My bag is packed, and shortly I’ll head out, flag down a taxi like the best of New Yorkers and head to the airport. I still have the rest of July for the Sabbatical, and massive amounts of work to put what I’ve written and thought about during these weeks into a coherent form, useful to the church I serve, and perhaps to the church world at large. One last walk in Central Park this morning helped me to see... Read more
Note: this is part of an ongoing series. Mystery Worship One is here; Mystery Worship Two is here; Mystery Worship Three is here. Four is here. Five is here. Six is here. Seven is here. Eight is here. With a generous invitation from my nephew, who has also moved to the UK, to spend several days in the gorgeous Cotswolds village of Burford (about 23 miles east of Oxford), I was delighted on my first view of High Street to see a Methodist Church–and immediately chose it for... Read more
Note: this is part of an ongoing series. Mystery Worship One is here; Mystery Worship Two is here; Mystery Worship Three is here. Four is here. Five is here. Six is here. Seven is here. Mystery Worship Eight It was a day to remember, this day of Mystery Worship Number Eight, on Saturday, June 9, 2012. I had two goals: first a really good walk in St. James Park, Green Park and Hyde Park, all of which flow into each other, and then attend Evensong at Westminster Abbey.The... Read more
Perhaps the kingdom of heaven is a bit like Heathrow Airport on Wednesday, June 27 . On that day: I fly from Heathrow to NYC, ending my extended sojourn in the UK, and beginning my reentry into the US. My nephew flies from Heathrow to Los Angeles My nephew’s mother-in-law lands at Heathrow from Florida. My son flies in from the Middle East mid-morning for two meetings at Heathrow and then back out again that evening for Berlin. My daughter-in-law’s... Read more
It is Sunday morning here in London. This is the first Sunday since I’ve left on this Sabbatical that I have not been in a place of worship, but I knew when I awoke this morning that I needed to spend this morning in quiet prayer and also with family. My oldest son, who made this trip possible and whose family have so graciously loved me, housed me, fed me and included me these last seven weeks, leaves today for... Read more
The Taunt “Scaredy cat, scaredy cat!” “Am not!” “Prove it!” The classic playground exchange: one child makes a pejorative accusation of another, the second denies the charge, and the first one says, “Prove what I just said isn’t true.” And child number two is now put in the impossible situation. For there is no way to prove to the first child’s satisfaction that he or she is indeed not a “scaredy cat.” Let’s try another example, and I write this... Read more
Note: this is part of an ongoing series. Mystery Worship One is here; Mystery Worship Two is here; Mystery Worship Three is here. Four is here. Five is here. Six is here. Sunday, June 3, Trinity Sunday, was also the day of celebration for the Queen’s Jubilee. I toyed with attending worship at Westminster Abbey, where she was crowned, but decided against it and headed for the 11:30 Sung Eucharist at the historic and beautiful St. Paul’s Cathedral. Arriving early after train, tube and ½ mile walk,... Read more
I hear the word “toxic” bandied about all the time, both applied to people and to churches. The word means poisonous, of course. Poison is “a substance with an inherent property that tends to destroy life or impair health” (from dictionary.com). So if we are in a “toxic” relationship or toxic church, we are in a situation that promotes the opposite of what most of us want to experience, which is life and health. Not too long ago, this question... Read more
Note: this is part of an ongoing series. Mystery Worship One is here; Mystery Worship Two is here; Mystery Worship Three is here. Four is here. Five is here. Reasons for Choice of Church From the time I made the decision to spend part of the Sabbatical in the London area, I’ve wanted to visit Holy Trinity Brompton church. This is the Anglican church that birthed the ALPHA course, a really wonderful way to explore the Christian faith in an atmosphere that is safe for questions... Read more
Jeffrey Weiss, a reporter with the Dallas Morning News, has asked these questions concerning the episcopal situation facing the North Texas Conference: “Why does this matter? And to who? Clearly, it’s a big deal to North Texas Methodist clergy. But who else should be paying attention? And why?” Here is my response: Does this Episcopal situation matter to anyone besides the United Methodist clergy? Three Levels On one level, and speaking on a short term time frame, no, not really.... Read more
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