Singing Along the Journey

Faith

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

Those little God moments…

For the past 48 hours, I have been in Atlanta attending a conference called "The Singing Church," sponsored by the Candler School of Theology at Emory University.  In these past 48 hours, I have sung more church music than I ever imagined possible, I have experienced more different types of liturgy than I imagined existed, and I have had a chance to listen to and meet some people whose books have guided my thoughts and my learning and my transformation over the past three years. I have participated in five separate worship services, sung to guitar, piano, organ, drum, and hung (Korean string instrument that is a little like a…
Read More

A turn of the season…

I must admit that I have not been as engaged this Lenten season as usual.  In fact, I have been struggling with Lent in a very different way and that has been unsettling for me.  I was concerned that the rituals had become too ritualized, that the newness of walking through the liturgical calendar had worn off, that maybe the deep richness of the past few seasons of Lenten observance had been manufactured on my part and this nothingness and discomfort was what really happened for me in the spring.  Oh yes, I've been applying myself to my study, turning my thoughts to repentance, etc. and etc., but I have clearly…
Read More

Star light, star bright…

I'll admit it.  I just returned from a much-needed-but-all-too-short-vacation in Mexico.  My biggest decisions during those few blissful days were "what book to read next" and "what restaurant do we choose tonight".  The weather was beautiful, etc., etc. and so forth. Now, I would not describe myself as a science nerd or even someone who pays much attention to the science news.  And, since the end of my days as a new-age-spirituality-guru, I haven't continued to cast charts (yes, that is correct, I did for a while cast horoscope charts...I'm kind of a hands-on type when it comes to any spiritual exploration), so I really haven't kept up with the…
Read More

Journeying with the Magi

Advent is now long behind us (well, it seems long to me), we areat the end of Christmas, and Epiphany lies ahead of us.  I am lucky; unlike most people who must return to a daily schedule as soon as the New Year is in place, I generally have an extra week to clean out the old and make space for the new, and recover from the extra services and extra music that have filled the season just past.  These are the moments when I file the old music and ready the new; finish the readings devoted to the liturgical season and select those for the coming weeks and the coming…
Read More

A Holiday Book Review

I am always struggling to make sure that each day includes some time devoted to something that most people would call a "spiritual practice".  In the course of my life, I have tried yoga, transcendental meditation, walking meditation, journalling, praying the hours-- if there is an activity recommended by my old compatriots in the New Age movement, I have tried it to a greater or lesser degree of success and discipline. The one thing that works for me, however, no matter what the current state of my theology, is reading a daily devotion of some type.  The older I get, the more I see how the practices of my childhood carry forward…
Read More

Advent: Reminder of the Perpetual Coming

I must admit to having a fair amount of writer's block lately.  I have started any number of texts for various purposes and discarded them.  In one case, I even pulled back something that was about to be published.  I can't even find enough inspiration wordsmithing to finish the personnel handbook revision that is more than overdue. Perhaps it is just the hustle and bustle of seasonal preparations and concert preparations; I am not sure.   Maybe my eyes have been closed for other reasons (for it is with the eyes and and ears and the heart that we write, I believe); maybe my ears have been resting.   Maybe my thoughts have been just too internal…
Read More

Where the music comes from…

Last Friday, on the opening concert of the Friday Morning Music Club's first resident season at Calvary Baptist Church, my good friend and frequent performing partner, Natalie, sang  (beautifully, I might add) one of my most favorite songs...a song by Lee Hoiby, called "Where the Music Comes From...", for which the composer himself wrote the words.  The text is, for me, an eloquent statement of so much that I hold true: I want to be where the music comes from Where the clock stops, where it's now I want to be with the friends around me Who have found me, who show me how I want to sing to the…
Read More

Thank God for mothers…

Despite my years as a devoted Germanophile, I have not yet taken the time to read any of the works of the theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer.  I knew of him from my studies of German history and culture, but he was for me just one of that far-too-short list of names of those known to work against the Nazi regime, a list that includes names like Sophie Scholl and the few members of the White Rose.  But in our Wednesday Night Words class, we have begun the study of his work, Life Together, and well, my historical-church-theological nerdiness is showing.  Last night we talked about the documentary we had seen the…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

Those little God moments…

For the past 48 hours, I have been in Atlanta attending a conference called "The Singing Church," sponsored by the Candler School of Theology at Emory University.  In these past 48 hours, I have sung more church music than I ever imagined possible, I have experienced more different types of liturgy than I imagined existed, and I have had a chance to listen to and meet some people whose books have guided my thoughts and my learning and my transformation over the past three years. I have participated in five separate worship services, sung to guitar, piano, organ, drum, and hung (Korean string instrument that is a little like a…
Read More

A turn of the season…

I must admit that I have not been as engaged this Lenten season as usual.  In fact, I have been struggling with Lent in a very different way and that has been unsettling for me.  I was concerned that the rituals had become too ritualized, that the newness of walking through the liturgical calendar had worn off, that maybe the deep richness of the past few seasons of Lenten observance had been manufactured on my part and this nothingness and discomfort was what really happened for me in the spring.  Oh yes, I've been applying myself to my study, turning my thoughts to repentance, etc. and etc., but I have clearly…
Read More

