In this message for the Fourth Sunday of Easter, Rev. Dr. Charissa Clark Howe reexamines the familiar words of Psalm 23 alongside Jesus' teaching of the Good Shepherd in John 10:1-10. While "The Lord is my shepherd" is frequently read as a private, individualized comfort during times of personal grief, this sermon challenges listeners to expand their theological imagination.What happens when the "I" in the Psalm is expanded to represent our collective church community, or even the Earth itself? Exploring the congregation's need for "unstructured fellowship" and the call to practice "active hope" through holistic Earth care, this message reveals that God's compassion is not compartmentalized. Instead, the Good Shepherd's care encompasses an interconnected ecosystem, leading us together and preparing a table of abundant life right in the middle of our most difficult valleys.

On the Third Sunday of Easter, Rev. Dr. Charissa Clark Howe explores the familiar story of the Road to Emmaus in Luke 24:13–35 through the poetic framework of 19th-century Black and Indigenous activist Olivia Ward Bush-Banks. The fight against systemic injustice and the violence of the empire often leaves us carrying the heavy, traumatized weariness of modern-day martyrs, blinded to God's presence by our own grief.In this message, we examine how the resurrected Christ meets the defeated disciples exactly where they are—not with quick fixes or theological debates, but with pure presence and a listening ear. Furthermore, as the congregation celebrates the baptism of Austin Brown, this sermon highlights how the physical, communal solidarity of the sacraments serves as the ultimate antidote to our exhaustion. It is through the breaking of the bread and the waters of baptism that our trauma is reframed, our hearts are rekindled, and we are given the collective resilience to turn around and return to the messy work of liberation.

Original Poem can be found here: https://scalar.lehigh.edu/african-american-poetry-a-digital-anthology/olivia-ward-bush-banks-the-walk-to-emmaus-1899

On the Second Sunday of Easter, we usually point the finger at "Doubting Thomas" for his skepticism. But in this message exploring John 20:19–31, Rev. Dr. Charissa Clark Howe suggests taking Thomas off the hook and looking instead at the terrified disciples hiding behind dead-bolted doors. At a time when so many are walking away from the modern American church due to a disconnect between what is preached and what is practiced, we are challenged to stop cowering in our comfortable, safe silos. The greatest proof of the resurrection isn't an empty tomb, but a resilient, grassroots community that unlocks its doors, receives the peace of Christ, and steps out into the margins to offer radical compassion, inclusion, and solidarity to a hurting world.