Today begins the month long celebration and exploration of all things “city” thanks to UN-Habitat’s “Urban October.” This year’s theme is: Mind the Gap: Leave No One & No Place Behind! What are the gaps in your parish or neighborhood? What
Below you will find the latest letter I sent to the congregation with whom I am serving. For some reason I went a little philosophical with this one. I sure hope it makes sense. I hear in my writing an
Thirty-one years ago today – September 24, 1991 – Seattle’s Nirvana released their groundbreaking, sophomore LP, Nevermind… can’t believe that was more than three decades ago! Damn that is one great record. To me Nevermind still feels raw and emotional;
Each year the “Gathering of Leaders” invites a theologian to spend some time thinking alongside some leaders within the Episcopal Church, this year that honor falls to me. I was supposed to have some time in January in the American South
The fourth convening of the Urban Economy Forum is less than two weeks away. You still have time to register! I will be participating in a roundtable exploring urban policy and public services, our theme is, “Inclusive Urban Finance.” You
I have recently found a poet whom I am can’t believe I have lived without until now. Her name is Mona Lisa Saloy. I read Dr. Saloy and something opens inside me. So good, so very good! God Was Willing
Last night Lynette and I soaked in some great live music at the 9th annual, Jackson Street Jazz Walk. We hadn’t been before, but you can know that this event will be a fixture in our Fall rhythm going forward.
I’m roughly nine months into my 20 month commitment at St Luke’s Lutheran Church in Bellevue. The church has commissioned its pastor to go on pilgrimage to Holden Village for about a year and an half, and I get to
Saddened to learn of the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. She was 96 years old. In coming days we will learn much more, we will be aided in remembering her 70+ year reign, and will be aided in
Those who know me well, know that I have lived with clinical depression for much of my adult life. It’s probably more actuate to acknowledge that I’ve been navigating depression as long as I can remember, long before any diagnosis;
Over the last few weeks the Lectionary Sunday Gospel readings have awakened our Sabbath rest imaginations. It seems fitting that this weekend, many of us will participate in an observation of Labor Day… a much-needed extra day of rest. I
We see that it is not the task of Christianity to provide easy answers to every question, but to make us progressively aware of a mystery. God is not so much the object of our knowledge as the cause of
Today, during The Seattle’s School’s “Sacred Assembly” – which is part of our learning community’s back to school rituals – Paul Steinke shared an all-age “Affirmation of the Faith” from Scotland’s Iona Community. I loved it so much. Paul let
So I was listening to KEXP radio and heard the song “Go Easy Kid.” Monica Martin is a new artist to me, and I’m loving what I’m hearing so far. But this song stopped me in my tracks, I had
In the wake of Seattle Pacific University’s Board of Directors’ decision to double down on its policy to proactively exclude queer faculty, student protests and sit-ins have gained national… even international attention. Kevin Neuhouser, who is a professor of sociology
David Kroman, a staff reporter for the Seattle Times, has been covering the story of a grassroots movement to decommission a section of Hwy 99 and to reconnect two parts of Seattle’s South Park neighborhood that was cut in two.
In October I will have the privilege and responsibility to offer a neighborhood-rooted, grassroots-parish, faith-based, gift-economy perspective, that is so vital to the ongoing conversation about sustainable urban economics. The City of Toronto is hosting (in-person & on-line) the fourth
Dr. Josh Packard and the team over at Springtide Research Institute recently released their latest study of young people and religion. Springtide conducts qualitative and quantitative research on the inner and outer lives of young people, ages 13 to 25.
Saddened to learn of the death of Dr. Ronald J. Sider, on July 27, 2022, Dr. Sider was 82 years old. “God’s Word teaches a very hard, disturbing truth. Those who neglect the poor and the oppressed are really not
The City of Bellevue is updating it’s “Comprehensive Plan.” This plan is an important tool that will help guide growth and development in Bellevue for the next twenty years. People are at the heart of Bellevue’s plan for the future
Every two years UN-Habitat releases a major report regarding the World’s Cities. The latest report was just released during WUF11 in Katowice, Poland last week… I even got to be there for the press release. This year’s report, titled: “Envisaging
I have never been a big fan of the ways the United States of America celebrates on July 4th. “Independence” is often a destructive myth which diminishes the importance of relationship. The holiday often seems like an excuse for championing
So right from the start my travel itinerary to UN-Habitat’s eleventh convening of a World Urban Forum (WUF11) was already not great. There were two long layovers: a six hour layover in Vancouver, BC (of all places), followed by an
This Friday I am on my way to Katowice Poland to participate in the United Nations Habitat’s eleventh convening of the World Urban Forum. So I thought I’d offer a bit of an explanation of what I will be doing…
Currently we have surpassed 100,000,000 refugees on our planet. That’s more than 100 million people just like you and me, who have had to make the terrible decision to flee the place they love, their home, and what they know
Loving the latest single, “Sidelines” from Phoebe Bridgers. I just watched the YouTube of performance on Fallon from earlier this week. So good! She released her sophomore LP, called, “Punisher.” I am totally digging her writing and her sound these
Eight years ago, when my son celebrated his 13th birthday we created and engaged a Coming of Age ritual which involved a number of elements; one of which was a barrel of local moonshine. On his 13th birthday we barreled
I recently stumbled across a band from Siberia that is quite literally rocking my world… Otyken. They seamlessly integrate traditional aboriginal and modern instrumentation and kick ass arrangement. Just to help place Otyken genre-wise, I kinda hear some resonance with
This weekend is “Trinity” Sunday. I’ll let you in on a secret. I’ve never experienced a Trinity Sunday; it simply wasn’t part of my upbringing. I was raised in a church culture which held a stated belief in the Threeness
The Republic of Tenderness by Nathan Spoon You are living inside the cup of another life. Water is running slowly. Somewhere a hand is overflowing with the abundance and celebration denizens dream of. Meanwhile if there is happiness it hangs
