On Dec 4, 2009 ⋅ No comments
12/4 A few weeks ago I drove across the state to attend my nephew’s wedding. The lovely service on Saturday began with the familiar description of what God intends in the institution of marriage. I smiled as the final scene in the BBC production of “Pride and Prejudice” came to mind, the minister outlining God’s […]
On Nov 27, 2009 ⋅ No comments
11/27 One thing that reminds me I am getting older is the way holidays now come around so fast and make my head spin with flowing memories. There are the Thanksgivings of my childhood, when we went to my great-grandmother’s house and my grandparents were probably only slightly older than I am now. We kids […]
On Nov 20, 2009 ⋅ No comments
11/20 Jesus once said, “You always have the poor with you (Mt 26:11, Mk 14:7).” This teaching, which has always been somewhat of a mystery to me, has been very much on my mind. This week I have been participating in the November Rainbow Corps visit to New Orleans sponsored each year by More Light […]
On Nov 13, 2009 ⋅ 3 comments
11/13 On Tuesday, the San Francisco Presbytery voted to approve Lisa Larges for ordination and to validate her leadership of That All May Freely Serve. This merits both a muted hazzah and a long moment of deep prayer. For 23 years Lisa has remained steadfast in her sense of call to ordained ministry in the […]
On Nov 6, 2009 ⋅ No comments
11/6 I confess that in the first hours after the election results in Maine were known, I felt like I’d been hit by a truck. As the returns came in, way past my bedtime, I watched the No on 1 party in Bangor and followed the streaming chat room alongside. Especially powerful for me were […]
On Oct 30, 2009 ⋅ 3 comments
10/30 On the whole, when we think of “spiritual disciplines,” what comes to mind are worship practices with medieval roots like Lectio Divina or walking a labyrinth or chanting the psalms. And these are all good things to do. So where does empathy fit in? I was talking with a friend this past week about […]
On Oct 23, 2009 ⋅ 2 comments
10/23 John Shelby Spong’s passionate e-mail declaring his withdrawal from further discussion about GLBT inclusion in the church was brought to my attention at the end of an inspiring week of accompanying Lisa Larges to presentations and conversations at local colleges in the Pittsburgh area. Listening to Lisa talk about her experience in the church […]
On Oct 9, 2009 ⋅ No comments
10/9 I have continued to reflect this week on the parallels between marriage and life in the Body of Christ drawn by the Special Committee to Study Issues of Civil Union and Christian Marriage. Their Preliminary Report outlines four purposes for marriage in the Old Testament: procreation, companionship or mutual support, economic partnership and political […]
On Oct 2, 2009 ⋅ 5 comments
10/2 I confess it has been difficult for me to wrap my mind around the Preliminary Report of the Special Committee to Study Issues of Civil Union and Christian Marriage released last week. But I found clarity in the committee’s illuminating comparison between life in the church and the human institution of marriage. As they […]
On Sep 25, 2009 ⋅ 2 comments
9/25 Last week I wrote about fear as a prayer for help when we feel in over our heads. Since then, I’ve been thinking more about the role fear plays in the church. Rather than fight it or ask people to stop being afraid, I propose we accept it as our state of mind right […]
