Advent reminded us to watch and wait and here we are still watching and waiting even though the Divine is come. We are watching and waiting with bated breath to see whether there will be a peaceful transition of power, especially in light of the events on Epiphany. We are watching and waiting to see …
As I was watching an interview with a congressman about her experience on January 6, I realized at the end of the conversation she said, “Stay safe. be well.” I’ve heard that sign off dozens of times over the past year. I’ve ended conversations or emails with the same sentiment. We don’t say goodbye anymore. …
Many have noticed and noted that the events of last week have revealed the truth that there are two Americas. The unveiling that at our very foundation are racist and discriminatory practices and traditions that suppress and oppress whole groups of people is not easy to gaze upon. It isn’t easy to be reminded that …
As I have walked with individuals and families along the journey of grief, one of the reflections I’ve heard again and again is their surprise that the day after a loss or tragedy, the light still comes in the morning. As we were walking yesterday, I felt the same surprise. How could the day look …
For the last two weeks, I have been knee-deep in Ibram X. Kendi’s Stamped from the Beginning. I reserved this book at the library after a summer study of his book How to Be Antiracist. I knew there was more that I needed to learn. I knew there were stories and experiences that I had …
As we were on our morning walk, the five-year-old asked, “Why are people taking their Christmas decorations down and we aren’t?” It’s the kind of question that a clergy parent waits and hopes for. I explained that Christmas isn’t over on December 25 and in fact the season after Christmas is the time that we …
Each year, a word crystallizes as the word of the year. It’s never at the beginning and rarely clear until there later in the year. This year was surprising to be sure. In January, we celebrated our daughter’s first birthday surrounded by friends and family at one of our favorite restaurants. In February, I accepted …
For the past four years, I have participated in a book challenge where I set the goal of reading 50 books. I have never reached that goal. Until this year. As our lives slowly drifted to being at home more, I found myself not only reading the books that had been sitting on the shelf, …
Richard Rohr in his daily mediation on December 29 described the fixed point saying: The fixed point is our place to stand. It is a contemplative stance: steady, centered, poised, and rooted. To be contemplative, we have to have a slight distance from the world to allow time for withdrawal from business as usual, for …
This week is the week where Christmas and Christmastide collide every year. For many who celebrate a cultural Christmas, this week is full of taking down decorations, reorganizing, and decluttering in order to get ready for the New Year. For me, this is the week for basking in the light of all five candles blazing: …
