Patience and the Praying Mantis An invitation to pray for humility in the President-Elect and the church By Anita Coleman “Dear God, let me run toward, rather than away from, correction. Reduce my pride, increase my humility, and help me be malleable to good advice. Amen.” That’s a prayer from the book The President’s Devotional… Read more »
November 17, 2016
A mote in Minerva’s eye
Patience and the Praying Mantis An invitation to pray for humility in the President-Elect and the church By Anita Coleman “Dear God, let me run toward, rather than away from, correction. Reduce my pride, increase my humility, and help me be malleable to good advice. Amen.” That’s a prayer from the book The President’s Devotional… Read more » 
A path where there is none A resource for Sunday’s liturgy based on Luke 21:5-19 by Magdalena I. García Path built by neighbors on the 3200 South block of Aberdeen Street, in Chicago. Camino construido por el vecindario en la cuadra 3200 al sur de la calle Aberdeen, en Chicago. Still, not a hair… 
Spinning out of control Is it life or is it me? By N. Graham Standish Our increasing access to excess spins us off of our axis, which makes it extremely difficult to have success in spiritual interests. Years ago I was struck by something the Quaker spiritual writer Thomas Kelly said in response to his… 
Can we do more? Confronting racism early By Abby King-Kaiser I am a campus minister at a predominantly white, Midwestern, Jesuit Catholic university. In the last month we have been rocked by two very public racial incidents that make our black students feel threatened, unsafe, tokenized and ridiculed (their words, from a Black Student Association… 
Indulgent practices Have we inadvertently resurrected an old tradition? By Mark Roth As I began to write this entry, we had just celebrated Reformation Sunday, which commemorates Martin Luther’s posting of his 95 theses in Wittenberg, Germany, in October 1517. So, confession time. I grew up Lutheran, but had never read through the theses, despite all… 
Asking the right questions A resource for Sunday’s liturgy based on Luke 20:27–38 by Magdalena I. García ‘Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive.’ – Luke 20:38 It’s all about the brothers, about their future and their breed, while the woman has… 
How to Plan a Year of Sermon Series without the Lectionary Creative inspiration for pastors and church leaders By David R. Collins One of the best things a church can do to grow is to put the lectionary on the shelf and move to series based preaching. But the idea of making the shift can be daunting. Partly because… 
Despicable people A resource for Sunday’s liturgy based on Luke 19:1—10 by Magdalena I. García Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.” Luke 19:8 We know the story all… 
Cuba: Reality, Hope and the Gospel By Antonio (Tony) Aja This time we had running water everyday for the morning shower. When I first visited Cuba back in 2004 for the first time since I left in 1967, I wrote an article for the denomination where I used the unpredictability of having water in the… 
I alone A resource for Sunday’s liturgy based on Luke 18:9–14 by Magdalena I. García The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all…