Worship and Devotions

Welcome visitors and old friends. Welcome regardless of belief, ethnic background, sexual orientation, gender, socio-economic status, marital status, age, abilities, or life situation. Welcome believers and doubters as well as doubting believers. Welcome to share the fullness of Christ's love for the world!(Adapted from The welcome message from the Thomas Community in Finland. "Celebrating milestone moments" by Rev. Jukka Joensuu. Canada Lutheran January/February 2024 Vol. 39 No. 1; chorus of ELW 523)

Sunday November 15, 2026

Twenty - Fifth Sunday After Pentecost

Prayer of the Day

Righteous God, our merciful master, you own the earth and all its peoples, and you give us all that we have. Inspire us to serve you with justice and wisdom, and prepare us for the joy of the day of your coming, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.

Music

Christ Be Our Light

Christ Be Our Light | B.Farell | SATB Choir with Lyrics & Descant | Sunday 7pm Catholic Church Choir

Readings

Semi-Continuous Readings

Judges 4:1-7; Psalm 123;

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11; Matthew 25:14-30

Alternate First Readings

Zephaniah 1:7, 12-18; Psalm 90:1-8 [9-11] 12

Gospel - Matthew 25:14-30

Glory to you, O Lord.

[Jesus said to the disciples:] “For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. At once the one who had received the five talents went off and traded with them and made five more talents. In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things; I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things; I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow and gathering where you did not scatter, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ But his master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow and gather where I did not scatter? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance, but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ ”

The Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, O Christ.

Music

Lord of Glory, You Have Brought Us

Lord of Glory, You Have Bought Us, ELW 707

Sermon

Standing on the Word by Pastor Carol J. Dennison

I don’t like this parable. It has always left me with a niggling doubt that I am missing something so it was liberating to discover that others felt the same way! What if this parable is NOT about using our gifts, money, etc. wisely? What might it be about?

Last month we noted that while the crowds welcome Jesus to Jerusalem with palm branches and cheers, he does not use this to set himself up as the Messiah. Instead, he drives the moneychangers, sellers and buyers out of the Temple thus enraging the Temple authorities. Jesus refuses to tell the chief priests and leaders of the people by what authority he does what he does and tells parables implying that tax collectors, sinners, and prostitutes will enter the kingdom of heaven before them. And they get the message! The Pharisees try to trick him into saying people shouldn’t pay taxes to Rome but he silences them: “Give the Emperor what belongs to him and give God what belongs to God.” (22:23). The Sadducees get into the act by challenging the idea of a resurrection from the dead and are defeated. The Pharisees ask which commandment is greatest and are surprised when Jesus agrees with them: Love God and love your neighbour as yourself. Until this point Jesus is civil with his opponents while debating. However, from chapter 23 on he becomes much harsher telling the Pharisees and scribes that they are in trouble. He calls them hypocrites, blind guides, blind fools, show-offs, white-washed tombs and the like. He tells his disciples that the Temple will be destroyed and about the terrible destruction to come including persecution and death. He goes on to speak of the end of time when the Messiah will come and says that the Son of Man will come unexpectedly. He warns them to keep awake. Then we come to our reading for today.

There are a number of oddities about this parable that are compounded by reading it in translation. In the Greek, it does not contain any reference to the kingdom of heaven yet some translations assume that the phrase in 25: 1a “The kingdom of heaven will be like this” also applies here and insert it.

The translation you heard read translates “δоύλоυς” as slaves. I looked at sixty-four different translations and only seventeen call them slaves. The remainder of them translate it as servants. There is a big difference. Slaves are property and cannot own property. If they try to leave they can be hunted down, hauled back and even killed with impunity. Servants are paid, can own property and can leave. Are the three given talents slaves or servants? Whichever is true, it seems that they are stewards who act in the master’s place and who will have to account for their stewardship.

