For now, I’d like to share the materials that were requested by those there at the Quaker Heritage Day event in Berkeley, CA this past weekend. A number of folks hoped I’d share the slides, and other documents. You can find those things below. Hopefully these things can
Continue reading →I heard the words of fire spring forth from a child (of God); words that sparked an inferno and swallowed the whole world. It was an unintended outcome, but the devastation surprised no one. Simple words carry with them, the power to pick up, and the power to tear down.
Continue reading →I was reminded of a poem I love today while working on my Quaker Heritage Day talks. It’s written by a Canadian Quaker (and friend of mine) named Julie Robinson. The poem is found in her pamphlet called: Openings: A Poet’s Encounter with Elizabeth Fry (Woodbrooke Journal 2008
Continue reading →Bless those who persecute you, bless and do not curse. Romans 12:14 Queries :: 1. What does it really mean to bless/curse another person with language? 2. In what ways have I been a recipient of both blessings or curses? How have these things impacted my life? 3. What
Continue reading →I was asked by the clerk of a committee I am on to guide worship the other day. He wanted me not to prepare a sermon but rather help prepare our hearts and minds for doing work around discernment. The point for us as a group was to hold that
Continue reading →I’ve been thinking about prayer today, and the many ways we pray that are not simply meal-time prayers (God thank you for the food). I came across Psalm 104:33 in my reading this morning which makes this point clearly: I will sing to the LORD as long as
Continue reading →Heralding The New Creation: Mission as Participation in the Quaker TraditionQuaker Heritage Day: Berkeley Friends ChurchFebruary 12, 2011 Here are some quotes, Scripture, and Queries for personal preparation for our gathering together at Quaker Heritage Day. I may add more to this (thus the part 1) but I may not.
Continue reading →This was the message I gave this morning based on Galatians 3:26-29. First we discussed some of these queries: 1. What do you think the connections between peace and equality are in the passages above? 2. In what ways have I experienced inequality in my own life or around
Continue reading →This morning the big word, the word of the day for all you Pee-Wees Playhouse fans in the congregation, is participation. It is a word that signals collective activity, collaboration, co-operation, co-mmunity, co-laboring. A mutual working together in small ways that add up over time. It might conjure up
Continue reading →Posted a few weeks late, here’s my Christmas Sermon. The Birth Announcement And suddenly, out of nowhere, the Magi see a star in the sky. Magi – magicians, astrologers, wise-learned men and women, non-Jews from east of Palestine (maybe Arabia, Persia, Babylon?) – these are the people (it doesnt say
Continue reading →I have been thinking a lot more about place, context and community that has been usual for me. I have blogged about this already a couple times (escapism and goals). But there are some queries I have been thinking about for awhile and that I have stuck to my computer
Continue reading →I’ve been thinking about what my goals are for this coming year. I don’t know if these would constitute “resolutions,” I’ve never been big on those, but here is what I have so far. I want to: 1. Accomplish less. This past year was crammed jammed full
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