You can read the Bible better. It doesn’t take a degree in religion. It does require some skills that too often are relegated to the academy. Those skills can be acquired and practiced by everyday people. You probably suspect that there are layers of meaning in the text. You hear great preachers and teachers reveal these layers. Maybe you think that level of understanding is … Continue reading Reading the Bible Better
An Evangelist is someone who brings a message of good news. This is the opposite of that. Gun violence and mass shootings like the one in Las Vegas are not going away. We can’t even call them the new norm anymore. They’re just the norm. And the norm is increasing gun violence. President Obama famously noted that we have a routine for mass shootings and their … Continue reading Gun Violence Will Not Go Away
This is part two of a series of reflections on Charlottesville via Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s last speech “I See the Promised Land” (text and audio here). See the Intro here. I can remember [applause], I can remember when Negroes were just going around, as Ralph has said so often, scratching where they didn’t itch and laughing when they were not tickled. [laughter, applause] But that … Continue reading How are Non-White Americans forced to live today?
This is part one of a series of reflections on Charlottesville via Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s last speech “I See the Promised Land” (text and audio here). See the Intro here. The nation is sick, trouble is in the land, confusion all around. That’s a strange statement. But I know, somehow, that only when it is dark enough can you see the stars. (All … Continue reading Where is God’s Hand in Today’s Struggles?
On September 1st, I began my 3rd year in ministry with you here at Orchards. It has been an honor to have been with you for 2 good years. I just want to briefly mention my love for you and this congregation. You may not realize it, but 2.5 years ago I was looking for work outside of the church. I am glad that circumstances … Continue reading Now Loading: Year Three at Orchards
After Charlottesville, what changes? The change is what matters. The posturing doesn’t matter. The marching only matters as a means to an end. After Charlottesville, as in after Charleston, Ferguson and Baltimore, what matters is the change in society to where black Americans can say “Yes! We are truly free!” Perhaps we forget this larger transcendent goal in the immediate skirmishes over policing and monuments. … Continue reading The Promised Land After Charlottesville
I had a trans woman in a previous congregation. Before transitioning, she had served in the military, reaching a high rank. She lost everything in the transition: job, military benefits, spouse, and was more-or-less homeless when I knew her. What she did gain by transitioning was a sense of freedom to be who she wanted to be. You don’t lose your sense of hearing when … Continue reading On Trans
Note: I’ve been telling bedtime stories to my son (age 4). Here’s one of them. Once upon a time there was a young boy named Ollie. And Ollie loved to read. He loved books of all kinds: books about animals, books about spaceships, books about cooking, books about flowers and books about the ocean. One day, Ollie wandered into his dad’s office. And he was … Continue reading Adventures of O
I remember my first week as a camp counselor. I had just finished two years in a very intense children’s home. I had done summer camp before. I had a college degree under my belt. I was accomplished and capable. Then the kids came. I was paired with an experience co-counselor, who grew up going to Camp Glenkirk. But at the halfway mark of the … Continue reading Project Transformation, Day 1
Being the anniversary of the Pulse nightclub shooting which claimed 29 lives, I am thinking of the environment in which that tragedy occurred. It would be easy for me to say, ‘I wasn’t a part of that’. I live nowhere near Orlando. I am not gay. I hate dancing. The communities and people involved are quite removed from me. It doesn’t pertain to me. I … Continue reading Pulse and the Church
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