Some oddities are apparent only when you know the Older Testament. Remember Jesus and all his disciples are Jews as are the Pharisees, Sadducees, scribes, and leaders of the people. They know their Torah and it states very clearly, “Do not charge interest when lending money to fellow Jews.” (Exodus 22:25; Lev. 25:36-37) Yet the master in the parables says the third servant should have put his money with the bankers to earn interest! Furthermore, the Mishnah, that is, the oral Torah, and the Talmud, that is, commentaries on the Mishnah, state that if a subordinate’s master entrusts them with a significant amount of cash they are to take no risks but bury it in the ground. Because of the difference in power between the master and the subordinate it would be unsafe and unwise to do otherwise for if it were lost the master’s punishment of the subordinate would be severe. (P.227, Bernard Brandon Scott. Hear Then the Parable; P. 269, Richard W. Swanson. Provoking the Gospel of Matthew. A Storyteller’s Commentary Year A; Brian P. Stoffgren, Matthew 25:14-30 http://www.crossmarks.com/brian/matt25x14.htm) If they bury it they have done their duty and cannot be reproached. Yet it is this third servant who is reproached by the master as being lazy, and worthless!

The political situation of the time must also be considered. The Roman Empire rules Palestine and the religious authorities have only the authority given them by Rome. Rome often confiscates the lands of peasants to give to loyal soldiers and others to whom they owe favors. These persons often hire the original owners to run the farms and vineyards on their behalf. They are absentee landlords and seen as bleeding the people dry with their taxes and rents. Furthermore, in the first century, people see the world as one of limited goods. There is only so much wealth so for anyone to get more wealth they have to take it away from another. Those who expect their money to increase are seen as wicked and greedy, even rapacious. Oops! Isn’t that exactly how the third slave/servant describes his master? (P. 207, Barbara E. Reid Parables for Preachers Year A)

It is often assumed that the land owner is God yet this person is the direct opposite of the God we know from Scripture. The God of Israel brings God’s people, a stubborn and rebellious lot!, into a land overflowing with good crops and gives them water from wells they did not dig and lets them reap crops they did not plant. God tells them to not harvest everything in their fields but to leave the edges alone and drop some sheaves behind, to not strip the vines and branches of fruit. Why? So that those who are poor and have nothing can reap anyway! Furthermore Jesus tells of a sower who scatters seed recklessly all over the place knowing that wherever it lands on good soil it will produce food beyond their dreams! Does that sound like someone who is harsh, reaping where he does not sow and gathering where he did not scatter? I don’t think so! (Mark Davis. “The Politics of the Talents—Matthew 25:14-30 (Mark Davis)” The Politics of the Talents—Matthew 25:14-30 (Mark Davis) | Political Theology Network)

And then there is the supposed moral of the tale! “For to all who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance, but for those who have nothing even what they have will be taken away.” This contradicts all the prophets who warn against greed, and against Jesus’ good news to the poor. In the early church, the people sold what they had, pooled their resources and made sure everyone had enough!

Furthermore, throughout Matthew’s gospel God is NOT absent but always present- guiding Joseph, the wise men, speaking to John the Baptist, appearing at Jesus’ baptism and at the Transfiguration, speaking to Jesus in times of prayer and always with them. In the so-called “Great Commission” at the end of Mathew’s gospel, Jesus says he will be with them always and promises to send the Holy Spirit, to guide, support and encourage them! This is not an absentee landlord!

So where does that leave us? Why does Jesus tell this parable to his disciples two days before the Last Supper, his arrest, trial and crucifixion?