Star light, star bright…

I'll admit it.  I just returned from a much-needed-but-all-too-short-vacation in Mexico.  My biggest decisions during those few blissful days were "what book to read next" and "what restaurant do we choose tonight".  The weather was beautiful, etc., etc. and so forth. Now, I would not describe myself as a science nerd or even someone who pays much attention to the science news.  And, since the end of my days as a new-age-spirituality-guru, I haven't continued to cast charts (yes, that is correct, I did for a while cast horoscope charts...I'm kind of a hands-on type when it comes to any spiritual exploration), so I really haven't kept up with the…
Read More

Journeying with the Magi

Advent is now long behind us (well, it seems long to me), we areat the end of Christmas, and Epiphany lies ahead of us.  I am lucky; unlike most people who must return to a daily schedule as soon as the New Year is in place, I generally have an extra week to clean out the old and make space for the new, and recover from the extra services and extra music that have filled the season just past.  These are the moments when I file the old music and ready the new; finish the readings devoted to the liturgical season and select those for the coming weeks and the coming…
Read More

A Holiday Book Review

I am always struggling to make sure that each day includes some time devoted to something that most people would call a "spiritual practice".  In the course of my life, I have tried yoga, transcendental meditation, walking meditation, journalling, praying the hours-- if there is an activity recommended by my old compatriots in the New Age movement, I have tried it to a greater or lesser degree of success and discipline. The one thing that works for me, however, no matter what the current state of my theology, is reading a daily devotion of some type.  The older I get, the more I see how the practices of my childhood carry forward…
Read More

Advent: Reminder of the Perpetual Coming

I must admit to having a fair amount of writer's block lately.  I have started any number of texts for various purposes and discarded them.  In one case, I even pulled back something that was about to be published.  I can't even find enough inspiration wordsmithing to finish the personnel handbook revision that is more than overdue. Perhaps it is just the hustle and bustle of seasonal preparations and concert preparations; I am not sure.   Maybe my eyes have been closed for other reasons (for it is with the eyes and and ears and the heart that we write, I believe); maybe my ears have been resting.   Maybe my thoughts have been just too internal…
Read More

Where the music comes from…

Last Friday, on the opening concert of the Friday Morning Music Club's first resident season at Calvary Baptist Church, my good friend and frequent performing partner, Natalie, sang  (beautifully, I might add) one of my most favorite songs...a song by Lee Hoiby, called "Where the Music Comes From...", for which the composer himself wrote the words.  The text is, for me, an eloquent statement of so much that I hold true: I want to be where the music comes from Where the clock stops, where it's now I want to be with the friends around me Who have found me, who show me how I want to sing to the…
Read More

Thank God for mothers…

Despite my years as a devoted Germanophile, I have not yet taken the time to read any of the works of the theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer.  I knew of him from my studies of German history and culture, but he was for me just one of that far-too-short list of names of those known to work against the Nazi regime, a list that includes names like Sophie Scholl and the few members of the White Rose.  But in our Wednesday Night Words class, we have begun the study of his work, Life Together, and well, my historical-church-theological nerdiness is showing.  Last night we talked about the documentary we had seen the…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

Those little God moments…

For the past 48 hours, I have been in Atlanta attending a conference called "The Singing Church," sponsored by the Candler School of Theology at Emory University.  In these past 48 hours, I have sung more church music than I ever imagined possible, I have experienced more different types of liturgy than I imagined existed, and I have had a chance to listen to and meet some people whose books have guided my thoughts and my learning and my transformation over the past three years. I have participated in five separate worship services, sung to guitar, piano, organ, drum, and hung (Korean string instrument that is a little like a…
Read More

A turn of the season…

I must admit that I have not been as engaged this Lenten season as usual.  In fact, I have been struggling with Lent in a very different way and that has been unsettling for me.  I was concerned that the rituals had become too ritualized, that the newness of walking through the liturgical calendar had worn off, that maybe the deep richness of the past few seasons of Lenten observance had been manufactured on my part and this nothingness and discomfort was what really happened for me in the spring.  Oh yes, I've been applying myself to my study, turning my thoughts to repentance, etc. and etc., but I have clearly…
Read More

Star light, star bright…

I'll admit it.  I just returned from a much-needed-but-all-too-short-vacation in Mexico.  My biggest decisions during those few blissful days were "what book to read next" and "what restaurant do we choose tonight".  The weather was beautiful, etc., etc. and so forth. Now, I would not describe myself as a science nerd or even someone who pays much attention to the science news.  And, since the end of my days as a new-age-spirituality-guru, I haven't continued to cast charts (yes, that is correct, I did for a while cast horoscope charts...I'm kind of a hands-on type when it comes to any spiritual exploration), so I really haven't kept up with the…
Read More

Journeying with the Magi

Advent is now long behind us (well, it seems long to me), we areat the end of Christmas, and Epiphany lies ahead of us.  I am lucky; unlike most people who must return to a daily schedule as soon as the New Year is in place, I generally have an extra week to clean out the old and make space for the new, and recover from the extra services and extra music that have filled the season just past.  These are the moments when I file the old music and ready the new; finish the readings devoted to the liturgical season and select those for the coming weeks and the coming…
Read More

