Janice Scott ... The Village Shepherd
After being ordained in 1994 with the first wave of women priests, Janice became curate in a large city centre parish in Norwich and from there, moved to South Norfolk in 1999 as Rector of a rural benefice of six parishes. After completing her MA in Pastoral Theology with the Cambridge Theological Foundation in 2008 she was appointed Honorary Canon of Norwich Cathedral. Janice now lives with her husband Ian just outside Norwich. In addition to her diocesan work and writing "The Village Shepherd," she is a freelance writer for Redemptorist Publications in the UK. She has also written and broadcasts "Pause For Thought" on a local radio station and has written several novels, all with a church background.
Epiphany 7 | Ordinary Time 7 - C
Children's sermon
1 Corinthians 15:35-38, 42-50
Good morning, boys and girls. Have any of you ever planted a seed and watched it grow into a plant? (Let them answer.) I want to tell you the story about some seeds like these. There was once a package of seeds. These seeds were asleep in the package. The package was on a shelf in a store waiting for someone to pick them up and buy them. One day a little boy came along. He was looking for some seeds to buy so that he could plant them in his garden. He chose the package of seeds of some flowers like these (show the seed package). He took them home and opened the package like this (open the package and place the seeds in your hand).
Sermon
Luke 6:27-38
Cynthia E. Cowen
Sermon
Genesis 45:3-11, 15
Mary S. Lautensleger
Sibling rivalry. It's the pits. It has been around as long as there have been siblings around. Beginning with Cain and Abel, we see one brother disgruntled because God likes the other brother's sacrificial offering better. We remember, too, Isaac and Ishmael, Jacob and Esau, Rachel and Leah, the prodigal son and his older brother. Life is not fair.
Sermon
1 Corinthians 15:35-38, 42-50
Richard E. Gribble, CSC
George lives in Fort Portal, a town on the western front of Uganda, some fifty miles from the Congo. Like the Rwenzori Mountains (the Mountains of the Moon) that surround the town, George is a beautiful man in many ways. He works as a cook, among many other tasks, for a local school. There is actually little that George does not do. He is the one who washes, irons, and mends the students' clothes, cleans the dormitory, fixes what is broken, does the grocery shopping, and takes care of the outside yard. In short, George is a servant in the classic sense of that word. He serves the students and often the faculty and staff of that school from morning until after 8 p.m. each day.
What is The Village Shepherd?
The Village Shepherd offers sermons, bible stories, children's stories and prayers based on the Revised Common Lectionary. These inspirational sermons, stories, and prayers are sure to touch your heart, because they reflect the simple virtues and tranquil serenity that characterize Reverend Scott's English countryside pastorate. The questions "Where is God in this particular situation?" and "Where does the Gospel story cross our own human story?" are always at the heart of these meditations -- but rather than finding overt answers, instead you will be gently led to make your own connections and discover the powerful ways in which God works. Janice Scott has the unique ability to find interesting details in ordinary life that illuminate scripture, while still challenging even the most intellectual reader. And that gift is precisely what also makes her an outstanding communicator with children.
Most weeks include:
- Sermon based on the Gospel reading
- Sermon based on the Epistle reading
- Sermon based on the First reading
- Children's stories linked with the Gospel readings
- Children's liturgy and story (a different story than mentioned above)
- An intercessory prayer
