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Cleaning up our character after the Siege
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…
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Becoming Samaritan
In the parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus isn’t giving us a natural reversal of roles. He’s exposing how our bias actually works. learning to love in a culture of hateProper 10C | Luke 10:25-37 Good stories like this one have many layers. We can peel back one to see what’s underneath. Then peel again.…
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The In-Between – Luke 10:21-24
A look at the gaps in the lectionary. This week: the gap between Proper 9C and Proper 10C. As a preacher, the lectionary is a godsend. And like a movie studio demanding the director cut essential material to shorten a film’s running time, many of the lectionary’s jumps feel like an unfortunate necessity. But I’ve…
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Sweating It Out: celebrating the Eucharist in a hoodie
I had trouble sleeping Saturday night. I was angry. Angry that George Zimmerman wouldn’t be punished, for the fear that has beset the African American community, for all the bullshit post-racism talk of my white neighbors. Mostly, I was angry that I was feeling powerless as a church leader to express myself. It frightened me…
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Along the Road: The Good Samaritan, Trayvon Martin, and what it means to be a neighbor
a homily for Proper 10C Text: Luke 10:25-37 Unwrapping the Layers We call this the Parable of the Good Samaritan. A traveler is beaten, left for dead, passed by on the road to Jerusalem, and finally helped by this stranger. It is a story so familiar, so recognizable, that any number of us could tell…
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Not the Root of Conflict; the Stalk
Conflict is our great paradox. We love peace and yet more easily create war. We long to be loved and thrive on defiling others. We can see the problems of conflict in our lives. We know that conflict is not our way. We also know that the roots of conflict arise from our fear of…