Hope’s Evidence
Jim Wallis, longtime leader of the Sojourners community in Washington, DC, would often write: “Hope is believing in spite of the evidence, then watching the evidence change.” I was tasked with giving the summary and closing prayer at the end of the BREAD Nehemiah Action last night, and included this…
Sabbatical Ponderings
My upcoming sabbatical is quickly approaching, and so one of the main questions I plan to explore is at the top of my mind: How do we pass along the core teachings of our faith and tradition? As the “Pastor of Christian Formation” this question lies at the heart of…
Membership Toward A Center / VOTE! Nonpolice Crisis Response
This week’s blog is a twofer. 1. Membership toward a center Article V of our church constitution discusses membership (now I know I have your eager attention). Section A includes this sentence: “We choose to focus on a center that draws us in rather than sharply defining and defending a…
Earth Day Beauty
Today is Earth Day. This is a strange thing to say for those of us utterly dependent every minute of our lives on the cooperative systems and generative cycles of this, our only home in the cosmos. But we forget. In our relatively new-found powers of industry we relate with…
Sabbatical Rhythms
Word is starting to get around that this summer I’ll be taking some time away from normal rhythms of church work and life for another sabbatical, so I wanted to share a bit about what I’ll be working on and why it feels important. At the heart of this sabbatical…