I’m on sabbatical right now, and my “main” project is about creating a robust spirituality of hope. Below is small piece of this project, which is still very much in process. By the waters of Babylon we sat down and wept. When the Hebrew Bible wants to deal with pain, it turns to poetry. Psalm 137 is one of those poems that scrapes the emotion off the sides of the human condition. It starts with […]
[View the story “Like those who dream” on Storify]
A short reflection on Psalm 133 , the psalm for Proper 15a, according to the Revised Common Lectionary. Ihaven’t been able to get the crisis in Iraq out of my head. The ancient Christian community in Mosul (formerly known as the biblical city of Nineveh), which dates to the most ancient of times, is now empty. Children are beheaded and their heads rest on pikes. Women are raped. Hordes of people are walking to Syria […]
The following is a reflection on 1 Samuel 1:4-20 & 2:1-10, the Old Testament and Psalm Lessons for Proper 28B, according to the Revised Common Lectionary. Twice in the Bible people who are praying are mistaken for being drunk. Hannah on the threshold of the Temple of Shiloh is praying for a son and is castigated by Eli. “Put away your wine,” he says. On the day of Pentecost the apostles are filled with the […]
The following is a reflection on the 23rd Psalm, the Psalm properly appointed for Lent 4A Easter 4A,B,C, Proper 11B & Proper 23A, according to the Revised Common Lectionary. Why this Psalm? Of all the ancient texts, and all the glorious pieces of scripture, what makes us as a people and as a culture gravitate towards this one? I’ve presided over funerals where the majority of those in attendance didn’t know the Lord’s Prayer, but they could stumble […]