Everywhere we look today there is fear. Fear of the other, fear of economic inequality, fear of the hate and violence that permeates our communities, fear for the hardships of those who mass migrate. Fear of an environment that looks like creation in reverse. Yet, all our faith traditions tell us not to fear. The […]
Ecclesiastes 9:11 11 I have seen something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all. If you google journey and destination […]
In his “Daily Meditation” recently, Fr. Richard Rohr wrote: “God and the entire cosmos are about two things: differentiation (people and things becoming themselves) and communion (living in supportive coexistence).”
I’m one who finds great meaning in stories that ground us as faith leaders and give rise to our work for social justice. One story for me comes from the early days of the Mennonites, found in a 17th century tome called “The Martyr’s Mirror.” The story is told of Dirk Willems, a 16th century […]
We are undoubtedly living in a time when we are all, as a collective, being called into greater levels of integrity. Technology and social media have a new ability to call out attention to injustices and aspects of our culture that are in desperate need of healing. When a culture is going through a healing […]
We come together [in community] to remind one another To rest for a moment on the forming edge of our lives, To resist the headlong tumble into the next moment, Until we claim for ourselves Awareness and gratitude, Taking the time to look into one another’s faces And see there communion: The reflection of our […]
The Board of the congregation I serve recently passed a Restorative Justice (RJ) policy. We are in the process of exploring how restorative practices can be applied in the context of a faith community. Most often RJ has been used as an alternative to the retributive criminal justice model when a crime has been committed. […]
“What it can do — what prayer, at its best and at our best has always done — is help us to live consciously, honorably and compassionately…. As long as prayer helps me to be more loving, then I need prayer. As long as prayer serves as a potent means of sharing my love with […]
“The best way of breaking down barriers between people or communities is through simple, unforced acts of kindness. One act can undo years of estrangement.”- Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, Former Chief Rabbi of the United Kingdom The most critical of the underlying assumptions of the American experiment in representative democracy is that we will listen to […]
I was just outside listening to a thunder shower sweep through the Grand Valley. And I was taken in by the beauty of the clouds, the rain, and the water. And so, began my reflection on beauty. What is beauty? It’s the lone little flower with a magnificent purple bud bursting through the concrete sidewalk. […]
