Festival of Homiletics: Tuesday Morning Sermon: Anna Carter Florence on Matthew 15:21-28

Top 5 8 List from Anna Carter Florence's Sermon on Tuesday Morning:

1. Even after the bulletin is run off, it's ok to change both the Sermon Title and Scripture Preaching Text.  Sometimes the Spirit moves in unexpected, unplanned, and uncalled for ways--And That's OK!  (If a professor of preaching at a preaching conference can do it, so can I!)

2. "We don't need to be Jesus' bodyguards.  We are called to be poets instead, because Poetic Language stops us in our tracks and causes us to take a 2nd look at life." ~Dr. ACF

3. The woman in a discussion with Jesus (Matthew 15:21-28) could have left the room or hung her head.  Instead she chose to break open the image and word of "dog" (a cultural, racial slur in 1st Century Palestine) and look at it again in a new light.  Thus we need to do the same.  "In the beginning there is always a word... give us a new word."

4. "When breaking the bread for communion, we should tear the bread with abandon, so more crumbs fly off to make sure everyone gets a piece." ~Dr. ACF or Mary Oliver, I can't remember now.

5. Mary Oliver says, "The Bread of Life and Cup of Astonishment."  When have you eaten Life and been astonished lately?

6. Mary Oliver believes a poem is a confession of faith.  It has a purpose other than itself

7. Anna Carter Florence really likes Mary Oliver and her "Poetry Handbook" (especially a great quote on page 122, but I don't have it so I can't find the quote right now!). Since preaching should be more like poetry, I probably should have paid more attention in my many English classes years ago.  Oops. [See # 4, 5, 6]

8. U2 wrote a great song about this passage.  "Crumbs From Your Table".  Check it out on their album "How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb"! (Song lyrics are poems after all.)

Festival of Homiletics: Monday Evening Lecture: Anna Carter Florence on Mark 5's Preaching Superheros

Instead of typing all my notes and including them here, I thought it would be more fun, (And more helpful as I continue to process this material and conference), if I created a Top 5 list for each of the sermons and lectures I've heard and post them here instead.  If you have questions or comments on any of these, please post in the comments section.  I'll do my best to explain them and thicken these stories and comments the best I can.

Top 5 List from Anna Carter Florence's Lecture on Monday evening:

1. Accepting commonly accepted Biblical Theories is easy.  There are tons of books supporting them.  Digging deeply on my own and uncovering the text for what it says is much harder.

2. Pastors often don't ask ALL the questions of the text--partly because we don't see them due to our training, and partly because they might get us into hot water with someone in power.  Ask them anyways and keep our eyes open when exploring the Canon.

3. God demands the truth, and nothing but the WHOLE truth, so keep digging into the text despite the threats for yourself (self-preservation) or others in power (The Bible is culturally, politically, and socially subversive, so watch out!). 

4. Reading around the margins of a text makes for much more interesting reading.

5. I wish Mattel or Hasboro would create and market Anna's 3 Superhero Action Figures of Homiletics (Preaching): Mark 5's Demoniac (Complete with graveyard and chains), Hemorrhaging Woman (Complete with Jesus' cloak or a "Red Tent"), and 12 year old walking resurrection girl (Complete with bed and burial clothes).  I'm sure they would be big sellers! (They would go great on the shelf in my office along side my bobblehead "Buddy Christ.")