Why aren't sermons in the
Episcopal Church always comforting and affirming? Sermons have many
functions, sometimes to teach, sometimes to reassure, and sometimes to inspire
us to deeper prayer; however, the Episcopal Church also has the responsibility
of providing prophetic sermons, a continuation of the ministries of the
biblical prophets.
What was the basic ministry
of the biblical prophet? A primary function of many prophets was to
confront the people, on God's behalf, about the gulf between God's Will
of love & justice and the people's individual and corporate behavior. A
predictive element was often included, such as - if you continue to live in
political and/or moral bondage, then such-and-such will occur; two Old
Testament examples of prediction are (1) a liberating Messiah will come, as
with Isaiah, and (2) a foreign nation will conquer unrighteous people.
"However, God's final word through the prophets was one of hope and promise. No
matter what the people did, God would remain faithful and would return the
people to their land, where they would enter into a new relationship with God."
[from "Prophet" in The HarperCollins Bible Dictionary, rev. ed. (1996),
p. 888] Thus, the ministry of lay and ordained Episcopalians, whether in the
pulpit or not, includes godly confrontation in circumstances of animosity and
injustice.