[Joan Chittester remains one of the most dynamic and insightful writers on faith and justice today] Today prophets of pietism tell us to "pray for peace" and "pray that God's will be done." And this is certainly important. But they do not demand that we ourselves do something to ensure either. Instead, the professional pietist... Continue Reading →
Call the Midwife — Kindness on full display
Credit: Neal Street Productions/BBC Posted by Michelle Collins on May 12, 2026 via NPR SOME SPOILERS โSometimes, our new beginnings have been yearned for. We have chosen them. Others lie in wait...โ Jennifer Worthโs words (as spoken by Vanessa Redgrave) kick off the season finale. This final episode offers a deeply moving look at what... Continue Reading →
The legacy of Rachel Held Evans
A Memory from Jim Palmer on Facebook About eighteen years ago a young woman named Rachel Held Evans contacted me because she was beginning to see Christianity differently and wanted to write about it. She sent me her manuscript, and we worked on her book together. She published four books in total. I got to... Continue Reading →
Leadership
A reflection by the Revโd Jon Swales [Extracts] Every church has leaders.Every church has a culture.Even if nobody names it,something is shapingthe life of that community. Culture is the feel of a place. Itโs how people are treated when nobody is watching. Itโs what gets celebrated, what gets ignored, who gets heard, and who slowly... Continue Reading →
Another well deserved prize for Maggie Helwig and her homeless community โ Encampment: Resistance, Grace, and an Unhoused Community
A video of her acceptance speech at the Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing is here A transcript is below. (Check against delivery.) [Maggie Helwig] This is not my book. This book belongs to a community. I am cognizant that I am in the kind of room which I am not in very often, and... Continue Reading →
Seeds of peaceful possibility
A sermon for the congregation of St. Saviour, Penticton, the Fifth Sunday of Easter, Sunday, May 3rd, 2026, by the Very Rev. Ken Gray JOHN 14:1-14 A few weeks ago, on the 5th Sunday in Lent, I preached on the text from Johnโs Gospel: โI am the resurrection and the life.โ At the time I... Continue Reading →
Finally, someone now says what I have been thinking
Calvin Sandborn Apr 25, 2026 Victoria Times Colonist - Thanks M for the suggestion A commentary by an Anglican, retired law professor, Kingโs Counsel and author of Becoming the Kind Father, a book about men and anger. He lives in Brentwood Bay near Victoria, BC โOpen the Fโ-nโ Strait, you crazy bastards, or youโll be... Continue Reading →
Violence begets violence — Some leaders have not learned this yet
Ed Cyzewski Apr 17, 2026 on Substack - With thanks to Norma Hill for the nudge There are a lot of different ways to live your life as a person and to exist as a society. For better or worse, in America, we tend to โliveโ by the economy and market. There are a lot... Continue Reading →
On the Road again
A SERMON for the congregation of St. Stephen, Summerland, Sunday, April 19th, 2026, the Third Sunday of Easter by the Very Rev. Ken Gray Willie Nelson said it, and sang it, best: On the road againGoin' places that I've never beenSeein' things that I may never see againI can't wait to get on the road... Continue Reading →
โGod does not listen to the prayers of those who wage warโ Pope Leo XIV
How the first American pope is reclaiming Christian values from the Trump administration By Christopher Lamb at CNN Flying to Algeria at the start of his landmark tour of Africa on Monday, Pope Leo had a choice. He could ignore Donald Trumpโs extraordinary overnight social media tirade against him, or he could tackle it head... Continue Reading →