Aaron Manes Aaron Manes

“All Means All” is not the finish line

As United Methodists, we are proudly people of an “open table,” meaning that all people are welcome to the sacrament of communion. At AUMC, we have extended the table to specifically include our LGBTQ siblings as an “open and affirming” congregation, but is that the finish line? (Hint: not exactly.) This week, Pastor Scott is joined by Pastor Britt Melrose in a conversational sermon about opening ourselves to the beauty of God expressed through the lives of LGBTQ persons.

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Aaron Manes Aaron Manes

Stories of Constructive Theology

“Deconstruction” is a buzz word for some, a dirty word for others, and simply a reality for many people here at AUMC. The word speaks to the season of “taking apart” one’s faith, and at AUMC, we include the word “reconstruction” as the natural next step. This is not a one-size-fits-all process; in fact, as we will learn this week, every journey is unique and sacred in its own way. This week, Pastor Cathy will weave various stories from AUMC members who know what it’s like to walk the “constructive” path, wherever that may lead them.

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Aaron Manes Aaron Manes

Seeing God from the Edges

It’s one thing to believe in God’s love for all people. But when we see God through the eyes of those whom we are not like, especially people beyond the scope of social norms, we begin to see God with more complexity and clarity at the same time. This Fall, journey with us as we uplift diverse voices and perspectives in an effort to better know God through the lived experience of God’s people.

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Aaron Manes Aaron Manes

Does Jesus Want Me to Fight My Grandma?

With the Fall season around the corner, that can mean gatherings with family and loved ones who… we don’t always see eye to eye with. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus actually shares some pretty provocative teaching about what his message could mean for those who follow him, and how it could redefine our relationships. Are we doomed to fight with our crazy aunt or uncle, or is there something more hopeful to be heard? Let’s talk this Sunday!

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Aaron Manes Aaron Manes

The 12 Steps and the Gift Of Letting Go

The 12 Steps invite us to take an actual honest look at how we perform our own lives. By organizing our steps to face actual addictions, we come to understand that our lives as we operate them become unmanageable. In step 2-3 we are invited to release our source so that God can be a resource. This is vulnerable. This is a challenge. The challenge is an invitation. An invitation to let go and wait on God.

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Aaron Manes Aaron Manes

When We Wrestle with God

Jacob is on his way to a face-to-face conflict that has been building his entire life, but before he arrives, he encounters a divine presence and wrestles his way through the night. Have you ever found yourself wrestling with God or with your faith in the midst of a uniquely challenging situation? You’re not alone. This Sunday, let’s talk about how we wrestle with God and why it’s a good thing.

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Aaron Manes Aaron Manes

How to Pick a Fight (According to Jesus)

He was hailed as the Prince of Peace, but Jesus understood the realities of conflict in everyday life. As he brought people into relationship with one another, and sought to bring reconciliation to all of God’s people, Jesus offered guidance on how we should handle the unavoidable conflict we would encounter in the life of faith. This week, let’s talk about why conflict might actually be a good (even great?) thing, and how our faith can be a guide.

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Aaron Manes Aaron Manes

God’s Grace Means Anything Goes?

What happens when a theology of grace actually becomes harmful? That’s precisely the concern that Jude was trying to address when he wrote his little letter, calling out the Christian leaders who used “grace” as an excuse for bad behavior. This week, let’s take a look at a small-yet-punchy note from Jude, a leader who is committed not only to God’s grace, but also how God’s grace can be good news for truly everyone.

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Aaron Manes Aaron Manes

Jesus’ Little Brother Has Something to Say

It can be hard when people compare you to an older sibling. But imagine if that older sibling was… Jesus. His younger brother, James, was a key leader in the Christian movement in Jerusalem, and as he came to the end of his life, he wrote a letter where he tried to sum up his theology through a series of pithy vignettes. This week, let’s take a look at the little letter of James, and give Jesus’ younger brother his due.

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Aaron Manes Aaron Manes

Culture Wars, Cults, and Cretans

The island of Crete was renowned in the first century as a place of liars, jerks, and the very worst that the world had to offer… it was also home to a growing number of Christian house churches. The Apostle Paul hears about the struggles that early Christians faced there, specifically in how they related to the surrounding culture. This week, let’s talk about how the questions facing Christians in Crete aren’t all too different than the ones we face in a modern cultural context.

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Aaron Manes Aaron Manes

Simply, Love.

The short letters of John (the elder) were written at a time when the early church, probably in Ephesus, was splintering. A movement was departing from the community’s traditional beliefs about Jesus. Early Christians didn’t know how to address these disagreements, but John, author of the letters, knew the most important thing: love. When our world is dividing, can it really be that simple? Love? This week, let’s find out how these letters offer not just words of love, but also advice on what love looks like when we are responding to attacks on our character. How do we love someone who seems to hate us?

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Aaron Manes Aaron Manes

When Dreaming is Love on the Run

This week we trade rainbow technicolor dreamcoats for someone we normally only talk about near Christmas. That’s right, it’s time for the other Joseph (of nativity fame) to shine! God visits him in a series of dreams, and while it is ultimately really big, really GOOD news, it’s also fear-inducing, life-changing, and pushes Joseph to places he never imagined he would go. Where might his dreams lead us?

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Aaron Manes Aaron Manes

Joseph is kind of a jerk, and that’s kind of the point.

Whether or not you’ve read the story, you’re likely familiar with it. A favorite son. A “many-colored” robe. Jealous brothers. Donny Osmond. (Okay, Donny isn’t in the Scripture.) The story of Joseph and his “technicolor” coat famous, to be sure, but when we dig deeper into the story of this dreamer, we find a complicated tale of hubris, humility, and family infighting that might change the way we approach the God-sized dreams in our life.

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Aaron Manes Aaron Manes

Coming Out and Coming Home

He’s on the run from a brother he believes is keen to kill him. In a dream, Jacob is visited by God with a simple message: go home. That simple message would lead Jacob to unexpected places and people, and it would change life for generations to come. As we step into June, we center ourselves on Dreamers, and wonder how God might be leading us to dream once again today.

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Aaron Manes Aaron Manes

For the Beauty of the Earth

In some circles of Christianity, it can sound like God hates the world or creation itself, but is that the story Scripture really tells? This week, we take a look at the creation stories in Genesis and consider how they inform our understanding of who God is, and who we are called to be. The way we understand the beginning of it all can definitively shape the way we live today.

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Aaron Manes Aaron Manes

Called, Equipped, Ordained

“Why am I here?” It’s a question we can ask ourselves at an especially boring meeting, and its also a question we can ask ourselves in those existential moments of life. Maybe your story is going exactly as you had hoped, or maybe you are wondering when your story will really start. This week, let’s talk about how God calls, equips, and ordains us for a meaningful purpose in this life.

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