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"The Wonder of Ants"

Proper 22.C.25
Luke 17:5-10
Melanie L. McCarley

Ants are not my favorite insect. They lack the drama of the dragonfly. Unlike bees, they don’t produce honey. Nor are they pretty like the ladybug. In fact, when I consider these tiny creatures, I realize that more often than not I’m thinking of the most expedient way to get rid of them, rather than admiring their remarkable qualities—of which there are many.

"When we are lost"

Proper 17.C.25
Luke 15:1-10
Melanie L. McCarley

Few people set out with the intention of getting lost. It’s just something that happens—generally when we’re not paying attention. In fact, I’d go so far as to say that for most of us, we feel as though we are moving merrily along until something causes us to pause in our tracks. We stop, lift up our heads, look around, and notice—we have no earthly (or heavenly) idea as to where we are.

"A Broken Rule"

Proper 16.C.25
Luke 13:10-17
Melanie L. McCarley

It sometimes happens that the rules we are given fail to make reasonable sense. As most of us have learned at some point in our lives, we challenge them at our peril. Take a moment and try to recall a time when you were faced with a rule that made no sense—and how it made you feel.

"The Assurance of Things Hoped For, The Conviction of Things Not Seen"

Proper 14.C.25
Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16
Melanie L. McCarley

Some sentences resemble a stuffed suitcase—so full, that the expander had to be unzipped and the owner has had to resort to sitting on the bag in order for it to close. Such is the sentence penned by the author of the epistle to the Hebrews who writes: “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” It is considered by some to be the classic definition of Christian faith.

Pat Clarke

Originally from New Hampshire, Pat has lived in Westwood since 1989. A church search led her to St. Paul’s in 2006 where she discovered a community where she and Christine Farnsworth could comfortably worship together, Chris having been raised Episcopalian and Pat from the Roman Catholic tradition. On a beautiful May afternoon in 2010, Pat was received into the Episcopal church. The community of St. Paul’s was a lifeline for Pat during a challenging period of caregiving during Chris’ physical and medical decline which resulted in her death in 2017, ending their life of 30 years together.

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