Sermon

A sermon is a religious discourse or oration by a preacher, usually a member of clergy. Sermons address a scriptural, theological, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law, or behavior within both past and present contexts. Elements of the sermon often include exposition, exhortation, and practical application. The act of delivering a sermon is called preaching. In secular usage, the word sermon may refer, often disparagingly, to a lecture on morals. In Christian practice, a sermon is usually preached to a congregation in a place of worship, either from an elevated architectural feature, known as a pulpit or an ambo, or from behind a lectern. The word sermon comes from a Middle English word which was derived from Old French, which in turn originates from the Latin word meaning 'discourse.' A sermonette is a short sermon (usually associated with television broadcasting, as stations would present a sermonette before signing off for the night). The Christian Bible contains many speeches without interlocution, which some take to be sermons: Jesus' Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5–7 (though the gospel writers do not specifically call it a sermon; the popular descriptor for Jesus' speech there came much later); and Peter after Pentecost in Acts 2:14–40. In Islam, the equivalent of a sermon is called a khutbah.

A sermon is a religious discourse or oration by a preacher, usually a member of clergy. Sermons address a scriptural, theological, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law, or behavior within both past and present contexts. Elements of the sermon often include exposition, exhortation, and practical application. The act of delivering a sermon is called preaching. In secular usage, the word sermon may refer, often disparagingly, to a lecture on morals. In Christian practice, a sermon is usually preached to a congregation in a place of worship, either from an elevated architectural feature, known as a pulpit or an ambo, or from behind a lectern. The word sermon comes from a Middle English word which was derived from Old French, which in turn originates from the Latin word meaning 'discourse.' A sermonette is a short sermon (usually associated with television broadcasting, as stations would present a sermonette before signing off for the night). The Christian Bible contains many speeches without interlocution, which some take to be sermons: Jesus' Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5–7 (though the gospel writers do not specifically call it a sermon; the popular descriptor for Jesus' speech there came much later); and Peter after Pentecost in Acts 2:14–40. In Islam, the equivalent of a sermon is called a khutbah. ==Christianity== by Carl Heinrich Bloch, 1877 In Christianity, a sermon is typically identified as an address or discourse delivered to a congregation of Christians, typically containing theological or moral instruction. The sermon by Christian orators was partly based on the tradition of public lectures by classical orators. Although it is often called a homily, the original distinction between a sermon and a homily was that a sermon was delivered by a clergyman (licensed preacher) while a homily was read from a printed copy by a layman. In the 20th century the distinction has become one of the sermon being likely to be longer, have more structure, and contain more theological content. Homilies are usually considered to be a type of sermon, usually narrative or biographical . The word sermon is used contemporarily to describe many famous moments in Christian (and Jewish) history. The most famous example is the Sermon on the Mount by Jesus of Nazareth. This address was given around 30 AD, and is recounted in the Gospel of Matthew (5:1–7:29, including introductory and concluding material) as being delivered on a mount on the north end of the Sea of Galilee, near Capernaum. It is also contained in some of the other gospel narratives. During the later history of Christianity, several figures became known for their addresses that later became regarded as sermons. Examples in the early church include Peter (see especially Acts 2:14b–36), Stephen (see Acts 7:1b–53), Tertullian and John Chrysostom. These addresses were used to spread Christianity across Europe and Asia Minor, and as such are not sermons in the modern sense, but evangelistic messages. The sermon has been an important part of Christian services since early Christianity, and remains prominent in both Roman Catholicism and Protestantism. Lay preachers sometimes figure in these traditions of worship, for example the Methodist local preachers, but in general preaching has usually been a function of the clergy. The Dominican Order is officially known as the Order of Preachers ( in Latin); friars of this order were trained to publicly preach in vernacular languages, and the order was created by Saint Dominic to preach to the Cathars of southern France in the early 13th century. The Franciscans are another