And so it begins again.  Lent.  Today is the first Sunday of this very sacred season.  More people than usual came to the Ash Wednesday service the other night.  Maybe the times have us focused on the need for the Lenten message: a time of deep introspection; a time to seek absolution for the sins […]

The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor © 2025, Dr. Tamilio The story of the Transfiguration is a strange one.  What’s the point?  Jesus takes his inner circle of disciples up a mountain to be physically transformed before them.  His body and clothing become dazzling white — all aglow.  Moses and Elijah appear as well. […]

The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor  © 2025, Dr. Tamilio Today’s Old Testament reading has a special place in my heart.  I was twenty-four years old.  I had just finished my Master of Arts degree in British and American Literature at Northeastern University.  I should have been applying to Ph.D. programs.  My goal was […]

© 2025, Dr. Tamilio Have you ever wondered why geese fly in “v” formation?  Scientists has figured out why.  As each bird flaps its wings, it creates an uplift for the bird immediately following.  By flying in a V-formation, the whole flock adds at least 71% greater flying range than if each bird flew on […]

Have you ever been asked the question, “If you could pick any three people to have dinner with — living or dead — who would they be?”  Martin Luther King would definitely be on that list for me.  King is one of my spiritual and intellectual heroes.  It is an honor that I earned my […]

The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor  © 2025, Dr. Tamilio “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.” These are the words that God spoke from the heavens when Jesus emerged from the Jordan River when he was baptized by his second cousin John the Baptist.  This event marks the […]

The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor © 2025, Dr. Tamilio Wise Men from the East, the Magi — they followed a star that led them to a manger in Bethlehem.  They came to pay honor to the Christ child: the one who was born King of kings and Lord of lords.  It is a […]

The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III  Christmas Eve Sermon/Message Christmas Eve has a feeling like no other night: an aura of intense expectation envelopes everything.  It isn’t just the anticipation of children expecting brightly wrapped packages that will fill the space beneath the tree, or stockings bursting at the seams that will be hung by […]

The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor  © 2024, Dr. Tamilio I hate being sick.  My wife always tells me to never use the word “hate.”  Sorry.  I completely and absolutely and thoroughly despise being sick. I cannot remember the last time I was this sick.  (I’m still stuffed up if you haven’t noticed.)  I […]

The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor  © 2024, Dr. Tamilio Many of the circles that I move within — both pastoral and academic, both theological and philosophical — these circles believe that in order for us to all get along, we need to find a least common denominator religion: in other words, we need […]