Momologian: Recent Episodes
Alicia Vélez Stewart
Who is Momologian? Rev. Alicia Vélez Stewart (she/her/ella) is a sassy mom of twins + 2, at times irreverent but always in awe of the Divine, Latina pastora, theologian, progressive, and unashamedly liberal child of God. Fully fueled by caffeine & the Holy Spirit 🕊, if you’re looking for a slightly heretical and definitely scriptural take on Christianity then you’re in the right place.
The kingdom of God is like.. ourselves here by the lakeshore in Capernaum, sitting with Jesus and the crowd which has gathered, as he teaches about the Kingdom of God and the infinite possibilities there are to experience it.
Today, we gather to explore the profound call found in 2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1—a call to live authentically Christian lives which embody mercy, justice, and compassion. You know - Lives where we aren’t just speaking about how God is present in our lives, but LIVING as if we are always in the Presence of God
We have been on a bit of a pilgrimage together. We have been witness to what I like to think of as God’s love letter to Creation, as we find it in our scriptures. And throughout that love letter, there is a common theme: Presence as Love in action.
When God asks, “Who should we send?”into the world, Isaiah responds with a confident, “here I am. Send me!” Isaiah’s encounter with God offers a powerful blueprint for renewal in our churches and in our society. But we have to show up first.
Mother’s Day is a day fraught with complexity. In this prayer written by Rev. A, you are invited to lean into that complexity, and lift up the beauty and difficulty this day can bring.
Mother’s Day is complicated. So is faith. And this message from 1 Timothy is exactly the sort of message we need to hear today, as we remember the mother’s and nurturers in our lives and how we are called to the work of passing along our legacies of love.
Loving like Jesus: Love One Another This week was a monumental one in the life of the world-wide UMC. With all the changes, many are asking, “So where does this leave us?“ Well, Beloved, the scripture for today gives us the answer to the “now what?” question for us and our church: We continue to love.
Welcome to week 3 in our series “Living Like Jesus.” This week we are on the topic of living in a way that speaks to our Love of God. Now, after a number of conversations - and I am not just saying that! I HAVE had a number of conversations - about how we engage the text in worship vs. Bible study, and how some folks wish we could have a moment in worship that is LIKE our Bible studies vs. a sermon that can feel like I am talking AT y’all, we are going to give that a try this week.
How do we know we are “doing the thing-“ that thing being living like Jesus? By living LOVE in a world which seems to thrive on something else entirely.
So often in our churches we participate in the intellectual exercises of faith and belief, but what about the practical side of things? This week we explore how to live like Jesus, and dig into what it means to “live hope,” as one way of doing so.
When Mary encountered the angel at the tomb, there were two miracles at work. The miracle of resurrection and the miracle of faith in the face of uncertainty.
Welcome to Holy Week, beloved church! Today begins our observance of one of the most sacred and impactful weeks of our faith. Palm Sunday is not just a moment of celebration but it’s also an invitation to sit UP and proclaim what we know to be true about our faith, what we know to be true about Jesus and his message of LOVE
Here we are, church! We have entered the penultimate - oh I love that word, second to last - of our lenten series where we are invited to get UP to something by asking questions of ourselves during this season of deepening our understanding of what the Jesus story means to us in our faith journeys.
This lent we explore the question: what is God UP to in our lives? Week 4 is our reminder to light UP the world…even as one particular passage in today’s selected text has been used in the past to, well, do quite the opposite.
This Lent we explore the question: what is God UP to in our lives? Week 3 reminds us that as important as it is to tear down systems of oppression and injustice we also need to raise UP the promise of resurrection
This Lent we explore the question: what is God UP to in our lives? Week 2 invites us to take UP the message of Christ - and let go of the stuff that keeps us weighed down.
This Lent we explore the question: What is God UP to in our lives? Week 1 invites us to “come UP” out of the depths into a new way of being this season.
After a few weeks away, Rev. A is back! It’s Transfiguration Sunday, and here we are with the ones with whom Jesus has been walking alongside and teaching from the beginning. And they are having, quite literally, a religious experience of epic proportions. Maybe even one of the biggest “come to Jesus” moments for them.
