God’s Love Never Seeks to Divide Us

August 14, 2022

Parishioner Mary Lynn Rynkiewicz, as part of her vocational discernment process, helps us unpack a difficult Gospel reading, in which Jesus seems to sow division. With limited time left to deliver his message, Jesus cannot mince words. Lines must be drawn between those who want to keep things the way they are, and those who are ready to embrace God’s dream of love for all on Earth. This division offers us the opportunity to reflect and ask how we’re being called to be more loving toward God, our neighbors and ourselves.

See Luke 12:49-56

What Do We Really Own?

July 31, 2022

Jesus tells a parable about a man who uselessly spends his whole life acquiring treasures. His wealth springs from the land, but he believes it is a self-made fortune, and fails to realize how much his life and prosperity are interconnected with others. Rev. Dorota Wright-Pruski notes that the Abrahamic tradition of tithing was not a tax, but a practice, rooted in the understanding that all we have is a gift. And part of how we acknowledge and celebrate that gift is to share it.

See Luke 12:13-21

A Fresh Look at The Lord’s Prayer

July 24, 2022

The Lord’s Prayer, a.k.a. the “Our Father”, is among the most memorized and recited prayers in the Christian tradition. However, Jesus offered it to his disciples not as a specific prayer, but as a sort of framework for prayer. Rev. Beth Bingham notes that because we’ve memorized it, we might lose sight of its true depth and meaning.

See Luke 11:1-13

Removing the Blindfold of Envy

July 17, 2022

In today’s Gospel, Martha is envious of her sister Mary, who sits listening to Jesus teach while Martha tends to the chores of serving the guests. As Rev. Dorota Wright-Pruski notes, envy can keep us from appreciating the wonderful things in front of us, because we can’t see past what someone else has. By allowing Jesus to teach and guide us, we can enjoy what God is doing in our lives, without needing a favorable comparison to the people around us.

See Luke 10:38-42

And Who Is My Neighbor?

July 10, 2022

The lawyer in today’s Gospel asks Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus responds with the parable of the Good Samaritan, which no doubt shocked his audience of Israelites. As Rev. Randall Prior notes, our neighbors may well include people with whom we share mutual contempt or mistrust. But we’re called to cross the lines that separate us, showing God’s kind of love. Our neighbors are whomever God puts in front of us.

See Luke 10:25-37

Staying Focused on the Mission

July 3, 2022

Rev. Randall Prior points out that today’s readings all contain cautionary tales about our mission. The 70 who were sent out by Jesus had to believe that they were going to make a difference. Like theirs, our vocation does not lie in being safe, secure or in control, but in trusting the power of God working through people like us.

See 2 Kings 5:1-14 and Luke 10:1-11, 16-20

Make Peace With Doing Less

June 26, 2022

Even if we acknowledge that we can’t do all the things we care about, it can be very painful to let any of them go. In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells would-be followers they must make the choices that matter the most, and find a way to set the rest down. When the myth of limitless accomplishment crumbles, we’re left with a reality that is more honest: having enough of what matters for today.

See Luke 9:51-62.

Playful is Faithful

June 12, 2022

On Trinity Sunday, we hear from the Book of Proverbs that God is playful and wove delight and joy into the fabric of creation. Play is thus a primary intelligence for the Creator as well as for the created world. The Rev. Dorota Wright-Pruski argues that a faithful response to a playful God is to join God in delighting in the world around us through play, that is, through activities whose sole purpose is to facilitate fun.

See Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31.

The Spirit’s Gentle Power to Break Us Open

June 5, 2022

On Pentecost Sunday, our guest presider, the Rev. Dina Widlake, notes that the Holy Spirit can be many things at many times. Peaceful and gentle, like the dove often used to symbolize it. But also fiercely powerful and uncontrollable, like the violent rush of wind that overtook the disciples at the Pentecost. God’s untamed grace visits us all, not to break us down, but to break us open so that we can know and respond to each other in new ways.

