• Ditching the sermon – a dialogue for Holy Innocents

    dialogue with bishop
    This morning I decided to ditch the sermon in favour of a dialogue with Bishop Gregor.

    It has been a difficult Christmas in Glasgow with a major tragedy in the centre of the city as people were doing their last minute Christmas shopping. Bishop Gregor was himself there in the square just after the incident involving the bin lorry. In this conversation he describes what he saw, what he was asked to do and how he responded.

    Together we reflected on how Christians find God.

    This happened in the context of the Sunday morning Sung Eucharist instead of a sermon. It seemed the right thing to move the Feast of the Holy Innocents back to this day, it having originally been scheduled to be celebrated here tomorrow morning.

    As I said at the beginning of the service, Jesus wasn’t born into a fairy story, nor into a Christmas card – he was born into  the real world and sometimes we need to think about what that really means.

    Here’s the video:

    Dialogue between Kelvin Holdsworth and Gregor Duncan in Glasgow on 28 December 2014 from Kelvin Holdsworth on Vimeo.

6 responses to “12 Things I’ve Learned About Preaching”

  1. AKMA Avatar

    I feel the sort of fervent affirmation that would come out as if I were arguing with you…

    1. Jim Naughton Avatar
      Jim Naughton

      That’s so well stated.

  2. Christine McIntosh Avatar
    Christine McIntosh

    Thanks, Kelvin – just realised I’m preaching next week …

  3. Peggy Brewer Avatar
    Peggy Brewer

    Wisdom shared can be beneficial to most anyone in any profession! Very well said! I can think of some preachers that could/should heed your 12 commandments!

  4. Terry Taggart Avatar
    Terry Taggart

    Thank you Kelvin. As preachers there is a danger that ‘we won’t be told’. This particular blog has allowed me to refer back to basics. It is deeply reassuring to know that preaching is not the work of genius, but the work of the Holy Spirit within us. Blessings Always.

  5. Markus Dünzkofer Avatar
    Markus Dünzkofer

    Fantastic list! Should be shared with colleagues and those learning to preach.

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