We will have one more message on “call” and on “being called” today, but this time we have a moment with Jesus and someone who really isn’t expecting much. This might be a wonderful, biblical example of not saying the first thing that comes to your mind out loud…So let's dive right into the audacity of Nathaniel
“Come and follow me:” One the most thought provoking and anxiety producing phrases in the Gospels any of us can hear or experience in our lives.
Epiphany is every day. Or at least it can be. With the Magi as our inspiration can you set aside expectations and allow yourself to experience God in a new and exciting way?
So what’s the deal with this Covenant prayer? Well, it’s a part of our heritage as a Wesleyan people and is a wonderful way to greet the new year with intention as a people called Christian.
What can we learn about ourselves and God’s Love from Mary’s encounter with the angel in Luke? Quite a lot, actually!
Here we are in the heart of Advent, and we encounter the voice of John the Baptist, not in the comfort of a temple, but in the challenging wilderness—a symbol of the struggles and uncertainties we face in our individual lives and in the broader world. And he is far from peaceful. Or is he?
This week’s Gospel reading is a lot to take in. Can we find hope in a moment that feels frightening and feels as far away from hope as we can get? Yes. Yes we can.
It’s nearly Advent, the prelude - if you will - to Christmas. We do this every year and so, you may ask, why do we prepare for the arrival of Jesus when He was born centuries ago? What is the significance of Advent in our lives as Christians? Well, you know what? Those are great questions, beloveds. And they deserve answers.
Be glad in the Lord always! That can be a lot easier said than done, beloveds - am I right? So how do we find words of gladness in a world with little - at times - to be glad for?
Sometimes we come across a scripture or in this case a parable of Jesus’ that seems to give us more questions than answers. The parable of the bridesmaids is certainly one of them. But what if this wasn’t so much a story about damnation or separation or being a good enough believer but a parable about readiness and being willing to use what you have when you have it, and not wait for “the right time” or a special occasion.
In different parts of Latin America and the Caribbean the community gathers, just like we are now, to remember and celebrate the lives of those who have gone before us in life and death. To symbolize the presence of the Saints and Souls among the living, the names of those who have passed have been written throughout the week on our altar cloth. These names represent our congregation’s saints as well as those of the communities we serve. This naming connects us to all those who are remembered with love. As we read each name, you are invited to respond with PRESENTE/They are here.
Once upon a time, in a land where ancient stories whispered in the wind, there was a peculiar road that led to a quiet village known as Emmaus…
Our second installation in our Holy Ghost Stories series. A mysterious tree, a deep dark cavern, and a garden of miracles - what does today’s story hold for us?
Welcome to our 2nd annual celebration of spooky season and our “Ghost Stories” series. Hear this weeks story of the local haunted house and the spooky skeleton inside.
But that’s not fair!!! Humanity often nurtures a sense of us vs. them, and sometimes even a culture of fairness vs. unfairness when it comes to Love and compassion. God’s grace can seem unfair - and that’s the best thing about it!
So often Christians neglect their bodies - either shaming themselves or forgetting they have them altogether. But what if we were to look to the psalmists for ways to worship God with our whole selves - spiritual and physical - in a way that delights in our body's abilities and limitations as reflections of Grace in the world?
It sure has been a hot minute since we’ve been here! So what have we been up to this whole time?
Radical hospitality was an expectation in Biblical times. Generous welcome and care for the stranger often was the difference between life and death. Just because we don’t live in the desert doesn’t mean we don’t need to give or receive the same kind of care.
Today’s scripture gives us a lesson on what it means to be unafraid in the face of the unknown.
Lex orandi, lex credendi, lex vivendi - Or, in other words, y’all: If we talk the talk, we gotta walk the walk and MEAN IT
A little reflection on this Sunday morning. How does this moment in Acts speak to the church today?
Peter’s faith in Jesus is the foundation of the church. A strong enough foundation that here we are, over 2000 years later, still standing upon it. Our foundation is our faith in Christ and who we say he is. Or is it?
It’s time to leave the gatekeeping behind, friends. The truth is, we (Mainline Protestants and for SURE New England Methodists) as a community are declining not because people have fallen out of love with God but because people have fallen out of love with CHURCH.
A special message on Native American Ministries Sunday. Hear guest preacher Mr. Todd Warfield, member of the Abenaki tribe, on Acts and reorienting ourselves daily.
