A Christianity that brings newness to deadness, even if the newness was something we would never have chosen for ourselves, is the sort of thing that just might blow the doors off the universe if we’ll let it. At the least, I know this kind of Christianity manages to empty my tomb year after year after year.
Embracing Good Friday’s pain even when Easter’s hope seems galaxies away
Good Friday isn’t just a set-up for Easter Sunday and the ham and new shoes that accompany that day. Good Friday is about grief. It’s about death and dying, pain and loss, emptiness and hopelessness. To beam the light in too quickly will render us unable to see.
For survivors of clergy abuse, watching a beloved cathedral go up in smoke felt viscerally familiar
The scene of Notre Dame in flames was painful to watch. But those who have experienced church and clergy abuse have been watching our sacred spaces burn for years, maybe decades.
Holy Week and ‘Game of Thrones’: hospitality and welcome when our ‘winters’ inevitably come
How ironic that the final season of “Game of Thrones” debuted on Palm Sunday, when Christians remember how people welcomed Jesus and hailed him as the Messiah, though all the while, winter was coming.
The unforgettable, holy moment when my 7 year old washed my feet on Maundy Thursday
Nothing could have prepared me for the experience of watching my 7-year-old son kneel before me on Maundy Thursday to wash my feet in a basin, following the example of Jesus.
Notre Dame in flames: grieving the cremation of holy place and divine connection
Looking at the devastation wreaked by fire on the Notre Dame cathedral, it’s easy to get lost in all that is gone. But within the structure that remains is the hope of the millions who have gone before us, reminding us that hope is stubborn and connection runs deep.
What if the monsters we love to hate became the people we love to help?
Jesus says “love you enemies,” and I say, “Christ, of course I love my enemies. I love to hate them.” Heroes love to hate monsters, for without a monster to conquer, who would feed our egos?
Where do you find yourself in the drama of Holy Week?
The Gospels’ accounts of Jesus’ final days share a remarkable continuity. But the unique features of each Gospel also give us much to consider during Holy Week.
Jesus was lynched. Holy Week’s symbols should include a cross and a noose
During Holy Week maybe we white Christians should hold the image of a cross in one hand and the image of a noose in the other. Both should call us to repentance.
Why do we continue to label the death of a marriage as a ‘failed marriage’?
Although divorce does not carry the stigma it once did, in our culture it still whispers, “You failed.” The Church needs to find better language and better theology to respond with grace when a marriage dies.
Re-imagining Palm Sunday: Jesus – and Pilate – enter Jerusalem
Imagine that on Palm Sunday, both Jesus and Pilate, enter Jerusalem from the same gate. The tension created in this imaginary scene introduces us to the underlying tension of Holy Week. And we must decide which parade we will attend.
How real should pastors be in the pulpit?
Congregations have a right to expect their pastor to be real while also respecting appropriate boundaries. In turn, pastors have a right to embrace their humanity and for their churches to remember that the Word became flesh, not marble.