“Oh for heaven’s sake, what’s the big deal? Sally, your cousin puts dresses on his cats” The question is, as always, what would Jesus do? According to “Lars and the Real Girl,” which, if you haven’t seen it you really must, he would, for one thing, “play along.” And also, sit quietly and bring a casserole. Read more

‘Calmer than you are …’: GODSTUFF’s goin’ on vacation Hiya friends,God Girl here. After a marathon week of GODSTUFF columns, I didn’t want you to be whipsawed when they disappeared altogether for a little while. Ya see, I’ve got this book to finish (in five weeks, but who’s countin’) and I’m taking a short sabbatical from the twice-weekly newspaper column to get ‘er done. GODSTUFF will return mid-July. In the meantime, I’ll be popping up in this space from time... Read more

UPDATE: Pfleger returns to his parish June 16 FATHER PFLEGER TO RETURN TO ST. SABINA ON JUNE 16 June 8, 2008CHICAGO SUN-TIMESBY MARY WISNIEWSKI Staff Reporter [email protected] The Rev. Michael Pfleger will return to St. Sabina parish on June 16, a parish official said. Cardinal Francis George temporarily removed the outspoken priest from his South Side parish last week in the wake of comments Pfleger made about presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) On Sunday morning, pastoral associate Kimberly Lymore,... Read more

Trouble me. O no, I see,A spider web is tangled up with me,And I lost my head,The thought of all the stupid things I’d said. O no, what’s this?A spider web, and I’m caught in the middle,So I turn to run,The thought of all the stupid things I’ve done, And I never meant to cause you trouble,I never meant to do you wrong,And I, well if I ever caused you trouble,And oh no, I never meant to do you harm.... Read more

GIVE CONTEXT A CHANCE: A full transcript of the Rev. Michael Pfleger’s sermon at Trinity United Church of Christ, May 25, 2008 Editor’s Note: This is a transcript, prepared by GGHQ, of the full-length DVD recording of the Rev. Michael Pfleger’s remarks at Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago on May 25, 2008. The full sermon is 47 minutes long. Most of you have seen, heard or read only about two minute’s worth. We’ve also included introductory and benedictory... Read more

GODSTUFF WHY DOES FATHER PFLEGER NEED A PFILL IN? (R to L) Pfleger, Lymore, Vanecko When the Rev. Michael Pfleger takes his annual vacation to Hawaii, usually for two weeks in October, Kimberly Lymore, the parish’s pastoral associate since 2000, steps in to run St. Sabina Roman Catholic Church. Lymore, 50, has been a member of the Faith Community of St. Sabina (as its members prefer to call it) for exactly half of her life, joining the parish in 1983... Read more

GODSTUFF FATHER PFLEGER: OUT OF THE RECTORY, SEARCHING FOR A NEW PLACE For rent. The last time Mike Pfleger searched the classifieds for an apartment, he was a 20-something-year-old seminarian who hadn’t yet taken a vow to obey his bishop. This morning, Pfleger, the 59-year-old pastor of St. Sabina Roman Catholic Church, plans to move out of the rectory he has called home for 33 years and into an apartment in the surrounding Auburn-Gresham neighborhood. He’s not sure when and... Read more

And God said … “Breathe, Mike. It’ll be OK.You are loved. I’ve got ya.” Read more

GODSTUFF FATHER PFLEGER: ‘A DANGEROUS TIME IN AMERICA … YOU HAVE TO WHISPER YOUR THOUGHTS’ On Sunday morning, I was enjoying a brisk walk along the Hudson River in lower Manhattan and some quiet contemplation when my cell phone rang. It was my editor. “Mike just called, and he wants to talk, but he’ll only talk to you,” he said. Mike, as in the Rev. Michael Pfleger, the perpetually embattled pastor of St. Sabina Roman Catholic Church in Chicago, who... Read more