It’s still Eastertide, friends! 1 Peter 1:3-9 speaks not just to the early church but to us in our time as well.
No matter what the world tells us, the resurrection of Christ matters. So, why Easter? And why should it matter to us today?
Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem stirred things up and set in motion the events we now observe as Holy Week. But why was the city on edge and what was it about Jesus that made everyone so nervous?
“When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days.” Jesus is still calling us out into the world, still bringing us opportunities to reconnect with the life giving Spirit of God…even when we feel like we are too far gone to be reached
The Samaritan Woman at the Well. Her name is Photini - which in Greek means LIGHT. Appropriate because she truly is a light for many who feel unseen or unheard.
Nicodemus comes to Jesus with a question, and Jesus answers him in a way totally different from what Nicodemus was anticipating – totally unexpected. This is week two in Lent, and we are working our way toward Easter and Resurrection in an attempt to understand how we have an inside/out kind of faith.
Welcome to Lent, and the wilderness - what will your first step into the season look like?
What is Jesus REALLY saying in these passages about divorce, unaliving folks, and sweating oaths? Time to dig deep, friends and hear this in a different way.
Imagine hearing for the first time that you are blessed when all you have ever been told is the opposite. Today’s reading is a blessing and a challenge to enter into a deepening of relationships with one another, with our communities, with the needy, and with God.
When reality defies all expectations, what are we to do? Just dive right in. Embrace it just as we are embraced, of course!
It’s Epiphany and we are all asking ourselves what it is we are searching for this year. Like the Magi know, the path to discovering what we are seeking is often complicated and really freaking hard at times. And yet! There is hope…
this week in Advent we find ourselves alongside Joseph as we journey toward love. His journey toward love is a complicated, messy path involving the work of self love, acceptance and grace.
When Mary sings her song of praise, it is a song of JOY in the face of Empire. It’s also a song of invitation to us all.
This second week of Advent asks us to embark on a journey toward Peace. What wisdom can we find in the words of the prophet Isaiah in our time, when peace seems so hard to come by?
What if we treated thanksgiving as something in action and not like something that just sits independent of anything else around it?
Ruth teaches us that we are so much more than our past or our present when we allow our hearts and minds to be open to the workings of God and the Spirit.
Join us for this time of celebrating and remembering the saints of the church and the saints of our community on this All Saints Sunday.
Our final installment of our Holy Ghost Stories series takes us into a secluded room where suddenly all you-know-what breaks loose!
For the second installment of our Holy Ghost Stories series. Join us as we hear about The Man on the Water and ask ourselves who is the voice calling to us on the sea.
Spooky season is here, and we New Englanders do love our autumn celebrations! Did you know that our scriptures are filled with ghost stories? Holy Ghost stories, of course!
For everyone born. A place at the table. Hear a message on bread, bodies, church, and how we are all connected on this World Communion Sunday.
In this final installment of our series on Holy Resistance, we hear about the disciples called before the Sadducees in Acts. We, the church, are called to be like the disciples John and Peter. To speak loudly about the injustices of the world today, and to not stop speaking even (especially?) when it makes those in power nervous.
Here we are in the third week of our series on "Stories of Holy Resistance." Which is why Vashti’s story is one that needs to be told, and how brave she was to stand up to a system of power that was seeking to remove her value as a human being.
Shiphrah and Puah and their brave yet simple moment of resistance - their refusal to participate in something they new was wrong - put into motion something so much bigger that would ultimately result in the liberation of a whole people.
Week 1 of stories of holy resistance in our texts. The Syrophoenician woman wouldn’t take no for an answer. Even from Jesus.
The rich, young ruler was told to deal with his stuff. What sort of stuff are we carrying around and why do we - as Jesus-followers - really need to sort it out?
There is indeed a lot in this message to the disciples that seems to be counter-intuitive to the Jesus way. But what if it’s really a message encouraging us to not be afraid of the fire but embrace it?
Yes, God’s got our back BUT it’s is not enough to simply know it or tell people that. We have to live it. In everything we do.
Christ is all and in all. That means you, too! When the world is desperate for healing, the work of making things whole needs to start with our own selves.
Sometimes we forget that being church means not just claiming the title “Christian,” but also co tiny if to grow our faith by asking questions and seeking answers. Growing in faith and practice means inspecting and questioning how our sacred texts allow us to encounter and discern God’s presence in our practices AS a church, AS a people called Christian.
