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Welcome from 
Thanks for stopping in. Pour yourself a cup o' jo, take a load off your feet, and check out what's here. You are looking at my ramblings about issues of faith, life and culture—they are my own and are not necessarily shared by those with whom I work, live or otherwise engage. My journey has led my family and me across the country where I have been introduced to a lot of people and a lot of different ways of doing things. One passion, though, runs through all these experiences: building beloved and sustainable community. "Sustainable" community is kind of a strange notion, as communities (people) change constantly, and things are always in motion. So, the latest chapter of my life has led me to the notion of "impermanence"—not an idea that comes naturally in a culture that likes to build monuments to our greatness for future generations to view and admire. But, I'm trying to practice my awareness of impermanence—the idea that nothing is permanent, nothing is forever, and things are always in flux. Feel free to share your comments and engage in any conversation that may be happening here, but just know that I do reserve the right to delete any spam or anything I deem inappropriate or offensive. I look forward to dialoguing with anyone who cares to dialogue! Peace and blessings, |
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I haven’t posted anything the past couple of weeks, since the election. I have been listening to people’s reactions and trying to process what happened and what it might mean for our nation and world. Each year our local Tempe Interfaith Fellowship hosts an Interfaith Thanksgiving Service. It is an amazing service, and a highlight of the season for many. This year I was asked to offer the Prayer of Thanksgiving, which also served as […] 
In the Presbyterian Church we wrap our vision around three ideas discerned over hundreds and thousands of years of the Christian Church: Confessional, Constitutional, and Connectional. We are confessional because we confess our faith and are guided by historical confessions written over thousands of years in response to particular situations and contexts. We are constitutional because we shape our communal life together around a constitution, which includes the Book of Confessions (Part I) […] An interesting question popped in my head recently-maybe I got it from someone else. In many communions/denominations there are “orders,” subgroups within the community that seek to reflect their engagement with the wider community and world in particular ways, but continue to coexist with other groups. In the PC(USA) we have many groups: Presbyterians for Renewal, Covenant Network of Presbyterians, Fellowship of Presbyterians, More Light Presbyterians, etc. Some of them are single-issue, some reflect a […] 
Why is it so hard to talk about politics and religion? I asked some folks about it, and here’s what they said. Be sure to SUBSCRIBE to my YouTube channel, or subscribe to this blog in the column to the left. 
With every step Jesus took into and within Jerusalem, he pushed against the status quo of fear and oppression. He pushed the Jewish leadership in their cooperation with the empire. He pushed the Roman leadership, riding that thin line between nuisance and seditionist. The leaders saw that the crowd was getting behind Jesus, drawn to his preaching of love and justice (probably more the justice than the love). They needed to figure out how to […] 
Sister Margaret Scott (see previous post) skillfully weaves the liturgy of the Easter Vigil (a lot of liturgy and a lot of scripture) into an example in the Roman Catholic tradition (and some Protestant traditions) of how the Eucharistic meal reflects the covenants God has made with God’s people through Israel and Jesus the Christ. In the original covenant with Moses, the third reading of the vigil from Exodus 14.15-15.1, God presents a […] 
“Faith Fight”—that’s what the local news is calling it. Eight churches in Fountain Hills, Arizona, led by the Rev. Bill Good, pastor of Fountain Hills Presbyterian Church (PCUSA), have posted banners announcing a sermon series called “‘Progressive’ Christianity: Fact or Fiction.” Their basic intent is to attack progressive Christianity as not being Christian. Sadly, the primary target of their attack is their neighbor, The Fountains United Methodist Church and its pastor, the Rev. David […] 
Thank you to all at University Presbyterian Church in Tempe, AZ who participated in the survey sent out in February for one of my Doctor of Ministry classes at McCormick Theological Seminary. The class title was “The Church in the World Today,â€? and focused primarily on the shape of global Christianity and how it has and is changing. As with any survey, and even though some people thought the survey was too long, this […] |
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