Ponderings on a Faith Journey

I am part of the Baby Boomer Generation, though I was born near the tail end. It appears that my generation isn't aging very gracefully. In fact, we do all we can to resist the aging process, and apparently, we're seeking to find ways that will preserve our presence long after we're gone. This is causing generational angst. I don't have any solutions to this reality, other than to remind members of my generation that many of the same critiques we offer to the younger generations were given to us. So, perhaps we can be a bit more gracious in our interactions. Personally, I don't have plans of preserving my bodily essence for posterity. I entrust my future beyond the grave to God's hands. In any case, this essay by David Gottlieb, who is also part of the Boomer generation explores our penchant for self-preservation and its impact on our descendants. With that, I invite you to read!! 


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1 Corinthians 1:10-18 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) 10 Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in agreement and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same purpose. 11 For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there are quarrels among you, my brothers and sisters. 12 What I mean is that each of you says, “I belong to Paul,” or “I belong to Apollos,” or “I belong to Cephas,” or “I belong to Christ.” 13 Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? 14 I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15 so that no one can say that you were baptized in my name. 16 (I did baptize also the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) 17 For Christ did not send me to baptize but to proclaim the gospel, and not with eloquent wisdom, so that the cross of Christ might n…

I was five when Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his “I Have a Dream” speech. I was ten when he was assassinated, just weeks before Bobby Kennedy was shot and killed. I don’t have any firsthand memories of Dr. King’s life or death. The Civil Rights Movement was in full swing during the 1960s, but I was only a child living a rather sheltered life. Growing up I didn’t realize I might have certain privileges that were based on my race or even my gender. I did have a few friends who were African American, and I don’t remember thinking of them as being all that different from me. Nevertheless, I grew up in something of a white bubble. It would many years before I truly understood that I might have benefits accrued to me due to my race and gender, let alone my sexual orientation. I just took my reality for granted.
Over time the blinders began to come off, but not until my context began to change. It really wasn’t until I moved to Southern California to attend seminary, that the scales coverin…

Isaiah 49:1-7

When Elwood Blues picked up his brother Jake at the Joliet Prison, they set out on a “Mission from God.” They felt called to raise money to prevent the foreclosure of the Catholic orphanage in which they grew up. It’s a movie filled with music and car crashes, but the main point is this “mission from God.” Nothing was going to stop them from raising the money to pay off the creditor before it was too late. It was a race against time, but nothing would stop them from saving their home.    
In our reading last Sunday from Isaiah 42 we heard God speak to a group of exiles, reminding them that they were God’s covenant people. God said to them:  “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations.” (Is 42:1). 
This morning we’ve heard a second Servant Song as found in Isaiah 49. In today’s reading, we hear that God called the Servant to be a light to the nations  while still “in my mot…

PLANNING SABBATICALS: A Guide for Congregations and Their Pastors.By Robert C. Saler. St. Louis: Chalice Press, 2019. Viii + 69 pages.
Why would pastors take a sabbatical? Isn’t that something that professors do so they can do research and pursue writing projects? The idea that clergy might take a sabbatical, and by sabbatical, I don’t mean a two-week vacation, is a rather new idea. I’ve had the opportunity to take two sabbaticals during my time as pastor of Central Woodward Christian Church. The first came after my fifth year with the church, and the second after my eleventh. I will say that I am grateful to the church for allowing me to step away from my responsibilities for three months. I found both sabbaticals to be enriching and renewing and recommend them to my colleagues and the congregations they serve.
So, what might a sabbatical entail? Is it a study leave? It could be? Is it a time to go off in the woods or to a monastery for an extended period? Perhaps. Could it involve tr…

What is Sunday for? Is it a time of relaxing, recreation, mowing the lawn? Is there still some spiritual relevance to Sunday (or to other days deemed sacred by faith traditions -- Saturday for Jews and even some Christian groups, or Friday for Muslims)? Or is it simply a secular day? Martin Marty opines on these matters, raising some intriguing questions for us to ponder. Take a read and offer your responses!


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