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Memorial Service for Portia King O'Brien
Memorial Service - July 01, 2023
Portia King O’Brien passed into the spiritual world on Saturday, May 30, 2020. | By Rev. Jeremy F. Simons | Bryn Athyn CathedralSpiritual Washing
Worship Service: Family (may include music) - June 25, 2023
"Spiritual Washing" The story of Naaman (2 Kings 5) washing seven times in the Jordan river tells us how the Lord cleanses us from hurtful thoughts and feelings and heals our spiritual life. | By Rev. John L. Odhner | Bryn Athyn CathedralSpiritual Washing
Worship Service: Sermon only - June 25, 2023
Baptism by itself does nothing for our salvation, but the Spiritual Washing it represents and supports is a life change that takes us out of hell and puts us on the path to heaven. (Matthew 15:1-20, Secrets of Heaven 3147) | By Rev. John L. Odhner | Bryn Athyn CathedralUncertainty
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - June 25, 2023
“Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things.” (Matthew 6:34) This simple phrase holds immense power. It’s easy to become caught up in what the future holds: worry, anxiety, fear. Our instinct is to reach for certainty and take control to make sure everything works out. This pattern becomes exhausting and is futile. Yet when we listen to the Lord we can let go of the need for certainty and instead hope, with the sure trust that the Lord will lead us through all hardships. This week, when you worry about the future, change that worry into a hope. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn | Westville, RSAThe Sun of Heaven
Worship Service: Family (may include music) - June 25, 2023
1st Lesson: Genesis 1:1-4, 14-19 2nd Lesson: Revelation 21:9-26 [Selections] 3rd Lesson: Divine Love and Wisdom 107, 109, 112 Talk: “The Lord Is the Sun of Heaven” | By Rev. Derrick Lumsden | Kempton, PA"I have seen, I have heard, I have felt."
Worship Service: Family (may include music) - June 18, 2023
"I have seen, I have heard, I have felt." (Arcana Coelestia 68). Imagine watching a movie at the theater without the soundtrack or listening to the soundtrack without the picture. Or imagine smelling bread fresh out of the oven but being denied a slice of it. Only when all our senses are engaged do we experience the fullness and richness of life. The same was true for Emanuel Swedenborg in his role as a revelator. The Lord could have simply told Swedenborg what to write down about heaven and hell but instead Swedenborg was fully immersed in the spiritual world where he saw, heard, smelled, tasted, and touched incredible things. The same is true of our spiritual lives - all our senses need to be engaged if we are to properly discern between good and evil. | By Rev. Derek P. Elphick | Bryn Athyn Cathedral"I have seen, I have heard, I have felt." (AC 68)
Worship Service: Sermon only - June 18, 2023
On the day before our celebration of New Church Day, we will take a moment to marvel at the nature of the Lord’s new revelation, given through His servant, Emanuel Swedenborg. The Lord could have simply dictated to Swedenborg all the necessary facts and information of this new revelation but instead Swedenborg spent decades living and breathing the sights and sounds and smells of the spiritual realm. Why was this necessary? Do we need a similar “immersion” in spiritual delights in order to properly discern between good and evil? | By Rev. Derek P. Elphick | Bryn Athyn CathedralNew Church Essentials - The Word
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - June 18, 2023
One of the central teachings of the New Church is that the Word has a deeper, spiritual meaning. This meaning runs through every story, every phrase, and even every word. This Sunday we'll talk about this deeper spiritual sense, and why it was revealed only hundreds of years after the Word was written, and the role it plays in the establishment of the New Church. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn | Westville, RSABaptism: Hannah Aileen Synnestvedt
Worship Service: Family (may include music) - June 18, 2023
1st Lesson: Isaiah 1:16-17; Matt. 18:1-6, 10; Rev. 22:1-4 2nd Lesson: NJHD 202; TCR 677, 721, 431:3; CL 91 Talk: “Baptism: His Name on Our Foreheads” | By Rev. Lawson M. Smith | Kempton, PAHoly Supper
Worship Service: Sermon only - June 18, 2023
1st Lesson: Revelation 1, 12:1-6; Apocalypse Revealed Preface, 8, 532, 547 2nd Lesson: Revelation 12:7-18, 20; Apocalypse Revealed 563, 564, 841 3rd Lesson: Revelation 21; Apocalypse Revealed 879, 881, 917, 918, 924, 925 4th Lesson: Revelation 22; Apocalypse Revealed 933, 940, 956 | By Rev. Brett D. Buick | Kempton, PATwelve Gates to the City
Worship Service: Informal Family - June 18, 2023
On the Holy City New Jerusalem there are twelve gates facing four different directions (Revelation 21:12-13). Twelve different ways into the City. What does this mean about entering the New Church? What does this mean about our own spiritual lives? | By Rev. Solomon J. Keal | Bryn Athyn Heilman HallMemorial Service for Christopher M. Carter
Memorial Service - June 12, 2023
| By Rev. Eric H. Carswell | Bryn Athyn CathedralBirthing A Good Idea
Worship Service: Informal Family - June 11, 2023
The vision of the pregnant woman clothed with the sun who gives birth to her son (Revelation 12), tells the story of our thinking up and then using an idea. The process includes the delight of owning the idea while not taking credit for the love that gives it spirit. | By Rev. J. Clark Jr. Echols | Bryn Athyn Heilman HallThe Angel with the Little Book
