In Praise of Competition
“Competition” is a bad word to most spiritual teachers and theologians. Especially in feminist, womanist, and mujerista theology, competition is seen as a male, patriarchal value that leads to battle, destruction and…
Category: Posts
Preaching in a Foreign Tongue
In my position at All Saints Church in Pasadena, California, I preach in Spanish once or sometimes twice a month. It’s a language I love but do not speak fluently…
The Easter Bunny, Resurrection, and Jesus
Many years ago on a spring morning, I was hustling my daughter and me through our morning routine: she needed to get to preschool, and I needed to get to…
Senioritis
Anybody who is in their last year of an academic program has probably been afflicted by senioritis: an inflammation of the spirit that causes itching, irritation and restlessness among people…
Counting Money in the Temple
Just recently I read about a church pastor who conducted a church’s stewardship campaign without ever mentioning money. I was astounded at this. Why would a minister/pastor/priest balk at asking…
Does God Get Angry?
So I was listening to Mozart’s Requiem a while back, and I couldn’t help wondering whether God gets angry. “Dies irae” (the day of wrath) are the first words of…
“How long will women’s ordination last?”
“Last?” I asked the woman. “Did you say, ‘How long will it last?’” After three services at All Saints Church today (two with the Dean of Canterbury Cathedral, the Very…
Watching Slavery
When a friend invited me to a Screen Actors’ Guild screening of Twelve Years a Slave, I was excited at the prospect of having a Q&A session with the director…
Ask for help. Really. Then rinse and repeat.
As a church member and now clergyperson, I have collected stories about ways in which churches have or have not reached out to members who are in crisis or simply…
Living REALLY Simply
Little did I know, when I packed up my stuff in New York City, that I wouldn’t see it again for three weeks. (The promised date of delivery was June…
How much space do we need?
How much space do you need to live? It probably won’t surprise Americans to hear that we have much more space per capita in our homes than most people. But…
Yes I said yes I will Yes.
Just four months ago, my friend, the Rev. Beth Tjoflat, was preaching at my ordination to the priesthood, and she said something about my being a scholar priest, someone called…
In Security
During troubled times when life seems more dangerous than usual, words having to do with security are thick in the air: We have heightened security. All is secure. Stay inside…
Easter to Go!
On the list of things that Episcopal priests fight about, we’ve had a recent entry: whether priests should be dispensing “ashes to go” on Ash Wednesday. Before I get into…
