lenten journal
Earlier this afternoon I received this e-mail message from our church office: Dear Church family,We have been made aware of a family of four (mother, father, and twin boys age 7) who lost everything in a fire. Below is a list of what is needed for them to rebuild
lenten journal
When I sat down tonight to write, what came to mind are songs that capture the emotions of the week ahead, which are not easy feelings. Part of the challenge every year for me is not to rush to Easter but to take the loss and grief seriously. Here, then,
lenten journal
notes from the road we drove through a fog this morning so thick we couldn’t see New Haven from the highway though we could see the road in front of us at least far enough to keep moving on hold that thought The particles of light in sky and
lenten journal
ship’s log it seems like a lifetime ago that we stood on the deck of the USS Constitution a still-commissioned vessel named for our defining document to learn much of it had been replaced because it was still considered active—a work in progress only in museums does it
lenten journal
An Open Letter to Dr. Linda Livingtone, President of Baylor University Dear Dr. Livingstone, I am one of the Baylor alumni who signed the petition asking you to recognize LGBTQ student groups on campus in light of the university’s decision to allow Matt Walsh to speak on campus. I
lenten journal
This morning, like many who attend a worship service that follows the Revised Common Lectionary, I heard a sermon from John 12 about Mary pouring the expensive perfume on Jesus’ feet and Judas protesting about how the money could have been used otherwise. This is Mary, sister of Martha, who
lenten journal
This week, I had to do an online training for work on cyber security. I was five or six screens in when they presented the “threat landscape.” The Oxford dictionary says the word threat finds its roots in German and Old English words that mean oppression, grieve, and irritate, which
lenten journal
About three years ago, I had a cortisone shot in my knee. It helped up until last December when they gave me another one and sent me to physical therapy. Neither was effective; in fact, the therapy made things worse, so I stopped going. Last month I went back to
lenten journal
My father loved the story of Esther. I guess he probably told it to me for the first time when I was six or seven. I don’t know how many times he repeated it just to get to the part where Mordecai says to her, “Yet who knows whether
lenten journal
I spent last week in Texas on a work trip that centered around the New Story Festival organized by Gareth Higgins and Brian McLaren that focused on the myth of redemptive violence, which is a term coined by theologian Walter Wink to describe the belief that we can bring order
lenten journal
march madness when I got to the tiny house I was greeted by Elsa and Lily they are backyard chickens whose tinier house is next to mine they did not invite me in but saw to it that I found my place this morning they were busy as I stepped
lenten journal
I am fortunate to be driving across Texas just as the bluebonnets are blooming. Here’s where they took me. the old pickup rolled to a stop on the shoulder of the two-lane road the gravel spoke underneath the worn boots of the workmen who walked to the front of