Withered Bones in the Embrace of Mercy

       One of my great joys as a priest is Lent, and not just because I like to remind folks that they are gonna die on Ash Wednesday – which, if you missed, it…. you’re gonna die one day. I love Lent because it’s an opportunity to pay microscopic attention to our lives. And eachContinue reading “Withered Bones in the Embrace of Mercy”

The Blessing of Changed Plans

My first Epiphany here at Christ Church, I took home the paper instructions and blue chalk and while I don’t remember if it was me or Father Steve who preached that night, I do remember how the chalk crumbled slightly as I with every bit of prayerful intention I could marked C + M +Continue reading “The Blessing of Changed Plans”

Changed by the Wilderness

       The day started early, with simple and delicious buttered bread and a bowl of coffee, which, I learned that morning, was how the folks in the Basque area of France drink coffee, literally in a bowl. Over breakfast, I sat with other pilgrims, talking about the day, our hopes, and plans for the pilgrimage;Continue reading “Changed by the Wilderness”

A Trampled Sabbath

       In Annie Dillard’s The Writing Life, one can find some of the best life advice there is, but within the framework of a non-fiction exploration of writing. Dillard is a master at blending poetry and prose as she dances between fiction and nonfiction; she crafts narratives that seem to be about nothing, but alwaysContinue reading “A Trampled Sabbath”

Sustaining Hope

There are some places in this world that invite one to ponder and to consider things that they had never given time to before, and over the last ten weeks of my Sabbatical, my life has been full of them. While I’ll go into sharing about my Camino journey and travels in a few weeks,Continue reading “Sustaining Hope”

The Listening Pilgrim

No one comes to any of life’s journeys in a vacuum; we come carrying all the burdens that life has laid upon us. We do not come to any pilgrimage devoid of the ways in which our journey has shaped who we are, who we have become, and who we might, by God’s grace, growContinue reading “The Listening Pilgrim”

Every Stitch A Prayer

I can’t quite describe when it happened, but there was a moment in the planning, preparation, and dreaming about making this pilgrimage that I began to realize that it wasn’t just a daydream, but that plans were being made, items bought, and plane tickets booked. I can’t exactly pinpoint when this moment hit me, butContinue reading “Every Stitch A Prayer”

And the Camino Begins

The smell of the pine-baked forrest of late Spring reminds me not only of all the paths I’ve taken, but of all the prayers I’ve prayed while walking through the woods. The bright sun lights the path through the bare trees as the low-lying ferns and tiny wildflowers burst to life along trail, calling meContinue reading “And the Camino Begins”