welcoming & Being Welcomed... read here

 

Sunday 25 June, 2017

Pentecost 3: On being faithful... read here

 

Sunday 18 June, 2017

40th Anniversary UCA... read here

 

Sunday 11th June, 2017

Trinity Sunday... read here

 

Sunday 28th May, 2017

Easter 7: Ascension, Gift and Grace... read here

 

Sunday 14th May, 2017

Easter 5 & Mothers' Day... read here

 

Sunday 26th March, 2017

Lent 4... read here

 

Sunday 19th March, 2017

Lent 3

I was reading a little book last week, written by Ann Hogan’s mother Nancy, for those of you who know Ann. It is a book of prayers and reflections. In one of these, Nancy asked her readers if we start each day with a sense of expectation and thankfulness... read more

 

Sunday 12th March, 2017

Lent 2

Long, long ago, before there were cities, when the earth was full of empty, unknown spaces, the people carried their homes with them, their tents, their belongings, their children and their old ones. ... read more

 

Sunday 5th March, 2017

Lent 1... read here

 

Sunday 26th February, 2017

Transfiguration... read here

 

Sunday 19th February, 2017

Epiphany 7... read here

 

Sunday 12th February, 2017

Epiphany 6... read here

 

Sunday 5th February, 2017

Epiphany 5

It has been quite a week; one in which we may well all wonder what lies ahead in this world we share. I had words from Proverbs going around in my head: “Where is wisdom to be found?” We seem now to have entered dark and troubling times... read more

 

Sunday 29th January, 2017

Epiphany 4

It’s extraordinary how much one can experience in 9 days, 11 if you count the travel. The change began at Doha, when we realised that we were the only Western people in the departure lounge for the flight to Beirut. There were not many people on the plane at all... read more

 

Sunday 15th January, 2017

Epiphany 2*  Malcolm Allerding (Rev Mary Pearson on leave)

When I first looked at the lectionary readings, they seemed mostly about me! ... read more

 

Sunday 25th December, 2016

Christmas Day

Well, here we are! Christmas Day! The shops are shut and most of the people driving about are on their way to get together with families and friends, preparing to eat a special meal and to exchange gifts. The Christmas ritual... read more

 

Sunday 18th December, 2016

Advent 4 Reflection   Isaiah 7: 10-16  Matthew 1: 18-25
Well we have emerged from the desert. We have heard the call to repentance, to turn to God, to make a straight path and be ready to welcome the One who is to come. We are coming close. The voice of the prophets is quieter now. Today there is still the voice of Isaiah exclaiming over how the people test the patience of the both humans and God... read more

 

Sunday 11th December, 2016

Advent 3 Reflection

I really like Advent. It always comes as a challenge, breaking into the routine, interrupting what otherwise can seem like the customary journey of faith: the struggling through the ups and downs, trying to make sense of things, seeking for more understanding... read more

 

Sunday 4th December, 2016

Advent 2 Reflection

The desert, the wilderness, is a dangerous place. It is not just the barren, threatening landscape, the lack of water, the heat. It is also the place, notably this desert of the gospels, that was the breeding ground of revolutionaries such as the Maccabees. The desert was the place of the people’s wandering in the Exodus, trying to make their way to the Promised Land... read more

 

Sunday 27th November, 2016

 

Sunday 20th November, 2016

Christ the King

I wonder if, as you got ready to come to church this morning, you realised that this was not just another Sunday. This is a big day! There is a lot happening on this day, not just here, but in churches everywhere... read more

 

Sunday 13th November, 2016

"Faith and hope in times of trouble".

This has been a strange week in which to write a sermon ... read more

 

Sunday 6 November, 2016

Some 50 years ago I sat in the crowded village hall on the little island of Iona, off the west coast of Scotland. We were packed in there for a big event – the screening of “The Bridge on the River Kwai”... read more

 

Sunday 23 October, 2016

Sometimes what we hear in the Bible seems quite straightforward. We have just heard Jesus’ parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector praying in the Temple... read more

 

Sunday 16 October, 2016

What makes a great teacher? I wonder if you can remember a teacher you had who made a lasting impression on you because of the way they... read more

 

Sunday 9 October, 2016

Today, I should warn you, I am departing from the norm. I am being somewhat self-indulgent. Normally I follow the readings that are set down in the lectionary... read more

