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  • Sermon for Holy Trinity Sunday, May 31, 2026

    Sermon for Holy Trinity Sunday, May 31, 2026
    2026/06/02

    Welcome back to the Basin and Towel podcast! I’m your host, Pastor Chris Cahill. I live in Lodi, Ohio, where last year I retired from 45 years of pastoral ministry.

    In my retirement I’ve been preaching in several congregations of our Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod - this episode is the sermon I preached on Holy Trinity Sunday, May 31, 2026, at St John Lutheran Church in Garfield Heights, Ohio.

    The calendar of the Christian Church counts fifty days after Easter and marks that Sunday as Pentecost, the celebration of the coming of the Holy Spirit to Jesus’ disciples (Acts 2). In that calendar the very next Sunday is Holy Trinity Sunday, when we remind ourselves and others that the God who has revealed Himself to us in the Holy Bible is one God, but three Persons - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

    As Christians, we also have three Creeds (or statements of what we believe) that help us to believe, understand, and teach the Christian faith. These are the Apostles’ Creed, the Nicene Creed, and the Athanasian Creed.

    As Lutheran Christians, we also have Martin Luther’s “explanation” of the Apostles’ Creed from his Small Catechism, which he wrote to try to help us learn and teach and tell what our life is like with this Three-Person God. That’s the focus of this sermon.


    During this sermon, I “quoted” Martin Luther’s explanation of the Apostles’ Creed, which he wrote in German. I learned a particular English translation sixty years ago, but it has changed a bit here and there over the years. You can find the English translation that is currently used in The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod at https://catechism.cph.org/en/creed.html

    By the way, a number of people at St John Lutheran Church came out of this worship service and commented that they also remembered learning that explanation when they were young, and that they were (quietly) reciting the words along with me during the sermon. Sometimes it’s good to be reminded of what we have known so long!


    The Basin and Towel podcast is written and recorded by Rev Chris Cahill, a retired pastor and the Second Vice President of the SELC District of The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. You can find out more at the Basin and Towel website -bit.ly/bnt2025

    You can also follow the Basin and Towel on Facebook @thebasinandtowel and on YouTube HERE». I'd love to hear from you, especially if you have a question or some topic you'd like to hear about.

    Unless otherwise indicated, any Scripture quotations are from the New International Version (NIV), Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Accessed through www.biblegateway.com

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    21 分
  • Sermon for the Seventh Sunday of Easter (May 17, 2026) - "Listen Up!"

    Sermon for the Seventh Sunday of Easter (May 17, 2026) - "Listen Up!"
    2026/05/21

    Welcome back to the Basin and Towel podcast! I’m your host, Pastor Chris Cahill. I live in Lodi, Ohio, where last year I retired from 45 years of pastoral ministry. In my retirement I’ve been doing some substitute preaching in several congregations of our Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod - this episode is the sermon I preached on May 17, 2026, the Seventh Sunday after Easter, at Saints Peter and Paul Lutheran Church in Sharon, Pennsylvania.

    The Seventh Sunday of the Easter season comes between the day Jesus ascended into heaven (40 days after Easter, Acts 1:1-11) and Pentecost Sunday (50 days after Easter, Acts 2:1-41). The book of Acts tells the story of how, while the disciples were waiting for the Holy Spirit that Jesus had promised, they decided to elect Matthias to replace Judas Iscariot and bring their number back to twelve (Acts 1:12-26). That’s the background for this sermon, and the Bible readings for the day.


    In this sermon I suggested these four takeaways:

    1. Pray with boldness and confidence, because you are the dear children of your loving heavenly Father
    2. “You shall be My people, and I shall be your God” (Ezekiel 36:28)
    3. “You will bear witness” (John 15:27)
    4. “In everything God will be glorified through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 4:11)

    The Basin and Towel podcast is written and recorded by Rev Chris Cahill, a retired pastor and the Second Vice President of the SELC District of The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. You can find out more at the Basin and Towel website -bit.ly/bnt2025

    You can also follow the Basin and Towel on Facebook @thebasinandtowel and on YouTube HERE». I'd love to hear from you, especially if you have a question or some topic you'd like to hear about.

