Proclamation and Celebration: Preaching on Christmas, Easter, and Other Festivals

178 Pages·2012·1.644 MB·English

by  Susan K. Hedahl

Religion/ Preaching Fortress Resources for Preaching
Proclaiming the biography of God’s work among us—
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“How can it be that preachers think they have nothing to add to the glorious good e
d
news at Christmas and Easter? Susan Hedahl challenges and encourages us to reflect Proclamation
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upon the dramatic, lively doctrines that shape and inform our proclamations at the h
six major festivals of the church year. A return to doctrinal preaching will teach, l
will connect us with the cloud of witnesses who have gone before us, and will invite and Celebration
choice and action, not just ‘aesthetic appreciation.’ Hedahl’s approach will add depth
and radical faith to festival sermons.”
—Lucy Lind Hogan
Hugh Latimer Elderdice Professor of Preaching and Worship, Wesley Theological Seminary
Preaching on Christmas, Easter, and Other Festivals
“By providing an engaging, accessible introduction to Christianity’s major festivals,
Susan Hedahl invites preachers to mine the riches of festival proclamation in ways
that celebrate the wonder, mystery, and grace of God. Here we encounter fresh pos-
sibilities for transformative preaching that are deeply rooted in Christian tradition. P
Every preacher who values the lectionary should read this book.” r
o
—Phil Snider
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Senior Minister, Brentwood Christian Church, Springfield, Missouri l
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m
Preachers often struggle with ways to proclaim the good news in fresh ways on the
six principal festivals of the church year: Christmas, Epiphany, Easter, Ascension, a
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Pentecost, and Holy Trinity. In Proclamation and Celebration, Susan Hedahl explores i
o
the homiletical possibilities of the biblical narratives and the related doctrinal n
concerns that ground each festival. Using sermon excerpts from a wide array of a
preachers to illustrate possible proclamation strategies, Hedahl helps preachers n
d
create sermons that find joyous resonance in the liturgical, spiritual, ecumenical,

