Drew Downs

Make a New Normal

  • Why Pray?

    Prayer. What does your mind conjure when you hear that word? Perhaps images, moments, life experiences, people. Prayer means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. Getting at the root of prayer means digging into what it is we think we’re doing. Prompt 1: What is prayer to you? Read: Read…

  • We’ve been given a way out of this mess: The Baptismal Covenant. We just need to see that we already know the way.

  • After domestic terrorists stormed the U.S. Capitol, people of faith try to understand what is going on with their neighbors. The Good Samaritan whitewash I’ve seen a lot of people of faith try to address the moment in ways they hope will calm the waters of discontent. And there’s something about it that doesn’t entirely…

  • Seeing the Gadsden flag flown outside an occupied Capitol building reveals the lie behind its words: “Don’t tread on me”.  They trod. Which transforms the message. Long used as a Libertarian call to arms, this flag has meant to express a sense of rugged, but equal independence. But under its surface, there has always been…

  • My original homily for tonight was going to be light. In part because this day brings out the heady in me. It has a rich history that I am a geek to share as often as possible. But given the events at the capital today, I think we need something a little different.  Because this…

  • Welcome to Beautiful Prayer, Common Prayer, the first in a series of Faith 15 workshops designed to help you deepen your spiritual life. This season after the Epiphany, we will be exploring prayer. As we get started, I invite you to Watch the attached welcome video. Collect your initial thoughts on prayer. Write them down.…