Drew Downs

Make a New Normal

  • About the Money—for Proper 23B

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    2 min read

    The challenge of Jesus’s teaching with the pious young man is that Jesus condemns wealth in a way few Americans are willing to accept.

  • Wealth—how much is too much?

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    2 min read

    The challenge of wealth for people in the United States is that we’d rather fight about what it implies about the person rather than their behavior.

  • Between Proper 22 + 23 (Year B)

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    2 min read

    As the disciples move closer to Jerusalem, our awareness of the journey mirrors theirs: distracted, distant, and self-directed.

  • Love as one

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    9 min read

    We struggle with the nature of marriage and divorce, especially in light of Jesus’s invitation to unity; but unity itself is the way forward.

  • Preaching divorce and unity

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    7 min read

    This Week: Proper 22B Gospel: Mark 10:2-16 This week’s gospel is deceptive. It seems like it is about divorce. It seems straightforward. And we might be lulled into thinking it encourages a prohibition on divorce or else defends a Christian opposition to divorce. This is a pretty weak take. This gospel story concludes with even more…

  • The challenge of unity—for Proper 22B

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    2 min read

    The challenge in Jesus’s teaching on divorce is not that he praises “staying together,” but that we don’t get what together means.