Sermons by Washington National Cathedral

August 15, 2021: Sermon by the Rev. Canon Leonard L. Hamlin, Sr.

“Life is worth living just because He lives.”

What does it mean to have a life that is alive? Canon Leonard Hamlin examined this question during his sermon yesterday.

August 8, 2021: Sermon by the Very Rev. Randolph Marshall Hollerith

Who else is guilty of late-night snacking? ✋

 

Dean Randy Hollerith preached yesterday about satisfying a deeper hunger and filling the emptiness inside of us with God’s love.

August 1, 2021: Sermon by the Rev. Canon Dana Colley Corsello

Feeling hangry? Canon Dana Corsello says it may be time to probe the hunger beneath your hunger.

"The short answer is that Jesus, and Jesus alone, is all the sustenance we will ever need. If we trust that Jesus is our bread, he can fill our empty wells, he can heal whatever is broken, and he can find whatever is missing."

July 25, 2021: Sermon by the Rev. Canon Jan Naylor Cope

"Whatever we have, given in love, will be blessed by God and more than meet the moment and satisfy the needs of all. That's the way it works. That's what Jesus taught us about how to use the power that each one of us have: that nothing is too little when we give it away out of love and faithfulness."

Cathedral Provost Jan Naylor Cope looks at Jesus' lessons on power, and faithfulness, in the age-old story of the five loaves and two fish.

July 18, 2021: Sermon by the Rev. Canon Leonard L. Hamlin, Sr.

“We must remember, it does not begin with others, it begins with me.”

Canon Leonard L. Hamlin, Sr. preached a powerful sermon on Sunday, encouraging us to build a strong community by reflecting the values we seek in a community.

July 11, 2021: Sermon by the Rev. Patrick Keyser

“Incidents of senseless violence often leave us feeling completely helpless and unsure what we can do. We can, in turn, all too easily, lean into that attitude of helplessness and thus absolve ourselves of any responsibility. The story of John's beheading might not offer us a word that touches and warms the heart, but it does offer us a call to action.”

 

In a world filled with violence, we are called to be peacemakers. The Rev. Patrick Keyser preached yesterday, on the 26th anniversary of the Srebrenica massacre.

July 4, 2021: Sermon by the Very Rev. Randolph Marshall Hollerith

475 days.

That’s how long it’s been since the Cathedral has been able to welcome worshippers in-person. On Sunday, Dean Randy Hollerith reflected on what we’ve learned in those 475 days and the work we need to do in order to move forward.

June 27, 2021: Sermon by the Rev. Canon Rosemarie Logan Duncan

"You and I are free for one another. Free to build the beloved community, to lean into the ideals of a more perfect union, where our value and worth as the human family, as beloved children of God, is not defined by social status, by the pronouns by which we identify ourselves, by who we love, or by the color of our skin."

On the last weekend of Pride month and looking forward to celebrating Independence Day next week, Canon for Worship Rose Duncan told us what freedom as God's children means.

June 20, 2021: Sermon by Bishop Yvette A. Flunder

“I am free to be free and I am free to free people.”

We were thrilled to welcome guest preacher Bishop Yvette A. Flunder to the Canterbury pulpit. Preaching the day after Juneteenth was made a national holiday, Bishop Flunder encouraged us to reflect on the meaning of freedom.

June 13, 2021: Sermon by the Rev. Canon Leonard L. Hamlin, Sr.

"Can you hear me now?"

As we reemerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Rev. Canon Leonard L. Hamlin, Sr. reminded us yesterday that we cannot return to a new normal. We need to hear God’s call and put in the work to help create a world full of love.