I’m doing some genealogical research about my birth family and I found my maternal grandmother’s birth certificate application that her parents filled out when she was born in 1899. The seventh question asked about her was this: “Legitimate or Illegitimate” I can’t quite fully describe how offended I am by that question. When I read…
Radiolab is one of my favorite shows on public radio right now. I was listening to one of their podcasted episodes the other day while out hiking and it about stopped me in my tracks. The episode is called Tell-Tale Hearts. And the Oliver Sachs interview is as good as all of his interviews are.…
A sermon preached at Southminster Presbyterian Church in Boise, Idaho on July 5, 2015 Mark 6:1-13 It is hard to go home again, isn’t it? Jesus has already experienced this in Mark’s gospel. A few chapters ago, after people accused him of being possessed by the Devil… “A crowd was sitting around him; and they…
It is an odd relationship–the way ministers often act as agents of the state to sign civil marriage licenses. We can’t sign any other documents on behalf of the state. But hundreds of years ago, when marriages all (mostly) took place in churches, we entrenched the two acts–the act of the church in joining people…
Tonight in worship, we wrote notes to Emanuel AME Zion Church in Charleston. Here is the letter we signed and sent: Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ; We offer our sympathies and our prayers as you mourn the deaths of nine members of your family and as you recover from the violation of the safety…
Presidential candidate and former Florida Governor, Jeb Bush, wrote a book in 1995 that included a chapter called, “The Restoration of Shame”. He seems to believe that if we spent more time shaming people, we would have a better society. “One of the reasons more young women are giving birth out of wedlock and more…
Yesterday in worship I experienced one of those moments that was both amazingly wonderful and kind of awkward at the same time. Rev Vincent Lachina, the Chaplain for Planned Parenthood of the Northwest, and Mistie Tolman, the Regional Field Organizer for Planned Parenthood Votes, based in Boise, presented me with an award. From their website:…
A sermon preached on Pentecost at Southminster Presbyterian Church in Boise, Idaho May 24, 2015 Acts 2:1-21 Ezekiel 37:1-14 I read and preach these texts every year. They are some of my favorite passages of scripture. And just when I think I understand them, and that I’ve got them figured out, the Holy Spirit starts…
Grace is tricky. Particularly Divine Grace. It is a gift of mercy and love given by God because of God’s own goodness, not because of the particular merit or worth of the person who receives it. I remember the moment (and it was a particular moment in time) when I understood that God’s love, mercy,…
A sermon preached at Southminster Presbyterian Church in Boise, Idaho May 10, 2015 John 15: 9-17 Abide. That was the word that stuck with me all week from this short passage. To remain. To continue. To stay. To dwell. To reside. To put up with. To tolerate. To withstand. To wait for. In ways both…
Glass Overflowing 