God, please teach us how to pray With our vote With our wallets With our masks With our bodies With our work God, please teach us how to pray Through the fear Through the struggle Through the injustice Through the hate Through the complacency God, please teach us how to pray In love For… Read More
Tuesday Prayer
My heart is weighing me down today, God. Is it from my extreme anxiety over this virus and opening up buildings and programs again? Is it from the need to face our own mortality and not knowing how this disease will affect my body if I catch it? Is it from the 90,000 deaths in… Read More
The Pastoral Is Political: Will We or Won’t We?
The pressure is on. The State of North Carolina implemented Phase 1 of its reopen plan on May 8, 2020. Some businesses can reopen with caveats: social distancing must be in place, extra cleaning must happen. State parks can reopen, but with limits on the number of people who can gather. Churches were to be… Read More
Narrative Lectionary: A Mystery Gift (1 Corinthians 15:1-26, 51-57)
This scripture is particularly poignant in this pandemic time, when we’re confronting death in different, more demanding ways than we usually do. Some of us are overwhelmed with the number of deaths around us, and have lost people to death much too soon. All of our lives have changed in response to the lethality of… Read More
Pastoral is Political: Near the Cross Was Mary Weeping
I’ve found myself drawn to images of the Marys at the foot of the cross. Death, particularly the death of someone you love, is hard to watch. I suppose it is a natural human instinct to look away or to hide from the grief and horror before you. It takes a spiritual hardiness to remain… Read More
Tuesday Prayer
God of our path- We don’t know what’s coming. We don’t know how this disease will spread or how it will impact our bodies- if we catch it. God of our road- The journey is long. Have we hit the wall on our run? Have we overestimated our energies? May we see this is a… Read More
Narrative Lectionary: Source of Love
It’s the infamous LOVE text! Read it (maybe for the umpteenth time) here. It is not unfamiliar. This text is often used in wedding and union ceremonies; sometimes ordinations and installations, too. In the Working Preacher Commentary, you can find a historical and contextual glimpse into what might have prompted the Apostle Paul to write these… Read More
Tuesday Prayer
Oh the disappointment are piling up, God. From the musical tickets, To weddings, To the vacation up north this summer. Fill our hearts feeling empty by sorrow. Fill our worried souls with peace. May we find our tomorrows filled with joy- Even in the wilderness. Amen. ***** The Rev. Michelle L. Torigian is the Senior… Read More
RevGalBookPals: Entertainment during COVID-19
Sometimes my reading recommendations are a little more “do as I say and not as I do”. If you asked me what you should read right now, I would totally tell you to re-read something you love or try a new book in a genre that you know brings you comfort and a sense of… Read More
Thursday Prayer: quarantine slump
This is a prayer from the day when it feels impossible to stand in another socially-distanced queue. This is a prayer from glasses-fogged face-mask wearing weariness. This is a prayer for missing friends and loved ones and longing for hugs and shared laughter where you don’t have to worry about your outbreath and how far… Read More
