Sermons and stories from Bethany United Church of Christ in Chicago, IL.
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24.08.11. Sermon. unCONVENTIONal: Loving Your Enemies
14:53
14:53
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Pastor Rebecca's sermon this week contained some hard news: unfortunately, God loves even your enemies.
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24.08.04. Sermon. unCONVENTIONal: Baptism Sunday
14:08
14:08
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For the first sermon in our unCONVENTIONal series, Pastor Vince preached on the unconventional wisdom of Jesus. Along the way, he discusses how he got converted to baptizing babies.
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24.07.28. Sermons. VS: Creator vs. Christ vs. Holy Spirit!
19:09
19:09
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We had not two, but THREE sermons this week in accordance with our "Versus" theme! Pastor Alaina Hoffman preached for the Holy Spirit, Pastor Izzy Collazo preached for the creator while Pastor Vince Amlin preached for Christ. Who do you think won?!
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24.07.21. Sermon. Vs: Cup Of Blessing vs. Bread Of Life
17:16
17:16
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For the third week of our "Vs." theme, Pastor Vince preached "Cup Of Blessing" while Pastor Rebecca preached "Bread Of Life". The congregation deemed it a tie! Give it a listen to decide on a winner yourself.
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In bout 2 of our July "VS." theme, Rev. Vince Amlin gave a sermon on "Faith" while Rev. Rebecca Anderson preached on the subject of "Hope". Decide for yourself who "won" by giving it a listen!
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24.07.07. Sermon. VS: Green Pastures vs. Still Waters
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14:54
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Are you ready to rumble??? Our July sermon series is "VS", a series of preacherly matches in which the beef is fake but the good news is real. Today’s podcast is bout 1: Reverend Vince Amlin is preaching "Still Waters" while Reverend Rebecca Anderson is preaching "Green Pastures". Let the games begin!…
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24.06.30. Sermon. Setting The Table: I Am Somebody
14:34
14:34
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Pastor Vince gave the final sermon for our "Setting The Table" series" last week, which also coincided with the final day of Pride Month. He asserts that "Jesus' welcome has always been and will always be a Queer welcome, first and foremost to the ones who have been left out, forced out, oppressed and abused by the dominant culture. Whenever you se…
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24.06.16. Sermon. Setting The Table: Divine HodgePodge
16:04
16:04
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Pastor Vince delivers a sermon considering the “hodgepodge” that makes up a church and how we might find strength and value in our differences.
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24.06.09. Testimonials. Setting The Table: Stories From Biloxi
17:32
17:32
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This week, congregation members Dave Scott, Johnny Buranosky, and Mary Ellen Monzella shared some beautiful testimonies about their time at in Biloxi, MS working with the Back Bay Mission. We hope you enjoy!
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24.06.02. Sermon. Setting The Table: Hospitality- Coming and Going
16:01
16:01
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This week, we started our new series "Setting the Table", a theme centering storytelling and hospitality. Bethany congregation member Ron Romasanta set the table for communion this week and shared a bit of his story, which we've included as part of this week's podcast. We also hear a sermon from Pastor Rebecca on Genesis 18.…
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24.05.19. Sermon. Hand To God: Unshakeable
13:48
13:48
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Vince's sermon this week was, yet again, about St. Cuthbert 😂 But from there, he moves into a sermon contemplating curses, anxiety and tree roots near water.
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24.05.12. Sermon. Hand To God: Continuous, Enthusiastic Covenant.
15:00
15:00
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In his sermon this week, Pastor Vince looks at faith not as a simple, one time promise, but rather as a continuous commitment towards community and relationship.
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24.05.05. Sermon. Hand To God: What's (Not) Yours To Promise
15:21
15:21
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Pastor Rebecca kicked off our “Hand to God” series with a hard story about what is and isn’t ours to promise. She preached about a summer spent with "no body-talk" and how it changed her.
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24.04.28. Sermon. Everything That Has Breath: Just Because
16:38
16:38
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Pastor Vince's sermon this week is all about Darwin, God’s unnecessary love and a quest to understand the mysteries of birdsong. If you listen, you'll even get to hear Vince's impersonation of the White-Throated Sparrow!
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24.04.21. Sermon. Everything That Has Breath: Hope For A Slow-Growth Species"
16:40
16:40
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Pastor Vince's sermon this week reminds us that there’s no shortcut past the anxiety of not knowing. But, he reminds us that God is always present to us, in the ups and the downs.