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theological, cultural, and educational activities of congregational life.
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Susan K. Hedahl is the Herman G. Stuempfle e
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Chair of Proclamation of the Word at Lutheran
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Theological Seminary at Gettysburg. Her other a
t
books include Listening Ministry: Rethink- i
o
ing Pastoral Ministry (2001); Who Do You Say n
That I Am? 21st-Century Preaching (2003); and
contributions to both Proclamation and New
Proclamation.
fortresspress.com Susan K. Hedahl
Proclamation and Celebration
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Proclamation
and Celebration
Preaching on Christmas,
Easter, and Other Festivals
Fortress Resources for Preaching
Susan K. Hedahl
Fortress Press
Minneapolis
PROCLAMATION AND CELEBRATION
Preaching on Christmas, Easter, and Other Festivals
Copyright © 2012 Fortress Press. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in criti-
cal articles or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without
prior written permission from the publisher. Visit http://www.augsburgfortress.org/
copyrights/contact.asp or write to Permissions, Augsburg Fortress, Box 1209, Minne-
apolis, MN 55440.
Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are the author’s own translation or from
the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian
Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA, and are used with
permission.
Cover design: Tory Herman
Cover image: Dome in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem, Israel © Denis
Babenko/Shutterstock
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Hedahl, Susan K. (Susan Karen)
Proclamation and celebration : preaching on Christmas, Easter, and
other festivals / Susan K. Hedahl.
p. cm. — (Fortress resources for preaching)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8006-9820-1 (alk. paper)
1. Preaching. 2. Fasts and feasts. 3. Festival-day sermons. 4.
Sermons, American. I. Title.
BV4221.H44 2012
251’.6—dc23
2011037939
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American
National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library
Materials, ANSI Z329.48-1984.
Manufactured in the U.S.A.
16 15 14 13 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Contents
Acknowledgments vii
Introduction: The Principal Festivals 1
Festivals and Doctrinal Developments 2
The Principal Festivals Today 5
A Preview of the Festivals 10
1. Festival Sermons and Doctrine: Forging Connections 12
What Is Doctrinal Proclamation? 12
The Vocabulary of Proclamation 13
The Vocabulary of Doctrine 14
2. Christmas 19
Festival History 19
Christmas Pericopes 25
Doctrinal Proclamation 34
3. Epiphany 42
Festival History 42
Epiphany Pericopes 47
Doctrinal Proclamation 53
4. Easter 62
Festival History 62
Easter Pericopes 68
Doctrinal Proclamation 76
5. Ascension 85
Festival History 85
Ascension Pericopes 91
Doctrinal Proclamation 95
v
vi Contents
6. Pentecost 105
Festival History 105
Pentecost Pericopes 111
Doctrinal Proclamation 117
7. Holy Trinity 125
Festival History 125
Holy Trinity Pericopes 133
Doctrinal Proclamation 139
Notes 147
Index of Biblical Texts 163
Index of Names and Subjects 164
Acknowledgments
The field of homiletics and the act of proclamation represent two
aspects of an adventure that is always eclectic and collaborative. Since
this is so, the names below represent many talented, gracious, and expe-
rienced people, who have supported the writing of this book in some
way. I am particularly thankful for my editor, David Lott, whose keen
eye and substantial knowledge of many things significantly enhanced
this work.
As an example of the truly global reach of this work, thanks to Vitor
Westhelle and Adriano Ayres, two Brazilian theologians who brought
about contact with Brazilian Bishop Pedro Casaldaliga concerning use
of his beautiful Pentecost poem.
The process of receiving several sermons was facilitated, in part,
through postings to the ecumenical group “Young Clergy Women Proj-
ect,” with the assistance of Megan Manas via the National Council of
Churches.
My heartfelt thanks also to: Karen Bloomquist, Christopher B.
Brown, Charles L. Campbell, Michael Cooper-White, Jody L. Dickey,
Maria Erling, Thomas Hopko, James R. Hontz, Diane Jacoby, Jeff B.
Johnson, Kristen Largen, Don McCoid, Donna Nicholson, Mark Old-
enburg, Susan Posey, Niveen Sarras, Brooks Schramm, Robin Steinke,
Gretchen Stuempfle, Aaron Reynolds, Kirsi Stjerna, the staff at Odyssey
Networks, Donald Redman, Mark Vitalis Hoffman, and my students
at Gettysburg Lutheran Theological Seminary. Thanks are due to the
seminary’s Board of Directors who graciously lend their support and
affirmation for faculty authors.
The names of those who offered sermons used in this book are
located in the endnotes: how much I have enjoyed your creativity and
willingness to share materials. In an age when collections of sermons
vii
viii Acknowledgments
are rarely found on paper anymore, I am also grateful to those clergy
and web sites that have posted sermons for all to read. Thanks to Jenee
Woodard whose formidable creation and stewardship of the site www.
textweek.com has provided a place to link resources on-line related to
this work.
And there is an English Springer Spaniel named Ms. Pepper, who
accompanied the whole process of writing with her truly amiable
presence.
Introduction
The Principal Festivals
Think of us in this way, as servants of Christ and stewards of God’s
mysteries.—1 Cor. 4:1
The expression we require is simply that of straightforward speakers.
Provided you instruct me, then you may teach in any style you wish.
Tell me what the Trinity is, how God is one but divided, one maj-
esty, one nature, a unity and a trinity. How to explain the resurrection
itself? What is this incarnation that so far transcends understanding,
this mingling of elements towards a single glory, the dying towards
resurrection, the return to heaven?—Gregory Nazianzen1
These words of Gregory Nazianzen (329–390 ce) are a fourth-
century bishop’s reflections on what to teach and preach concerning
the primary mysteries of the Christian faith. Gregory’s references to the
Trinity, the resurrection, and the incarnation echo some of those doc-
trines embedded in the liturgical phrase “principal festivals.”
What are the principal festivals? This phrase is used today liturgi-
cally to refer to the six major festivals that trace the historical genesis
and ongoing revelation of God’s reign in the world in Jesus Christ,
through the power of the Holy Spirit. The festivals, in chronological
order, are Christmas, Epiphany, Easter, Ascension, Pentecost, and Holy
Trinity. The calendrical origins of the festivals’ dates evolved from vari-
ous calendars inclusive of the Jewish lunar calendar and the Roman
solar calendar. Four of these festivals—Easter, Ascension, Pentecost,
and Holy Trinity—are designated as “moveable feasts,”2 dependent on
the rhythms of the lunar calendar. Thus the three festivals following
Easter occur contingently on a given year’s Easter celebration date. The
two festivals reflecting their origins in the Roman solar calendar are
Christmas on December 25 and Epiphany on January 6.
1