A Prayer of Confession for Political People of Faith

Last updated on: June 26, 2012 at 8:14 am By Bruce Reyes-Chow

[Photo by Amarand Agasi] The past few weeks have been a roller coaster of reactions and emotions for those who are invested in the conversations about immigration and immigration reform in the United States. Personally, I was very excited about President Obama’s Executive Order halting the deportation of undocumented young people who arrived as children. Likewise, while I am glad that the Supreme Court set aside some aspects of Arizona’s immigration law, I still worry about ramifications of document checking that... Read more

Book Review: Making Paper Cranes by Mihee Kim-Kort

Last updated on: June 24, 2012 at 11:17 am By Bruce Reyes-Chow

Making Paper Cranes Toward an Asian American Feminist Theology by Mihee Kim-Kort [Mihee on Twitter] Pre-order on Amazon First, Mihee is a friend and colleague. Second, I am in awe of my friend and colleague. When I review a book by a friend, I am always a little nervous. What if it isn’t very good? What if I disagree? What if it just does not feel it was written by the person I know? Well . . . from the... Read more

Grace Ji-Sun Kim – Religious Pluralism: Implications for a Globalizing World

Last updated on: June 20, 2012 at 8:36 pm By Bruce Reyes-Chow

We inhabit a global world where we meet many people with different ethnicities, religions and cultures, who come together as neighbors living side by side. As we enter a world of globalization and inter-reliance, it is clear that we need to speak with one another with intelligence and understanding so that there is both harmony and peace. In this worldwide community, the probability of our dealing with different cultures increases with each year. In such a world . . . how... Read more

What Will Bruce’s Next Book Be About?

Last updated on: June 20, 2012 at 3:05 pm By Bruce Reyes-Chow

[Photo by ktylerconk] This weekend I turned in what is pretty close to the final edited manuscript for my first book. There will be some final editing and layout approval, but for the most part this ebook is out of my hands.* I will definitely share some angsty first-time author reflections soon, but it is safe to say that there is a repeating loop of the Hallelujah Chorus playing in my head. Last week, as I was finishing up, I had a GREAT conversation with someone about my... Read more

Bruce’s 2012 Summer Reading List

Last updated on: June 18, 2012 at 11:58 am By Bruce Reyes-Chow

If you’re anything like me, there’s a stack of books sitting in your home that, every time you walk past it, the bindings stare you down longingly pleading, “Read me. Please read me.” to which you reply, “Soon, books, soon . . . as soon as I have some free time.” Yeah riiiiiiiiiiiiiight. Unlike some members of my family who have a gift for curling up with and disappearing into a book for hours on end, I am easily distracted... Read more

Worship and Liturgy Around Death Due to Domestic Violence

Last updated on: June 18, 2012 at 9:41 am By Bruce Reyes-Chow

One of the reasons that I choose to be part of a Christian larger denomination, the Presbyterian Church (USA), is because I can lean into a much larger scope of work and ministry than I would ever be able to accomplish on my own or as part of a single congregation. I realize that this is NOT how everyone chooses to live out their Christian faith, but this is how I choose to live mine. It’s all good. One of the PC(USA)... Read more

My Sunday Sermon, “Would Jesus Have Said Vagina?”

Last updated on: June 15, 2012 at 11:51 am By Bruce Reyes-Chow

[Photo By joethedork] Okay, I am not preaching anywhere this Sunday, but feel free to “liberate” the idea, should you need a sermon starter. That said, I do hope that more than a few preachers out there are going to somehow use the recent Michigan State Legislature vagina kerfuffle as fodder for some good conversations on power, community and discernment. For those of you who have no idea what I am talking about but have noticed an increased use of the word... Read more

Interview: Jesse Gonzales and the 2012 Indie-Pino Underground Music Fest

Last updated on: June 14, 2012 at 9:35 am By Bruce Reyes-Chow

As my friends will attest to, I have never been known as a indie music aficionado. I am a proud child of the 80’s with bands like Lakeside, New Edition and Wham pulsing through my veins . . . oh, and Debbie Gibson 😉 Still, I love music of all kinds and given the chance, love listening to folks who have found a way to share their passion and talent no matter what the genre. This past weekend, I had... Read more

Three Links to Remember Richard and Mildred Loving

Last updated on: June 13, 2012 at 11:26 am By Bruce Reyes-Chow

As many of you know, yesterday, June 12, 2012 was the 45th Anniversary of the Supreme Court’s unanimous decision, Loving v. Virginia, declaring Virginia’s anti-miscegenation laws unconstitutional and ending all race-based legal restrictions on marriage in the United States. I set out this morning to write a post on anti-miscegenation directed towards Filipino Americans, but after doing a little more research, many folks have already written some great stuff. So abandoning my own need to insert anything original, here are three posts that I would encourage you to read in honor of... Read more