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In their 2014 poem “Dear White America,” the poet Danez Smith ,wrote, i’ve left in search of a new God. i do not trust the God you have given us. my grandmother’s hallelujah is only outdone by the fear she nurses every time the blood-fat summer swallows another child who used to sing in the choir. take your God back. though his songs are beautiful, his miracles are inconsistent. i want the fate of Lazarus for Renisha, want Chucky, Bo, Meech, Trayvon, Sean & Jonylah risen three days after their entombing, their ghost re-gifted flesh & blood, their flesh & blood re-gifted their child ..read more

One of my very favorite moments at the monastery of Grandchamp in Switzerland happens on a Sunday morning – every Sunday morning. It is the moment during the liturgy when it is the time to celebrate the risen Christ. You see, at Grandchamp, every single day, and every week, is observed as a kind of micro-liturgical year. Every week, you could say, is holy week – and every Sunday a joyous celebration of the resurrection of Jesus. The sisters wear white habits and during the sung liturgy that finally comes a moment, at this point when we are all gathered in a circle still from having taken commu ..read more

Content Warning: References to violence. With the Lord on my side I do not fear. What can mortals do to me?... It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to put confidence in princes…. The stone that the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone…. Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. It is with these blessings that we begin Holy Week every year. It begins with a joyous march of thousands, gathering to celebrate Passover. And it will culminate in just four days, when Jesus will be hunted down by a lynch mob, locked up pre-trial, sentenced, tortured, and crucified. He ..read more

Two years ago Thea Risher, a member of our community, wrote these words for our Palm Sunday service: If some morning, The trees contort, roots upturn, the flowers wither, the fruit rots the heavens fold in on themselves Until there is not even enough light to look upon the desolation And not even enough tears left to mourn What is the prayer for this time? For when everything we know is lost? A couple weeks ago, I was trying to describe this moment to my spiritual director. “It’s like we’re all standing here, on this cliff,” I said. “And over there, we can see another cliff, the world where ev ..read more

The poet ,,writes, Now the knowledge of your leaving comes like a stone laid over your heart, the familiar path closed and not even the solace of a star to guide your way. You will set out in fear. You will set out in dream. But you will set out by that other road that lies in shadow and in dark. We cannot show you the route that will take you home; that way is yours and will be found in the walking. But we tell you, you will wonder at how the light you thought you had left behind goes with you, spilling from your empty hands, shimmering beneath your homeward feet, illuminating the road with e ..read more

Several years ago, a friend called me late one evening while I was in bed reading. I scooted out from under the covers, sat up, and said hello. After several seconds of silence, my friend told me with tears choking her voice that she had just received the news that multiple family members were seriously sick, and likely to die. She asked if I had a Bible handy, and if I could read a particular chapter. As a millennial, I did not have a physical Bible nearby, but I opened it on my phone to the chapter she wanted and began to read. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and th ..read more

“There is a really deep well inside me. And in it dwells God. Sometimes I am there, too … And that is all we can manage these days and also all that really matters: that we safeguard that little piece of You, God, in ourselves.” - Etty Hillesum There is a well inside of all of us, and sometimes it feels very deep, dark, and empty. But, that’s not entirely true. God is within us all the time. God is there within ourselves. I would like to share with you some experiences that I’ve had where I have experienced God. Today, we lit the peace candle on our advent wreaths. And the experiences I want t ..read more

Today we come to the finish line in the church’s liturgical calendar. Next week Advent begins, and with it, the renewed journey through our faith heritage. In 1925 Pope Pius the eleventh instituted this day as “Christ the King” Sunday - as a celebration of the risen Christ who was a servant leader, shining in stark contrast to the inept, power-hungry, and warring leaders of the day. So, here as we reach the apex of our annual journey through God’s story, we also get a preview of how the next year will end. We can see the outcome of what we will long for through Advent and celebrate through the ..read more

There is a somewhat apocryphal story from 1972, that when then-Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai was asked what he thought of the French Revolution, nearly 200 years in the past, he responded simply, “Too soon to tell.” Too soon to tell. If there is one line helping me through the uncertainty, fear, and anxiety of the past weeks, it is this. How do we make meaning in this time, and make meaning of this time? This year seems to simultaneously cry out for meaning-making, and yet overwhelm every attempt to encapsulate it. Maybe it is too soon to tell. A week ago, our community joined congregations all o ..read more