Sometimes the Spirit moves in the most unlikely of places - and leads us to have serious conversations about faith and belief. When is the last time any of us took a moment to sit with the Spirit and think about the question, “Who is Christ to me?”
These letters of Paul - or maybe-Paul - have provided so much foundation for our modern church’s practices and beliefs. For better or for worse, y’all. So let’s dig into Paul’s letter to Colossians, because And like anything built on a foundation, it’s good to inspect what is holding us up. What is providing the connection that grounds us, both as a modern church and as a people inheriting an ancient church.
What does it mean to have “freedom in Christ” when lately it feels like freedom is not available to all? What do we need to do to live more fully into that freedom and inspire others to do the same?
This has been a particularly hard week, and it’s hard to preach freedom in Christ when so many have less freedom today than just a week ago. Where is the wisdom and grace in today’s text from Galatians for us today?
Paul’s letter to the Galatian church expresses a special family relationship in Christ, one we as a church community live into in our ministry and mission with the homeless at Bristol Lodge
It’s Trinity Sunday and some of you may be wondering, “well, what the heck is that?” Well. It’s weird, and it’s funky, and it’s enormous, and it’s beautiful in all its complexity.
The system failed the enslaved woman in Acts 16 in so many ways - ways that folks today are STILL often failed. Paul made it worse for her. And Silas? Well. Let’s just say we don’t have a lot of reasons to be happy with him, either. So who are WE in the story if it were to unfold today?
In light of the racially motivated violence that has been filling our social media feeds, online news sources, radio and television newscasts, join us for a time of lament and recommitting ourselves to the work of justice and mercy.
Peter’s vision and God’s reminder that we should not deem profane that which God has created speaks to us through the ages. Change is coming to the church, y’all, and we need to get out of God’s way!
Mother’s Day is complicated! And so are the relationships we celebrate on this day dedicated to the nurturers - the Tabitha’s - in our lives. What legacies of love have they left us and how are we inspired to do the same for others?
The gospel of John gives us a lot to work with when it comes to questions and doubts. Now that Easter has arrived, what are we supposed to do with the Good News?
When Mary came to the tomb, it was dark and she was alone. Until she heard Christ call her by name, and everything changed in that instant.
When Mary anointed Jesus’ feet with the nard, she was practicing presence in a real and embodied way. Our journey through Lent has been leading up this: How can we practice presence in the wilderness?
The Divine love displayed in the parable of the prodigal child is a love that surpasses understanding. What can it teach us about loving ourselves?
Compassion is so much more than simply “feeling for someone.” How can we practice compassion for ourselves and each other as a way of connecting to God more deeply?
As we explore our wildernesses during Lent, how does practicing vulnerability with God and ourselves make us stronger and not open to more hurt?
Lent is a time for introspection and discovery. It’s also a time spent in the wilderness and that can be a scary place to be.
As we prepare for the Lenten season to begin this week, what if we focused on fasting from the things that keep us down instead of the few things that bring us joy?
Sometimes you need the faith of your friends when you just can’t get out of your own way. Sometimes, you are the friend supporting another. The miracle of discipleship is one we are all called into; it’s why we do church, y’all!
When Simon and his crew were first called by Jesus they had no way of knowing how it would turn out or it it would be worth effort, and still they got out of their boats and followed. Well, we are being called right now - how will we respond?
What does it mean to be the Body of Christ, when the body really doesn’t seem to be looking so good lately?
What are we doing with our Spiritual gifts in today’s world? Are they tucked away in a drawer? With churches closed due to the pandemic, does that mean our gifts have to wait until church opens again before we use them?
The holidays can be so rough for so many reasons. Hear this message of hope for what’s to come even when we just aren’t feeling it.
Love is a complicated thing, especially Divine Love. The psalmist is struggling with God, Love, Hope, Joy, and Peace. And ya’ll? So. Are. We.
Mary’s joy is an in-between kind of joy. The kind that recognizes her situation and still she can sing. We have all been there. Some of us are there now. What can we learn from Mary’s song about our own Advent journey?
Advent is the start of a new church year. The first week we lit the candle of hope and this week we light the candle of peace. This Advent we are invited to come home for Christmas. A home filled with the love of Christ. Sometimes, though, home isn’t someplace we want to go to! What if we are afraid to go home?
