On this Ash Wednesday, Christopher Mack, Caroline Cody, Vanessa Maleare, and Weylin Lee invite you into a practice that is an amalgamation of a sacred reading and an examen. After a short reflection, they read a few verses of our passage at a time as we intentionally listen to the conversation between the text and our lives as we begin […]
Stories tagged:
Liberation
Liturgy, Reflection & Benediction 2024.02.04
Liturgy You, who sit atop all of creation,Watching us, covering us with your wingsThe Lord is the everlasting God,the Creator of the ends of the earth.You, who delight in seeing our facesAnd know us by our real names.The Lord is the everlasting God,the Creator of the ends of the earth.You, who give us waterWhen we meet you at the well.The […]
He’s Got The Whole World In His Hands
Despite the evidence around us, how can we awaken to God’s posture of love and liberation for the earth? On the fifth Sunday after Epiphany, Virginia Cumberbatch names the disruption, disappointment and injustice we face, while guiding us to the liberation movements of acknowledging, awakening, and anticipating God’s loving presence all around us and our world. [Isaiah 40:21-31] How might […]
Liturgy, Reflection, Benediction 2023.6.18
Liturgy Father, I stretch my hand to thee — for no other help I know.Oh, my Rose of Sharon, my shelter in the time of storm.My Prince of Peace, my hope in this harsh land.We come to you waiting for freedom,We come to you crying for justice,We come to you longing for peace.We bow before you this morning to thank […]
Liberated Into Community
How do we pivot from a past experience of deliverance to forming a community practicing sustained love and liberation? On the weekend of Juneteenth, Christopher Mack recalls the evolution of slavery to Jim Crow segregation to mass incarceration in the United States. How do our scriptures’ images of liberating eagles, nonviolent sheep, creative serpents, and peacemaking doves inform how we […]
Liturgy, Reflection, Benediction 2023.2.26
Liturgy Loving God, as we come into this spaceWe settle and check in with ourselvesAnd with You. We notice we are hungryPartly in our bellies, but also in our heartsWe all have some empty places waiting to be filled.May you be the One who fills us, God. We notice we feel anxiousKnowing that life is uncertain and unpredictableWe all want […]
Naming Empire’s Enticements
What does it say about our spiritual imaginations that Lenten fasts often center on our relationship to food, drink, or media, but less often on our relationship to power? As we begin Lent, Christopher Mack examines the testing of Jesus in the wilderness through the lens of how we steward and are enticed by power. [Matthew 4:1-11] Reflection Where do […]