January is always a time of looking backward and forward. Taking stock and setting a fresh path. This seems like especially meaningful work for us this year, doesn’t it? 2020 was a year like no other. We are looking forward, in hope, that 2021 will...
The section of the Book of Isaiah, beginning with chapter 40, from which so much of our Advent and Christmas inspiration comes, is called by many the Book of Consolation. After prophesying judgment and punishment in the first section of this prophetic book, in chapter...
I write this article a week before our national election, as the number of cases of COVID-19 are on the rise to new heights. To say that we are living with uncertainty and anxiety would be an understatement. Will there be post-election chaos as mail-in...
As we enter into October, what is your inner state? What is our collective state? I ask this question not out of some desire for us to measure ourselves and others, to either congratulate or condemn. I ask these questions out of a sense of...
After nearly six months, we will open our doors for worshippers again on Sunday, September 13 at 9:45 AM. I have spelled out many details about our protocols for reopening in a recent email blast and we will share our protocols in this newsletter—our first...
I have been watching some mother birds interacting with their children recently. Just this week several babies left the nest, and not all of them were making the transition well. One almost became cat food, but mom and dad showed up in the nick of...
My brother called me today to vent. He lives in the suburbs of Atlanta and is moving to Alabama in a few weeks. Moving is stressful enough, but moving in a pandemic, even more so. His first grandchild is expected to be born shortly after...
Jesus said that the kingdom of heaven is like a hidden treasure or a pearl of great value. Once found, a wise person will sell everything else to gain this most valuable of all possessions (Matthew 13:44-46). The changes and uncertainties which have descended upon...
Today and tomorrow, Christians remember Jesus' final meal with his disciples, his betrayal, arrest, trial, torture and crucifixion. Like anything human, abuses and distortions of this story and its relevance for us abound. I do not wish to focus on addressing abuses and distortions. I...
In the community where I live, we are over two weeks into a period of social isolation. My church community has rather quickly adjusted to virtual worship, meetings and gatherings. We are using a platform technology which allows us to see each other's faces and...