The Tree of Life

"It is a tree of life for those who grasp it, and all who uphold it are blessed. Its ways are pleasantness, and all its paths are peace. Help us to turn to You, and we shall return. Renew our lives as in days of old." -Siddur Sim Shalom, pg 427 These are the words … Continue reading The Tree of Life →

Metaphors

For many good and sundry reasons, Christianity as a group as been focused on sin and forgiveness as our primary metaphor God's work in our lives. We have sinned and God bridges the gap in our relationship by forgiveness through Jesus. Details about how this is accomplished change depending on time, location, and denomination, but … Continue reading Metaphors →

Will we drink the cup?

James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came forward to Jesus and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” Mark 10.35 And so begins one of the the more oft quoted passages in Mark's Gospel. "Whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, … Continue reading Will we drink the cup? →

Love One Another

I have a confession: I kind of like Twitter. Despite the dumpster fire that rages is several corners of Twitter there are also some really good parts. One of my favorites is local news. I follow several local news outlets, and when I lived in Massachusetts and South Carolina, it always made me feel a … Continue reading Love One Another →

Be for each other

John said to Jesus, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.” But Jesus said, “Do not stop him; for no one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. … Continue reading Be for each other →

The Refugee Crisis

He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, "Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all." Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, "Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and … Continue reading The Refugee Crisis →

Office Hours

I have been working for the last several weeks to decide how to be better present on campus and also keep the Chapel doors open as much as possible. To that end, I will have "Office Hours" out on campus for a couple of hours each day either at a local coffee shop or hang … Continue reading Office Hours →

Pick up your cross

"Take up your cross and follow me." --Jesus In this week's Gospel reading (Mark 8.27-38) Jesus makes one of the most famous statements of his whole ministry. After Peter has acknowledged Jesus as the Messiah, a first for the disciples, Jesus goes on to command his disciples (i.e. us) to take up our cross and … Continue reading Pick up your cross →

Neighbors

The last two weekends have been a blessing to St. A's and our community. For the past two weekends, our neighbors on Sorority Circle have had their recruitment weekends and St. A's has provided hospitality to them. We opened our doors and welcomed in our neighbors, no questions asked. We provided them with cool water, … Continue reading Neighbors →

Thy Kingdom Come, DioLex edition Day 9

Today is the final day of Thy Kingdom Come in the Diocese of Lexington. I hope you have heard God's call and that God's call has prepared you for our coming discernment and loving service in Eastern Kentucky. Grace and peace be with you. Read…the text with an open mind…then, read it a second time. … Continue reading Thy Kingdom Come, DioLex edition Day 9 →