I am away from church today, a rare space of rest from preaching and presiding. On such days I have more time to read and write. I am currently reading "East West Street: On the Origins of "Genocide" and "Crimes Against Humanity"" by Philippe Sands. It is a memoir and history of the origins of... Continue Reading →
[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 →
Reposted from Aljazeera [Introduction by Sylvia Keesmaat] “This is what creative non-violent resistance looks like: Holding a Freedom school in the face of barbed wire and the hovering threat of violence. One thing that the increasingly tyranny and violence around the world has demonstrated is that those without power know how to band together and... Continue Reading →
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 “live” by the economy and market. There are a lot... Continue Reading →
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 Trump’s extraordinary overnight social media tirade against him, or he could tackle it head... Continue Reading →
CAC faculty member Brian McLaren reflects on the person of Benedict of Nursia (ca. 480–547) whose world closely resembles ours today. History, it seems, repeats itself. Hopefully Benedict's solution helps us on our way. Long live wisdom. It’s not hard to imagine a world that seems to be falling apart with political division and corruption,... Continue Reading →
A sermon for the United and Anglican congregations in Summerland BC on Good Friday, 2026 by the Very Rev. Ken Gray We need a new name for today, for what is “good” about Good Friday? By definition, “Good Friday, also known as Holy Friday, Great Friday, or Friday of the Passion of the Lord, is... Continue Reading →
[Notes from a CBC article here] Former politician, diplomat and activist Stephen Lewis has died at age 88. Lewis was a former leader of the Ontario NDP, Canadian ambassador to the United Nations and a longtime journalist and environmental activist. The Lewis family said in a statement on Tuesday that he died peacefully in hospice... Continue Reading →
By Guthrie Graves-Fitzsimmons Mar 27, 2026 - Via Sojourners The third No Kings Day this Saturday is shaping up to be the largest day of nonviolent protests in American history. There were more than 2,000 protests during the first No Kings Day in June 2025 and more than 2,700 at the second No Kings Day... Continue Reading →
[Anne Lamott] We sing a hymn in church whose refrain ends, "and all around is sinking sand," and I have felt this since, oh, approximately November 2024. Everyone I know felt this, the existential instability, the sinking of our hearts. We did what we do — tried to take care of each other and not... Continue Reading →
Take Note - Reflections on life, music, politics, retirement and more by Ken Gray 