    Unless otherwise indicated, any Scripture quotations are from the New International Version (NIV), Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Accessed through www.biblegateway.com

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    18 分
  • Sermon for the Sixth Sunday of Easter, May 10, 2026

    Sermon for the Sixth Sunday of Easter, May 10, 2026
    2026/05/21

    Welcome back to the Basin and Towel podcast! I’m your host, Pastor Chris Cahill. I live in Lodi, Ohio, where last year I retired from 45 years of pastoral ministry. In my retirement I’ve been doing some substitute preaching in several congregations of our Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod - this episode is the sermon I preached on May 10, 2026, the Sixth Sunday after Easter, at Resurrection Lutheran Church in Malvern, Ohio

    In Lutheran worship services a hymn might be sung right before the sermon will be preached - that hymn is called the “sermon hymn.” In this worship service the sermon hymn that was chosen was a fairly long hymn by Martin Luther, titled “Dear Christians, One and All, Rejoice!” I decided that, instead of singing all ten verses and then preach the sermon, we should break things up a bit. So I preached some before we sang the first six verses; then I preached a little more; then we sang the last four verses; and finally I preached the conclusion. If you want, you can find both words and music for this hymn at https://hymnary.org/hymn/LSB2006/556.


    A video of this service is available at https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1BC8MPjTf7/


    The Basin and Towel podcast is written and recorded by Rev Chris Cahill, a retired pastor and the Second Vice President of the SELC District of The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. You can find out more at the Basin and Towel website -bit.ly/bnt2025

    You can also follow the Basin and Towel on Facebook @thebasinandtowel and on YouTube HERE». I'd love to hear from you, especially if you have a question or some topic you'd like to hear about.

    Unless otherwise indicated, any Scripture quotations are from the New International Version (NIV), Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Accessed through www.biblegateway.com

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    19 分
  • Sermon for the Installation of a Pastor of a Dual Parish, May 2, 2026

    Sermon for the Installation of a Pastor of a Dual Parish, May 2, 2026
    2026/05/07

    Welcome back to the Basin and Towel podcast! I’m your host, Pastor Chris Cahill. I live in Lodi, Ohio, where last year I retired from 45 years of pastoral ministry.

    It was my privilege and joy to participate in the worship service when Rev. Peter Haenftling was installed as the Pastor of the Dual Parish of Saint Matthew Lutheran Church (SELC District) and Saint Peter's Lutheran Church (Eastern District), both in Wilkes-Barre PA, on Saturday, May 2, 2026 at Saint Peter's Lutheran Church. A large number of people from both congregations were in attendance for the service. At Pete’s invitation I was the preacher; I also officially installed him as the pastor. Rev. Ray Malec, Eastern Circuit Visitor of the SELC District, was the liturgist. Pastor Haenftling was the celebrant for Holy Communion. Other clergy participating in the service were Rev. Alan Dass, pastor of Zion Lutheran Church (SELC) in Clark NJ, and Rev. Peter Richert, pastor of The Lutheran Church of Our Savior (Eastern District) in Mt Pocono NJ and vacancy pastor at St John Lutheran Church (SELC) in Hazleton PA.

    A video of this service is available at https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1CNCHGYY1V/

    The Basin and Towel podcast is written and recorded by Rev Chris Cahill, Ministerial Care Coordinator of the SELC District of The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. You can find out more at my website - bit.ly/m/revcahill- or at the Basin and Towel website -bit.ly/bnt2025

    You can also follow the Basin and Towel on Facebook @thebasinandtowel and on YouTube HERE. I'd love to hear from you, especially if you have a question or some topic you'd like to hear about.

    Unless otherwise indicated, any Scripture quotations are from the The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025. Accessed through www.biblegateway.com

    Basin and Towel Theme by cliveromney from Pixabay

    The Basin and Towel podcast is written and recorded by Rev Chris Cahill, a retired pastor and the Second Vice President of the SELC District of The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. You can find out more at the Basin and Towel website -bit.ly/bnt2025

    You can also follow the Basin and Towel on Facebook @thebasinandtowel and on YouTube HERE». I'd love to hear from you, especially if you have a question or some topic you'd like to hear about.

    Unless otherwise indicated, any Scripture quotations are from the New International Version (NIV), Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Accessed through www.biblegateway.com

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    17 分
  • Sermon for the Fourth Sunday of Easter, April 26, 2026 - Good Shepherd Sunday

    Sermon for the Fourth Sunday of Easter, April 26, 2026 - Good Shepherd Sunday
    2026/04/30

    Welcome back to the Basin and Towel podcast! I’m your host, Pastor Chris Cahill. I live in Lodi, Ohio, where last year I retired from 45 years of pastoral ministry.