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24.04.14. Sermon. Everything That Has Breath: A Little Goes A Long Way
14:46
14:46
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Pastor Rebecca's sermon this week was all about bread, yeast and community. "Jesus said the kingdom of God is like leaven. It’s at work among us all the time, without our input. It’s alive. When we put our attention, hands, and energy to it, we can be co-creators of something delicious."
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24.04.07. Sermon. Everything That Has Breath: The Last Word About Breath
14:06
14:06
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14:06
Pastor Rebecca kicks off our “Everything That Has Breath” series with a sermon about pool safety, deep diving, gym rats, lung capacity, and the Holy Spirit. Give it a listen!
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24.03.31. Sermon. Disenchanted: An Idle Tale
14:37
14:37
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Happy Easter! Pastor Vince starts his sermon by claiming "no one has ever believed the story of resurrection". See if you agree with him by giving the sermon a listen!
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24.03.24. Sermon. Disenchanted: Sacred Spaces
15:54
15:54
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Pastor Vince's sermon this week surprisingly begins with naval history! Along the way, he also covers the boardgame "Othello", palm Sunday and dead crows. By the end, he makes a case for reclaiming sacred spaces and finding enchantment everywhere.
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24.03.17. Sermon. Disenchanted: Bone Deep
13:30
13:30
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Pastor Vince's sermon this week describes two of his recent pilgrimages: one to visit St. Cuthbert's bones, the other to visit the the grave of Matthew Shepard, a young man who was murdered in 1998 for being gay. His sermon weaves these two stories together to examine promises that beg to be fulfilled, stories that long for a resolution.…
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24.03.03. Sermon. Disenchanted: God's Beauty Standard
15:37
15:37
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Pastor Rebecca’s sermon this week is all about beauty; the superficial, the sincere, beauty that is honest, or reverent, or even beauty that is terrifying. Her sermon gathers up all these elements of “God’s beauty standard” and puts them into perspective through stories of connection, loss, honesty and healing.…
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24.02.25. Sermon. Disenchanted: Action and Miracles
16:14
16:14
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In his sermon this week, Vince tells the story of some abandoned kittens he encounters on an hike and how he feels there’s nothing he can do to help them. Comparing this experience to stories from the Bible, he delivers a sermon examining the distance between action and miracles, a space that we sometimes have to fill for ourselves.…
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24.02.18. Sermon. Disenchanted: Hawthorn Tree
12:50
12:50
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In her sermon this week, Pastor Rebecca preaches on the subject of superstitions or "enchanted realities", and the power they have to shape our more science-oriented world.
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24.02.11. Sermon. Misstakes Were Made: Corrections
20:03
20:03
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In her guest sermon this past Sunday, Pastor Alaina preached on the power of mistakes (or more specifically, the power of being vulnerable enough to admit to them). Often in Christian culture, we "conflate being without sin with being perfect". But Alaina points to examples of Jesus' humanity, moments where even he makes mistakes and learns from th…
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24.02.04. Sermon. Misstakes Were Made: Good Things
11:40
11:40
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In his sermon this week, Pastor Vince recounts an overly generous gift he recently received and the feelings of anxiety it brought him to accept it. He compares this experience to receiving the grace of God, and considers why we humans are often so weird about receiving good things.
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24.01.28. Sermon. Misstakes Were Made: Confession
14:46
14:46
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In her sermon this week, Pastor Rebecca challenges typical notions surrounding confession. She asserts that "feeling bad is not the mechanism on which change is made", and centers confession as a means of righting our relationship with God, and with others.
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In this sermon, Pastor Vince Amlin describes the repetitive cycles in our lives that feel like déjà vu (the hardships we face with incredulousness, thinking: haven't I already fought this battle before?) Reflecting on such moments in his own life, Pastor Vince helps to give meaning to these repetitive cycles.…
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24.01.14. Sermon. Leap of Faith: Jumping With Purpose
9:38
9:38
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In this sermon, guest preacher Xander King questions whether leaps of faith require an abstract faith in God, or if we might allow our morals and principles to lead us to God, telling us when it's time to leap.
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24.01.07. Sermon. Leap Of Faith: Ready, Set, Go.
14:48
14:48
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In our first sermon of 2024, Guest Preacher Johnny Buranosky recollects on his childhood and considers the many "leaps" he's taken in regards to life, faith and queerness.
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23.12.17. Sermon. All That Glitters: Catching Butterflies
12:44
12:44
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Pastor Rebecca preaches on the subject of happiness this week, thinking on when joy is a thing that comes passively, versus seeking it out with intention.
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23.12.10. Sermon. Hollow Ways and Desire Paths
15:11
15:11
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Pastor Vince used the metaphor of "desire paths" in this sermon to describe the repeated, well worn paths we walk to find our way to God.
