Jim Somerville: A Sermon for Every Sunday
For several months now I have been working on a project called "A Sermon for Every Sunday," which was conceived as a way to help small, struggling churches that don't have preachers, but has evolved to include churches in the interim, house churches, Bible studies, small groups, Wednesday night programs, and Sunday school classes.
The idea is simple enough: with some help from my friend David Powers I have been recording sermons by some of America's best preachers for every Sunday of the liturgical year, so that when those small, preacherless churches get to the Third Sunday of Advent (for example) they can simply push a button and hear a sermon from Bishop Michael Curry (above). Other "Every Sunday" preachers are William Willimon, Brian McLaren, Lauren Winner, David Lose, Brian Blount, MaryAnn McKibben Dana, Andrew Foster Connors, Grace Imathiu, Rolf Jacobson, Gary Charles, and Karoline Lewis.
How does it work? Here's a possible scenario, straight from the website:
Imagine that the bright young pastor of a country church is called to a church in the big city...
The congregation is faced with a decision: do we call another pastor? Can we afford to? They hear about "A Sermon for Every Sunday," a way to get America's best preachers into America's small churches, house churches, Bible studies and small groups-on video. They decide to give it a try, at least in the interim.
With the money they save they buy a big, flat-screen TV and a quality DVD player. They put the lectern on one side of the chancel and the TV on the other until the two are nicely balanced. Some of the older members shake their heads. They never thought they'd see such a thing in church, but again, it's only for the interim.
On that first Sunday the English teacher at the local high school-a member of the church-leads the service. She opens with the call to worship, announces the hymns, invites members of the congregation to read scripture and say prayers. When it's time for the sermon she reads the Gospel lesson and then nods to the high school student who has downloaded the video from the web site. He pushes a button, and the congregation waits, breathlessly.
What they see is high-definition video of one of America's best preachers, looking straight into the camera and preaching the Good News. It's as if he is talking only to them. The sermon lasts 12-15 minutes, and when it's over the congregation responds with a murmur of approval. The English teacher steps back to the lectern and says, "I had a chance to watch the sermon last week, and I was thinking about how it applies to our context..." She takes a few minutes to make some connections between what the church has just heard and what they live with every day, and then she moves on with the service.
When she greets them at the back door later even those older members have to admit, it's been a good day in church. And they want to know:
"Who's preaching next week?"
Click on the link below to visit the website, and then, if you feel inclined, share it with your friends on Facebook, Twitter, or simply by word of mouth. I'd like to make sure that the people who could benefit from such a service would have access to it before the launch date on November 28.
It may seem a little crazy-but in times like these, when churches are struggling and technology is everywhere-maybe not so crazy after all.
Click HERE to find out more.