There’s so much to unpack in this story. It happens just before the final chapters of Jesus’ journey to the cross, and it’s really his great signifying miracle, at least in the way that St. John tells the story of Salvation. Anyone who hears it is left with all sorts of questions. Why did Jesus tarry? Did he choose to let Lazarus, the person he loved so deeply, die deliberately? What was that purpose? He […]
I’ve misunderstood the Luddites. The point they were making back then is still valid today. From an essay by Cory Doctorow: As Merchant explains, the Luddites were anything but technophobes: they were skilled high-tech workers whose seven-year apprenticeships were the equivalent to getting a Master’s in Engineering from MIT. Their objection to powered textile machines had nothing to do with fear of the machines: rather, it was motivated by a clear-eyed understanding of how factory […]
There’s a lovely article about Hildegard of Bingen by Erin Risch Zountendam posted this morning on the blog “Earth and Altar.” Hildegard, one of the four female doctors of the Western Church, was a theologian, a prophet, a mystic and a naturalist. Her life and her theology is, to my mind, one of the clearest examples of my argument that most scientists are, in truth, mystics at heart – seeking to understand a deeper meaning […]
This week’s Gospel reading tells the story of how Jesus used mud to give sight to a man who had been born without it. It is another account that will let those with understanding and real insight recognize who Jesus is and what he is doing in the World. I am following St. Irenaeus, a 2nd century bishop, martyr and commentator’s interpretation of what is happening in this passage. Jesus shows himself to be completing […]
I’m afraid I don’t have a video sermon to post, or even a written manuscript to share this week. I’m at the Spring House of Bishops meeting of the Episcopal Church. We meet at least once a year together, gathering from all over the world (and mostly from North America). The Spring meeting is generally a retreat with just bishops present. We spend our time in prayer, conversation and reflection. This year we are in […]
I woke up this morning puzzling about this… The Sun is green and I’ve wondered for years about why plants reflect the most intense light from the Sun rather than absorbing it. Leaves are green because plants absorb more red and blue light than they do green light. Why are they being inefficient? Turns out the answer – only recently determined – is pretty interesting. at least sometimes — evolution cares less about making biological […]
There’s so much to talk about in this week’s lesson from the third chapter of the Gospel of St. John. There’s one of the most well known verses in America today (John 3:16), there’s Jesus’ description of the new birth and his use of metaphor for the action of the third person of the Trinity and for his own crucifixion and there’s the first appearance of Nicodemus. Over the years I’ve preached on all the […]
Each year of the lectionary, when we arrive at the First Sunday in Lent, we hear the story of how Jesus was driven in the wilderness immediately following his baptism and was test by the Satan. The First Sunday in Epiphany we hear of his baptism, and then weeks later we hear of the temptation, but in truth, there’s no gap between the two as the Gospels present the story. The wilderness immediately follows the […]
Again and again in the Bible stories, God’s people misunderstand what God is doing, or what the prophets are saying to them. We end up doing the opposite of what God desires for us – and if we listen to the prophets – we often do that when we think we’re obeying God’s will. Remember how the prophets critiqued the religious leadership of their day for observing the outward forms of the faith and at […]
I’m trying to think of how to make best use of my two blogs. This one, Entangled States, has been around for nearly 20 years. My new one, wnknisely.micro.blog is just getting started. Entangled States has been the place I’ve been posting sermons and long form pieces for years. Over that time it’s built up a group of followers and subscribers. According to WordPress there are about 2,000 people who get posts by email, about […]
