Breath is life. Inhaling… Exhaling… Things come together and things fall a part. Into every life comes pain & suffering, and joy & pleasure. Suffering is not Divine judgement any more than pleasure is God’s reward. Both are part of
“When I heard about spiritual direction, I felt as if I was seeing an old friend I had never met. Spiritual direction (this new old friend) led me deeper into the love of God. Spiritual direction helped me experience more
We have one month to get ready for the UN-Habitat’s Urban October. UN-Habitat is engaging people and groups from all over the world to think about where they live and how they live where they live, with an eye to
Last night Lynette introduced me the following excerpt from a conversation between Dr. Bettina Love, author of We Want to do More Than Survive: Abolitionist Teaching and the Pursuit of Educational Freedom and Dr. Yolanda Sealey-Ruiz, award winning Associate Professor
Leading Ideas Talks brings to the table cutting-edge leaders on subjects you care about — navigating change, reaching younger people, financing your ministry, communicating effectively — to help you be the leader God is calling you to be. Dr. Ann Michel,
The good folks over at Circlewood released interviewed me for their Earthkeepers Podcast. Its Episode 36, “For a Greener Future.” Their site says: In this episode, Forrest talks to the authors of a book called 2020s Foresight: Three Vital Practices for
Flipping the Script on Stewardship: COVID-19 & the Shift from Church Property to Kingdom Building For more than a year, your church’s building has been unused. Yet, not having access to it didn’t stop your faith community from being a
During our first trip to visit my sister and her family since they made the seismic move from Calgary, Alberta to Birmingham, Alabama – which happened to be our first flight anywhere since the beginning of the pandemic – they
Annually, at the end of the Spring term at The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology we gather to hear TEDish-styled presentations from graduating seniors. While most of the presentations are made by graduates of the school’s theology programs, some counseling students
June is Pride Month. Which is the perfect opportunity to highlight some of some of the important LGBTQ+ theological writings followers of the Way of Jesus the Christ are researching, writing, and reading to help us love God, love neighbor,
I invite you to watch the above video with an open heart. Attend to your own curiosity as you watch it. Every one of us come to data dumps like this with our uniqueness and particular hermeneutics. This is is
“The practice of justice is at the center of God’s purpose for human life. It is so closely related to the worship of the living God as the only true God that no act of worship is acceptable to [God]
Spring trimester at The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology begins today. I will be serving as the guide along the course of three learning journeys. My three classes this trimester include: Integrative Project: Exploring the Future Intersections 3: Textual
My spiritual lineage has is a pretty straight line back to the earliest days of the Anabaptist peace movement… often referred to as the “radical reformation” within Christianity. The older I grow the more I appreciate aspects of my heritage.
The Guest House by Rumi This being human is a guest house. Every morning a new arrival. A joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor. Welcome and entertain them all! Even if they are
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” Albert Einstein Happy Earth Day! You and I live somewhere. Faithful presence invites us to discover a way of living in harmony with all of life… people, animals, ourselves, and the earth. The acceleration
Thanks be to God, an American police officer was held accountable for murdering an African American man… George Floyd. The officer was found guilty of all three charges. May this nation not turn back from the much overdue reform of
Blessed Maundy Thursday… …God’s invitation to, “wash up before dinner!” Imagine a God who doesn’t demand your worship, mindless obedience, or tithes but actually serves you out of love, simply because that’s who God is… Imagine a God, so located
How sad it is that we give up on people who are just like us. Fred Rogers Growing up in Canada when I did, I watched and loved the Mr. Dressup show. I’ve come to learn that Mr. Dressup was
The Asian American Christian Collaborative (AACC) is working with local churches and organizations to stand against Asian American & Pacific Islanders (AAPI) hate and to mourn the loss of the 8 precious image bearers who were massacred. Marches are already
Declaring The Sanctity Of Life & The Dignity Of All We come together as senior religious leaders, academics, and lay leaders from around the world to affirm the sanctity of life and dignity of all. We affirm that all human
A documentary looking at the life of Abraham Joshua Heschel was released at the end of last month… I can’t wait to see it. I’ve been rereading Heschel’s The Sabbath in preparation for a spring course I’ll be teaching at
“The Spirit teaches us how to participate with God in the restoration of all things; maybe the more common term for this would be mission…[I]t’s a mission which connects our unique desires to the work of the Spirit to keep
March is Women’s History Month. Women’s History Month is an annual declared month set aside to highlight the contributions of women to events in history and contemporary society. What we now know as the month long observation in the USA, began
Today The Parliament of the World’s Religions is joining organizers and community leaders in Chicago as part of the City’s Together We Heal initiative by hosting a series of virtual programs to foster conversation and share tools on healing and
I’ve been reading, rereading, and listening to others’ reading many of Meister Eckhart’s works over the past year. I have come to sense that reading – especially out loud – is itself a great hermeneutical act. I love hearing other
Today is Ash Wednesday; the first day of Lent. My school’s Scared Space, Office of Students & Alumni, and my Life Together class sent out Lenten observation kits to any current students, staff or faculty who wanted one. Today’s chapel
My love of jazz began when I was in junior high. My older sister often let me hang out with her and her high school friends… one of her many generosities. One of her friends played trumpet in a jazz
“This is the story and song our ancestors bequeathed to us, and it comes at a time in our country when the very things they struggled and died for — faith and freedom, justice and equality, democracy and grace —
I’m getting ready to teach a new class: “Spirituality & Sabbath.” I’m having a blast reading, mediating, praying, sketching, and thinking in preparation. As you may know, I’ve spent the better part of my adult life opening to faithful presence
