https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGThVwKowks "Sweet Bells," Yorkshire pub carol performed by GreenMatthews Instead of New Year's resolutions, I'm dealing with hunches and nudges this year. Besides, I know myself and most of my resolutions don't make it past the first weekend in January. But hunches? Sometimes I act on them, and lately I've had several clamoring for my … Continue reading Is noodling on the dulcimer a spiritual discipline? English folksingers nudge me to try it after this ‘festering boil of a year’
A Jesuit, Martin Luther and a statehouse reporter walk into an elevator … surviving the aftermath of this year’s election
Tennessee State Capitol, Nashville (Wikipedia) In an online election-eve article titled "Jesuit tools to help you survive the election (and its aftermath)," Fr. James Martin, SJ, laid out some tips for America magazine readers on "navigating the rough emotional waters over the next few days, weeks and perhaps months or years." Naturally enough, they come … Continue reading A Jesuit, Martin Luther and a statehouse reporter walk into an elevator … surviving the aftermath of this year’s election
Loaves, fishes and Luther’s concept of the Word as sacrament: How do you do church when you can’t go to church? (Pentecost IX)
Byzantine columns at Church of the Multiplication (Brotvermehrungskirche), Galilee. Matthew 14 (NRSV): ... 14 When he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them and cured their sick. 15 When it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a deserted place, and the hour is now late; send the … Continue reading Loaves, fishes and Luther’s concept of the Word as sacrament: How do you do church when you can’t go to church? (Pentecost IX)
A parable of sowing the word of the kingdom of heaven on YouTube and Facebook (for Pentecost VI)
Sunday service, Peace Lutheran Church, Springfield, Ill., July 12, 2020 (Pentecost VI) Yesterday's lectionary reading, for the sixth Sunday after Pentecost (ordinary time to non-Lutherans), was the the parable of the sower in Matthew 13. Which means, if you think about it, watching the service on social media was almost like a parable about a … Continue reading A parable of sowing the word of the kingdom of heaven on YouTube and Facebook (for Pentecost VI)
Of Luther's Catechism, daily prayer, the spiritual exercises of Loyola and the communion of saints in a time of plague
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdEURn4NEas Carl Schalk, Luther's Morning Prayer, Summer Music Academy, Valparaiso University, 2018 Here's something I've been struggling with since the COVID-19 pandemic hit Springfield: How do you do communion when you can't go to church and take communion? I hadn't realized how much my spiritual life centered on singing in the choir and weekly celebration … Continue reading Of Luther's Catechism, daily prayer, the spiritual exercises of Loyola and the communion of saints in a time of plague
Wisdom from the 1928 Episcopal prayer book, a Jesuit author and a punk rocker-rabbi — with links to common-sense advice on getting ready for a pandemic
Editor's note (March 3). Draft of a post I wrote at the end of February, when it first became apparent the new coronavirus outbreak was about to blossom into a worldwide pandemic. Then, on Saturday night, when I was putting the finishing touches on it, I got sick and was admitted to St. John's Hospital … Continue reading Wisdom from the 1928 Episcopal prayer book, a Jesuit author and a punk rocker-rabbi — with links to common-sense advice on getting ready for a pandemic
One last post about Trump’s insult comedy shtick at that prayer breakfast — it’s time for us all to look in the mirror
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLDnhL648qI Morning Joe | MSNBC | February 7, 2020 I thought I'd gotten President Trump's performance at the National Prayer Breakfast out of my system with Thursday's post to Ordinary Time. I think of him as basically an insult comedian -- like Don Rickles, Joan Rivers and Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, but smug and … Continue reading One last post about Trump’s insult comedy shtick at that prayer breakfast — it’s time for us all to look in the mirror
Lectio divina — some how-to websites
[Copied here or convenient reference from a prototype blog called Hemlandssånger (which didn't go anywhere and was replaced by Ordinary Time. This post was published March 4, 2019.] Verbatim xcerpts: "Praying With Scripture," Dominican Sisters of Springfield, Illinois https://springfieldop.org/praying-with-scripture/ Lectio Divina is the contemplative practice of reading and responding to the Word in a personal … Continue reading Lectio divina — some how-to websites
Ordinary Time 