priesthood
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As a kid, I don’t remember my Dad being called Father Tom. That doesn’t mean there weren’t quite a few people who did. Or used the more proper Fr. Downs. Sometimes it was Pastor, Preacher, or the grammatically inappropriate Reverend. Most of my life, as I try to recall it, my Dad went by his…
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5 Years Ordained
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1 min read
Today is the fifth anniversary of my ordination as a presbyter. Of course, I’m celebrating appropriately–writing sermons for a funeral on Saturday and for Pentecost on Sunday. Rather than reflect on all that I have been a part of over the last five years, I am instead struck by this picture. It dawned on me…
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The Gut-Ball of Frustration
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3 min read
Phone interviews are different when you are at home most of the day. In the Episcopal Church, our process of discerning a call to ministry in a congregation has several steps. You put all of your info online, answering a bunch of questions. Then contact is made, either presbyter to congregation, presbyter to diocese, congregation…
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Hearing Jesus: my manifesto
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2 min read
The most profound thing Jesus ever taught wasn’t something he said. It is something he did. He split his time with his followers and took on a different posture for each group. And of course, there are three groups: The Needy Jesus gave his greatest gifts to those most in need of it: his time,…
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When Moses becomes Aaron
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3 min read
Perhaps the most appropriate passage for religious leadership in all of Scripture can be found in Exodus 3: the burning bush story. We know how it goes. GOD reveals the divine name and identity to Moses and gives him instructions. It is one of the most iconic moments in the Judeao-Christian shared story. It is…