On this Holy Friday I share this thoughtful reflection on the Stations of the Cross by Irish theologian and poet, Pádraig Ó Tuama. He recorded this reflection for the first Holy Week of the COVID era. Pádraig walks us through the
Yesterday the Vatican formally repudiated the “Doctrine of Discovery,” a legal concept based on 15th-century papal documents that European colonial powers used to legitimize the seizure and exploitation of Indigenous lands in Africa and the Americas, among other places. As
I’m thrilled to learn that Brian McLaren will be coming to Cascadia next month. Brian will be here for two dates: Jim Henderson and the folks at Off-the-Map are putting on the two events. Brian will engage in a series
Lot’s of excitement from US scientists at the National Ignition Facility at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California because for the first time ever they have successfully produced a nuclear fusion reaction resulting in a net energy gain. On
Whatever hemisphere a person lives in, Winter is a season of long nights and short days. Located as I am in the Northern hemisphere, I witness winter turning colder, Canada Geese flying south, Monarch butterflies migrating, bears hibernating, and humans…
Since last Sunday my church observed Reformation Sunday, this weekend we will be observing All Saints Day. Here is an except from the letter I sent to our faith community… I kind of love that All Saints Day is followed
This week I got to serve as the theologian in residence for the Episcopal Gathering of Leaders clergy event just outside of Portland, Oregon. What a great group of church leaders. It was so inspiring to be with other folks
This weekend, one of our lectionary readings is a story of encounter, wrestling, and transformation. It’s the story of Jacob’s name being changed to Israel. As you may recall, it is Jacob’s sons for whom the twelve tribes of the
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
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
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
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
“God is not a ‘being’ removed from creation, ruling it from outside in the manner of a patriarchal ruler; God is the source of being that underlies creation and grounds its nature and future potential for continual transformative renewal in
Since its creation, United Nations Habitat has been striving to put practical tools in the hands of local people and communities to equip them with the needed information, inspiration, and ideas to mobilize grassroots people to bring about real change
My friend Don sent me a link to the late, Dr Hazel Barnes‘ TV show from the early 1960s, “Self Encounter: A Study in Existentialism.” I started watching it while recovering from COVID. The pace of the series is clearly
Dr. Paul Hoard – a colleague of mine at The Seattle School – and I will be presenting at this year’s Christian Association for Psychological Studies (CAPS) conference. The title of our break out session is: “Against You and You
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 get to spend some time in January and again in June
…every human being – without distinction of sex, age, race, skin color, language, religion, political view, or national or social origin – possesses an inalienable and untouchable dignity. Dr. Hans Küng Sadden to learn of the death of the great
Where I’m From By George Ella Lyon I am from clothespins, from Clorox and carbon-tetrachloride. I am from the dirt under the back porch. (Black, glistening it tasted like beets.) I am from the forsythia bush, the Dutch elm whose
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
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
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
GOD WOULD KNEEL DOWN by St. Francis of Assisi I think God might be a little prejudiced. For once He asked me to join Him on a walk through this world,and we gazed into every heart on this earth, and
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
God is _______! As a child I heard many responses meant to fill in this blank . . . just, holy, righteous, perfect, omnipresent, omnipotent, savior, love, and the list went on. I heard many names for God, mostly rooted
In 1962 Malvina Reynolds released her song “Little Boxes” – used as the theme for the Showtime series “Weeds” – and it’s a song capturing the fear of being ordinary, at least in part. The fear of having a ticky-tacky
“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo.“So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is
I received an email from a dear friend who is an executive director of a Latin American mission collective. As I responded to the email I thought I’d take some of what I offered, modify it slightly, and post it
This message from Michael Curry, the current Presiding Bishop and Primate of the The Episcopal Church, feels like an important one to attend to at this time in America. Exactly a week ago today the Capitol Building was under a
Sunday we light the third candle of Advent… its the pink or rose colored Gaudete candle; from the Latin word meaning, “rejoice.” Advent is a season of anticipation. Anticipation can be imagined as the necessary, if not complex blending of
