Speaking in church is fun to doto do, to do, to do, to do

.

And having a calling that gives me about four opportunities a year to do so is, therefore, delightful.

I’ve been posting my talks online since 2006 and I’ve built up a healthy collection at this point. So healthy, I’m flirting with, a couple years from now, putting them in a book tentatively titled Thermons (and some other religous writings). I very much doubt there’s a market for such a thing, but when has that ever stopped me?

My most recent talk (given in January) I have not posted simply because Wayfare expressed expressed interest in the talks we (all of us) give. So I thought: why not send them this one? And so I did.

The very day I was about to pull my submission and just post the talk here, I heard back from them with the news they wanted to publish it. Given Wayfare does good editing, I was told “Thanks for this gift of a sermon! I wish I would've been in the chapel to hear it the first time. I'm seeing a lot of wonderful styles at use here: a meandering, inductive, misdirective approach that comes at things sideways but then resolves into brilliant epiphanies, several humorous techniques like juxtaposition and non-sequitor and sequences of expectations and (non)fulfillment, and in general a kind of gracefulness and kindness toward body and spirit. There's serious wisdom in here behind the playful and inviting tone. I love it, and we're excited to publish it.” and I was also told it needs a rewrite and here are a bunch of things to fix. Editors are the best!

Anyway, that’s why that talk still hasn’t appeared here, but it did get me thinking that if this talk (which I thought was less than my most interesting, if I’m being honest) got people interested in me and my talks, perhaps I should make them easier to find. And so here is a list of (I think) all the talks I’ve posted, along with links to reading them on Thutopia, The Weekly Svithe, or Thubstack.

I suppose doing this could impact sales of Thermons but, well, sales were never the point anyway.

By the way, I do recognize the spiritual irony here. As I was hunting down the following twenty talks, I also found this, from 2009:

Stake conference this week and we heard from the Sunday School general president.

He reminded teachers (and aren't we all teachers?) that we should be focused on learning, not teaching. In other words, it's not about how cleverly we teach, but about how well learning occurs.

Teaching in a way that glorifies the teacher rather than serves the learner is a form of priestcraft.

I'm taking this as personal instruction, for church, for here, for m'job, for life.

Sins thus recognized, here we go!

Hope, Jesus, and the New Year (2025 Berkeley Ward)
thutopia — thubstack

What is grace? What is justice? What shall we do? (2006 Oakland Seventh Branch)
thutopia — thubstack

A Thanksgiving Svithe (2025 Berkeley Ward)
thutopia — thubstack

Ward Variety (2025 Oakland Sixth Ward)
thutopia — thubstack

A svithe on friendship (2025 Walnut Creek Ward)
thutopia — thubstack

Aaronic Priesthood (2024 Berkeley Ward)
thutopia — thubstack

A sacrament meeting talk about trees and Jesus and stuff (2023 Berkeley Ward)
thutopia — thubstack

♲ Easter Svithe (2020 Berkeley Ward)
thutopia

The prompt is, “The Book of Mormon brings me closer to Christ because...” (2020 Berkeley Ward)
thutopia

Consumption and Creation (2018 Berkeley Ward)
thutopia

The Ninja Warrior Megadolphin Svithe (2016 Berkeley Ward)
thutopia

We svithe after these things (2016 Berkeley Ward)
thutopia

“There was a young man who thought....” (2015 Berkeley Ward)
thutopia

Heavenly Mother on Mother’s Day (2015 Berkeley Ward)
thutopia

Talk on the Book of Mormon (2011 Berkeley Ward)
thutopia

Joy + Misery = Joy (?) (2011 Berkeley Ward)
thutopia

Pioneer Day (2010 Berkeley Ward)
thutopia

Growing My Testimony through Action (2009 Berkeley Ward)
thutopia — the weekly svithe

Alma 5 (2006 Berkeley Ward)
thutopia — the weekly svithe

Happily Ever After (2006, El Dorado Ward)
thutopia — the weekly svithe