The other day I received a note from a fellow Zen practitioner. For the tag line he used one of those jokes floating around the web. “Zen is not easy. It takes effort to attain nothingness. And then what do you have? Bupkis.” As I read it I felt a flash of guilt. I recalled being contacted with an offer of a copy of a book to review. Actually the book has been sitting on my bedside for a while,... Read more

Lest we forget… Read more

I learned to read at my grandmother’s knee, she resting her large family King James Bible on her lap. As written words came to be mine other things happened, as well. She believed the big and well worn book told the sacred story of the world. She believed and so, so did I. Many, many years have passed. My world has become bigger, my vision of faith is informed by many perspectives. Among other things I draw upon the wisdoms... Read more

Robert Bly was born on this day in 1926. Not precisely my cup of tea, but genuinely an interesting guy who opened the way of the heart for lots of people, particularly men who might not have otherwise stumbled onto the path… Read more

“Everything I have ever been, I still am. although in transformed ways. At Christmas time all those images of Jesus from Christmases past come fully to life. I walk around with tears in my eyes. Tears of joy, tears of rage, tears of hope, tears of despair. Secular, humanist, Marxist, Quaker, Buddhist tears. Human tears. Complicated tears. Wonderful tears.” Richard Hayes Read more

One must have a mind of winterTo regard the frost and the boughsOf the pine-trees crusted with snow; And have been cold a long timeTo behold the junipers shagged with ice,The spruces rough in the distant glitter Of the January sun; and not to thinkOf any misery in the sound of the wind,In the sound of a few leaves, Which is the sound of the landFull of the same windThat is blowing in the same bare place For the listener,... Read more

On this day in 1833 Abner Kneeland published a letter which was published in both the Universalist journal, the Trumpet and the Boston Inquirer. In it he officially repudiated the Universalist orthodoxy, following his earlier voluntary leaving of the Universalist ministry. The letter was simple enough. It was addressed to Thomas Whittemore, editor of the Trumpet and read: Dear Sir: You observed to me the other day, that people still consider me a Universalist, and said to me “If you... Read more

The cold has firmly settled into my chest. I don’t feel very bad but yesterday I nearly lost the use of my voice and today while better is more than scratchy and I’m quite worried in anticipation of my need to be able to speak at tomorrow’s worship service. So, I’m not making the ten hour round trip drive to Woodstock to attend the funeral service for Daido Loori, the late abbot of the Zen Mountain Monastery and head of... Read more

A couple of days ago I awoke with a sore throat. Since then whatever the bug is it has decided to take up residence in my chest. My brain is not much worse than usual, except for an ongoing, although so far low grade headache… But I’m increasingly anxious about having a voice on Sunday. And this is our big all church family fun filled Christmas pick-up pageant. We tell the Luke version of the Christmas story pretty much straight,... Read more

What are your fondest memories of the holiday season? My favorite childhood memories involve Christmas pageants, a series of large and boisterous intergenerational family gatherings, and, of course, my Tía Amelia’s wonderful tamales. Later, as young adult, my most precious memories involve my own children. I recall, while traveling in Spain, creating a makeshift Christmas tree in a hotel room from a fallen branch and decorating it with curled orange peel. Now, as an “older adult,” I cherish the holiday... Read more