Cate Thorn

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11 May 2025

Easter 4

Acts 9:36-43

John 10:22-30

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Have you ever wondered why the stories in the Bible ended up being the ones that were kept? The stories we have, the mythos memory, history now in regulated written form began mostly as oral tradition, things told and retold – to remind, re-member the people who they are, a community God called them specially to be. During the season of Easter, we hear readings from the Acts of the Apostles, Luke’s record of the early community that emerged after Jesus’ death and then witnessed experiences of his being alive after such dying. Today we hear one particular story. Why do you think this one was included? Is it to tell us about Tabitha/Dorcas or about Peter, or to tell us of the nature and faith of the early community and the role and place of women/widows in it? Or perhaps to tell us of conversions and miracles and the church growing and the gospel spreading as a result?

Richard Bonifant

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4 May 2025

Easter 3

Acts 9:1-6

John 21:1-19

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My apologies if you are not in on the joke, but today is international Star Wars day. Now I appreciate that Star Wars may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but these are the stories that I grew up with. In fact, The Empire Strikes Back was the first movie I ever saw at a movie theatre and I can still remember the large poster of that movie which I had above my bed as a child. This particular franchise turns 40 next year, and love it or hate it, it has certainly endured. I think that one of the reasons Star Wars has been so popular over the years is because despite the fantastical elements of the storytelling, the narrative is ultimately about people and their struggles. While it’s easy simply boil down Star Wars to a story in which good overcomes evil, a closer look reveals that within that grand narrative are many stories of setbacks, mistakes and misunderstandings.

Amanda Mark

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27 April 2025

Easter 2

John 20:19-31

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Anyone ever been to an Escape Room or played a board game version like this? You’re "locked" in a room with some friends and have to find clues and solve puzzles to get out before time runs out. People actually pay to be trapped in these Escape Rooms. For fun. In today’s Gospel, the disciples are in a locked room - their own kind of escape room.Only this one isn’t for fun. This one’s no game. The disciples are not there for fun. They’re hiding. From the world, from the authorities, maybe even from themselves. They’re shut in by fear, confusion, and perhaps a deep sense of failure.

Richard Bonifant

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20 April 2025

Easter Day

Acts 10:34-43

John 20:1-18

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Long long ago, at the beginning of creation, God sent forth ten vessels, like a fleet of ships, each carrying a cargo of light. If those vessels had reached their destination the world would have been perfect. But the further they travelled, the more fragile they became. Finally the vessels shattered, scattering sparks of light throughout the heavens. And that is how the stars came into being. But the sparks did not only cover the sky, they fell everywhere. They spread so far that God could not gather them all together. That is why God created us, to help gather the sparks, no matter where they are hidden. Every time you do a good deed one of the sparks is set free. When you plant a tree, you gather up a spark. When you care for another person, you can see a spark in their eyes. When you are kind to animals a new spark enters the world. But most of all sparks are found when you love someone.

Susan Adams

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6 April 2025

Lent 5

Isaiah 35:1-10

John 12:1-8

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Have you ever been told that you're “too much”? Too loud, too passionate, too radical, too outspoken? Maybe you’ve spoken up about racism and someone rolled their eyes. Maybe you’ve advocated for LGBTQ+ rights and been told you’re taking things too far. Maybe you’ve demanded justice for the poor, only to be dismissed as ‘woke’ or unrealistic. This is not new. Movements for justice are frequently met with resistance, often from those who claim to be on the side of good! And in today’s Gospel reading, we see this same dynamic play out. A woman named Mary steps into the room and does something extravagant. She responds from an emotional place to the tense situation the group are in as they head to Jerusalem—she pours an entire jar of expensive perfume onto Jesus’ feet, anointing him in an act of profound love.

Richard Bonifant

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30 March 2025

Lent 4

​Desiderata by Max Ehrmann

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A few years ago, I was given a copy of the prose poem Desiderata by Max Ehrmann. Some of you will be familiar with this work which is best described as a collection of wisdom statements for our time. The poem was largely unknown in the writer’s lifetime, which is not too surprising given that that he wrote these thoughts for himself to encourage the virtues he felt most in need of. The second line of the poem is one that has taken on greater meaning for me in recent years. The line is: As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons. It was not the first line of the poem to leap out at me, but it is the one that often encourages a virtue I feel in need of.