See Acts 2:1-21 and John 14:8-17

Who Are We to Hinder God’s Inclusiveness?

May 15, 2022

Peter’s experience with the Gentiles in Caesarea confirms what God had shown him in a vision: that the kingdom of God is for all people, not only the Jewish followers of Jesus. Like the little boy’s lost mitten in a Ukranian folk tale, the kingdom stretches and reshapes itself in limitless ways to provide refuge and belonging for all who seek it.

See Acts 11:1-18

Join the Good Shepherd in Caring for the Flock

May 8, 2022

Rev. Dorota Wright-Pruski cites from Psalm 23 as she describes the needs and hope of the Haitian people. A good shepherd must provide real, tangible support to the flock, including safe places to rest their heads, protection from danger, and a full table spread before them. In these ways, St. Andrew’s can support our partner school in Berault, Haiti.

See Psalm 23

Casting the Net of Discipleship Again and Again

May 1, 2022

After Jesus’s resurrection, the disciples’ intense spiritual experience had faded, so they went back to their daily routine: fishing. But a stranger on the shore, later recognized as Jesus, redirected them toward their mission to be fishers of people. Seminarian Brandon Nonnemaker asks: are we aware enough to recognize the figure on the shore of our own lives, reminding us to “cast the net again”?

See John 21:1-19

Pancakes or waffles? Love or life?

April 17, 2022 / Easter Sunday

In a special Easter Sunday message, Rev. Dorota Wright-Pruski gets the kids playing a game about tough choices — like the choice Jesus made to sacrifice his life for the sake of love. And thanks to God’s miraculous rule change, the result wasn’t the disappearance of life, but of death.

A Year in the Life of St. Andrew’s: 2021

January 30, 2022

Presented at the St. Andrew’s Parish Annual Meeting, this video looks back on the challenges and celebrations of our parish during a year of dramatic change.

The Scripture Is Alive With What We Bring to It

December 25, 2021

John’s Gospel prologue invites us back to the beginning of creation; the Word that spoke the world into being continues to speak. As Seminarian Brandon Nonnemaker notes, every week we tell and hear stories of God’s relationship with God’s creation. As we bring ourselves to scripture again and again, we can be encouraged and inspired. It is Good News that “God pitched a tent among us, in a lowly stable.”

See John 1:1-14.

Ye Choirs of New Jerusalem

— C.V. Stanford

Sung by the combined choirs of:

• The Falls Church, Episcopal
• St. Andrew’s, Arlington
• St. Andrew’s, Burke
• St. Mary’s, Arlington, and
• The Church of the Epiphany, Oak Park, CA

Jay Wilcox, conductor

Aaron Goen, organist

A Year in the Life of St. Andrew’s: 2020

Jan. 31, 2021

Presented at the St. Andrew’s Parish Annual Meeting, this video looks back on the challenges and celebrations of our parish during a difficult year. Permission to reprint, podcast, and / or stream the music in this service obtained from ONE LICENSE with license # M-400520. All rights reserved.

Christmas Greetings from St. Andrew’s

Dec. 25, 2020

Families from St. Andrew’s share their holiday greetings virtually in a heartwarming montage of photos and videos.

Permission to reprint, podcast, and / or stream the music in this service obtained from ONE LICENSE with license #M-400520. All rights reserved.

Silent Night

Dec. 24, 2020

Families from St. Andrew’s lend their voices to a virtual ensemble performance of “Silent Night.”

Speaking in Tongues: The Pentecost

May 31, 2020

In this reading of Acts 2: 1-21, members of St. Andrew’s contribute their talents in terms of foreign languages and artwork.

“Draw Us in the Spirit’s Tether”

May 31, 2020

A combined choral presentation featuring the choirs of Holy Cross in Dunn Loring, VA; St. Andrew’s in Arlington, VA; and St. Andrew’s in Burke, VA.

Permission to reprint, podcast, and / or stream the music in this service obtained from ONE LICENSE with license #M-400520. All rights reserved.