That’s all most of us want. We come for the feel good part, but when the call to a good, meaningful life gets challenging (with or without the god language) we tend to turn away. The title comes from a poem by Wilbur Rees. He’ll take “just enough to equal a cup of warm milk […]
Downsizing is often seen as a rite-of-passage as we get older. But what if living with fewer material possessions was a way of life? And as I will suggest in my reflection, material clutter is not the only baggage we might carry with us. In June 2017, Rev. Jeff Jones left full-time parish ministry (nine years in […]
Easter calls “…to you over and over announcing your place in the family of things.” (from Mary Oliver’s “Wild Geese”) Easter is not just a holiday of abstract theology; it is an affirmation of hope made real in the face of all that you might think says otherwise, both within your life and how you […]
Palm Sunday challenges us to rise up from our hesitations and our fears and step into engaged life and action in body or in spirit. In “A Prayer for Courage,” Jo Carr and Imogene Sorley call it being crocus-minded. “Somebody has to stick her neck out, somebody who cares enough to think through and work […]
Wait, doesn’t the phrase read: “truth to power?” It does, but we are also challenged to connect across and through “the tension of our differences” that we might reclaim the civility of our communities, our neighborhoods, our families and friendships – and in the process, our country. Buddhist monk, Thich Nhat Hanh says, “speak the […]
I once heard that it takes something like 20 positive comments to counterbalance the effects on our mood of just one criticism. In the past decade, some remarkable social science research has corrected the ratio even while affirming that negativity, per incident, holds a more powerful sway upon us than the things that make us feel good. This offers us great […]
I would add “and Freedom and Hope and Grace Beyond what that Commitment envisioned,” but the sign can’t hold such a long title. Take action, lift despair, empower grace. In these challenging and important times, you become part of the difference you hope to make, and your hope becomes more than you alone when it […]
DREAMers are the embodiment of our Soul Matters theme of resiliency. As we close our sixth academic year of DREAM Scholarships and consider applicants for our seventh, we welcome Carolina to share with us the impact the scholarship has had on her life. She will also reflect on the national turmoil about DACA and the […]
February’s Soul Matters materials remind us “that perseverance isn’t a solo act.” “As people of perseverance we are being called not just to grit and strong wills, but to gentleness and self-care.” It’s a balance of the prophetic and the pastoral. Think of something or someone that has given you heart to persist; “a person, […]
This reflection came just before Valentine’s Day, which is often termed a “Hallmark” holiday. In fact, scholars trace the origins of the holiday celebrating love to Geoffrey Chaucer and his Parlement of Foules. It is bequeathed to us as a day to honor love, notably romantic love. But recently expanded to include love of self […]