{A meditation on Mark 6:1-13} Jesus was a small-town guy. His village of Nazareth had a population of just a few hundred people. And I want to give a sense distance as we think about the stories in the gospels. Because most of Jesus’ ministry and teaching took place around the Sea of Galilee; and the distance from the Sea of Galilee to Jesus’ hometown of Nazareth was roughly 30 miles. These were tiny communities, in which everyone likely knew... Read more
The hay now rises to shoulder-height and I walk a path around the field mowed by our John Deere. To my right and to my left, hay—stout and emerald green—sways listlessly, gracefully. If I sat down, no one would find me. In this age, it feels as if everyone is talking; and increasingly, I am weary of the chatter. Increasingly, I don’t want to be found. Social media renders each of us CEO of our private media organizations and we’re... Read more
I’m part of a tradition that uses the lectionary, and this coming Sunday, one of our readings is about Jesus in a boat in a storm; a passage very familiar for some. Jesus and his disciples pass across a lake when a storm arises and the boat becomes overwhelmed. Naturally, the disciples are afraid for their lives, but Jesus sleeps blissfully in the stern. They are incredulous. “Don’t you even care about us?!” they ask him. But he calmly commands... Read more
Transformation beats moralism. But as a young adult, effort was my mantra. And effort, coupled with an adolescent zest to save the world, was perilous. In my early 20s, I stumbled my way through so many “good deeds,” it is painful to look back. The time I began buying food for a physically challenged, low-income woman and her teenaged daughter, then was unable to continue after one month, despite creating an impression of commitment. They welcomed me into their tiny... Read more
It is there as I do the things I love—from drinking my morning latte to nuzzling my cats to chatting with my husband, walking a path through tall grass, creating and working and falling asleep at the end of the day. It is present in every moment in between. When one is dealing with anxiety, it can be omnipresent and distracting, stealing one’s attention from the things that make life feel worthwhile and beautiful. Anxiety is like having a switch... Read more
This week in my tradition we read the story about Nicodemus. But I can’t think of this story, without also thinking about the next chapter of John and the story it features—about the woman from Samaria. These stories and their juxtaposition are strategic; and they are all about contrast. We understand Nicodemus better because of the woman from Samaria. And we understand this woman better because of her contrast with Nicodemus. The author of John frequently paints contrasts. At times... Read more
A friend I’ve known for 25 years, who lives on the other side of the country, invited me to communicate in a new way—by audio text. At first, she would send a 5 to 8-minute message as she paused in her day, telling me about a recent excursion she’d taken, or something she’d written. And I would respond by typing out a traditional text. I was reluctant to adopt the new practice, being that I’m generally taciturn. But after a... Read more
Today I played Kate Rusby’s ‘Hourglass’ and was transported to years living in St. Andrews, Scotland at the close of the millennium. Those two years were seriously hard—not least because I was often ill. But the sad songs on that album ring gladness for me. A fiddle-pipe duet on ‘Annan Waters’ sends shivers, it’s so beautiful—even if the tune, like most English folk songs, is tragic, narrating the story of a woman who drowns, never again to see her love.... Read more
Someone famous said having children is like having your heart run around in someone else’s body. Then here’s this heart of mine, frolicking off in the runt-body of a barn kitten I’d name “Eloise”—a creature barely the size of a rat. Love is always risky, but the perils of falling for something so vulnerable seem pronounced. With kohl lining around her eyes like an Egyptian queen, and orange-and-white candy-striped legs, Eloise is the most beautiful cat I’ve seen. The rest... Read more
To what extent can humans know and understand God? a reader asks. In answering, I start at the beginning. These 9 ways are not prioritized, but they do move from the first to the second half of life and the thread of incarnation runs through them. Everything we experience of God is embodied, en-fleshed. Even our contemplative reverberations occur in the cells our spirits inhabit on this Earth. This reality, this fact of human existence, is appreciated by all traditions... Read more
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