I am not a Catholic, but I’m praying to Mary … with Mary, through Mary … for the Mothers of Gaza.  I am not a Catholic. In fact, I was raised in the charismatic, protestant church in Scotland. A faith tradition which taught us that, “praying to saints” (especially Mary) was idolatry.  This morning however, just after my husband read me the news about the escalating situation of war in Israel, Gaza, and Iran, I found myself praying with, and even to, Mary the mother of Jesus.  For some years now, beginning in a time of deep grief, God has been “turning up” for me … with me … in m ..read more

An acquaintance from my evangelical past recently posted on social media the fable of Einstein as a young university student undermining the arguments of an atheist professor. The first comment pointed out the myth of this story and I observed the sad, bad record Christianity has of inventing myths, like this Einstein story, using faulty syllogistic reasoning to try to justify glaring contradictions in its invented beliefs. I was guilty of using stories like this in my preaching for years (“sermon illustrations”). Gradually, I realised engaging in these debates misses the point of what it mean ..read more

Editor’s Note: This article first appeared in Religion News Service on April 29, 2024.  (RNS) — It is easy to despair over the Holy Land. For almost 80 years it has been a festering sore, and today, after decades of peace efforts, there is no end in sight. After the genocide inflicted on Jews by the Nazis during World War II, Jews wanted a homeland where they could be self-governing and safe. Returning to Israel, their original homeland until the destruction of the Jewish state by the Roman Empire, was a longed-for hope. For a variety of reasons (guilt, sympathy, geopolitical gamesmanship ..read more

It was 2019. At work, I was newly-appointed to my role and trying to lead a national communications department of a Christian missionary organisation through significant change. At home, I’d needed to move back in with my parents, as rent in my city was too expensive for a single person on minimum wage to afford. I was stressed about work, was finding church and life commitments hard, and was utterly, completely exhausted. I was – and still am – inspired by the idea of building God’s kingdom and working for him. However, I always found work at the missionary organisation hard, even though I lo ..read more

October 20, 2023, a network of Palestinian Christian institutions located throughout Israel/Palestine published “An Open Letter from Palestinian Christians to Western Church Leaders and Theologians.”—a clarion call for Western church leaders and theologians to repent of our active support or passive acceptance of the oppression of Palestinian people. On April 9, 2024, a group of Christian leaders and theologians from across the Global North and South, issued the following response. I am honored to join this statement of confession, repentance and solidarity. It does not aim to repent on behalf ..read more

Many of us have heard about the recent movement in the Democratic presidential primary to encourage voters across the country to vote uncommitted. There are several news articles discussing what this movement represents, how it originated, and its potential trajectory as the primaries mature into their next phase. This movement birthed in Michigan through the collective action of Palestinian and Arab-American community members alongside a coalition of grassroots organizers, that is multi-faith, multi-racial and multi-generational, all mobilizing strategically to ensure their voices are heard a ..read more

Being a Sister is a form of radical discipleship of Jesus Christ, I figure. It is how I can live in a committed intentional community long-term with like-minded prayerful, Gospel-centered women; women who also want to serve people on the margins of society, end injustice, advocate for peace, live simply and sustainably, close to the earth and close to the poor. That’s what I think, hope for. That’s why I want to be a Sister. But then there’s the day-to-day: the errands, chores, tasks, and technology—not to mention the culture and commotion of intergenerational women with mixed b ..read more

Have you had your awe and wonder sighting for today? If not it’s time to go out and take notice. Our daily experience of life, God and God’s world are meant to inspire us with awe and wonder. Our failure to notice the miracles around us is a failure of the spirit as well as the senses. An increasing number of people are designating April as Earth month, others are calling the week around Earth Day (April 22nd) Earth Week.  It is a good time to re-attune our senses and a fitting way to develop an awe and wonder habit.  We are still in Eastertide, a great season for noticing and r ..read more

Adapted from Chapter 4, “Isolated and Othered” “Pick a color,” she said. “Write down your color.” I was at a writers’ workshop in Minnesota, and this was our prompt. I wrote down “pink.” No one else will pick that color, I thought to myself. Then we were told our assignment: head outdoors and look for the color we had chosen.  I couldn’t find anything pink. It was cloudy, with no streaks of a pinkish sunset brushing the sky. I spotted peach-colored raspberries ripening on the vine. Spiky lavender thistle blooms swayed high above the grasses. I detected tiny maroon slivers of crushed stone ..read more

Shots fired in the hallway.  People screaming.  One class can’t lock their door, so they block the entrance with furniture. The door gets kicked in. Eventually, the shooter is stopped.  Everyone is taken to a safe location to meet up with parents. But the location isn’t safe.  An angry parent shows up with a gun and starts shooting.  Some run, some freeze, some huddle together screaming and sobbing in fear. Thankfully, this wasn’t a real school shooting.  It was a required emergency drill for all teachers and school staff in my county (including my wife who is a t ..read more