Holy Thursday, or Maundy Thursday, is one of the holiest days in the Christian calendar. Maundy comes from the Latin word mandatum, which means “command.” It refers to Jesus’ new commandment given on this day to love one another as he has loved us, not superficially, but selflessly. On Holy Thursday—the day before the crucifixion…
Ecclesiastes 3:1–8 (New International Version) There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time…
Co-creating the more beautiful world our hearts know is possible requires deep presence. How can we hold space for—BE PRESENT in—the difficult conversations that gather seemingly dualistic opinions to illuminate common ground? This humorous, challenging, July of 2017, TED talk, “How our friendship survives our opposing politics,” highlights beautiful examples of how we—relationships intact—might: move…
Peruse news headlines—local, national, international. What do you sense? Division? Exclusion? Inclusion? Violence? Interconnection? Peace? Local? Global? Our hope and prayer; sacred texts Bible, Torah, Quran; liturgical seasons, solstice and equinox rhythms; … continually invite us to metanoia, meaning “a change of heart.” Take heart! Transformation is as close to us as the tip of…
There is battle raging within me. The two sides in this war are the importance of speaking up about issues that matter versus loving a friend unconditionally, being vocal versus being neutral, taking a stand versus holding a hand. I strongly believe that, as Desmond Tutu famously said, “If you are neutral in situations of…
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” —Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. I have a small collection of art supply holders (think pencil bags of our childhood) that have been gifted to me over the years. They remind me of important things…
Yesterday, as I watched the inauguration of Joseph R. Biden, Jr., as the 46th president of the United States, I cried ugly tears. I wiped every bit of makeup off my face as I cried tears of fear, tears of relief, tears of joy. I listened as Biden declared that “we must end this uncivil…
I love Prairiewoods’ mission to be “a sacred space where people of all faiths and cultures are invited to explore and nurture their relationships with the Source of all being, Earth, self and others with an increasing awareness of the story of the Universe.” The story of the Universe. From our website: As theologian Elizabeth…
An essay published in Christian Century by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., in 1957, “Nonviolence and Racial Justice,” echoes afresh in light of current events (Christian Century 74, Feb. 6, 1957: 165–67). In the era of “Black Lives Matter” and the most recent violent foment on Jan. 6 committed at the Capitol in Washington, D.C., so many of us find…
This—as much as any other period in recent history—feels like a time of violence, a time of open hostility and conflict. The world seems dichotomous, as though half of our family and friends are in a completely different world than where we find ourselves. Because of that division, I’m called to the words of Jan…