17 Apr, 2020
So, here’s a tough one… what do we do when our faith fails? Maybe you’re one of the lucky ones and this has never happened to you. I happen to know that not everyone is as fortunate. Faith never fails when life is good, when our blessings are...
16 Apr, 2020
The third word I used to describe my call early on in seminary was “faith,” which might seem odd coming on the heels of “skepticism.” But the opposite of faith is not doubt, it is certainty. Heaven knows I didn’t have any certainty when I...
15 Apr, 2020
“Skepticism” was the second word I used to define my call back in seminary (which, by the way, was about 26 years ago – yikes!). Let’s just say I’ve always made a great Doubting Thomas or Devil’s Advocate, because I’m skeptical (and often...
14 Apr, 2020
I’ve been digging through some old paper work and I found some notes and reflections from seminary that I thought you might find amusing, if not interesting. I took a class in seminary called Empowerment. It was supposed to help us understand...
13 Apr, 2020
Here in Wisconsin the “day after” Easter has dawned cold, cloudy and exceedingly windy, and as I write this I’m watching our darn dog eating something I’m sure she shouldn’t be in the back yard. It’s probably what is left of the baby bunny’s...
12 Apr, 2020
This is a weird Easter. There is no gathering of the community in our Easter finery. No music, no fanfare, no Hallelujah Chorus and goosebumps, no hugs and coffee hour. There will be no Easter dinners, no egg hunts and no golfers. We’ll do our...
11 Apr, 2020
Jesus took the wine and said, “It is finished.” (John 19:30) Jesus was killed. He did as much as he could to bring a revolution of compassion, inclusion, and justice, to religion and to the world. Then he died. Much too soon. “It is finished,”...
10 Apr, 2020
“Abba, into your hands I commit my spirit.” (Luke 23:46) On this Day of Tears, while we dwell in the midst of death, these words are the way to life. With these words, we’re given assurance that as Jesus released his mortal body, his spirit was...
09 Apr, 2020
“I am thirsty.” (John 19:28) As the story goes, just before Jesus took his last breath on the cross, he proclaimed that he was thirsty, so someone soaked a sponge with sour wine and touched it to his mouth. Well, sour wine isn’t exactly dregs,...
08 Apr, 2020
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34) Honestly, I so love Jesus for this moment. He had been through a week of hell – rejection, betrayal, beatings, humiliation, and the incomprehensible pain of crucifixion. No wonder he...