The Rev. Noah Van Niel

The Chapel of the Cross

January 13^th, 2019

Baptism of our Lord (C) : Isaiah 43:1-7; Ps 29; Acts 8:14-17; Luke 3:15-17, 21-22

On this first Sunday after the feast of the Epiphany, the Sunday we always mark by celebrating the baptism of Jesus, where the voice from heaven announced him to be “my son, the beloved,” my question is, who else counts as beloved? Who, other than Jesus, has worth, and value in God’s eyes?” If I were to put the question to you all, I imagine most of you would probably say, “everyone!” And according to the catechism, or the teachings, of The Episcopal Church at least, you’d be right![1] We believe that God is the creator of all humankind, that we are all made in God’s image, and we believe, as Isaiah says this morning, that God loves all those he “formed and made.” Humanity therefore has an inherent value in the eyes of our common creator and, maybe this goes without saying, but we are called, therefore, to a similar appreciation for our human family. Because all are valued in God’s sight they should be valued in our sight as well. As we promise in the baptismal covenant, with God’s help we will “respect the dignity of every human being.” Everyone counts as a beloved child of God. Continue reading →

The Rev. Noah Van Niel

December 30^th, 2018

The Chapel of the Cross, Chapel Hill

The First Sunday after Christmas: Isaiah 61:10-62:3; Psalm 147:13-21; Galatians 3:23-25; 4:4-7; John 1:1-18

When the author of Mark, most likely the earliest of the evangelists, set out to write down his version of Jesus’ life, he began with the prophets, specifically, Isaiah. He wanted to make sure people knew that Jesus was the one about whom they had been prophesying, the Messiah. When the author of Matthew, who was probably next, began his account, he traced Jesus’ legacy all the way back to Abraham, the father of the faithful hoping, to convince the Jews of that time, of Jesus’ firm place within the line of the patriarchs; not some foreign intervention, but a continuation of the story they knew and revered. When Luke took his shot, probably with Mark and Matthew and some other sources in front of him, he was bold enough to draw Jesus’ genealogy all the way back to Adam, the father of all people, in an effort to expand the understanding of Jesus’ role in salvation history: not just the one to restore the fortunes of Israel, but the doorway for people even outside the chosen race, to come to know God. Their collective point, made by slightly different means, was to try and connect Jesus to who and what came before so as to create avenues of entry for all types of hearers into his story and ultimately, his grace.

                John’s was most likely the latest gospel to be written down. And he goes back even further: Continue reading →