 

Sunday 2 October, 2016

There is a question that hovers over us day by day. It is there as we come to worship and especially as we listen to the readings from the Scriptures. It is a question that I think we need to always keep in our minds and hearts. That question is... read more

 

Sunday 25 September, 2016

In many churches, the reading of the gospel is followed by the phrase “This is the gospel of the Lord” and the response “Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ”. I rather like the phrase we use here “May your word dwell in us – and bear much fruit in our lives."... read more

Sunday 18 September, 2016

I know that in very many places, preachers will be choosing not to use the gospel reading set down for today. It is known as the most difficult passage in Luke’s gospel. Augustine said of it “I cannot believe this story came from the lips of our Lord.” So it is with fear and trembling that I offer some thoughts and would welcome your own responses later. The parable Jesus tells concerns a rich man, his dishonest manager who is about to lose his job and the scheming, unethical way the manager responds... read more

 

Sunday 11 September, 2016

Lost. Confusion, fear, panic. The familiar has disappeared. There are no pointers that are recognisable, no-one to help. You are alone, or, even with others, there is still no help. You don’t know what to do, which way to turn...read more

 

Sunday 4 September, 2016

We are going to go on a journey back in time, 2,000 years or so. You are sitting in the synagogue, or maybe, if you are a man, in a Rabbinical school. You are listening to the rabbi expounding on a theme and it’s quite amusing... read more

 

Sunday 28 August, 2016

It’s good to be here. It seems quite a long time since I went off and I have travelled many miles (which they are still called in UK!), have met old friends and made new ones and been in some beautiful places. You were in my thoughts and I know you have been well cared for.  One of the things about travelling around is being made very aware of everyone’s different lifestyles... read more

 

Sunday 26 June, 2016

My grandmother was a little person whose life spanned many changes in the world. From a time as a child when they had gas lamps in the house in Glasgow before electricity got there, to living to see a man land on the moon. One of the things that never changed for her was her commitment to the church and her faith ...read more

 

Sunday 12 June, 2016

Pentecost 4 - Lindara

Today we have been made aware again of the struggles that many people, and women in particular, face to be safe. Our safety, our security, is one of the basic necessities of life, from the moment of conception to the day we die, yet all around us we see images of people in the world, in our country and our own city and community who do not have a place of safety... read more

 

Sunday 5 June, 2016

Pentecost 3

It has been a tough week. There have been a number of tragedies and traumas relating to children... read more

 

Sunday 29 May, 2016

Pentecost 2

Here we are. Sunday 29 May 2016, sitting in this church which is so familiar to many people here and for others, a place that they are still becoming acquainted with. Some things become so familiar we hardly notice them any more

... read more

 

Sunday 22 May, 2016

Trinity Sunday

Today is a day on which it is known between ministers that many choose to have a little holiday, or have some other pressing engagement... read more

 

Sunday 15 May, 2016 coming soon

Pentecost

“Spirit of God, unseen as the wind, gentle as is the dove, teach us the truth and help us believe, show us the Saviour’s love”. Pentecost. One of the big festivals of the church... read more

 

Sunday 8 May, 2016 coming soon

Easter 7 / Mothering Day

I have to confess I have a problem. I’m sure I have several, but I have one related to today in particular ... read more

 

Sunday 1 May, 2016

Easter 6

Not far from where I live is a house, set back from the road a little, whose front steps and front garden is full of gnomes... read more

 

Sunday 24 April, 2016

Easter 5

Please contact the office if you would like to read this sermon.

 

Sunday 17 April, 2016

Easter 4

Last week we began a journey with John’s gospel which will continue until Pentecost on 15 May. It is hard to just plunge into a very different gospel and be able to understand what is going on, so I thought it was important that we have a bit of background... read more

 

Sunday 10 April, 2016

Easter 3

What languages do you speak? I wish I could speak more. I learned French all the way through school, though in those days it was all about grammar, not about speech... read more

 

Sunday 3 April, 2016

Easter 2
My earliest memories of communion services were of very important and sombre men, who were obviously invested with some kind of special power. We, the Sunday School children, were brought back into church to sit, quietly of course, in the gallery, where we could peer over the rail and watch as... read more

 

