Dear Friends in Christ, I am not one to stay glued to the news. But last weekend I could not look away. I had watched the unfolding events in Minnesota for the past month; with the death of Alex Pretti on Saturday, they gripped me. I hit refresh see if something more had…
Dear Friends in Christ— I was prepared to write to you about our annual meeting, which was scheduled for this Sunday. But as you have no doubt heard, we’ll be in the midst of a snowstorm this Sunday. Life is rarely what we plan, is it? Much as I hate the work…
Dear Friends in Christ, This weekend, our country observes The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday. The holiday feels especially important to me this year. Current events show that our society is fractured around issues of race, ethnicity, and identity. How are we, who are Christian, to be servants in this day…
Dear Friends in Christ, Who have you decided to be this year? I make new year’s resolutions each January, but they aren’t really about what I want to do. Certainly, there are tasks involved. I need to clean my pantry or stretch each day. But, really, what I want is to be the…
Dear Friends in Christ, It’s common at this time of year for critics to publish their “10 Best of 2025” lists. I’ve been thinking of ten of my fondest memories this year at Grace Church. It’s an incomplete list, and of course it is highly subjective and personal. But I think these memories are…
Dear Friends in Christ, What is the most important thing you have to do before Christmas? If you are like most people (and, to be honest, like me), you jump between any number of frantic answers. Gifts have to be bought. Cards have to be sent. The house has to be cleaned. Intellectually,…
Dear Friends in Christ, “Watching the generations pray together is pure joy.” Someone wrote this sentence in response to our vision process. The claim is true for me, and I suspect it is true for you, too. I love handing out communion to toddlers and parents and grandparents all standing next to one…
Dear Friends in Christ, The outdoor worship space at the Shrine Mont is known as the “Cathedral Shrine of the Transfiguration.” The name is a nod to the story of how Jesus was changed before his friends’ eyes on top of a mountain: Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James…
The deepest goal of the spiritual life is simple, yet profound: to experience a deeper connection with God in a way that brings inner peace, opens us to loving relationships with others, and roots us more tenderly in creation. This path requires us to learn how to see reality more clearly and more deeply. Our…
Dear Friends in Christ, School is starting – can you believe it? On Monday morning, many of our children and youth will return to the rhythm of early mornings and busy schedules. At church, we will mark this transition by offering blessings to students and teachers on Sunday morning and by collecting donations of…