A Holiday Book Review

I am always struggling to make sure that each day includes some time devoted to something that most people would call a "spiritual practice".  In the course of my life, I have tried yoga, transcendental meditation, walking meditation, journalling, praying the hours-- if there is an activity recommended by my old compatriots in the New Age movement, I have tried it to a greater or lesser degree of success and discipline. The one thing that works for me, however, no matter what the current state of my theology, is reading a daily devotion of some type.  The older I get, the more I see how the practices of my childhood carry forward…
Read More

Advent: Reminder of the Perpetual Coming

I must admit to having a fair amount of writer's block lately.  I have started any number of texts for various purposes and discarded them.  In one case, I even pulled back something that was about to be published.  I can't even find enough inspiration wordsmithing to finish the personnel handbook revision that is more than overdue. Perhaps it is just the hustle and bustle of seasonal preparations and concert preparations; I am not sure.   Maybe my eyes have been closed for other reasons (for it is with the eyes and and ears and the heart that we write, I believe); maybe my ears have been resting.   Maybe my thoughts have been just too internal…
Read More

Where the music comes from…

Last Friday, on the opening concert of the Friday Morning Music Club's first resident season at Calvary Baptist Church, my good friend and frequent performing partner, Natalie, sang  (beautifully, I might add) one of my most favorite songs...a song by Lee Hoiby, called "Where the Music Comes From...", for which the composer himself wrote the words.  The text is, for me, an eloquent statement of so much that I hold true: I want to be where the music comes from Where the clock stops, where it's now I want to be with the friends around me Who have found me, who show me how I want to sing to the…
Read More

Thank God for mothers…

Despite my years as a devoted Germanophile, I have not yet taken the time to read any of the works of the theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer.  I knew of him from my studies of German history and culture, but he was for me just one of that far-too-short list of names of those known to work against the Nazi regime, a list that includes names like Sophie Scholl and the few members of the White Rose.  But in our Wednesday Night Words class, we have begun the study of his work, Life Together, and well, my historical-church-theological nerdiness is showing.  Last night we talked about the documentary we had seen the…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

Those little God moments…

For the past 48 hours, I have been in Atlanta attending a conference called "The Singing Church," sponsored by the Candler School of Theology at Emory University.  In these past 48 hours, I have sung more church music than I ever imagined possible, I have experienced more different types of liturgy than I imagined existed, and I have had a chance to listen to and meet some people whose books have guided my thoughts and my learning and my transformation over the past three years. I have participated in five separate worship services, sung to guitar, piano, organ, drum, and hung (Korean string instrument that is a little like a…
Read More

A turn of the season…

I must admit that I have not been as engaged this Lenten season as usual.  In fact, I have been struggling with Lent in a very different way and that has been unsettling for me.  I was concerned that the rituals had become too ritualized, that the newness of walking through the liturgical calendar had worn off, that maybe the deep richness of the past few seasons of Lenten observance had been manufactured on my part and this nothingness and discomfort was what really happened for me in the spring.  Oh yes, I've been applying myself to my study, turning my thoughts to repentance, etc. and etc., but I have clearly…
Read More

Star light, star bright…

I'll admit it.  I just returned from a much-needed-but-all-too-short-vacation in Mexico.  My biggest decisions during those few blissful days were "what book to read next" and "what restaurant do we choose tonight".  The weather was beautiful, etc., etc. and so forth. Now, I would not describe myself as a science nerd or even someone who pays much attention to the science news.  And, since the end of my days as a new-age-spirituality-guru, I haven't continued to cast charts (yes, that is correct, I did for a while cast horoscope charts...I'm kind of a hands-on type when it comes to any spiritual exploration), so I really haven't kept up with the…
Read More

Journeying with the Magi

Advent is now long behind us (well, it seems long to me), we areat the end of Christmas, and Epiphany lies ahead of us.  I am lucky; unlike most people who must return to a daily schedule as soon as the New Year is in place, I generally have an extra week to clean out the old and make space for the new, and recover from the extra services and extra music that have filled the season just past.  These are the moments when I file the old music and ready the new; finish the readings devoted to the liturgical season and select those for the coming weeks and the coming…
Read More

A Holiday Book Review

I am always struggling to make sure that each day includes some time devoted to something that most people would call a "spiritual practice".  In the course of my life, I have tried yoga, transcendental meditation, walking meditation, journalling, praying the hours-- if there is an activity recommended by my old compatriots in the New Age movement, I have tried it to a greater or lesser degree of success and discipline. The one thing that works for me, however, no matter what the current state of my theology, is reading a daily devotion of some type.  The older I get, the more I see how the practices of my childhood carry forward…
Read More

Advent: Reminder of the Perpetual Coming

I must admit to having a fair amount of writer's block lately.  I have started any number of texts for various purposes and discarded them.  In one case, I even pulled back something that was about to be published.  I can't even find enough inspiration wordsmithing to finish the personnel handbook revision that is more than overdue. Perhaps it is just the hustle and bustle of seasonal preparations and concert preparations; I am not sure.   Maybe my eyes have been closed for other reasons (for it is with the eyes and and ears and the heart that we write, I believe); maybe my ears have been resting.   Maybe my thoughts have been just too internal…
Read More

