a prophetic voice-

I have been struggling with something for a very long time...how to discern when speaking out is courageous and prophetic and when it serves only to deepen the chasms which already divide us from one another. Is remaining quiet wisdom or cowardice? And will my words really convince you- whoever you are- of the logic and rightness of my position, when I know in my heart of hearts that none of your words will convince me to accept and adopt yours? I have watched and heard and read so many words about things that I consider vitally important, that I see as matters of justice, inclusivity, and acceptance and I confess that the words coming from those whose position, ideas, beliefs are diametrically opposed to my own just make no sense to me. And they certainly do not make me back off or take a different stance. The realization that this is true for me makes me wonder just how efficacious arguing about things really is. What actually impresses us to not only hear but to list

Today I am still smiling...smiling broadly, my heart overflowing with joy. You see, last evening, at seven o'clock, I had the great honor, privilege, gift, of presiding at the wedding of two wonderful friends whose lives have been intermingled for the last eighteen years. Greg and Tim were finally able to publicly acknowledge their union and there were any number of moist eyes in the chapel, including my own, as they exchanged vows and rings. There was so much love abounding in that room that I could feel it...quite literally, feel it. And the blessing of the God of Love and Grace was surely, truly present, flowing over and around and from these two very special individuals who pledged their union before that same God and those of us privileged to be gathered as witnesses. Now, I have never particularly enjoyed presiding at weddings. Give me a baptism or a funeral any day. Wedding directors and, all too frequently, mothers of the bride, can drive me up the wall, as t

Battle lines being drawn...name calling and prejudices and the failure to see  in the human beings around us our similarities  rather than just our differences... states like Indiana passing  laws to justify injustice, to codify the many ways  we separate  ourselves...while prisons are filled with young men of color and LGBTQ folks are held at arm's length by those who convince  themselves  that they- and only they - have the right to decide  who has been created in  the image of God. just live! Moral certainties make my hair stand on end, make my teeth hurt, especially when expounded by those who seem to thrive on drawing battle lines & boundaries… whose goal seems separation & one-upmanship instead of reconciliation & compromise. A bsolutes invite hypocrisy, as we have so often seen among the ‘famous’ of our day, as revelation of another’s feet of clay is met by judgment, anger, and buoyed by a sense of superiority in t

Awake...alert to possibilities Enshrouded in hope Prodded by pinpricks of daring A voice variously whispering, singing, shouting Yes, you can! Aware that only if I let go of    security...certainty...routine Will I ever FLY

Putting one foot In front of the other Baby step by baby step Progress- or so we call it                                   dream it                                   imagine it Often measured in centimeters Until we are caught unawares By finding ourselves in a Totally different place

Despair has a seductively enticing voice      as it whispers its lies  drawing the aching soul into its  velvet tentacles of promised rest                                    release from pain                                    nevermore hiding its hideous face behind     a veil of virgin delights                    paradise lost and regained all the while cackling with a witch's horrid laugh only the damned can hear