Below is another installment in our occasional book review feature, written by our “resident librarian,” Carolyn Vance. Books have always been important in my life. I’ve always loved reading. As a shy and timid child, books would take me places, expose me to characters and ideas that I otherwise would not encounter, and stimulate my imagination. I’m
Read MoreIt’s not about you. My nun and I reflect on this periodically. Even at 80, she gets this gentle reminder from the Lord. Perhaps primarily for the point of passing it on to me. Except that it’s not about me. Indeed, the manager in the Parable of the Day Laborers has no speaking lines. If s/he has
Read MoreMove-in day is full of emotion. Hopes and anxiety. New people, new places, new routines. Young professionals arriving at new jobs, families relocating, students moving into dorms, and parents dropping them off. At minimum, we hope college students will observe the basic rules that Jesus highlighted in Matthew 19: Don’t murder, don’t sleep with someone else’s partner, don’t steal, don’t
Read MoreA community is more than a collection of individuals; each of us contributes a unique aspect of our identity in Christ. This poem from Victor Fein articulates the beauty of these interactions when we come together for worship. May we be open to share, and open to receive, what God gives us through each other. -Renée Morning
Read MoreThink back, as far as you can in your memory, to what might have been your first sense of self. Who were you in relationship to the world around you? What was your primary identity? I imagine that my first sense of identity was as sister. To my older brother, busy building and playing, whose world
Read MoreThe birds are calling to each other; I hear them through my open window. They swoop and dive. Perhaps I will put up a feeder. When I quietly observe in my friends’ gardens, I see the attraction. “…so that the birds in the sky come and nest in its branches.” Matt. 13:32 (CEB) Welcoming the birds is kingdom imagery. A
Read MoreSunday was a day of mourning. Did you miss it? I did. Tisha B’ Av– Judaism’s saddest day of the year, observed by a 25 hour fast. Remembering the destruction of both temples, the tragedies suffered by the Jewish people over the course of history, and the 6,000,000 Jews who perished in the Holocaust. Can we say “our
Read MoreSudden specificity gets my attention. Isaiah’s vision, conveyed in poetry, has a quotable timelessness. A preacher in any pulpit. The prophetic call to put an end to such evil; learn to do good. (Isaiah 1:16) But then we are introduced to the unpleasant reality of particular armies, attacks, and alliances in Isaiah 7. The politics are real, the leaders and
Read MoreAs we prepare for our fellowship-wide retreat just one month away, Victor Fein reflects on the meaning and purpose of retreats. On each of our journeys, in each of our communities, may we choose and find time for this spiritual practice. Thank you, Victor, for these thoughts to guide us. -Renée The dictionary defines retreat as….
Read MoreThis morning I am reminded of where we truly belong, no matter our current national status: So now you are no longer strangers and aliens. Rather, you are fellow citizens with God’s people, and you belong to God’s household. Ephesians 2:19 (CEB) In this time of national remembrance and celebration, the words of German Lutheran pastor Martin Niemöller
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