Where the music comes from…

Last Friday, on the opening concert of the Friday Morning Music Club's first resident season at Calvary Baptist Church, my good friend and frequent performing partner, Natalie, sang  (beautifully, I might add) one of my most favorite songs...a song by Lee Hoiby, called "Where the Music Comes From...", for which the composer himself wrote the words.  The text is, for me, an eloquent statement of so much that I hold true: I want to be where the music comes from Where the clock stops, where it's now I want to be with the friends around me Who have found me, who show me how I want to sing to the…
Read More

Thank God for mothers…

Despite my years as a devoted Germanophile, I have not yet taken the time to read any of the works of the theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer.  I knew of him from my studies of German history and culture, but he was for me just one of that far-too-short list of names of those known to work against the Nazi regime, a list that includes names like Sophie Scholl and the few members of the White Rose.  But in our Wednesday Night Words class, we have begun the study of his work, Life Together, and well, my historical-church-theological nerdiness is showing.  Last night we talked about the documentary we had seen the…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

Those little God moments…

For the past 48 hours, I have been in Atlanta attending a conference called "The Singing Church," sponsored by the Candler School of Theology at Emory University.  In these past 48 hours, I have sung more church music than I ever imagined possible, I have experienced more different types of liturgy than I imagined existed, and I have had a chance to listen to and meet some people whose books have guided my thoughts and my learning and my transformation over the past three years. I have participated in five separate worship services, sung to guitar, piano, organ, drum, and hung (Korean string instrument that is a little like a…
Read More

A turn of the season…

I must admit that I have not been as engaged this Lenten season as usual.  In fact, I have been struggling with Lent in a very different way and that has been unsettling for me.  I was concerned that the rituals had become too ritualized, that the newness of walking through the liturgical calendar had worn off, that maybe the deep richness of the past few seasons of Lenten observance had been manufactured on my part and this nothingness and discomfort was what really happened for me in the spring.  Oh yes, I've been applying myself to my study, turning my thoughts to repentance, etc. and etc., but I have clearly…
Read More

Star light, star bright…

I'll admit it.  I just returned from a much-needed-but-all-too-short-vacation in Mexico.  My biggest decisions during those few blissful days were "what book to read next" and "what restaurant do we choose tonight".  The weather was beautiful, etc., etc. and so forth. Now, I would not describe myself as a science nerd or even someone who pays much attention to the science news.  And, since the end of my days as a new-age-spirituality-guru, I haven't continued to cast charts (yes, that is correct, I did for a while cast horoscope charts...I'm kind of a hands-on type when it comes to any spiritual exploration), so I really haven't kept up with the…
Read More

Journeying with the Magi

Advent is now long behind us (well, it seems long to me), we areat the end of Christmas, and Epiphany lies ahead of us.  I am lucky; unlike most people who must return to a daily schedule as soon as the New Year is in place, I generally have an extra week to clean out the old and make space for the new, and recover from the extra services and extra music that have filled the season just past.  These are the moments when I file the old music and ready the new; finish the readings devoted to the liturgical season and select those for the coming weeks and the coming…
Read More

A Holiday Book Review

I am always struggling to make sure that each day includes some time devoted to something that most people would call a "spiritual practice".  In the course of my life, I have tried yoga, transcendental meditation, walking meditation, journalling, praying the hours-- if there is an activity recommended by my old compatriots in the New Age movement, I have tried it to a greater or lesser degree of success and discipline. The one thing that works for me, however, no matter what the current state of my theology, is reading a daily devotion of some type.  The older I get, the more I see how the practices of my childhood carry forward…
Read More

Advent: Reminder of the Perpetual Coming

I must admit to having a fair amount of writer's block lately.  I have started any number of texts for various purposes and discarded them.  In one case, I even pulled back something that was about to be published.  I can't even find enough inspiration wordsmithing to finish the personnel handbook revision that is more than overdue. Perhaps it is just the hustle and bustle of seasonal preparations and concert preparations; I am not sure.   Maybe my eyes have been closed for other reasons (for it is with the eyes and and ears and the heart that we write, I believe); maybe my ears have been resting.   Maybe my thoughts have been just too internal…
Read More

Where the music comes from…

Last Friday, on the opening concert of the Friday Morning Music Club's first resident season at Calvary Baptist Church, my good friend and frequent performing partner, Natalie, sang  (beautifully, I might add) one of my most favorite songs...a song by Lee Hoiby, called "Where the Music Comes From...", for which the composer himself wrote the words.  The text is, for me, an eloquent statement of so much that I hold true: I want to be where the music comes from Where the clock stops, where it's now I want to be with the friends around me Who have found me, who show me how I want to sing to the…
Read More

Thank God for mothers…

Despite my years as a devoted Germanophile, I have not yet taken the time to read any of the works of the theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer.  I knew of him from my studies of German history and culture, but he was for me just one of that far-too-short list of names of those known to work against the Nazi regime, a list that includes names like Sophie Scholl and the few members of the White Rose.  But in our Wednesday Night Words class, we have begun the study of his work, Life Together, and well, my historical-church-theological nerdiness is showing.  Last night we talked about the documentary we had seen the…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

