I’ve been thinking a lot lately about vision. I am the kid who got my first pair of glasses and then spent hours staring out the window amazed that I could see individual leaves on the trees. I hated having to get new frames because I couldn’t see myself in the mirror to know how I would look. I gave up swimming with my friends because the favorite game was Treasure Hunt, finding the locker key that someone placed on the bottom of the pool. There was just no way I could play. I was VERY near-sighted. Getting contact lenses in 8th grade was one of the best things that happened. I had peripheral vision for the first time in years. I could see better. I didn’t have glasses constantly sliding do
The ELCA sure did hit a nerve when they voted to become a Sanctuary Church Body. The amendment that was proposed was vague, to say the least, it did not supply a ‘to do’ list or a packet of materials and resources. It did not help with budget questions. A beautiful pastoral letter was written to a church only to be rabidly torn apart and the pastor shamed publicly by another pastor for not being liberal enough. Then there are the more ‘traditional’ pastors and churches that wish this never happened. They prefer the rule of law over the intention of the document and amendment. The rule of law? That is a curious statement - the Medieval Church in Europe offered sanctuary and it has continued f
I recently heard a podcast of Hidden Brain entitled "Where Does Religion Come From?" which explores how people become believers, where rituals come from and what purpose religion serves. As believers, we tend to think about religion only in terms of theology and faith. But scientists are looking at religion in terms of human behavior and cultural evolution. The theory is that cultural cues developed to get larger and larger groups of people to work harmoniously. "Basically, if early humans could be convinced that a god was going to punish them if they didn't act in line with the interests of the group, well, they would start to cooperate." (Shankar Vedantam, host of the podcast.) I'm sure I'
What’s is your favorite passage in scripture? Is it something from the Psalms - ‘the Lord is my Shepherd…’ (Ps. 23)? Perhaps John - ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God.’ (John 1:1)? I would encourage you to share your favorite passage in the comments section on Facebook or send me a note. I’m curious...what is your favorite passage? Some folks might have it memorized and others may have to google it for reference on chapter and verse. That is ok. Further, others may not have given thought to this question. That, too, is ok. As the children are completing their Holy Communion classes, we are adding to their knowledge of bible stories. As they grow in their faith and begi
