Today is the 1st Sunday of Lent, 2017 – a season that draws us on, from the Incarnation of our Lord, from the starry sky of his divine manifestation, into the lengthening daylight of a more introspective season. For today, we ponder in our hearts how the Holy Spirit, who visited Mary, who gave Jesus … READ MORE…
Holy God, You only are immortal, the creator and maker of mankind; and we are mortal, formed of the earth, and to earth shall we return. For so did you ordain when you created us, saying, “You are dust, and to dust you shall return.” All of us go down to the dust; yet even … READ MORE…
Members of the Los Angeles and San Diego Dioceses participated in a pilgrimage to the border on Saturday, March 19, where a joint Eucharist was held with our Bishop James Mathes joining Bishop Lino Rodriguez-Amaro of the Diocese of Western Mexico on the Mexican side, and Bishop Mary Glasspool of the Diocese of Los Angeles … READ MORE…
Eight people are participating in the current Formation Series track “The Journey of Your Art and Poetry.” Each Wednesday night they share with one another how a Lenten poetic or art making discipline is helping them grow spiritually. Facilitator of the group, Mark Turner, offered the following to the group in their second meeting. “Containers … READ MORE…
We are coming up on the halfway mark in our Lenten journey, and our Scripture readings aren’t letting us off the hook. God calls Moses to an impossible task; the Psalmist is dying of thirst; Paul sternly reminds the Corinthians of the deadly consequences of misbehavior; and Jesus utters a dire warning to those who … READ MORE…
The death of Antonin Scalia last Saturday almost immediately spawned a political argument about his replacement. The clichéd phrase of his not being cold before the vultures arrived is, like many clichés, exactly apt. During their debate the Republican candidates universally agreed that President Obama ought to forego putting a name before ‘their’ Senate for … READ MORE…
Several times a week I receive emails from AARP; they cover a multitude of topics, of special interest to the over-50 crowd. This week I noticed an article about the latest crop of scams. It’s not just about rich Nigerian widows any more. There are countless cons out there, many of them relying on the … READ MORE…
On Ash Wednesday two years ago Laurel and I sat with our two-day old baby in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, or NICU, of UCSD Medical Center up the street. This was not how we had hoped to spend our second day with Jem, who was connected to several electrodes monitoring his heart, breathing, and … READ MORE…
Fifth Sunday in Lent, March 22, 2015 It was spring festival time in Jerusalem. The city streets were awash with tourists and pilgrims. The Temple was crammed with people coming to both worship and sightsee, from all over the Empire. Visiting Gentiles had heard about the Galilean rabbi who had created a stir, parading into … READ MORE…
The owl Once upon a time, when I was a teenager, my older sister gave me a little stone owl, just big enough for me to close my fist around. At the time I was all about the classics, and the little owl reminded me of Athene, the Greek goddess of wisdom, who is often … READ MORE…