For All the Saints

This is the season of remembrance: Reformation Day, All Souls, and All Saints.  It is a time to give thanks for our saints and for those who have furthered the moral and spiritual arcs of history.  Each year, I ponder my saints, not only those in my family, but also the saints of peace, justice, civil rights, and human rights, who have shaped my life and political involvement.

Francis: A Mystical Activist for Our Time

For many years, the Cape Cod congregation I pastored celebrated the Blessing of the Companion Animals, as part of our focus on ecology and creation spirituality. Typically, we had a handful of dogs and cats of all kinds. In addition to the companion animals present, I was usually asked to bless photos of cats and say a prayer for a large and rambunctious dog who’s too disruptive to attend. Our Blessing of the Companion Animals always involved the remembrance of St. Francis of Assisi whose feast day is held October 4th each year. We were reminded on the Feast of St. Francis that the most unlikely people can become saints and mystics who change the world, and that we can be activist saints too.

Talk to People as if They are Angels

Social activist Dorothy Day once noted that, despite her impatience and strong opinions, she sought to “talk to men (sic.) as if they are angels.” I think the mystical activist meant that in times of challenge – and especially in times of challenge – it is important to address others with respect and compassion. Day believed that deep down, we are all one as God’s beloved. We are all kin, left, right, and center. There is no “other."

Grandparents, Good Ancestors, Guns, and School Days

This morning, August 29, we sent our grandchildren off to school. One in fifth grader and the other a sixth grader beginning his adventures in middle school. The beginning of the school year is like the change of seasons. For over forty years, I defined my life as a university chaplain and professor and seminary professor and administrator in terms of late August, and the excitement of new possibilities.

On (Not) Getting Too Angry!

A friend of mine confesses, “Every time I listen to the news, I could just spit nails. My blood pressure goes up and I want to yell at my television when I hear about the most recent Trump caper, attacks on schoolbooks and the rule of law, and people who foment violence and racism in the media.” I commiserated with her and admitted that I also get angry when I see the unwavering support still given by so many Americans to former President Trump (including his completely false claims about the results of the last election), the continuing denial of climate change by so many of our political and religious leaders, and the many forms of voter suppression that rob certain groups of people of their right to participate fully and equally in the democratic process. Anger can be energetic and has a purpose in advocacy for justice. But anger also divides and exacerbates the stress we experience as individuals and citizens in our uncertain time.

Dusting Off the Doomsday Clock

 As we commemorate the detonation of nuclear bombs over Hiroshima and Nagasaki, August 6 and 9, 1945, we are still convicted by Albert Einstein’s words, “everything has changed except the way we think.”  With growing tensions involving Russia’s rhetoric in the aftermath of NATO’s support of Ukraine, the Union of Concerned Scientists has updated its Doomsday Clock to 100 seconds before midnight.  The signs of the times – the reality of an interdependent planet in which no nation stands alone - are obvious in pandemic, economics, climate change, and nuclear peril, but will we pay attention, or do we care enough to change our way of thinking and act accordingly?  We know the risks, but can we overcome our denial and do something meaningful to de-nuclearize our planet.

Practicing Resurrection and Discovering Resilience for the Challenges Ahead

Wendell Berry’s poem Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front ends with the counsel, “practice resurrection.” Wendell’s countercultural poem invites us to live the countercultural spirit of Easter. Resurrection in a time of hopelessness. A way made when there’s no way ahead. Life emerging when death is all around. Hope when others have given up.