love
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Where ever two or three are gathered
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4 min read
1. Jesus expressed the true nature of following him saying “where ever two or three are gathered, I will be with them.” Growing up, I always wanted to know what it meant to be a Christian. We were, of course. My Dad is an Episcopal priest and have more or less been in the church…
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What is the effect of Christianity on compassion?
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3 min read
Atheists are more motivated by compassion than the religious. This finding a few years ago was surprising. It led many to wonder if rising secularism would lead to a better world. Particularly when we start to see how conflict follows the religious around like a puppy. But another finding complicates that view and makes it even…
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Full of Love
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8 min read
My parents were going out on a date and I was old enough to be left home without a babysitter. Just not old enough to make good decisions. I was asking them about going to a friend’s house (he’s moving the next day! I pleaded. I won’t see him again!) They weren’t going to be home anyway,…
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Hearts broken open
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7 min read
Why do they kill Stephen? Our lectionary jumps in at the very end of a two chapter story. A story about Stephen, our patron saint. After all the explanation of who he is, what he says, and why it makes the people angry enough to kill him, then they jump in. So let’s back up…
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Choose to Love
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7 min read
Or How to Build the Blessed Community This is an honest question. How many times have we heard a Christian, a follower of Christ, a disciple of Jesus say “an eye for an eye”? A lot, right? These are among the least surprising words to come out of Jesus’s mouth or the mouths of any…
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Waters Shall Break Forth
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7 min read
God’s message draws us to the margins Advent 3A | Isaiah 35:1-10 When I first visited my grandparents in Green Valley, I really didn’t know what to expect. I was in grade school, 8 or 9 I think. And what I knew of the desert is that it’s covered in sand and there is nothing.…