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The Principality of Whiteness and the Distorted Imago Dei in All of Us
We live in a fallen world because of sin–our own sin, the sin of others, and the sin of principalities which govern it. Whiteness is a principality. It is the belief that white people are more intelligent, more beautiful, harder working, more honest, and more deserving. In the U.S. it has also been embedded with…
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Building the Beloved Community in Sorrow
Perhaps like some of you, I have felt overwhelmed with grief in this Lenten season. Our family has dealt with chronic illness which has broken us all open to what has felt like unrelenting sorrow and pain. This, of course, is in addition to the collective experience we are all having through a pandemic, ongoing…
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An Invitation
John 14:26-27 I have wrestled with God. I have wrestled with God in my personal and professional life, in my life in the beautiful Church, in my vocations, and in how I invest my intentions and my strivings in the world…I find myself wanting to hold onto hope, hoping and believing that life is better…
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Taking Lent Deeper
During Lent, we are called to reflect on our own mortality. For most people living comfortably in the United States, such an exercise stretches us, unless we have been dealing with suffering in our own families. Recently, however, the looming war in Europe has commanded the attention of the world. And why has this particular…
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The Fast I’ve Chosen
Isaiah 58, Zechariah 7:5-10 There is no question that fasting is an essential part of our spiritual lives. Scripture shows us, time and again, how this practice strengthens our spirits and steers us to lives that are more in tune with the Holy Spirit. And yet so often we treat fasting as an item on…
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No Way Around
“Where are you, God?” Most recently I spoke these words through tears of anguish while sitting in a small chapel at Mt. Sinai Hospital on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. My wife was being wheeled in for another MRI on her bleeding brain after a failed surgical attempt to remove a tumor. Now in…
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Facing the Wilderness
Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished. Luke 4:1-2 Each year on the first Sunday in Lent…
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Not Alone
The Lenten season provides for us a reminder that we are all connected in the ongoing work of more fully experiencing the Kingdom of God here on earth. A reminder that, in the midst of our suffering, we stand in solidarity with all those who suffer. Christ’s sacrifice on the cross and subsequent victory over…
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How Long?
O Lord, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not listen? Or cry to you “Violence!” and you will not save?
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A Conversation at the Intersection of Justice & Worship
On Sunday, November 7th, we gathered from all parts of the US to connect, encourage, and challenge one another to become just worshippers. Rev. Topher Noyes brought this excellent message to us based on his lecture at the September Justice Network summit.