Sermon: Bad Reception

"Bad Reception" (Feb 3, 2013) God's promise to the prophets-- to be with them so they do not need to be afraid-- seems on the surface to be an empty one, as prophet after prophet is harassed, degraded, threatened, and killed. Or maybe the promise of presence isn't a guarantee of safety and ease, but…

Sermon: Be. Loved. Beloved.

"Be. Loved. Beloved." (January 13, 2013) Each one of us is unique, marked and known in our imperfections, scuffs, and rough places. And yet we are known and loved intimately by God, claimed and called God's own. (Isaiah 43:1-7; Luke 3:15-17, 21-22) --- The exercise I use in this sermon is a simple one to…

Spirituality that speaks to the rest of us

I have bad days. Bad weeks, even. Last week was one such example. I was feeling like "church" was an old, dead concept (I still think this, at least in the way most of us think about church), and that progressives/liberals like myself would have no space whatsoever in the spiritual culture of the future--…

That’s me in the spotlight, losing my religion.

I've been pointed to a fantastic discussion on Newsweek's website about disbelieving clergy, and a corresponding study from Tufts University about clergy who have "lost faith in their tradition." Friend and fellow blogger Jeremy has a great exploration of this article in his blog post on the subject, playing on the questions of how clergy…

The Invention of Faith?

My husband and I recently watched the movie "The Invention of Lying," written and directed by Ricky Gervais and Matthew Robinson (at Internet Movie Database). I'm surprised that I hadn't heard more about this film sooner; I thought it was one of the most interesting and though-provoking movies I've seen in a while. It starts…

That Old Time Religion Ain’t Conservative Enough

So my friends lists on Facebook, and on my blogroll, and even on my television (good Lord, do I love Rachel Maddow) are all talking about the same thing this week. The Conservative Bible Project. Like Rachel Maddow, like many of my friends when we first emailed this around, I was convinced this had to…

The Coolest Thing Since the Printing Press

I’m surprised that this didn’t make more of a splash when it came out a month or so ago. The Codex Sinaiticus project is updating and making available online the images and translations of a codex—a 1600-year-old bible, one of the oldest and most complete versions of the Christian Bible ever found. Why do I…

Seven years later

Then Peter came and said to him, "Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?" Jesus said to him, "Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times." May we know the spirit of forgiveness of ourselves and others, in the midst of…