Relating, Creating, Transforming
Matthew 21:1-11 NRSV Hey there! It’s been a while. Yes, I’ve been taking a break from things for a while. Call it a sabbatical. And now I’m back, and well–strange times, wouldn’t you say? So welcome back to this strange, hopefully life-giving space. I appreciate you and hope that you still find this blog to […]
Read MoreOur third day began with service-learning at SHARE Food Program in the East Falls neighborhood of Philadelphia. The SHARE Food Program is a nonprofit organization serving a regional network of community organizations engaged in food distribution, education, and advocacy. SHARE promotes healthy living by providing affordable wholesome food to those willing to contribute through volunteerism. […]
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Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, 2 Corinthians 5:17 Many of you are probably familiar with the musical Rent, a rock musical with music, lyrics, and book by Jonathan Larson, loosely based on Giacomo Puccini’s opera La Bohème. Rent follows the story of a group friends who are mostly young artists struggling to survive in New York City’s East […]
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John 17:20-26 We are each other’s harvest; we are each other’s business; we are each other’s magnitude and bond.[1] Like a sculptor, if necessary, carve a friend out of stone. Realize that your inner sight is blind and try to see a treasure in everyone.[2] If everyone helps to hold up the sky, then one […]
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Isaiah 58:1-12 Isaiah, the prophet says: Shout out, do not hold back! Lift up your voice like a trumpet! It’s announcement, but an announcement about hypocrisy. This is often a common issue for religious people—that they say they love God and they claim to do all the right religious rituals and they think themselves to […]
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Psalm 85:1-8; 10 I want to begin with a question. How many of you feel that your definition of who God is comes mostly from: What your parents or family raised you to believe? Or: From the Bible? Or: From a church? Or: From a spiritual or enlightening experience? Or: From personal life experience? Perhaps […]
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Mark 2:21-22 Have you moved a lot in your life? I know I have. I have way too many memories of packing up stuff and cleaning out an apartment, a dorm room, or a house. That’s the worst part of moving, isn’t? Each time I moved, I had to come to that awful, eye-opening revelation […]
Read MorePhilippians 4 All life is suffering. This is the first and truest of the Buddha’s Four Noble Truths, an essential belief for Buddhists—that sorrow, loss, and death await all of us and the ones we love. Sounds depressing, maybe, but it is true. And you don’t have to be Buddhist to believe it. Everyone “suffers” […]
Read MoreJohn 3:1-9 Last week, I participated in the Interfaith Center of Greater Philadelphia’s Interfaith Encounters Alternative Spring Break program for college students. I journeyed with students, faculty, and college staff professionals to encounter seven different religious traditions, including: Reconstructionist Jewish; Egyptian Coptic Orthodox Christian; Sikh; Quaker; Won Buddhist; Hindu; Black Muslim and Sunni Muslim. There […]
Read MoreOur day began with Sue Witte and the folks from Urban Tree Connection! And…what amazing weather! Urban Tree Connection is a nonprofit organization that engages children and adults from some of Philadelphia’s most disadvantaged neighborhoods in community-based, urban-greening projects. UTC believes that community-based urban greening is a great way for residents of all ages to […]
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