Cate Thorn

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23 March 2025

Lent 3

​Isaiah 55:1-9

Luke 13:1-9

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Today’s gospel opens with two accounts of people being killed in catastrophic circumstances. The first, a group slain while sacrificing in the Temple. The second, a number dying when a tower at Siloam fell. Those approaching Jesus seem to want to know why. Who’s to blame? The empathetic, careful listening Jesus is somewhat absent, rather Jesus the pragmatist appears.  Some died because of human intent, others because a tower collapsed, either way their dying wasn’t about punishment for sin, or guilt. At least, they were no more sinful or guilty than those looking to find such things.

Linda Murphy

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16 March 2025

Lent 2

Luke 13:31-35

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A few days after the church picnic   we were visited by a fox in the guise of a black dog possibly a Labrador. Peter had arrived home to find feathers everywhere and many of our much-loved chicken and roosters passed away. He rang me quite upset and there was no way I could leave Homeground at that time. I called and texted neighbours who checked in on Peter, located the offending dog and owners. The culprit was a rescue dog new to our area and behaviour was totally out of character. His owners our new neighbours came and saw Peter and are taking precautions that this won’t happening again. And Peter is now mother hen to three young chicks who lost their mother.

Amanda Mark

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9 March 2025

Lent 1

Luke 4:1-13

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Moments that bring us up short, stop us in our tracks, shock us. Moments of disorientation. Moments in politics: President Trump’s attack on Ukraine’s President Zelensky in the White House, his intention to “have” Greenland, his plan to empty out Gaza and turn it into a resort. Here in Aotearoa, we’ve had Christopher Luxon’s “give them marmite sandwiches and an apple” and the recent attacks on the LGBTI community where we see the allure of black and white answers, inflexible positions on issues that are deeply nuanced and where carelessness, rigidity and a lack of compassion are deeply damaging. Moments in our personal and professional lives that strike deep. These kinds of moments cause us to focus more deeply, or to refocus. They reorient and realign us, sometimes subtly, sometimes dramatically. We find ourselves driven deeper, pushed harder. We find ourselves questioning how we should respond, where we stand, what we position we should take.

Susan Adams

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2 March 2025

Ordinary 8

Sirach 27:4-7

Luke 6:39-49

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I read a confronting comment a couple of weeks ago that set me thinking. The comment stated that the faith, and teaching, evidenced in Jesus’ ministry and relationships, was a far cry from the Christianity that took shape in the later centuries - the Christianity that we (in the main) embody. It suggested that for Jesus, the task of ministry was a radical political address to the situation of the poor and dispossessed, the marginalised and outcasts of a colonial system, and rigid religious framework. While the Christianity that developed itself became a system of power that shaped the lives of the people over whom the ‘Christian’ emperors and the bishops and religious leaders held authority.

Grace Cox

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23 February 2025

Ordinary 7

Genesis 45:3-11, 15

Luke 6:27-38

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Imagine a small town where two bakeries sit side by side. One is owned by an old man named Henry, known for his warmth and generosity. The other, by a woman named Sarah, who is equally hardworking but deeply suspicious of those who do not share her views. One day, a new family moves into town — two fathers and their adopted daughter. They enter both bakeries, looking for a cake to celebrate their daughter's birthday. Henry welcomes them, serves them with joy, and refuses their payment, blessing them on their way. Sarah, on the other hand, refuses to serve them, citing her religious beliefs. The town is divided in its reactions — some praise Henry for his kindness, others Sarah for her stand.

Cate Thorn

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16 February 2025

Ordinary 6

Jeremiah 17:5-10

Luke 6:17-26

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Blessed are you who are poor

Blessed are you who are hungry now

Blessed are you who weep now

Woe to you who are rich

Woe to you who are full now

Woe to you who are laughing now

How do we understand this in our contemporary context? 