On this Thanksgiving Sunday, Jesus asks us not to worry but WOW is that easier said than done. What if not being anxious isn’t something you have the privilege to do? And what if it is? Where is God in all of it?
Is there anything that brings along with it more doubt than grief and grieving? Our revelation scripture for All Saints reminds us that God is always doing something new, perhaps especially in the moments where we wonder where God really is.
It’s hard to be a thinking and believing Christian. Being a disciple and a follower of Christ is hard. Except when it’s not.
When was the last time you entered into God’s presence like a child? Or did the world take that away from you, too?
Does anyone come to church actually expecting to encounter God? When we read the Psalms - this week’s reading comes from Psalm 104 - we read about an awesome Creator, but do we believe what we read and sing? Can we have doubts and still have God?
When God created the heavens and the Earth, in the beginning all of creation was called good. Guess what? It still is good. And so. Are. We.
Mark 9:38-50 is kind of hard to listen to. This text has been used to perpetuate harm in countless instances. So how can we look deeper to find a message of love and acceptance in a passage that isn’t as “warm and fuzzy” as we would like?
In Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians he calls our attention to the foolishness of the cross. Say WHAT? Hear Rev. Alicia encourage us to embrace the foolishness of our faith and find the power in it.
What are the words or images that come to mind when we hear the word "Wisdom?" We live in a society that often tries to separate seeking wisdom from following God's call on our lives. This week's passage from the Wisdom of Solomon reveals something you may find surprising about the Biblical understanding of Wisdom and if it’s possible for faith and knowledge to be friends after all.
The epistle reading from James reminds us to be doers and not merely hearers of the word. What does that mean when our society tends to throw “thoughts and prayers” at a crisis without much else?
Joy is an act of resistance in the face of the Empire. When we sing our lives out loud into the world, we share our joy with all who hear our song. Rev. Alicia shares this week’s epistle reading from Ephesians 5:15-20 with a message of joy as resistance.
Rev. Alicia invites us into some “real talk” about the epistles, our traditions, and how we can learn from the things that make us uncomfortable.
We aren’t so different from the Ephesian church. The letter to Ephesus speaks through the ages and asks a hard question: How are we, as Christians, doing our part to build up one another in love?
Even Jesus and his disciples needed to take a break in the midst of their ministry. How does today’s gospel reading remind us of the importance of taking time to just breathe? Listen and find out!
Transitioning into a church as a new pastor is never easy, and that is certainly the case during the end of a pandemic. Here Reverend Alicia’s first sermon to her new church community as it relates to Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, the current state of our 21st-century church, and what she believes you all need to know about your “new” pastor.
Ecclesiastes 3:1-15: there is a season for all things. This is a both/and time. Rev. Alicia’s love letter to her current church family as she prepares to depart for her new church appointment.
The title says it all. Listen to Rev. Alicia speak to the issue of human sexuality within the UMC and how we are called to hold the church accountable … and ourselves.
Baptism is an act of revolution! Sometimes reality doesn’t always meet our expectations. The baptism of Christ is one of those moments. How? Listen and find out!
This fourth week of our sermon series takes a twist. Rev. Alicia invites us to rethink the Trinity as a divine connection between the Three In One. How does this messy, beautiful, and funky concept connect not just the Divine 3, but also us to God, one another, and the world? And what do we do with that when the world is such a broken place?
This special recording as of the remarks given at the Bridgewater black lives matter rally and George Floyd memorial vigil. Reverend Alicia speaks on how hard it can be to bring good news when the world doesn’t seem to have any good news to share.
Week 3 of our sermon series on the marks of a healthy church community. Looking inward is essential to a community’s health, but so is having an outward focus. In fact, looking OUT is what we are called to do as Christians!
Week 2 of our sermon series on the marks of a healthy church community. Our churches claim to be welcoming and inclusive but often times we are anything but! Inclusivity is a buzzword but what is it really? And how do we know if we are truly doing it?
Week 1 of our sermon series on “The 5 Marks of a Healthy Church Community.” This week we take on authenticity of faith and practices.
What if the Feeding of the 5,000 was less about feeding the crowds and more about showing the disciples how to serve in difficult times?