Those little God moments…

For the past 48 hours, I have been in Atlanta attending a conference called "The Singing Church," sponsored by the Candler School of Theology at Emory University.  In these past 48 hours, I have sung more church music than I ever imagined possible, I have experienced more different types of liturgy than I imagined existed, and I have had a chance to listen to and meet some people whose books have guided my thoughts and my learning and my transformation over the past three years. I have participated in five separate worship services, sung to guitar, piano, organ, drum, and hung (Korean string instrument that is a little like a…
Read More

A turn of the season…

I must admit that I have not been as engaged this Lenten season as usual.  In fact, I have been struggling with Lent in a very different way and that has been unsettling for me.  I was concerned that the rituals had become too ritualized, that the newness of walking through the liturgical calendar had worn off, that maybe the deep richness of the past few seasons of Lenten observance had been manufactured on my part and this nothingness and discomfort was what really happened for me in the spring.  Oh yes, I've been applying myself to my study, turning my thoughts to repentance, etc. and etc., but I have clearly…
Read More

Star light, star bright…

I'll admit it.  I just returned from a much-needed-but-all-too-short-vacation in Mexico.  My biggest decisions during those few blissful days were "what book to read next" and "what restaurant do we choose tonight".  The weather was beautiful, etc., etc. and so forth. Now, I would not describe myself as a science nerd or even someone who pays much attention to the science news.  And, since the end of my days as a new-age-spirituality-guru, I haven't continued to cast charts (yes, that is correct, I did for a while cast horoscope charts...I'm kind of a hands-on type when it comes to any spiritual exploration), so I really haven't kept up with the…
Read More

Journeying with the Magi

Advent is now long behind us (well, it seems long to me), we areat the end of Christmas, and Epiphany lies ahead of us.  I am lucky; unlike most people who must return to a daily schedule as soon as the New Year is in place, I generally have an extra week to clean out the old and make space for the new, and recover from the extra services and extra music that have filled the season just past.  These are the moments when I file the old music and ready the new; finish the readings devoted to the liturgical season and select those for the coming weeks and the coming…
Read More

A Holiday Book Review

I am always struggling to make sure that each day includes some time devoted to something that most people would call a "spiritual practice".  In the course of my life, I have tried yoga, transcendental meditation, walking meditation, journalling, praying the hours-- if there is an activity recommended by my old compatriots in the New Age movement, I have tried it to a greater or lesser degree of success and discipline. The one thing that works for me, however, no matter what the current state of my theology, is reading a daily devotion of some type.  The older I get, the more I see how the practices of my childhood carry forward…
Read More

Advent: Reminder of the Perpetual Coming

I must admit to having a fair amount of writer's block lately.  I have started any number of texts for various purposes and discarded them.  In one case, I even pulled back something that was about to be published.  I can't even find enough inspiration wordsmithing to finish the personnel handbook revision that is more than overdue. Perhaps it is just the hustle and bustle of seasonal preparations and concert preparations; I am not sure.   Maybe my eyes have been closed for other reasons (for it is with the eyes and and ears and the heart that we write, I believe); maybe my ears have been resting.   Maybe my thoughts have been just too internal…
Read More

Where the music comes from…

Last Friday, on the opening concert of the Friday Morning Music Club's first resident season at Calvary Baptist Church, my good friend and frequent performing partner, Natalie, sang  (beautifully, I might add) one of my most favorite songs...a song by Lee Hoiby, called "Where the Music Comes From...", for which the composer himself wrote the words.  The text is, for me, an eloquent statement of so much that I hold true: I want to be where the music comes from Where the clock stops, where it's now I want to be with the friends around me Who have found me, who show me how I want to sing to the…
Read More

Thank God for mothers…

Despite my years as a devoted Germanophile, I have not yet taken the time to read any of the works of the theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer.  I knew of him from my studies of German history and culture, but he was for me just one of that far-too-short list of names of those known to work against the Nazi regime, a list that includes names like Sophie Scholl and the few members of the White Rose.  But in our Wednesday Night Words class, we have begun the study of his work, Life Together, and well, my historical-church-theological nerdiness is showing.  Last night we talked about the documentary we had seen the…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

Those little God moments…

For the past 48 hours, I have been in Atlanta attending a conference called "The Singing Church," sponsored by the Candler School of Theology at Emory University.  In these past 48 hours, I have sung more church music than I ever imagined possible, I have experienced more different types of liturgy than I imagined existed, and I have had a chance to listen to and meet some people whose books have guided my thoughts and my learning and my transformation over the past three years. I have participated in five separate worship services, sung to guitar, piano, organ, drum, and hung (Korean string instrument that is a little like a…
Read More

A turn of the season…

I must admit that I have not been as engaged this Lenten season as usual.  In fact, I have been struggling with Lent in a very different way and that has been unsettling for me.  I was concerned that the rituals had become too ritualized, that the newness of walking through the liturgical calendar had worn off, that maybe the deep richness of the past few seasons of Lenten observance had been manufactured on my part and this nothingness and discomfort was what really happened for me in the spring.  Oh yes, I've been applying myself to my study, turning my thoughts to repentance, etc. and etc., but I have clearly…
Read More