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23.12.3. Sermon. All That Glitters: Our Lady Of the O
14:35
14:35
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Pastor Vince preached this Sunday, describing advent as a season where we can tell God what we really want, without holding back.
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23.11.26. Sermon. Mixed Feelings: Choices
14:50
14:50
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Pastor Rebecca preached on the subject of "choice" this Sunday. What decisions are made for us, and which ones do we have a hand in?
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2023.11.19. Sermon. Mixed Feelings: Re-threading The Beads
13:26
13:26
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Pastor Vince compares our faith the a threaded string of beads and wonders: what happens in those moments where our faith is tested? What happens when the thread breaks?
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2023.11.12. Sermon. Mixed Feelings: The World Is Bad
11:55
11:55
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Pastor Vince recounts a comment from his Spanish teacher that "the world is so bad now". In this sermon, he wrestles with this idea: how do we hold joy in the midst of so much suffering?
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Pastor Alaina received a standing ovation for her final sermon at Bethany UCC. Give it a listen here!
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The Dead Rising From The Grave?: Daniel & Halloween
12:26
12:26
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Bethany Member and University of Chicago Divinity Student Xander King preaches our final sermon for October, finishing out our theme of Apocalypse Now.
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2023.10.22. Sermon. Apocalypse Now. Revelations.
12:00
12:00
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On Sunday, Rev. Vince delivered this sermon centering New Revelations, being present in the current moment and exploring endings. Give it a listen here...
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Kate Leeman was preaching last Sunday, thinking about awe and wonder. About all that is bigger, and stranger, and more beautiful than we can take in. Which is what worship is about. Whether you’re already in that awe-filled place, or coming off of an awful week, you’re welcome here. We hope you will find a little of what you need here.…
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Pastor Alaina preached this last Sunday, in partnership with the Lighthouse Foundation, they were asking CARE churches to partner alongside them and preach a sermon on the importance of Workforce Development for Black LGBTQ+ folx and how accomplices can participate in that work. Here is an interpretation of the Parables of the Talents.…
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2023.10.1. Sermon. Pet Blessing Sunday. Wild Goose Chased.
15:25
15:25
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Pastor Alaina gave the sermon this past Sunday on how animals bless us by participating in our spiritual care. Listen now.
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2023.9.24. Sermon. Make Believe. God's Eye View
15:03
15:03
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Rev. Vince is preaching the sermon about making believe we are God! Taking a God’s eye view of others and of ourselves. Continuing the Make Believe theme, we're thinking about seeing ourselves as God sees us.
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2023.9.10. Sermon. Make Believe. Eye Contact
15:38
15:38
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We welcome you to listen to our Rev. Pastor Vince Amlin speak on from Sunday, September 10th on our Make Believe theme with the focus on eye contact, seeing from the marginalized perspective, All the people Jesus chooses to see, to make eye contact with. Imagining ourselves as the ones who are seen. Imagining ourselves as the ones looking away.…
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2023.9.17 Sermon. Make Believe. Guided Through Imagery
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18:18
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From this past Sunday, we welcome guest Virginia Gilbert as she preaches the sermon this week speaking on seeing the light, trusting our experiences, experiences of understanding, recognition, being understood and recognized.
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Pastor Alaina preached about our new series - Make Believe!
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2023.8.27. Sermon. Family Recipes. Desperation Pie
13:06
13:06
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Rev. Vince Amlin preaches about the idea of "Desperation Pie", how the humblest foods become the favorites, desperation becomes pie.
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2023.8.20: Sermon. Family Recipes. Comfort Food
18:16
18:16
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Pastor Alaina gave a sermon this past Sunday on spiritual comfort food as part of our August sermon series on “Family Recipes.”
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2023.8.13. Sermon: Family Recipes - Marinating on Tradition
14:52
14:52
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Rev. Vince is back to talk about ruminating on marinating on tradition, slow cooking, and how so many family recipes are based on taking time. Listen now!
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2023.8.6. Sermon: Family Recipes. Tastes like Love
17:18
17:18
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Pastor Alaina is preaching about this month's theme: Family Recipe. Sometimes we add too much to a recipe over time and lose what a recipe is supposed to really taste like. Christianity can have a lot of filler added that dramatically impacts flavor. What is it supposed to taste like? Love.
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2023.7.30: Sermon: Living in Harmony. Singing Together
13:26
13:26
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Rev. Rebecca Anderson gives her last sermon before she leaves on a 3 month Sabbatical. How can Bethany UCC learn to sing together? Let's come together, understand other perspectives and sing. Listen now.
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