Relating, Creating, Transforming
Our day began with outdoor gardening work at the aptly-named urban oasis, Girarden, so named because of its location on Girard Ave. in West Philly. Muneerah and Sue, our two wonderful hosts, walked us through the work to be done–weeding, trash detail, prep for planting. The group got a lot done and we enjoyed the […]
Read MoreTuesday Our morning and early afternoon was spent at Calvary Center for Culture and Community in West Philly. CCCC is housed in the 1906 Calvary United Methodist Church building at 48th & Baltimore Avenue. The Center serves over 5,000 community members yearly, acting as the “town hall” for one of the nation’s most vibrant and […]
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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 […]
Read MoreOn Tuesday, May 12th, 2015, I was honored to be the guest speaker at Won Buddhist Temple. You can learn more about their community and Won Buddhism by clicking here and here. How does one know him/herself? A good and complicated question, am I right? How do we know ourselves? A simple answer would be: […]
Read MoreJohn 15:12-17 When I was a teenager, there was a song that I learned in a youth ministry program that stuck in my head. The song Draw Me Close by Kelly Robert Carpenter spoke to me on an emotional level. Draw me close to you Never let me go I lay it all down again […]
Read MoreExodus 3:1-7; 11-15 Friday marked the beginning of the Ganesha Festival for Hindus around the world. Ganesh Chaturthi festival honors Lord Ganesh[a], the form or deity that represents intellect and wisdom. The son of goddess Parvati, Ganesh is identified by his elephant head. The festival is 10 days of music, drums, prayers, dancing, and food. […]
Read MoreJohn 20:19-31 Some of you know that from March 16-23 I decided to participate in a program of the Interfaith Center of Greater Philadelphia and the University of Wisconsin Eau-Claire’s Better Together initiative. The program was called Interfaith Encounters Alternative Spring Break. There were 44 students from the school from around the world, hailing […]
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