Star light, star bright…

I'll admit it.  I just returned from a much-needed-but-all-too-short-vacation in Mexico.  My biggest decisions during those few blissful days were "what book to read next" and "what restaurant do we choose tonight".  The weather was beautiful, etc., etc. and so forth. Now, I would not describe myself as a science nerd or even someone who pays much attention to the science news.  And, since the end of my days as a new-age-spirituality-guru, I haven't continued to cast charts (yes, that is correct, I did for a while cast horoscope charts...I'm kind of a hands-on type when it comes to any spiritual exploration), so I really haven't kept up with the…
Read More

Journeying with the Magi

Advent is now long behind us (well, it seems long to me), we areat the end of Christmas, and Epiphany lies ahead of us.  I am lucky; unlike most people who must return to a daily schedule as soon as the New Year is in place, I generally have an extra week to clean out the old and make space for the new, and recover from the extra services and extra music that have filled the season just past.  These are the moments when I file the old music and ready the new; finish the readings devoted to the liturgical season and select those for the coming weeks and the coming…
Read More

A Holiday Book Review

I am always struggling to make sure that each day includes some time devoted to something that most people would call a "spiritual practice".  In the course of my life, I have tried yoga, transcendental meditation, walking meditation, journalling, praying the hours-- if there is an activity recommended by my old compatriots in the New Age movement, I have tried it to a greater or lesser degree of success and discipline. The one thing that works for me, however, no matter what the current state of my theology, is reading a daily devotion of some type.  The older I get, the more I see how the practices of my childhood carry forward…
Read More

Advent: Reminder of the Perpetual Coming

I must admit to having a fair amount of writer's block lately.  I have started any number of texts for various purposes and discarded them.  In one case, I even pulled back something that was about to be published.  I can't even find enough inspiration wordsmithing to finish the personnel handbook revision that is more than overdue. Perhaps it is just the hustle and bustle of seasonal preparations and concert preparations; I am not sure.   Maybe my eyes have been closed for other reasons (for it is with the eyes and and ears and the heart that we write, I believe); maybe my ears have been resting.   Maybe my thoughts have been just too internal…
Read More

Where the music comes from…

Last Friday, on the opening concert of the Friday Morning Music Club's first resident season at Calvary Baptist Church, my good friend and frequent performing partner, Natalie, sang  (beautifully, I might add) one of my most favorite songs...a song by Lee Hoiby, called "Where the Music Comes From...", for which the composer himself wrote the words.  The text is, for me, an eloquent statement of so much that I hold true: I want to be where the music comes from Where the clock stops, where it's now I want to be with the friends around me Who have found me, who show me how I want to sing to the…
Read More

Thank God for mothers…

Despite my years as a devoted Germanophile, I have not yet taken the time to read any of the works of the theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer.  I knew of him from my studies of German history and culture, but he was for me just one of that far-too-short list of names of those known to work against the Nazi regime, a list that includes names like Sophie Scholl and the few members of the White Rose.  But in our Wednesday Night Words class, we have begun the study of his work, Life Together, and well, my historical-church-theological nerdiness is showing.  Last night we talked about the documentary we had seen the…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

Those little God moments…

For the past 48 hours, I have been in Atlanta attending a conference called "The Singing Church," sponsored by the Candler School of Theology at Emory University.  In these past 48 hours, I have sung more church music than I ever imagined possible, I have experienced more different types of liturgy than I imagined existed, and I have had a chance to listen to and meet some people whose books have guided my thoughts and my learning and my transformation over the past three years. I have participated in five separate worship services, sung to guitar, piano, organ, drum, and hung (Korean string instrument that is a little like a…
Read More

A turn of the season…

I must admit that I have not been as engaged this Lenten season as usual.  In fact, I have been struggling with Lent in a very different way and that has been unsettling for me.  I was concerned that the rituals had become too ritualized, that the newness of walking through the liturgical calendar had worn off, that maybe the deep richness of the past few seasons of Lenten observance had been manufactured on my part and this nothingness and discomfort was what really happened for me in the spring.  Oh yes, I've been applying myself to my study, turning my thoughts to repentance, etc. and etc., but I have clearly…
Read More

Star light, star bright…

I'll admit it.  I just returned from a much-needed-but-all-too-short-vacation in Mexico.  My biggest decisions during those few blissful days were "what book to read next" and "what restaurant do we choose tonight".  The weather was beautiful, etc., etc. and so forth. Now, I would not describe myself as a science nerd or even someone who pays much attention to the science news.  And, since the end of my days as a new-age-spirituality-guru, I haven't continued to cast charts (yes, that is correct, I did for a while cast horoscope charts...I'm kind of a hands-on type when it comes to any spiritual exploration), so I really haven't kept up with the…
Read More

Journeying with the Magi

Advent is now long behind us (well, it seems long to me), we areat the end of Christmas, and Epiphany lies ahead of us.  I am lucky; unlike most people who must return to a daily schedule as soon as the New Year is in place, I generally have an extra week to clean out the old and make space for the new, and recover from the extra services and extra music that have filled the season just past.  These are the moments when I file the old music and ready the new; finish the readings devoted to the liturgical season and select those for the coming weeks and the coming…
Read More