Worship Service: Family (may include music) - June 11, 2023
Revelation chapter 10 tells a story that is at the heart of what New Church day is all about. | By Rev. Jeremy F. Simons | Bryn Athyn CathedralThe Seven Thunders
Worship Service: Sermon only - June 11, 2023
The seven thunders that are heard in Revelation chapter 10 are speaking a message that will literally change the world. But that message is sealed up and John is told not to write it down. The reason for this has to do with what is just about to happen in the book. | By Rev. Jeremy F. Simons | Bryn Athyn CathedralNew Church Essentials - Life
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - June 11, 2023
This week we continue with the them of the essentials of the New Church, in other words, the core ideas that define what the New Church actually is. Last week we looked at a unique view of God. This week our focus is on life. In the New Church one of the central teachings is that we must follow the Lord’s teachings, and it is only through this that we can receive salvation and eternal life. In the book of Revelation we see images of what it means to truly live what we believe and fight mightily to put it into practice. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn | Westville, RSAThe Lamb of God
Worship Service: Sermon only - June 11, 2023
1st Lesson: John 1:29,36-37 2nd Lesson: Portions of Rev. 5-7, 12, 15, 19, 21 3rd Lesson: Arcana Coelestia 6107 Sermon: “The Lamb of God” | By Rev. Brett D. Buick | Kempton, PATwo Gateways to Eternal Life
Worship Service: Family (may include music) - June 04, 2023
The teachings of the New Church call baptism and Holy Supper two gateways to eternal life. Last Sunday we got to witness a baptism; this Sunday we get to have Holy Supper. This may be the first time a number of children will be witnessing Holy Supper and so the short family talk for this service will be a basic overview of the use and purpose of Holy Supper. | By Rev. Malcolm G. Smith | Bryn Athyn CathedralThe Lord Wants to Have Supper with You
Worship Service: Sermon only - June 04, 2023
When considering whether to take Holy Supper, we are often focused on whether we feel worthy to take it. This Sunday the short sermon will focus on what the Lord would like. | By Rev. Malcolm G. Smith | Bryn Athyn CathedralNew Church Essentials - The Lord
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - June 04, 2023
Our sermon series for New Church Day is going to be three parts. What's new about the New Church? We're going to look at what's new about an idea of the Lord, what's new about how you live your life, what's new about an understanding of the Lord's Word. The first one about the Lord, which we're going to do this Sunday, is going to be all about the oneness of God. How, when we look at the Lord Jesus Christ, we're seeing the fullness of God. We're seeing the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, all of it together in this one person who we can go to, relate to, have a relationship with, learn from, and worship. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn | Westville, RSAThe Marriage Supper of the Lamb
Worship Service: Informal Family - June 04, 2023
The Lord instituted Holy Supper with His disciples before the events of Easter, and it has been a Christian sacrament ever since. The Writings help us understand the value of Holy Supper in an even deeper way. | By Rev. Solomon J. Keal | Bryn Athyn Heilman HallThe Second Coming Has Happened!
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - June 04, 2023
1st Lesson: John 15:21-26 Talk: “Books of the Heavenly Doctrine” 2nd Lesson: Revelation 21:1-6 3rd Lesson: Apocalypse Revealed 876 Sermon: “The Second Coming of the Lord” (Text: Revelation 21; Apocalypse Revealed 876) | By Rev. Calvin Heinrichs | Kempton, PARobert S. JungĂ©
Memorial Service - June 03, 2023
1st Lesson: Psalm 3:3-5, 8; Diary of Spiritual Experiences 5002 2nd Lesson: Genesis 2:18-24; Conjugial Love 216e, 137:7 3rd Lesson: I Samuel 2:35; Charity 160; AC 454; John 10:27-30 Talk: “At the Passing of Robert Junge” | By Rev. Lawson M. Smith | Kempton, PAThirsty for Truth
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - May 28, 2023
It turns out that we don’t have all the answers and that we don’t have life more figured out than anyone else. When life gets hard we can quickly go from self-satisfied to despairing over ever knowing how to overcome our troubles. While we might seek to avoid this trap of thinking we have everything figured out only to have it all crash down around us, it is inevitable. Thankfully the Lord uses this experience to lead us to a place of true peace and contentment. This process is laid out for us in the story of Hagar and Ishmael. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn | Westville, RSAThe Importance of Baptism
Worship Service: Family (may include music) - May 28, 2023
This Sunday we have a very special service. One of the students in our school will be baptized. Baptism is SO important that even the Lord got baptized. Our teachings tell us that it is a sign and memorial. But what is so special about baptism? And why is it so important? Join us on Sunday to both celebrate the occasion and to learn a little bit more about this sacrament. | By Rev. Jeffrey Smith | Bryn Athyn Cathedral