Blog Entries A Pile of Ash Ash Wednesday by Elvis Perkins No one will survive Ash Wednesday alive No soldier no lover No father no mother Not a lonely child In the up and in the bedroom A black and white of the bride and the groom Will bring me to my knees With the colorized
Uncategorized Befriending the Stranger – Jean Vanier Here’s a passage from Jean Vanier’s “Befriending the Stranger” that I felt was worthy to post here: Jesus came into the world to re-create it, to give it back its full meaning to take away our limited vision of life, a vision which prevents the birth of hope
Blog Entries Teaching My First Seminary Class This week I had the opportunity to meet face-to-face with my first ever class. I’ve been teaching a course online for George Fox Seminary called “Culture and Systems Change” since the beginning of January, but since it is what they call a “hybrid” course, that means that we also
Blog Entries Gustavo Gutierrez’s Definition of Poverty Gustavo Gutierrez’s Definition of Poverty: “What then does being poor mean? I believe that a good definition does not exist; but we can approximate it if we say that the poor are the non-persons, the ‘in-significant ones,’ the ones that don’t count either for the rest of society,
Featured On Integrity: Mirrors, Ships and Living Truthfully (James 1:19-27) This was the message I gave during our meeting for worship at Camas Friends this past Sunday. James 1:22 But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. 23 For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who
Quotations ‘what thou hast been to me in the night’ James Nayler (A Psalm) I’ve was reading a variety of quotes from early Friends in preparation for my message on Sunday and stumbled ever so timely on this one. It speaks to my current condition as something I really needed to hear: It is in my heart to praise thee O my God,
Reviews Review: All Labor Has Dignity – Martin Luther King, Jr. The book, All Labor Has Dignity,” is a collection of Martin Luther King, Jr’s speeches edited by Michael Honey, a scholar of labor and African-American history. There are a number of speeches/sermons that have never been put into print before that Honey was able to track down and
Featured The Original Revolution: Occupy Christmas? (Isaiah 52:7-10) I know this is late, but it is the message I gave on Christmas morning December 25, 2011. Isaiah 52:7-10: How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of the messenger who announces peace, who brings good news, who announces salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.” John
Blog Entries In Memory of Martin Luther King A friend sent this to me in honor of Martin Luther King day. Psalms 15 Lord, who can be trusted with power, and who may act in your place? Those with a passion for justice, who speak the truth from their hearts; who have let go of selfish interests and
Featured Peace is a Garden (James 3:13-18) This is the sermon I preached Sunday January 16, 2011. The want of peace_ One of the queries I sent out for reflection this week over email to the church was “how do we support peace?” How do I, Wess Daniels, We the Daniels Family, We Camas Friends Church, support
Advent ‘Hail, space for the uncontained God’ (Luke 1:26ff) This is my sermon from December 18. So far this advent we have focused largely on preparation. What is it we prepare for exactly? 2,000 years after Christ’s birth, death, and resurrection, hasn’t it already all happened? Advent means coming, but hasn’t Christ already come again
The Theological ‘even the thorn-bush by the wayside is aflame with the glory of God’ (Prayer) Here is a prayer out of the Walter Rauschenbusch book of prayers “For God and the People: Prayers of the Social Awakening.” I believe at least the middle paragraph can be attributed to St. Basil. O God, we thank Thee for this universe, our great home; for its vastness and
The Pastorate Advice to Ministers – Hannah Whitall Smith Here is sound advice written to ministers, but really it’s good for any situation. “Years ago I came across this sentence in an old book: ‘Never indulge, at the close of an action, in any self-reflective acts of any kind, whether of self-congratulation or of self-despair. Forget the things
Quotations Quote: Presence is a Situation What a great quote to reflect on for Christmas and the arrival of God in creation. It makes me think about all of the opportunities we have had as of late, with the increasing unrest and protests in our country and around the world, where we are being called on
Uncategorized Entering Christmas One of my favorite things to do is to prepare worship during advent and Christmas. This week I’m working on putting together somethings for our Christmas Eve Candlelight service and our Christmas morning worship. I’ve been going back through some of the worship plans for previous years and
Featured Moses, The Exodus and the Disappointment of Christmas Moses_ When Moses encountered the Burning Bush in Exodus Moses was faced with a traumatic situation. His past was now to be reconfigured in light of a new, profoundly life-altering experience. The unexpectedness of the burning-bush was exactly what Moses needed to call him to a deeper, more whole-self, a
Featured The Gift and Humility of Thanksgiving (1 Cor 1:3-9) This is the text to the sermon I preached two weeks ago. Thanksgiving and Advent_ The meaning of the word Advent is “Coming” This week is the First Week of Advent. Typically, we at Camas Friends, take the Sunday after Thanksgiving to reflect back over the year so that we
Uncategorized Nouwen and The Discipline of Gratitude I really like what Henry Nouwen writes about the discipline of gratitude: Gratitude … goes beyond the “mine” and “thine” and claims the truth that all of life is a pure gift. In the past I always thought of gratitude as a spontaneous response to the awareness of gifts received, but
Blog Entries Prayer for Occupy Here are two images that have gone ‘viral’ from the US Occupy protests that have made their rounds since Tuesday: Probably like many folks, these images have been sitting heavy with me. The images are just the capstone of a long couple of weeks of interactions and conversations concerning occupy
Uncategorized Fox On Black Friday I came across this in my reading the other day and it made me think of some of the stuff I’ve seen from Rev. Billy Talen, especially in the documentary on Christmas, and then I wondered what Fox would be doing on Black Friday: I was moved to open
Featured No Shrine Required: The Denial of Death and the Legacy of Moses (Deut 34) This is the message I gave during meeting for worship at Camas Friends Church Sunday 11.6.2011. Terrified by death_ In his book “the denial of death” Earnest Becker opens with this line, “The prospect of death wonderfully concentrates the mind.” And that “The idea of death, the fear
Featured Which Direction Are We Headed? I love traveling, I always have. One thing I have learned is that the type of journey and its destination determine what youll pack in your bags. If I am going on a backpacking trip in the Alleghenies (PA) and Ill be out for 10 days, I will
Featured Quakers, Tradition and the Resurrection Community (Acts 13:13-33) This is the message I gave a few weeks back at George Fox Chapel. I’ve been meaning to post the manuscript but haven’t had a chance. _Tradition is Dead, Tradition is Alive I think I am an unlikely candidate for Quaker week. I am like the majority of
Featured Why I’m a Quaker… This is a video I did awhile back at the request of my yearly meeting (NWYM). In it I tell a little of my own story and why I am a Quaker today. I would love it if we could get our Quaker communities doing something like this and posting
Blog Entries My dear friends, dwell in humility… (Woolman) At Camas Friends Church, we’re reading through the journal of John Woolman, a Quaker minister and abolitionist from the 18th century. Lately, I’ve been thinking about the values we often unknowingly impress upon our children. Many of the activities we engage our children in have some kind of
