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What Lies Ahead

As I write this reflection, the war in Ukraine has been going on for more than two months. Thousands of civilians, including children, have been injured or killed. As of April 21, almost 5.4 million refugees have fled Ukraine, and an estimated 7.7 million people have been displaced within the country itself. Some of...

Known & Loved

My Lord,My sins are likeThe highest mountain;My good deedsAre very few,They’re like a small pebble.I turn to You,My heart full of shame,My eyes full of tears.Bestow YourForgiveness and MercyUpon me.~ from Supplication by Sami Yusuf Lent assaults our mistaken sense of ourselves. It challenges the notion that we’re capable and self-sufficient; that we can...

Imbolc, Candlemass, and Groundhog Day

The start of February is filled with significance. For many pagans it marks the holiday of Imbolc, seen by some as the start of Spring (and by many others as the height of winter). Millions more celebrate it as Candlemass (or the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple). In the United States February 2...

Brighter than a Supernova

It feels a bit odd to write an Epiphany article on the heels of Christmas because we’re still in the midst of Christmastide. But even in the days after Christmas, it may be helpful to explain why “Jesus born in Bethlehem” (Matthew 2:1) is something we experience in Holy Communion. Bethlehem literally means “house...

Leave the Cookies for Santa. God Wants All of You.

When I was in seminary, we learned how to become detectives as it related to scripture. We were taught to ask questions about the author’s intended message, and to gain insights into how his own readers would have heard and understood it. And generally speaking, we explored the texts according to five categories, or...