Luke’s quite concrete about this the poor, the hungry and those who are weep are blessed now. Unlike Matthew, Luke doesn’t spiritualise the plight of the poor and their poverty, their relief is not deferred to the hereafter. If we put this text in its ancient Palestinian context, poverty can be understood as both an economic and a social reality. Essential to such understanding is the idea of ‘limited good’.  In modern economics we assume goods are, in principle, in unlimited supply. If there’s a shortage we produce more, if one person gets more of something it doesn’t automatically mean someone else gets less, it may mean the factory has to work overtime so more become available.

Richard Bonifant

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9 February 2025

Waitangi Day

Isaiah 6:1-8

Luke 5:1-11

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I can remember as a high school student an occasion when my year group was asked to fill out a form. I don’t remember what the purpose of the form was, but I do remember that there was a section in which we needed to tick the appropriate box to identify our ethnicity. The options included, Māori, Samoan, Chinese, and many more. What I particularly remember was that many of my fellow students took exception to the box simply titled Pākehā. Some chose to respond to this by crossing out the word Pākehā and writing in European.

Cate Thorn

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2 February 2025

The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple

Malachi 3:1-4

Luke 2:22-40

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Today we meet Simeon and Anna. Simeon, a righteous and devout man, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked forward to the consolation of Israel. The Holy Spirit had promised him he’d see the Lord’s Messiah before his death. And we meet Anna, of a great age, long widowed, without children as far as we know, a devout woman, who lived in the temple. Anna looked forward to the redemption of Jerusalem, and worshipped night and day with fasting and prayer. It just so happens both appear in the temple at the time Jesus is presented. Both were waiting, both preparing for the time of consolation, of redemption that would come with the Messiah, the Saviour. Simeon and Anna lived expectantly in their time and context with hope and courage.

Richard Bonifant

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26 January 2025

Epiphany 3

Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10

Luke 4:14-21

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I have been really fortunate in the last few weeks to have had some downtime during which I got a lot of work done on the thesis I am hoping to submit later this year. I am not going to talk about the specific work I’ve been doing, that will happen at some point, but not today. What I will say is that the focus of my research has been the ways we often overcomplicate religious ideas in a way that can be disabling to many parts of our lives. One doesn’t need to get too far into any introductory book on psychology to realise that humans have a vast skillset when it comes to self-deception. And if you don’t believe me about that, you’ve just proven my point. (Just so you know, I was feeling quite pleased with myself when I wrote that last sentence, so I hope it comes across as light hearted rather than patronising).

Susan Adams

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19 January 2025

Epiphany 2

Isaiah 62:1-5

John 2:1-12

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In the season of Epiphany, we are hoping to see, in a different way, something about Jesus that will open our eyes and our hearts once again to the power of the story of his life and teaching, and his compassion for those who are in need. It is often said that we glimpse God in Jesus’ life and relationships with his contemporaries, in his ministry and in his concern for the well-being of people. In John’s gospel images and ideas tumble over one another urging us to ‘see Jesus’, to really ‘see who he is’.

Amanda Mark

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12 January 2025

Baptism of Jesus

Isaiah 43:1-7

Luke 3:15-17, 21-22

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“You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”

What does it mean to be beloved?  What does being beloved call us into? In the Gospel today, Jesus is baptised in the Jordan, and then the voice from heaven declares “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you, I am well pleased.” Jesus’ baptism marks the beginning of his public ministry, a ministry which begins with the proclamation that he is God’s beloved son.  We see Jesus stepping into his true identity, God incarnated as human, God’s son, God’s beloved. His baptism underscores the deep significance of the incarnation. Jesus became one of us, shared in our humanity, and stands in solidarity with us.  He participated in the struggles, joys, and vulnerabilities of human life. And crucially, he does that as God’s beloved.

Richard Bonifant

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5 January 2025

The Epiphany

Isaiah 60:1-6

Matthew 2:1-12

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In 1998 I spent most of the year living in Saudi Arabia. It so happened that I was there during the time of Hajj. The Hajj is arguably the largest religious pilgrimage in the world given that tens of thousands of people complete it every year. It is an obligation of all Muslim people to participate in the Hajj at some point during their life. To do so they must travel, often from great distances, to the city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia, in order to walk in the footsteps of the prophet Muhammad and of Abraham.​​