A Holiday Book Review

I am always struggling to make sure that each day includes some time devoted to something that most people would call a "spiritual practice".  In the course of my life, I have tried yoga, transcendental meditation, walking meditation, journalling, praying the hours-- if there is an activity recommended by my old compatriots in the New Age movement, I have tried it to a greater or lesser degree of success and discipline. The one thing that works for me, however, no matter what the current state of my theology, is reading a daily devotion of some type.  The older I get, the more I see how the practices of my childhood carry forward…
Read More

Advent: Reminder of the Perpetual Coming

I must admit to having a fair amount of writer's block lately.  I have started any number of texts for various purposes and discarded them.  In one case, I even pulled back something that was about to be published.  I can't even find enough inspiration wordsmithing to finish the personnel handbook revision that is more than overdue. Perhaps it is just the hustle and bustle of seasonal preparations and concert preparations; I am not sure.   Maybe my eyes have been closed for other reasons (for it is with the eyes and and ears and the heart that we write, I believe); maybe my ears have been resting.   Maybe my thoughts have been just too internal…
Read More

Where the music comes from…

Last Friday, on the opening concert of the Friday Morning Music Club's first resident season at Calvary Baptist Church, my good friend and frequent performing partner, Natalie, sang  (beautifully, I might add) one of my most favorite songs...a song by Lee Hoiby, called "Where the Music Comes From...", for which the composer himself wrote the words.  The text is, for me, an eloquent statement of so much that I hold true: I want to be where the music comes from Where the clock stops, where it's now I want to be with the friends around me Who have found me, who show me how I want to sing to the…
Read More

Thank God for mothers…

Despite my years as a devoted Germanophile, I have not yet taken the time to read any of the works of the theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer.  I knew of him from my studies of German history and culture, but he was for me just one of that far-too-short list of names of those known to work against the Nazi regime, a list that includes names like Sophie Scholl and the few members of the White Rose.  But in our Wednesday Night Words class, we have begun the study of his work, Life Together, and well, my historical-church-theological nerdiness is showing.  Last night we talked about the documentary we had seen the…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

Those little God moments…

For the past 48 hours, I have been in Atlanta attending a conference called "The Singing Church," sponsored by the Candler School of Theology at Emory University.  In these past 48 hours, I have sung more church music than I ever imagined possible, I have experienced more different types of liturgy than I imagined existed, and I have had a chance to listen to and meet some people whose books have guided my thoughts and my learning and my transformation over the past three years. I have participated in five separate worship services, sung to guitar, piano, organ, drum, and hung (Korean string instrument that is a little like a…
Read More

A turn of the season…

I must admit that I have not been as engaged this Lenten season as usual.  In fact, I have been struggling with Lent in a very different way and that has been unsettling for me.  I was concerned that the rituals had become too ritualized, that the newness of walking through the liturgical calendar had worn off, that maybe the deep richness of the past few seasons of Lenten observance had been manufactured on my part and this nothingness and discomfort was what really happened for me in the spring.  Oh yes, I've been applying myself to my study, turning my thoughts to repentance, etc. and etc., but I have clearly…
Read More

Star light, star bright…

I'll admit it.  I just returned from a much-needed-but-all-too-short-vacation in Mexico.  My biggest decisions during those few blissful days were "what book to read next" and "what restaurant do we choose tonight".  The weather was beautiful, etc., etc. and so forth. Now, I would not describe myself as a science nerd or even someone who pays much attention to the science news.  And, since the end of my days as a new-age-spirituality-guru, I haven't continued to cast charts (yes, that is correct, I did for a while cast horoscope charts...I'm kind of a hands-on type when it comes to any spiritual exploration), so I really haven't kept up with the…
Read More

Journeying with the Magi

Advent is now long behind us (well, it seems long to me), we areat the end of Christmas, and Epiphany lies ahead of us.  I am lucky; unlike most people who must return to a daily schedule as soon as the New Year is in place, I generally have an extra week to clean out the old and make space for the new, and recover from the extra services and extra music that have filled the season just past.  These are the moments when I file the old music and ready the new; finish the readings devoted to the liturgical season and select those for the coming weeks and the coming…
Read More

A Holiday Book Review

I am always struggling to make sure that each day includes some time devoted to something that most people would call a "spiritual practice".  In the course of my life, I have tried yoga, transcendental meditation, walking meditation, journalling, praying the hours-- if there is an activity recommended by my old compatriots in the New Age movement, I have tried it to a greater or lesser degree of success and discipline. The one thing that works for me, however, no matter what the current state of my theology, is reading a daily devotion of some type.  The older I get, the more I see how the practices of my childhood carry forward…
Read More

Advent: Reminder of the Perpetual Coming

I must admit to having a fair amount of writer's block lately.  I have started any number of texts for various purposes and discarded them.  In one case, I even pulled back something that was about to be published.  I can't even find enough inspiration wordsmithing to finish the personnel handbook revision that is more than overdue. Perhaps it is just the hustle and bustle of seasonal preparations and concert preparations; I am not sure.   Maybe my eyes have been closed for other reasons (for it is with the eyes and and ears and the heart that we write, I believe); maybe my ears have been resting.   Maybe my thoughts have been just too internal…
Read More

