The trek the Church has been traveling for the last four weeks will come to a climax in three days when even those outside the ecclesia celebrate Christmas. For Christians, this is the day that we commemorate the birth of Jesus — when God decided to enter the human drama definitively as one of us. […]
The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III © 2022. All rights reserved. T.S. Eliot is not the only poet I love. There are many others: Walt Whitman, Robert Frost, Emily Dickinson, Geoffrey Hill. I especially love Anne Sexton. Sexton was a twentieth-century poet who lived in Newton and taught at Boston University. Her poetry is amazing: […]
Dr. John Tamilio III © 2022. All rights reserved. I conducted a funeral the other day and at the graveside, after the committal, a friend of the deceased described him (twice) as a “God-fearing man.” God fearing? That is a term we use quite a bit — at least we used to — yet we […]
Dr. John Tamilio III © 2022. All rights reserved. Ten Samaritans. Ten foreigners. Ten people who have leprosy come to Jesus to be healed — and he heals them! Nine of the ten of them go to the Jewish priests (as Jesus instructed them). They did so presumably to offer the “proper” sacrifices of thanksgiving […]
Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor © 2022, Dr. Tamilio There are all kinds of great quotes about money. “Money often costs too much.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson “Too many people spend money they earned, to buy things they don’t want, to impress people that they don’t like.” – Will Rogers “Those who say ‘it’s only […]
Words cannot begin to express the immense gratitude I feel for having been your pastor for the past ten years. This congregation is certainly one that lives its faith: putting the teachings of Scripture and our rich, theological tradition into practice. I am equally thankful for the incredible celebration that was held on my behalf […]
The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor I spent last weekend on Martha’s Vineyard. It was the second year in a row that I was invited to preach at the Martha’s Vineyard Camp Meeting Association — the place in Oak Bluffs that is famous for its Gingerbread Houses. If you’ve never seen them, look them […]
Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor © 2022, Dr. Tamilio For God so loved the world. For God so loved the world that he gave us Jesus, the greatest gift of all. The greatest gift. Most (if not all) of us have received gifts throughout our lives: birthday presents, Christmas gifts, Red Sox tickets to celebrate […]
Dr. John Tamilio III © 2022, Dr. Tamilio I was ordained on June 6, 1999. I began serving my first church and Wakefield, New Hampshire one month later. Between these two moments of great joy and anticipation, I attended the annual meeting of the New Hampshire Conference of the United Church of Christ. One of […]
The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor © 2022, Dr. Tamilio I The Fourth of July brings many fond memories to mind for me. I recall my childhood: the Independence Day Parade my community held, complete with hot dogs and ice cream at one of our local parks afterward. All-day we would have water balloon […]