This morning was VST Sunday – and our guest preacher from the Vancouver School of Theology was the Rev. Dr. Raymond Aldred, the Director of the Indigenous Studies Program at VST. Dr. Ray preached on the texts for the fourth Sunday after Epiphany, including Deuteronomy 18:15-20, Psalm 111 and Mark 1:21-28.

He preached from an Indigenous perspective, and directly addressed the participation of the United Church of Canada in the project of colonization, as well as the history of Apologies to Indigenous peoples in Canada, starting with that of the United Church of Canada in 1986.

He also opened up the story from Mark’s gospel, clearly identifying Jesus as the “prophet like Moses” and the source of our hope. Jesus, the text tells us, spoke, taught and lived “with authority,” a quality that differentiated him from the rest of the religious teachers, because of his identity as the Word made flesh.

Listen to this powerful invitation to “turn toward life” at the invitation of Jesus, and to walk with integrity on this earth, rather than just saying the right things.