Preaching in the Pandemic Volume 1
by Fr. Brawn Sullivan
Feeling, as most Americans, indeed, most citizens of the world, did, disconnected in March, 2020, when the first stay-at-home orders came from local and state governments, closing churches and ending for some unknown period of time, communal worship, Fr. Sullivan hit upon an idea to stay connected with his parishioners, his far-flung friends, family members, and numerous correspondents. The first Sunday of the Bay Area shutdown, Fr. Sullivan sent the many people on his e-mail distribution list a “virtual homily,” explaining that if he could not be with his people physically, he might at least reach out via the blessings of technology to remain in touch, remotely.
No one, it seemed, expected, in March of 2020, a year like that which followed. Fr. Sullivan imagined his “virtual homilies” would be history by sometime in the summer, when, it was somehow expected, the virus would be “in the rearview mirror,” to quote then-Vice President Mike Pence. The hope as of the printing of this volume, of course, is that the nation will indeed have the virus in the rearview mirror in the summer – the summer of 2022. Meanwhile, Fr. Sullivan checked in each week with his numerous e-mail correspondents; a new homily every seven days. This volume collects the first eight months of these “virtual homilies,” from mid-Lent to the Feast of Christ the King.
The homilies are presented within the context of a friend writing friends; in addition to the Scriptural reflections, Fr. Sullivan discusses events in his parish, at the high school where he is chaplain, goings-on among friends and family, and refers as well to his wide-ranging extra-curricular ministries, including regular updates from Venezuela and Morocco. At once serious reflection on the Sunday Scriptures and personal testimony in a time of global contagion, PREACHING IN THE PANDEMIC is a unique reading experience, breezy and relaxed even as it tackles some of the deepest questions known to the human heart.
by Fr. Brawn Sullivan
Feeling, as most Americans, indeed, most citizens of the world, did, disconnected in March, 2020, when the first stay-at-home orders came from local and state governments, closing churches and ending for some unknown period of time, communal worship, Fr. Sullivan hit upon an idea to stay connected with his parishioners, his far-flung friends, family members, and numerous correspondents. The first Sunday of the Bay Area shutdown, Fr. Sullivan sent the many people on his e-mail distribution list a “virtual homily,” explaining that if he could not be with his people physically, he might at least reach out via the blessings of technology to remain in touch, remotely.
No one, it seemed, expected, in March of 2020, a year like that which followed. Fr. Sullivan imagined his “virtual homilies” would be history by sometime in the summer, when, it was somehow expected, the virus would be “in the rearview mirror,” to quote then-Vice President Mike Pence. The hope as of the printing of this volume, of course, is that the nation will indeed have the virus in the rearview mirror in the summer – the summer of 2022. Meanwhile, Fr. Sullivan checked in each week with his numerous e-mail correspondents; a new homily every seven days. This volume collects the first eight months of these “virtual homilies,” from mid-Lent to the Feast of Christ the King.
The homilies are presented within the context of a friend writing friends; in addition to the Scriptural reflections, Fr. Sullivan discusses events in his parish, at the high school where he is chaplain, goings-on among friends and family, and refers as well to his wide-ranging extra-curricular ministries, including regular updates from Venezuela and Morocco. At once serious reflection on the Sunday Scriptures and personal testimony in a time of global contagion, PREACHING IN THE PANDEMIC is a unique reading experience, breezy and relaxed even as it tackles some of the deepest questions known to the human heart.
by Fr. Brawn Sullivan
Feeling, as most Americans, indeed, most citizens of the world, did, disconnected in March, 2020, when the first stay-at-home orders came from local and state governments, closing churches and ending for some unknown period of time, communal worship, Fr. Sullivan hit upon an idea to stay connected with his parishioners, his far-flung friends, family members, and numerous correspondents. The first Sunday of the Bay Area shutdown, Fr. Sullivan sent the many people on his e-mail distribution list a “virtual homily,” explaining that if he could not be with his people physically, he might at least reach out via the blessings of technology to remain in touch, remotely.
No one, it seemed, expected, in March of 2020, a year like that which followed. Fr. Sullivan imagined his “virtual homilies” would be history by sometime in the summer, when, it was somehow expected, the virus would be “in the rearview mirror,” to quote then-Vice President Mike Pence. The hope as of the printing of this volume, of course, is that the nation will indeed have the virus in the rearview mirror in the summer – the summer of 2022. Meanwhile, Fr. Sullivan checked in each week with his numerous e-mail correspondents; a new homily every seven days. This volume collects the first eight months of these “virtual homilies,” from mid-Lent to the Feast of Christ the King.
The homilies are presented within the context of a friend writing friends; in addition to the Scriptural reflections, Fr. Sullivan discusses events in his parish, at the high school where he is chaplain, goings-on among friends and family, and refers as well to his wide-ranging extra-curricular ministries, including regular updates from Venezuela and Morocco. At once serious reflection on the Sunday Scriptures and personal testimony in a time of global contagion, PREACHING IN THE PANDEMIC is a unique reading experience, breezy and relaxed even as it tackles some of the deepest questions known to the human heart.