Today is International Women’s Day, and this year’s theme is “Make It Happen.” The women from my Berkeley Women’s Group have been celebrating International Women’s Day annually since before I joined them in 1971. I moved away in 1975 and have made it back rarely since then, but Suzann, our convener, has called me every year on March 8th to remind me that I am one of them, remembered and loved. Sisterhood is like that. I first became aware of the Women’s... Read more
Returning to the place where my very first poem formed in my Spirit. I gaze at the trees’ reflection and the words return: Look up stretching, never touching, the spindly treetops reach for the clouds Glance down In the rippling water, the treetops dive below the surface brushing the clouds and in the movement of the river, the branches sway slightly Look up tranquil, majestic, at peace in their stillness Penned over 7 years ago, the message of the cross... Read more
I want to continue the conversation that Mark Longhurst began with his excellent post on an “emergent God” on March 1. Mark alluded to the many origins of the emergent community and emergence Christianity. When one expands that language to “progressive Christianity,” the list of origins expands even further. I count the experiences and memories that I have of a consultation with the sorely missed Stan Grenz for Leighton Ford Ministries on postmodernism (1993), the conversations that produced “The Church... Read more
What we are searching for in any authentic male or female spirituality is the good and healthy meaning of maleness or femaleness, each being one half of that mystery of God (Genesis 1:26-27). Is there any essential or cross-cultural nature to the one half of the image of God that we call masculine or feminine? Do men approach spirituality differently than women, have different starting places and different symbols? My studied opinion is that we do have quite different entrance... Read more
Introduction [by Teresa B Pasquale on behalf of the Emerging Voices Curation Team–with Holly Roach & Robyn Henderson-Espinoza] February 1st we launched the month, and in some ways the year of 2015, with a sort of mission statement for the Emerging Voices blog, and beyond that, the Emerging spirituality and the [cosmic] wave we are currently riding in Emerging Voices. We see “emerging” and “emergence” as an action verb, always bending forward into transformation and evolution, rather than just a static... Read more
Loving God, who reigns on Earth as it is in Heaven Father God Whom the prophet Isaiah called the Mother of Zion, We come to you with humble and contrite hearts, Asking for the repentance of our sins, both known and unknown, Forgive us for our sins as well as forgive those who sin against us. We pray that we can experience reconciliation, truth, and peace, You, Oh God, are the God of Life, the Spirit of Freedom You are... Read more
I was dreading Lent this year, which is not like me. I usually love Lent. Don’t get me wrong, I also love king cake with naked plastic babies inside, and pancakes, and alcohol but when all that is over, I want my ashes and solemnity and a dark, difficult Lenten season. Ah, the season of penitence, of self-examination, of denial and wilderness wandering – what a gift to spend forty days dedicated to self-reflection. As a one on the Enngeagram,... Read more
The tide went out. A puddle of murky seawater, clinging to ridges of sand and shore, remained. I saw it then, resplendent in the afternoon light. I thought it was a pearl. My mood lifted at the thought of discovering such an unexpected gem. Sand beneath fingernails, eyes squinted, I saw that it was just a broken shell. I thought it was a pearl. And while it was no real treasure, it was my treasure. Before this beach was just a landscape... Read more
Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. Lent is a time of lengthening, stretching ourselves, as we journey toward celebrating the Resurrection of Jesus. Lately I’ve been thinking about an idea that has stretched me further, lengthened me. And, luckily, it has a roundabout connection to the Resurrection. So I’ll share it with you. Last night my friend, and pastor, Doug Pagitt, hosted a book release party for his fantastic new book, Flipped:The provocative truth that changes everything we... Read more
When I think of the things that happen to people with disabilities in secret, there is no easy framework of meaning and comfort. Over seventy people with disabilities have been killed by their parents or caregivers in the last five years. This brings to mind Psalm 137:4: “On the branches of the willow trees, we hung our harps and hid our hearts from the enemy.” (The Voice) The people lamenting in this psalm hung up their instruments and cried. When... Read more
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