“Of what value is it for Jesus to fulfill the Law of Moses, if modern Christians are just going to repeat history by wielding Paul’s epistles like a new Leviticus?”

Paul to the Galatians: ‘Love Your Neighbor’

Over Valentine’s Day weekend, I appeared on Beyond the Walls, an inclusive online Church service from Centre Place. They are the Toronto-based congregation in Community of Christ. This was my second time giving a sermon for them. Each service includes a focus scripture. This week’s came from chapter 5 of Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians. For my sermon, I included a portion of Shakespeare’s Sonnet 116, hence the “doom” reference above.

A lot of us will be familiar with the KJV translation of Galatians 5:22-23, where Paul lists the fruit of the spirit. As I learned in preparing for this sermon, the chapter frames these fruits in the context of Christian freedom, especially freedom from the old Mosaic law. If you’d like a good rundown on the historical background of this epistle, I recommend the BibleProject overview on YouTube.

From Galatia to Michigan

Our service emphasizes Paul’s instruction to love your neighbor. For the second half of my sermon, I tell a story about my late neighbor (and a third party who brought us closer together). I invite you to watch the sermon, which I have cued up below.

The sermon runs about 17 minutes. but I encourage you to watch the entire service, including hymns, scripture reading, greetings, and an exegetical lesson by Pastor John Hamer.

Lent Begins with Ash Wednesday and an Invitation

a person's forehead is marked with a cross using ash

If having a priest from a different church rub ash on your forehead isn’t your jam, that is okay. Nevertheless, the Lenten season is here for you. It is a time when all of Christianity embarks on a wilderness journey toward Easter. What better way to start a story that ends with resurrection than Ash Wednesday? Today, we offer a humbling and thoughtful nod to the reality of death as part of our journey.

The good news is you need not reinvent yourself. You need not spend the next 40-ish days cosplaying as Catholic/Anglican/Protestant. Your Restoration heritage, presumably as a Mormon/Latter-day Saint, comes with all the trappings, history, and literature you may need. So, here is an invitation: in whatever way speaks best to you, spend a little bit of time every day between now and Easter contemplating your soul and your connections to Christianity’s central story. Peace be with you 🙏

Questions for Discussion

What is your relationship to the Apostle Paul and his teachings?

How can people of Mormon heritage incorporate Paul’s teachings in Galatians 5 into their lives and spiritual practice?

Are you participating in Lent this year? If so, how are you approaching the Lenten season?