The Revised Common Lectionary continues to bring us complicated teachings of Jesus from the Gospel of Matthew. In an attempt to catch Jesus teaching against the government, the Pharisees ask him about paying taxes. Is it lawful or not? Jesus says to give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and give to God the things… Read More
Tuesday Prayer
Photo: Colleen Coofall on rgbstock.com Where I live, it is Fall. Leaves turning, pumpkins abounding. I am teaching a three-year-old about the turning seasons. I tell her about friends in New Zealand starting to see Spring – yes! Today! And the Spring will come back to us, too. She gazes at me, maybe understanding, maybe… Read More
Narrative Lectionary: How God Sees (1 Samuel 16:1-13)
There’s a peculiar grief, for me, when a couple I married gets a divorce. I feel a small pang of sadness when a member of a past congregation dies, and I’m not the one to officiate at the funeral that will celebrate their life. These things are part of the past, but they reach into… Read More
The Pastoral is Political: The Church IS Political
I recently sat on a panel at a Christian University and a student asked me, “How do we know if we are being too political in church?” Given the current state of this country—and that of my agitated Puerto Rican, Afriqueña, queer, woman spirit—my quick response was, “As the church, we can never be too… Read More
Monday Prayer: bless
In this dark hour, as the sun inches its way toward my horizon, I nestle in the stillness that forms the bud of this day. Bless the stillness. In this not-yet-formed week that holds promise, and yet is already limited by schedules and demands, I gear up for the free-for-all that will inevitably transpire. Bless… Read More
Sunday Prayer: Kyrie Eleison
Lord have mercy: we are prayerful but impatient, pensive and at times presumptuous. You are the holy one. You are our refuge and our reassurance. You are our heart’s unrest and its urgency. When the world is painful and violent, you are the peace that passes all understanding. Lord have mercy: we are tossed and… Read More
11th Hour Preacher Party
Grace and Peace to you, Preachers! What’s on your mind today? The Revised Common Lectionary continues its journey through Exodus, Philippians, and Matthew, with an Isaiah alternate reading. Tuesday’s post raises excellent questions for consideration. Narrative Lectionary preachers are considering the icky family system present in I Samuel 3, and the Tuesday NL post addresses… Read More
Friday Festival: Moments Shimmering with Kingdom Love
Waking up to a deep sense of foreboding each morning, and feeling the weight of ministry in the face of world and national events, I find myself seeking out those small experiences of encounter with the holy which give us a glimpse of something beyond the political, the tweeting, the floodwaters, and the bodies lying… Read More
Friday Prayer: Ashes Again
I saw the wildfires, Lord. The flames licking at houses, scorching trees. The stuff of homes and families and memories… GONE. I am undone. The raging power of the flames scared me, their passion was so all-consuming. but unlike the fires, You are not capricious. You are not destructive. I searched my heart… In the… Read More
Ask the Matriarch: Help! They run the place!
What’s at the intersection of “things they don’t teach you in seminary” and “things you wish the search committee had told you”? This question! Dear Matriarchs, What if you had a small group of leaders who have ensconced themselves on one committee? They have controlled all church decisions for years, if not decades, and have… Read More
