The Rt. Rev. Michael Curry, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina, preached at Trinity Wall Street on Ascension Day, June 2, 2011.
You have a much-deserved reputation as a great preacher. Why is preaching so important?
I really do think preaching, certainly at its best, when it’s done with a deep desire that God and the good news of Jesus might really come to bear and touch somebody’s life, makes all the difference in the world. What matters is, does the preaching open up that moment in such a way that the eternal word of God becomes flesh and actually dwells among us? When that begins to happen, then God is in business, and God’s doing something, and when God does something, lives get touched. And changed.
You are often asked to be a guest preacher at parishes around the country. How does that compare with preaching to the same congregation all the time?
It’s different. You don’t necessarily know that community or that congregation as well. But I’ve got to tell you, I’ve learned that the longings in the heart are the same. You can go anywhere in the world, and the deep longings of the soul for God and to be in relationship with other people, those longings transcend all sorts of cultural and sociological differences. So if you really do begin to preach to the human heart and the soul, and the deep needs of our common humanity, and bring the Gospel to bear there, you’re going to click. You’re going to make a connection.
You can read the whole interview by Trinity Wall Street here.
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