Sunday 27 March, 2016

Easter Sunday

The Lord is risen! He is risen indeed. Hallelujah! This is indeed a day filled with awe, with praise and with great joyfulness. Death has not had the last word. Life has been raised from the depths of pain and despair. There is no power of darkness, no shadows of sinfulness, guilt, shame and torment that can overwhelm the power of God’s love and light. That is what we proclaim this day... read more

 

Sunday 20 March, 2016

Palm Sunday
This Palm Sunday event seems rather extraordinary really in all kinds of ways. Maybe in those days of travelling along on foot, or by donkey or horse, it was not so strange as it is for us. We do still have processions and crowds. Think of Anzac Day, or a Royal visit. Think of the Pope and the crowds that surround him in the pope mobile when he makes overseas visits... read more
 

Sunday 13 March, 2016

Lent 5

Life is a journey, so it is often said. A journey that begins at conception, and, in earthly, bodily terms, ends when we take our last breath. It then seems very linear, though no-one’s life goes in a straight line. There are always twists and turns, ups and downs, dead ends and wrong turnings... read more

 

Sunday 6 March, 2016

Lent 4

Today is quite a challenge. It’s a challenge because we are thinking about the parable of the Prodigal Son, a story that is unique to Luke and which is possibly one of the best known stories in the world, certainly the Western world... read more

 

Sunday 28 February, 2016

Lent 3

Just over a week ago I sat in the Opera House, gazing almost unseeingly up towards the high ceiling, absorbed in the glorious music of Beethoven. It seemed so wonderful that human creativity could hear, compose that music into being, especially someone who was losing his hearing... read more

 

Sunday 21 February, 2016

Lent 2

You know, I think one of the biggest risks for the Church is that it talks to itself, in language and imagery that mean little or nothing to those outside the institution. Don’t get me wrong, there are very beautiful words, images, symbols, that are not only lovely but important and helpful. Last Tuesday... read more

 

Sunday 14 February, 2016

Lent 1

I wonder how interested you are in politics. It seems to be a different world from the one most of us live in with our daily realities. It is just as well some people find the power-plays of politics appealing but I am not sure how much any of us really gets to know what goes on in the corridors of power or behind party room doors. Unfortunately it is too often whiffs of scandal that make the headlines apart from the constant mudslinging that seems to be part of what is called debate in Canberra or Macquarie St. Mind you, I am glad I don’t live in USA. We get more than enough of their extraordinary electoral process here as it is. The amount of money that is spent on these campaigns is, to my mind, quite disgraceful. But then, money is power apparently. There is that phrase “the rich and the powerful” where the two go hand in hand. It has ever been thus. And then there has been another kind of power on display recently, the sabre rattling kind, as we have watched North Korea apparently launching a long range nuclear missile, supposedly to put a satellite into space... read more

 

Sunday 7 February, 2016

Transfiguration

My maternal grandmother was born in Glasgow in 1881. She was a Victorian in many senses of that word, except, of course, in relation to Australia. That was an age when sometimes even the piano legs were covered in order to be polite. She and her family went, as was the custom for nearly everyone, to their local Church of Scotland. She knew what was right and proper. Overtly enjoying yourself did not fit into that category. I often wonder how she coped with my grandfather who was an incorrigible tease... read more

 

Sunday 31 January, 2016

Once upon a time….once upon a time, the stars in the night sky overhead were crystal clear, points of light scattered over the sleeping earth, moving in time and place, familiar, recognised and comforting. The moon shone its whiteness casting shadows of trees and bushes. The grasses murmured in the breeze and the night time insects chittered. Sometimes there was a louder noise as some creature crushed the leaves and grasses as it made its way to the creek to drink. Over it all hung a stillness and the embers from the fire sent a lazy spiral upwards, dissolving in the air. Gradually, in the far off place, the line of the earth emerged from the dark as the first tinge of light appeared, growing steadily and quietly. The moon faded as her sister, the sun rose up. Glowing red and gold and painting the land with new colours. Soon the sounds of human life were heard – a cough, a yawn, a greeting of one another and of the new day... read more

 

Sunday 24 January, 2016

Last Monday morning I read something that deeply shocked me. It wasn’t something about the most recent atrocity in the Middle East or Africa. It wasn’t related to any individual’s behaviour or about a scandal in sport or politics. It wasn’t about the stock market or how much some mansion had sold for. We have become used to such things. It did relate to money. It was a headline above a short article in the Sydney Morning Herald which said “62 people as wealthy as half the world”... read more