Where the music comes from…

Last Friday, on the opening concert of the Friday Morning Music Club's first resident season at Calvary Baptist Church, my good friend and frequent performing partner, Natalie, sang  (beautifully, I might add) one of my most favorite songs...a song by Lee Hoiby, called "Where the Music Comes From...", for which the composer himself wrote the words.  The text is, for me, an eloquent statement of so much that I hold true: I want to be where the music comes from Where the clock stops, where it's now I want to be with the friends around me Who have found me, who show me how I want to sing to the…
Read More

Thank God for mothers…

Despite my years as a devoted Germanophile, I have not yet taken the time to read any of the works of the theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer.  I knew of him from my studies of German history and culture, but he was for me just one of that far-too-short list of names of those known to work against the Nazi regime, a list that includes names like Sophie Scholl and the few members of the White Rose.  But in our Wednesday Night Words class, we have begun the study of his work, Life Together, and well, my historical-church-theological nerdiness is showing.  Last night we talked about the documentary we had seen the…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

Those little God moments…

For the past 48 hours, I have been in Atlanta attending a conference called "The Singing Church," sponsored by the Candler School of Theology at Emory University.  In these past 48 hours, I have sung more church music than I ever imagined possible, I have experienced more different types of liturgy than I imagined existed, and I have had a chance to listen to and meet some people whose books have guided my thoughts and my learning and my transformation over the past three years. I have participated in five separate worship services, sung to guitar, piano, organ, drum, and hung (Korean string instrument that is a little like a…
Read More

A turn of the season…

I must admit that I have not been as engaged this Lenten season as usual.  In fact, I have been struggling with Lent in a very different way and that has been unsettling for me.  I was concerned that the rituals had become too ritualized, that the newness of walking through the liturgical calendar had worn off, that maybe the deep richness of the past few seasons of Lenten observance had been manufactured on my part and this nothingness and discomfort was what really happened for me in the spring.  Oh yes, I've been applying myself to my study, turning my thoughts to repentance, etc. and etc., but I have clearly…
Read More

Star light, star bright…

I'll admit it.  I just returned from a much-needed-but-all-too-short-vacation in Mexico.  My biggest decisions during those few blissful days were "what book to read next" and "what restaurant do we choose tonight".  The weather was beautiful, etc., etc. and so forth. Now, I would not describe myself as a science nerd or even someone who pays much attention to the science news.  And, since the end of my days as a new-age-spirituality-guru, I haven't continued to cast charts (yes, that is correct, I did for a while cast horoscope charts...I'm kind of a hands-on type when it comes to any spiritual exploration), so I really haven't kept up with the…
Read More

Journeying with the Magi

Advent is now long behind us (well, it seems long to me), we areat the end of Christmas, and Epiphany lies ahead of us.  I am lucky; unlike most people who must return to a daily schedule as soon as the New Year is in place, I generally have an extra week to clean out the old and make space for the new, and recover from the extra services and extra music that have filled the season just past.  These are the moments when I file the old music and ready the new; finish the readings devoted to the liturgical season and select those for the coming weeks and the coming…
Read More

A Holiday Book Review

I am always struggling to make sure that each day includes some time devoted to something that most people would call a "spiritual practice".  In the course of my life, I have tried yoga, transcendental meditation, walking meditation, journalling, praying the hours-- if there is an activity recommended by my old compatriots in the New Age movement, I have tried it to a greater or lesser degree of success and discipline. The one thing that works for me, however, no matter what the current state of my theology, is reading a daily devotion of some type.  The older I get, the more I see how the practices of my childhood carry forward…
Read More

Advent: Reminder of the Perpetual Coming

I must admit to having a fair amount of writer's block lately.  I have started any number of texts for various purposes and discarded them.  In one case, I even pulled back something that was about to be published.  I can't even find enough inspiration wordsmithing to finish the personnel handbook revision that is more than overdue. Perhaps it is just the hustle and bustle of seasonal preparations and concert preparations; I am not sure.   Maybe my eyes have been closed for other reasons (for it is with the eyes and and ears and the heart that we write, I believe); maybe my ears have been resting.   Maybe my thoughts have been just too internal…
Read More

Where the music comes from…

Last Friday, on the opening concert of the Friday Morning Music Club's first resident season at Calvary Baptist Church, my good friend and frequent performing partner, Natalie, sang  (beautifully, I might add) one of my most favorite songs...a song by Lee Hoiby, called "Where the Music Comes From...", for which the composer himself wrote the words.  The text is, for me, an eloquent statement of so much that I hold true: I want to be where the music comes from Where the clock stops, where it's now I want to be with the friends around me Who have found me, who show me how I want to sing to the…
Read More

Thank God for mothers…

Despite my years as a devoted Germanophile, I have not yet taken the time to read any of the works of the theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer.  I knew of him from my studies of German history and culture, but he was for me just one of that far-too-short list of names of those known to work against the Nazi regime, a list that includes names like Sophie Scholl and the few members of the White Rose.  But in our Wednesday Night Words class, we have begun the study of his work, Life Together, and well, my historical-church-theological nerdiness is showing.  Last night we talked about the documentary we had seen the…
Read More