ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSNovember 19, 2023Today, we begin a two-week look at Thanksgiving Beyond The Feast. Though I am a person who celebrates and encourages the notion of gratitude, I do struggle with the holiday we call Thanksgiving. It’s that strange tension between believing in the human need to give thanks while also acknowledging the deeply painful history of what is behind the holiday. I am becoming more of a
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSNovember 18, 2023St. Augustine, one of the central figures of the Christian faith and defender of orthodoxy, was in fact a closet heretic. What I mean by that is Augustine often shared thoughts that were a bit outside of traditional thinking, but he was able to get away with it. One such quote is about the beauty of creation being God’s biography. Augustine wrote, “Some people, in
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSNovember 17, 2023A Prayer From The Interfaith Thanksgiving Service: Holy One of mercy and compassion, pour your loving grace upon all Israelis and Palestinians in this dreadful time of war. Let hatred be turned into love, fear to trust, despair to hope, violence to peace. May the violent encounters be replaced with visions of peace and reconciliation for all. May the people of the world mourn and
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSNovember 16, 2023While visiting my grandparents on vacation years ago, I remember walking into the kitchen early in the morning (well, not too early) and finding my grandmother humming a tune as she moved from one project to another with surprising agility for a woman her age. Breakfast was coming together for us late risers; freshly picked items from the garden were being cleaned and prepared; a
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSNovember 15, 2023Tomorrow night is the Spring Interfaith Thanksgiving Service. It is always a rich experience, with a wonderfully diverse group of speakers who offer insight from their unique faith expressions. Each year, I learn something I did not previously know while also having my own faith experience challenged and lifted by something someone said. And the service itself, and specifically what it communicates in this time
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSNovember 14, 2023Our friend in Chicago, Chris Baker, who does INK180, recently made a trip to Nepal to do what he does so well: remove or transform tattoos that have marked trafficking victims. It is a sort of branding that serves as a reminder of who you belong to (trafficker, pimp, etc.). For most of us, it is hard to even begin to fathom what these individuals
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSNovember 13, 2023Prayer for the Week (a portion of a prayer from Sunday’s worship): You stand with us, Gracious God, even when we are not at our best. You beckon us into greater health and well-being because you are love, and you desire for us to know the fullness of life that is found in your love. Sometimes we are a bit overwhelmed by what is before
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSNovember 12, 2023I have wondered quite often if the church takes seriously what it suggests in claiming itself to be the Body of Christ. Is it simply a cute title that makes us feel all cuddly close to Jesus, or is there a profound expectation that what we do clearly and unquestionably communicates Jesus to the world? When we share meals, whether at the communion table or
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSNovember 11, 2023Tomorrow, I conclude this little three-week look at Self-Care, and how, despite some people’s opinions, I do not believe it is selfish. Now selfishness, laziness, or irresponsibility can be disguised as self-care, but if what you are doing is not benefiting the whole self and ultimately the greater good, then I don’t believe it is self-care. Tomorrow, I am going to attempt to walk a
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSNovember 10, 2023One of the more challenging experiences in ministry is when someone who is grieving the death of a loved one or dealing with the diagnosis of a loved one asks the question, “Why didn’t God protect this very special person?” I do not have a specific answer, but more of a general one. I’m not going to suggest it is THE answer, but it is