Inside the Minds of Valerie and Mike (and Anna)
So, here we are at the end of Lent. We have arrived at the Triduum, the Three Sacred Days, observed by some communities with a worship service which spans well, three days. Worship starts Maundy Thursday with foot washing and Holy Communion, continues on Good Friday with Christ’s Passion and crucifixion, and ends Saturday (in... Continue Reading →
I have been mulling this one over for some time, like more than a year. My seminary readings for 3 of my 4 classes have landed on hospitality at some point this semester. Hospitality comes in all sorts of forms and styles, and happens in a variety of places. In the past few years we... Continue Reading →
As I suspected, this week is feeling a bit like Week 4 of summer swim season. I bet you are wondering how I’m equating this week of Lent with swim season. For those who do summer swim, you probably get it…those of you who have been part of our County swim league team definitely get... Continue Reading →
The right, or opportune, time is the meaning of the ancient Greek word kairos. And no, I did not learn it in my ancient Greek language class, I knew the word prior to the class. In church circles kairos is used to differentiate from chronos…our time, linear time, measured in hours, days, etc. Theologically, kairos... Continue Reading →
Early last month I “attended” (I Zoomed in) the ELCA Youth Ministry Network conference known as The Extravaganza. The theme this year was “Enough”. Between workshops and speakers, we covered “Enough” from numerous angles. And I’ve been pondering the theme since. For those who observe Lent and engage in a Lenten disciple, giving up something... Continue Reading →
During Lent this year I will be posting a series of weekly reflections with a specific community in mind, but which I hope will resonate with a wider audience. Many of the themes, if not all, are fairly universal in nature and have been recurring themes in my ponderings lately…lately also meaning the past few... Continue Reading →
I write this on the eve of the start of my second semester at United Lutheran Seminary. I started the first semester this past fall with a bit of apprehension, a general idea of a plan, and a good dose of excitement. And the semester started with a pre-semester crash course (also known as an... Continue Reading →
It’s early January, still New Year’s. During the last weeks of the old year and the first weeks of the new year there is always media postings and sharing of new habits, new resolutions, new dreams, new goals. Usually these are worthy aspirations to be healthy, learn something new, to slow down, etc. But sometimes,... Continue Reading →
“Politics is about the organization of society and public affairs” “Basically,…politics is about how groups of people organize themselves…’political’ can be used to describe organizations and the dynamics of relationships of groups” Per Merriam-Webster, origins of “politics” - politikós "of citizens, civic, of a state, political, public" These quotes are from a chapter titled The Bible and Politics,... Continue Reading →
As a bonus, for fun, assignment we were asked to find some artistic (any format) depiction of the story of Abraham and the sacrificing of Isaac. The artist, Domenico Gargiulo, was an Italian painter from the 1600s. He received his training from a battle-painter and his father was a sword maker. This image is obviously not... Continue Reading →
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