Yes, There Is Such Thing as a Dumb Question
I used to reassure my students that it was okay to ask questions. “There’s no such thing as a dumb question,” I would say. Obviously, I was wrong.
A Helper as His Partner
Here’s a sermon in honor of John Shelby Spong, who passed away last month at the age of 90. It deals with one of the passages he cites as a “terrible text” from Genesis: the story of the creation of Eve to be Adam’s helper.
How To Make Jesus Mad
Here’s one way to make Jesus really mad.
Wolf at the Door
Wolf at the Door, the third book in my fantasy romance series Tales of Corwin, is now available.
I finished Wolf at the Door while on vacation in New Hampshire. Yes, that is my idea of a vacation: getting to see more of my family … a little swimming … a little walking in the woods … a little listening to the loons … and a little writing of this kind. Not all writing refreshes and sustains me, but writing the Tales of Corwin does. I like the characters—most of them!—and I’ve enjoyed discovering and telling their story.
I hope you will enjoy reading it. It’s available from Amazon for Kindle and in paperback.
Guilty Pleasure
The other day, my wife caught me with my nose in a book and a silly grin on my face. It’s happened before, and it’s always embarrassing. She gives me a hard time about it, too—and justly so. It’s embarrassing to be caught enjoying your own writing.
I know: self-indulgent, isn’t it? But I can’t help it. I get a kick out of it, every time I dip into The Pastor and the Priestess, the first book in my fantasy romance series. But I had a good excuse, this time, for re-reading my own writing: I’m putting the finishing touches on Wolf at the Door, the third volume in the series, and just needed to check a few things for continuity. (That’s what I told Kelly, anyway.) I’m delighted with the way the latest story is turning out, and I’m excited about releasing it shortly.
But nobody’s going to be excited about the third volume if they haven’t read the first two. So today, I’m dropping the price of the Kindle edition of The Pastor and the Priestess to 99 cents. If you haven’t read it, I hope you’ll take advantage of this price reduction. Maybe a bit of happily-ever-after fantasy romance is just what you need.
And if you have already read The Pastor and the Priestess and Storms Over Corwin, thank you, and stay tuned! Volume three is nearly ready. Here’s the cover art:
And here’s the text from the back cover:
Sandra Shelby, high priestess of the Rose Feather Circle, and Mark Collins, pastor of the Corwin Congregational Church, are engaged to be married at last. They’ve set the date. They’ve chosen two people to perform the ceremony—a Christian minister and a Wiccan crone. Their friends are happy for them. Mark’s parents are happy for them. What could go wrong?
Plenty, as it turns out. Not everyone is as happy about the forthcoming marriage as they are. First, a mysterious Pagan organization sends two scouts into the town of Corwin to discover the secrets of the Circle and to lure Sandra away. At the same time, a faction within Mark’s church takes exception to his interfaith relationship and tries to get him fired. Then, just before Easter, a wolf comes to Mark and Sandra’s door with disturbing news: Joni, the youngest member of the Circle, has disappeared. To rescue little Joni, Mark and Sandra and their friends would go to the ends of the earth.
But they’ll have to go farther than that.
I’ll let you know when Wolf at the Door is available to order. Two weeks, I hope!
Wisdom: Where Reason and Kindness Meet
It’s true: people are idiots, and idiocy kills. On the other hand …
Everupspringing
Here’s a “sermon” I preached in my church recently. I put the word in horror quotes there, because this wasn’t anything like a homily—more like a poetry slam, really. But I try not to let things get too predictable in church!
For Those Working with Struggling Churches
It’s a burden, isn’t it? It’s hard not to feel like a failure, when your church is struggling and you don’t seem to be able to do anything about it. You know that you shouldn’t feel that way; you know you shouldn’t feel responsible for saving the church. You tell yourself that your people already have a savior, and it isn’t supposed to be you. But still.
This is a presentation I made for the 2021 spring meeting of the Prairie Association of the Illinois Conference of the United Church of Christ. It’s about eighteen minutes of prayer, song, and reflection, written especially for those working with struggling churches.
Beyond This Journey’s Ending
When I was working on this new composition, my wife asked me, “What’s it about?”
“Death,” I said.
“Ah, another commercial success in the making,” she replied.
Well, this song isn’t exactly about death. It’s about mortality and hope. I don’t know where the path leads after death. But I do know the One who walks with us on that path. And therefore I know that, as Julian of Norwich wrote, all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well.
This is a four-part choral piece; the video below shows a socially-distanced quartet performing it, consisting of myself, my wife Kelly, and my daughter Fern, with my friend Ron singing and conducting. The music, as it moves from lamentation to hope, changes in melody, key, and time signature; the final melody is a traditional Welsh tune, Bugeilio’r Gwenith Gwyn.
The words are below. Sheet music is, as always, available in our Free Stuff area.
The mainspring wound at birth is bound In time to be unwinding. The candle flame that binds my name Burns down to my unbinding. In joy I sang; the heavens rang With all my fiery yearning. But now I see that I must be Too soon to dust returning. The mortal path on which I walk Is one of certain sorrow. It ends before a silent door, A day with no tomorrow. Yet even so, one thing I know: Your love has always found me. All shall be well, all shall be well, For you are all around me. Love will be sustaining me On hilltop and in hollow, In sun or rain, in joy or pain, Whatever path I follow. I shall not fear though death be near, I shall not break though bending. You love me still, and still you will, Beyond this journey’s ending.
I Remember
I think my hymn “I Remember” is a good one for Lent and Easter. This week, I made a revised version, with a new fourth verse that I like better than the original. I wrote a different accompaniment, too: simpler and more contemplative, and thus better suited to a solo performance.
The video is my daughter Fern Athena Webber, singing “I Remember” as part of our Zoom church service at the Open Prairie United Church of Christ.
I remember how he spoke, How minds were shocked And hearts unlocked. He made me see How I could be Like him. My soul awoke. I remember how his touch Could heal the sick. How very quick Was his response To human wants! Could I not do as much? I remember how he prayed Alone, apart, With open heart. Am I not free In prayer to be Restored, renewed, remade? I remember how he died, His body torn, His love reborn, His heartbeat stilled, His love fulfilled. May his way be my guide.
As usual, sheet music for this version (in E minor) is available in our Free Stuff area.