 

Sunday 17 January, 2016

Temptation

Shall I/shan’t I? Shall I give in and have an ice cream, a chocolate, a cake with my coffee? Everyday temptations that clearly relate to food, or perhaps more especially sugar. The temporary enjoyment has to be weighed up against the guilt, however fleeting that follows. This against the feeling of being virtuous if the temptation is resisted.
That is obviously very trivial. Indeed there is more guilt attached to the fact that one can even have those inner dialogues after reading about starving refugees in Syria or several other places ... read more

 

Sermons from December are unavailable to due to leave / reduced hours (Minister / office staff).

 

Sunday 29 November 2015

Hope

Before we came to Australia I had never heard of rip currents in the ocean ... read more
 

Sunday 22 November 2015

Christ the King / The Lords Prayer

Today is the last day of the Church year ... read more

 

Sunday 15 November 2015

In the Meantime

When I was in my second last year at school I became a boarder, just for that one year. It was not a happy time. I was still in the school where I had been a day girl, but was now one of only 12 boarders ... read more

 

Sunday 8 November 2015

The Powerful & the Powerless

Do you like reading? One of the ways I relax is by getting absorbed in a good novel. Taking my book to my favourite coffee shop where ... read more

 

Sunday 1 November 2015 - All Saints Day

A few years ago a friend gave me a book which had made a great impression on her.

It did the same to me ... read more

 

Sunday 25th October 2015

From Suffering to Healing

We have heard, very movingly, something of the Korean understanding of “han” ... read more

 

Sunday 18th October 2015

This last week I was away at Hartzer Park just outside Bowral. Clive and I were co-leading a retreat for Illawarra Presbytery ... read more

 

Sunday 11th October 2015

Last Tuesday morning, I sat at a table in the kitchen at Leigh Memorial Uniting Church in Parramatta. Clive and I go there ... read more

 

Sunday 4th October 2015

Rev Mary Pearson's first official sermon as new Minister at Lindfield Uniting Church.

One of my earliest memories, in Britain when I was little, was sitting down in front of the wireless, as it was known – yes, no TV ... read more

 

Sunday 27th September 2015

Rev Neil Eriksson's last official sermon as Supply Minister at Lindfield Uniting Church.

“God On Our Side”  Psalm 124
We look up at the clouds and we see the face of a butterfly. Someone receives bad news and we say, everything happens for a reason.... read more

 

 

Sunday 20th September 2015 - "You're Welcome"

Mark 9:30-37

Since 2001 more than 200,000 Syrians died in the civil war. Close to 12 million, one half of the Syrian population of 23 Million have been forced from their homes. More than 4 million have fled...read more

 

Sunday 13th September 2015 

Mark 8:27-38

In each of the Gospels we see different emphases as the writers choose which events and conversations they will include. Not only are the individual scenes or stories important but their placement within the structure of the book is also significant....read more

 

Sunday 6th September 2015 - Discrimination Dressed Up

James 2:1-11, 14-17

James has often been called the "Practical Letter". It's a letter about doing. A letter which reminds us that the Christian Faith is about what we DO just as much as about what we believe. In his letter James writes about many things and today is no exception. He is writing about something we read in the papers and see on TV every day- discrimination. He uses the context of a wealthy man vs. a poor man coming into Church and how each might be treated. That example might not be so relevant to us but the subject certainly is......read more

 

Sunday 30th August 2015 - True Religion

James 1:17-27

Over the last decade we have heard over and over again people describing themselves as “spiritual” but not “religious”. I’m never quite sure what this means but I think it has something to do with acknowledging a god or a higher power or something “other” but making it clear they do not go to church or are a member of a religious organisation...... read more

 

Sunday 23rd August 2015 - "Not Just Bread Anymore"

John 6:56-69

Admit it. You want to go to the party that gets to admit, "This is hard, who can take this?" And when Jesus asks, "Do you wish to go away?" don't  you secretly wish you could say, "Yes. Yes, Jesus, in fact I do, if I am totally honest. It's been a long five weeks and I am ready to move on, ready for a break. Enough bread already.” But notice that if we do not include the verses from last week's lection, bread isn't even a topic of conversation in these concluding verses of Bread of Life discourse....read more.