    In my retirement I’ve been preaching in several congregations of our Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod - this episode is the sermon I preached on April 26, 2026, the fourth Sunday after Easter, at St John Lutheran Church in Garfield Heights, Ohio.

    On Easter Sunday, and even throughout the season Easter, it’s often customary for Christian churches to include in their worship services the sentences “Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!” That’s been my theme in this Easter season. But let me begin with a question:What do you say when you look into a mirror? A word of discouragement? Or admiration? Do you look for things to correct, or things to affirm? In the week leading up to this sermon I had cause to think about “words of affirmation” - you know, those things you say to the person you see in the mirror and say to them (yourself), “you’re doing great! Keep up the good work!” I’ll talk about some affirmations that are fairly puny, some that are more robust, and some that go above and beyond!

    The Basin and Towel podcast is written and recorded by Rev Chris Cahill, Ministerial Care Coordinator of the SELC District of The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. You can find out more at my website - bit.ly/m/revcahill- or at the Basin and Towel website -bit.ly/bnt2025

    You can also follow the Basin and Towel on Facebook @thebasinandtowel and on YouTube HERE. I'd love to hear from you, especially if you have a question or some topic you'd like to hear about.

    Follow these links to find out more about

    • Cheerios brand breakfast cereal
    • The Boy Scout Oath
    • The hymns “God Loves Me Dearly” and “I am Jesus’ Little Lamb”

    Unless otherwise indicated, any Scripture quotations are from the The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025. Accessed through www.biblegateway.com

    Basin and Towel Theme by cliveromney from Pixabay

    The Basin and Towel podcast is written and recorded by Rev Chris Cahill, a retired pastor and the Second Vice President of the SELC District of The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. You can find out more at the Basin and Towel website -bit.ly/bnt2025

    You can also follow the Basin and Towel on Facebook @thebasinandtowel and on YouTube HERE». I'd love to hear from you, especially if you have a question or some topic you'd like to hear about.

    Unless otherwise indicated, any Scripture quotations are from the New International Version (NIV), Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Accessed through www.biblegateway.com

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    25 分
  • Sermon for the Third Sunday of the Easter Season - "INDEED!"

    Sermon for the Third Sunday of the Easter Season - "INDEED!"
    2026/04/23

    Welcome back to the Basin and Towel podcast! I’m your host, Pastor Chris Cahill. I live in Lodi, Ohio, where last year I retired from 45 years of pastoral ministry. In my retirement I’ve been doing some substitute preaching in several congregations of our Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod - this episode is the sermon I preached on April 19, 2026, the second Sunday after Easter, at Hosanna Lutheran Church in Columbia Station, Ohio

    On Easter Sunday, and even throughout the season Easter, it’s often customary for Christian churches to include in their worship services the sentences “Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!” Translations of the Bible use the word “indeed” as the English equivalent of several different words in Greek or Hebrew (the original languages of the Bible). One of them points to something that is real as opposed to imaginary. Another points to something that is true, rather than false or misleading. Still another is linked to the Hebrew word “Amen!”, which not only signals the end of many prayers, but can also mean something like “I heartily agree with this!”

    On the first Easter Sunday, it took a while for the word “Indeed!” to make the journey from the ears of Jesus’ disciples into their hearts and then to their lips. Last week we heard how that worked out for Thomas; this week we’ll hear about that journey for some other disciples of Jesus.


    The Basin and Towel podcast is written and recorded by Rev Chris Cahill, Ministerial Care Coordinator of the SELC District of The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. You can find out more at the Basin and Towel website -bit.ly/bnt2025

    You can also follow the Basin and Towel on Facebook @thebasinandtowel and on YouTube HERE. I'd love to hear from you, especially if you have a question or some topic you'd like to hear about.

    Unless otherwise indicated, any Scripture quotations are from the The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025. Accessed through www.biblegateway.com

    Basin and Towel Theme by cliveromney from Pixabay

    The Basin and Towel podcast is written and recorded by Rev Chris Cahill, a retired pastor and the Second Vice President of the SELC District of The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. You can find out more at the Basin and Towel website -bit.ly/bnt2025

    You can also follow the Basin and Towel on Facebook @thebasinandtowel and on YouTube HERE». I'd love to hear from you, especially if you have a question or some topic you'd like to hear about.

    Unless otherwise indicated, any Scripture quotations are from the New International Version (NIV), Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Accessed through www.biblegateway.com

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    27 分