“Our table is open to everyone because Jesus’ table fellowship was open to everyone.”

Autumn… harvest… Indian summer… waiting for the rains… So many images of this time of year

Where would we be without metaphors in our spiritual conversations?

To be on a spiritual journey is to be constantly evolving our “mental models” about how the world works.

All wisdom traditions understand the need for letting go.  And all wisdom traditions understand how difficult it is to do..

If you want to understand how we could live in a world where every religion speaks of peace and yet every nation is eventually involved in war, look no farther than what we teach our children.

It is our own specific interpretation that gives each experience its unique flavor and color.

“If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading.” (Lao Tzu)

When I wake up in the middle of the night and my mind relentlessly gnaws on some bone of contention,

The world continues to be rocked by racist hate crimes, some carried out churches and synagogues, of all places.

“Joy is the most infallible sign of the presence of God” … then laughter must be a most beloved emotion.

Creativity, imagination, intuition… they are all related.

Would children be able to tell from your actions whom you think your neighbor is?

Our planet is the same size it’s always been, and yet it is shrinking at an astonishing rate.

What makes a father is the relationship — the sustained care and guidance and love.

Our minds and hearts know the person we want to be and the life we want to live, but it seems awesomely difficult sometimes.

Most important for permanent change is what we teach our children.

Pentecost is often called “the birthday of the church.”

A memorial service is a curious creation. On the surface, we behave as if the service is for the person who has just died.

For mothers everywhere, who sense what we really need and provide it even before we  ask for it.

It is often a huge insight to realize how much control we have over our own thoughts.

Are you always looking ahead, getting ready for the next event, the next project, the next vacation, the next thing to do?

The restless, curious, ever-questioning human mind… every new door we open leads to new … and more doors.

Thomas Berry wrote: We must move beyond a spirituality focused simply on the divine …

Springtime is for planting, one of those everyday expressions of great faith. We plant seeds and water and weed them, and expect a harvest.

You can’t get to Easter without going through Good Friday.

New music telling the ancient story can bring that story alive in our own time.

Poetry and religion seem to go together: two approaches to the challenge of trying to capture the ineffable in words.

How astonished we are to discover how much of life is actually not under our control!

More music and more composers and lyricists! … Progressive Christian worship music.

Solitude is becoming ever more precious in our overly-wired world. Lent is the perfect opportunity to give yourself the gift of time alone.

Progressive Christians are constantly challenged to claim the title of Christian — in the sense of being a follower of Jesus’ teachings — while letting go of most of the dogma that has been developed over the centuries by the human institution that is church.

“Less is more.” A carefully crafted poem leaves so much to the reader’s imagination, which makes it the perfect vehicle for spiritual insights.

How many people do you suppose have had their eyes and hearts opened to progressive Christianity because of John Shelby Spong?

The learning that we pursue with our intellect is one kind, but the wisdom we come to understand through our hearts is another.

We search and strive and struggle all our lives, and in the end it always comes back to love. Boundless love.