All our life should be a pilgrimage to the seventh day; the thought and appreciation of what this day may bring to us should be ever present in our minds. For the Sabbath is the counterpoint of living; the melody sustained throughout all agitations and vicissitudes which menace our conscience; our awareness of God’s presence in the world. —Abraham Joshua Heschel The Sabbath IF THE SEVENTH day is the Sabbath of my week, August is the Sabbath of my year.... Read more
By loosening the death grip of control over my work — over my life, really —I managed to get out of my own way and let the Wild Goose take me where it wanted me to go. It was a profoundly and powerfully sacred journey. I’m so glad I didn’t miss it. Read more
It is not the imperfection or presence of conflict themselves within the Communion of the Saints that too many of those who would not call themselves Christians find repellent. It is how the church deals with them that repels so many. Jesus said the world would know we are Christians by our love. Not our smug. Read more
It began with the music. Full stop. Back in the early '80s, someone gave Simon a cassette tape of instrumental songs by the South African group the Boyoyo Boys. After a few weeks of listening to it on repeat, Simon says he wasn’t interested in listening to anything else. Simon contacted a music producer in South Africa to ask about the possibility of traveling to Johannesburg to record a track with the Boyoyo boys. He’d written some lyrics, wasn’t sure what he’d do with song, but just had to record it. Seems simple enough, but remember, this was 1985. Nelson Mandela still was in prison (on year 22 of his sentence and more than five years away from his eventual release.) Apartheid struggles and extreme racial tensions in South Africa had reached a vicious zenith. And there also was a cultural boycott in place. Artists — no matter how famous or big-hearted they might be — were supposed to stay away from the country. Larry Waronker, then the president of Simon’s record label, Warner Brothers, told him, “You can do that here. You don’t have to go there.” “No,” Simon said. “I’m going down there.” Read more
One of these things is not like the others. In a room filled with African heads of state, captains of industry, leaders of international development and countless executives from NGOs at the G8 Symposium on Global Agriculture and Food Security in Washington, D.C. late last week, stood one Irish rock star — Bono, the lead singer of U2 and co-founder of the ONE Campaign. At first blush (to the uninitiated, perhaps), Bono’s presence might seem incongruous, but most of the... Read more
Cathleen will be speaking at this year’s Wild Goose Festival outside Durham, N.C. A cousin of the storied Greenbelt Festival in the U.K., the Goose is a four-day festival of “justice, spirituality, music and art” on a farm in rural North Cackalacky. June 21-24, 2012: The Wild Goose Festival Shakori Hills, North Carolina GG is scheduled to speak twice on Saturday, June 23: >> 10 a.m. at the Coffee Barn: “The Thread: Anam Cara” >> 3 p.m. at the Return... Read more
How do you step out and take a risk — as a pastor, as an artist, as a parent, as a person — when the job description of a pioneer or a vanguard comes with the assurance of persecution? “Surrender the outcomes,” Rob Bell told the audience at his intimate gathering, Two Days with Rob Bell, in Southern California earlier this month. “Surrender the outcomes of your presence, your influence, your work, your leadership,” Bell said. “They may drink the... Read more
“Oh, a dolphin.” The speaker, dressed in khaki jeans, a blue t-shirt and flip-flops, interrupts his train of thought about spiral dynamics and the church when some movement in the ocean a few hundred yards away on the other side of the beach house’s open briefly catches his attention. The audience of 50 — mostly 30- and 40-something-year-old pastors, the vast majority of them men, but with at least a few young clergywomen too (a refreshing change from most evangelical... Read more
“My mother… she is beautiful, softened at the edges and tempered with a spine of steel. I want to grow old and be like her.” ~ Jodi Picoult When asked to describe my mother, Helen, my usual answer is: Queen Esther in espadrilles and a matching purse. Esther comes to mind when I think of Mom because she was fiercely loyal, smart, determined, brave and deeply faithful. The sartorial descriptors capture my mother’s somewhat less spiritual side – always put... Read more
What can I give back to God for the blessings he’s poured out on me? I’ll lift high the cup of salvation—a toast to God! I’ll pray in the name of God; I‘ll complete what I promised God I’d do, and I’ll do it together with his people. ~ Psalm 116:12 (The Message) ++++++++++++++++++++++++ You might not be a fan of Justin Bieber, but I’m willing to bet there’s at least one young person in your life who is. And... Read more
The Dude Abides
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In