important preaching order; Travelling preachers, usually friars, were an important feature of late medieval Catholicism. In 1448 the church authorities seated at Angers prohibited open-air preaching in France. If a sermon is delivered during the Mass it comes after the Gospel is sung or read. If it is delivered by the priest or bishop that offers the Mass then he removes his maniple, and in some cases his chasuble, because the sermon is not part of the Mass. A bishop preaches his sermon wearing his mitre while seated whereas a priest, or on rare occasions a deacon, preaches standing and wearing his biretta. In most denominations, modern preaching is kept below forty minutes, but historic preachers of all denominations could at times speak for several hours, and use techniques of rhetoric and theatre that are today somewhat out of fashion in mainline churches. During the Middle Ages, sermons inspired the beginnings of new religious institutes (e.g., Saint Dominic and Francis of Assisi). Pope Urban II began the First Crusade in November 1095 at the Council of Clermont, France, when he exhorted French knights to retake the Holy Land. The academic study of sermons, the analysis and classification of their preparation, composition and delivery, is called homiletics. A controversial issue that aroused strong feelings in early modern Britain was whether sermons should be read from a fully prepared text, or extemporized, perhaps from some notes. Many sermons have been written down, collected and published; published sermons were a major and profitable literary form, and category of books in the book trade, from at least the Late Antique Church to about the late 19th century. Many clergymen openly recycled large chunks of published sermons in their own preaching. Such sermons include John Wesley's Forty-four Sermons, John Chrysostom's Homily on the Resurrection (preached every Easter in Orthodox churches) and Gregory Nazianzus' homily "On the Theophany, or Birthday of Christ" (preached every Christmas in Orthodox churches). The 80 sermons in German of the Dominican Johannes Tauler (1300–1361) were read for centuries after his death. Preaching to Faithful (1561) Martin Luther published his sermons (Hauspostille) on the Sunday lessons for the edification of readers. This tradition was continued by Martin Chemnitz and Johann Arndt, as well as many others into the following centuries—for example CH Spurgeon's stenographed sermons, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit. The widow of Archbishop of Canterbury John Tillotson (1630–1694) received £2,500 for the manuscripts of his sermons, a very large sum. ===Lutheranism and Reformed Christianity=== Christian minister preaching from a pulpit, 1968 The Reformation led to Protestant sermons, many of which defended the schism with the Roman Catholic Church and explained beliefs about the Bible, theology, and devotion. The distinctive doctrines of Protestantism held that justification was by faith alone, and convincing people to believe the Gospel and place trust in God for their salvation through Jesus Christ was the decisive step in salvation. The Lutheran Churches gave importance to both the preaching of the Gospel and the celebration of the Eucharist during the Mass (Divine Service). Lutheranism largely preserved the order of the Mass, including the position of the sermon within it, while giving it more prominence. In the Reformed (Continental Reformed, Presbyterian, Anglican and Congregationalist) churches, the sermon came to replace the Eucharist as the central act of worship. While Luther retained the use of the lectionary for selecting texts for preaching, the Swiss Reformers, such as Ulrich Zwingli, Johannes Oecolampadius, and John Calvin, notably returned to the patristic model of preaching through books of the Bible. The goal of Protestant worship, as conditioned by these reforms, was above all to offer glory to God for the gift of grace in Jesus Christ, to rouse the congregation to a deeper faith, and to inspire them to practice works of love for the benefit of the neighbor, rather than carry on with potentially empty rituals. ==Islam== Khutbah ( ) serves as the primary formal occasion for public preaching in the Islamic tradition. In societies or communities with (for example) low literacy rates, strong habits of communal worship, and/or limited mass-media, the preaching of sermons throughout networks of congregations can have important informative and prescriptive propaganda functions for both civil and religious authorities—which may regulate the manner, frequency, licensing, personnel and content of preaching accordingly. ==Types== There are a number of different types of sermons, that differ both in their subject matter and by their intended audience, and accordingly not every preacher is equally well-versed in every type. Some types of sermon include: Biographical sermons – tracing the story of a particular biblical character through a number of parts of the Bible. Evangelistic sermons (associated with the Greek word kerygma) – seeking to convert the hearers or bring them back to their previous faith through a recounting of the foundational story of the religion, in Christianity, the Good News. Expository preaching – exegesis, that is sermons that expound and explain a text to the congregation. Fast sermons - Between January 1642 and April 1649, these were regular sermons preached in the English Parliament on the fourth Wednesday of every month. Historical sermons – which seek to portray a biblical story within its non-biblical historical perspective. Hortatory sermons (associated with the Greek word ) – exhort a return to living ethically; in Christianity, a return to living on the basis of the gospel. Illuminative sermons, also known as proems ( ) – which connect an apparently unrelated biblical verse or religious question with the current calendrical event or festival. Liturgical sermons – sermons that explain the liturgy, why certain things are done during a service, such as why communion is offered and what it means. Narrative sermons – which tell a story, often a parable, or a series of stories, to make a moral point. Redemptive-historical preaching – sermons that take into consideration the context of any given text within the broader history of salvation as recorded in the canon of the bible. Topical sermons – concerned with a particular subject of current concern; ==Delivery methods== Sermons can be both written and spoken out loud. Sermons vary in the amount of time and effort used to prepare them. Some are scripted while others are not. With the advent of reception theory, researchers also became aware that how sermons are listened to affects their meaning as much as how they are delivered. The expectations of the congregation, their prior experience of listening to oral texts, their level of scriptural education, and the relative social positions—often reflected in the physical arrangement—of sermon-goers vis-a-vis the preacher are part of the meaning of the sermon. Albert Raboteau describes a common style of Black preaching first developed in America in the early 19th century, and common throughout the 20th and into the 21st centuries: ==Secular usage== In informal usage, the word sermon is used in secular terms, usually disapprovingly, to refer to "a long talk in which someone advises other people how they should behave in order to be better people". ==See also== Buddhism Dharma talk (Dhamma talk) Pariyatti Agga Maha Pandita Christianity Expository preaching Extemporaneous preaching Popular Sermon of the Medieval Friar List of preachers Redemptive-historical preaching Judaism Jewish ethics Jewish meditation Rabbinical literature Midrash Musar literature Islam Nahj al Balagha Qur'an reading The Sermon for Necessities ==Notes== ==References== Francis, Keith A., Gibson, William, et al., The Oxford Handbook of the British Sermon 1689-1901, 2012 OUP, , 9780199583591, google books Corran, Mary Cunningham and Pauline Allen, eds. Preacher and Audience: Studies in Early Christian Homiletics (A New History of the Sermon; Brill, 1998) d'Avray, David L. The preaching of the friars (Oxford University Press, 1985) DeBona, Guerric, OSB. Fulfilled in Our Hearing: History and Method of Christian Preaching (Paulist Press. 2005) on Catholic preaching Donavin, Georgiana, Cary J. Nederman, and Richard Utz, eds. Speculum Sermonis: Interdisciplinary Reflections on the Medieval Sermon. Turnhout: Brepols, 2007. Edwards, O. C., Jr., A History of Preaching, Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2004. Larsen, David L., The company of the preachers: A history of biblical preaching from the Old Testament to the modern era (Kregel Publications, 1998) Spencer, H. Leith, English Preaching in the Late Middle Ages (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1993) Sullivan, Ceri, 'The Art of Listening in the Seventeenth Century', Modern Philology 104.1 (2006), pp. 34–71 Willimon, William H. and Richard Lischer, eds., Concise Encyclopedia of Preaching, Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 1995. Szewczyk, Leszek. The Specific Content of Preaching the Word of God in a Secularized Environment. Bogoslovni vestnik 81, no. 3:721-732. ===Primary sources=== Holtz, Sabine, Predigt: Religiöser Transfer über Postillen, European History Online, Institute of European History, Mainz 2011, retrieved: 25 February 2013. Warner, Michael, ed. American Sermons: The Pilgrims to Martin Luther King Jr. (New York: The Library of America, 1999) ==External links== Christian Sermons Bible Sermons Bibleinterpretation.org Bible Interpretation by Rev. Abraham Mutholath in English. Bibleinterpretation.ai AI Bible Interpretation by Fr. Abraham Mutholathu Foundation NFP. Biblereflection.org Bible Interpretation with reflection by Rev. Abraham Mutholath in English. Christianhomily.com Sunday and Feast Homily Resources in English and Homily Videos in Malayalam by Fr. Abraham Mutholath

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