Could the parable be a picture of what happens to those who oppose the powers that be. In that case, the Pharisees, Sadducees, chief priests and scribes are co-opted into greed by Rome and are rewarded. The third servant who “tells it like it is” is a prophet or whistle blower and the parable is intended to denounce the unjust rich and their exploitation of the poor. It also encourages the poor to expose greed for the sin it is. Could the third servant be Jesus who is then killed for his actions? (P.207-209, Barbara E. Reid Parables for Preachers, Year A) Or might this servant be the disciples who will also be persecuted for their witness? Or could Jesus simply be warning his disciples of what will come upon them, knowing that at least one of them is going to be co-opted into betraying him? After all, Jeus has already warned them that they will be handed over to be tortured, put to death and to be hated by all nations because of him. (Mattthew 24:9-10)

In our own day, we look around us and even though we are told that getting rich is possible without taking away from others, we can see that something is out of kilter here. We have so many millions of people in the world who live in abject poverty, at least partly because foreign companies insist that their governments have them produce their products rather than food for their families. Furthermore, the operations of foreign companies often pollute the land and water. In our own country, we see large companies pay minimum wages, often without benefits, so that hundreds of thousands of Canadians live in poverty including the unhoused. Perhaps those first century people were not so wrong!

Have we as churches been co-opted by the rich? Have we as those who have, been remiss in not wondering where our own wealth comes from? Not easy thoughts. I do not have the answers. However, God does. We need to listen and learn.

I want to close with excerpts from a prayer by Rev. Dr. Marcia Blasi, the LWF program Executive for Gender justice and Women’s Empowerment in Together We Pray (page 87):

“Lead us not into temptation, O God – not into the quiet lie that we are too small, too unprepared, too late, too much or not enough. Lead us not into the temptation of shrinking our voices to fit the comfort of others, of mistaking self-doubt for humility, of believing we are called only to serve but never to lead, only to follow but never to decide. … When the power of evil circles close and fear tightens its grip, when the world rewards our invisibility and punishes our courage, remind us: making ourselves small will not save us. Give us courage to stand. Courage to show up. …. For it is your grace that leads us. It is your grace that sustains us. You do not demand perfection – you ask for tender love and brave hearts. Deliver us from the temptation of forgetting who we are. Call us again into fullness, into leadership, into voice, into life abundant. For yours is the courage within us, the wisdom among us, and the future before us. Amen”

REMEMBRANCE OF MARTIN MADELUNG (1953-2026)

In joyful expectation of the resurrection to eternal life, we remember Martin Madelung, a much loved member of our congregation, dedicated and caring leader and friend, who has gone before us in faith and who now rests from his labours.

Lord God, you have surrounded us with so great a cloud of witnesses. Grant that we, encouraged by the example of Martin Madelung, may persevere in the course that is set before us and, at the last, share in your eternal joy with all the saints in light, through Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Music

Borning Cry

Prayers of Intercession

United with the great cloud of witnesses, we offer our prayers for the church, the world, and all of creation.

A brief silence.

You build up the church as a community of faithful witnesses throughout the generations. Enliven the worship, outreach, and service work of our congregations and ministries with the hope of your good news. Grant wisdom, courage, patience, and hope to all our leaders, lay and ordained. God in your mercy, hear our prayer.

As the nights grow longer in the northern hemisphere, make us mindful of the earth’s need for rest. Provide for fallow fields and hibernating animals; show us how to curb human impact on vulnerable lands and species. God, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

God of blessings, the universe sings of your glory. Deepen our gratitude for all you have made and awaken in us a renewed commitment to care for the earth and each other. Inspire world leaders at COP31, with openness to listen to those most affected by climate change and with courage to act urgently and wisely, so that our common home may be healed and restored and all people, and generations to come, may delight in it. God in your mercy, hear our prayer. (Prayer for the COP31 climate summit)

In your embrace, we find refuge from all trials and troubles. Care for families who are separated or estranged, accompany all undergoing medical procedures or mental health treatments; and grant healing to all who are ill and comfort to all who mourn. God, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Here other intercessions may be offered.

The faithful of every age trust in the hope of your saving grace. In thanksgiving for the ways our ancestors have journeyed before us, we remember all who have entered eternal life in you. God, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Into your steadfast love, faithful God, we entrust all for whom we pray, in the name of Jesus, your beloved.

Amen.

Music

O God, Our Help in Ages Past ELW 632

ELW 632 O God, Our Help in Ages Past - Virtual Hymn Lutheran Hymn - Samm Hills & Mt. Si Lutheran