This is the first Holy Week in fifteen years that has snuck up on me. I have not been participating in the church calendar–I haven’t even been going to services at a Christian church–and all of a sudden someone said it was Palm Sunday and I thought, “Really? Weird,” and finished getting my kids ready… Continue reading My Church, My Church, Why Have You Forsaken Me?
One of my earliest memories of the Sacred occurred before I became a Christian. I was older than five, but younger than twelve, somewhere in that murky age where the magic of childhood had decidedly faded–I knew that the tooth fairy was really just my mom–but I was not yet old enough to care about… Continue reading What Is Truth?
I’m back! I stopped blogging in March in anticipation of my second baby’s birth. I thought I’d be back in this space after about two months, but now my baby girl is nine months old and eating solid food and will probably be driving off to prom tomorrow. Part of the reason I was not… Continue reading Well, Hey!
I finished 8 books in March. I nearly finished two extra books by midnight March 31: The Handmaid’s Tale (the audio version narrated by Claire Danes, which is so fabulous) and Perfect Little World (decidedly less fabulous). But alas, it was not to be. They’ll be added to next month’s list! Healing Spiritual Wounds, Carol Howard Merritt.… Continue reading Books I Finished In March–And A Life Update
For the past few years, I have found solace in the rhythms of the Anglican church year. I adore Advent, which is like Lent, but fun. And by the time Lent itself comes around, I’m feeling ready to embrace the ashes and the ritual of fasting that mark the season. I’m not giving anything up… Continue reading Oh, The Traumatic Cross!
When I was a teenager, a woman at church told me that anything I didn’t consciously do for God was a sin. For example, I could save a child from drowning. But if I didn’t actively praise God while I did it, it was just another transgression. God gets what God wants, and God is hungry for… Continue reading Books I Finished in February–And Idol Worship
Lots of helpful thoughts in these pages. Chapter 2: Finding Shalom Carol Howard Merritt’s main point in this chapter is that spiritual problems need spiritual solutions. This makes sense at face value, but becomes difficult to implement because it requires that people who have religious trauma engage with religion–in a new way, of course, and a… Continue reading Healing Spiritual Wounds Review: Chapters 2-4
My mom, who goes to plays regularly, was telling me about one she just saw called “The Christians” by Lucas Hnath. She loved it, and told me that the plot centers around a pastor of a megachurch who stops believing in Hell. I immediately asked for the screenplay, because obviously this sounded amazing. And it… Continue reading When Your Past Thinks Your Present Is Going To Hell
For the next few weeks, I’m going to be reviewing a new book by Carol Howard Merritt titled Healing Spiritual Wounds *(published February 7). I’ll write something about every chapter, but each chapter might not get an individual post. I think this book will be helpful to me (the first chapter certainly was!), but I’m trying… Continue reading Healing Spiritual Wounds Review: Chapter 1 “A Tree Grows In My Bedroom”
I recently read Spiritual Direction, a compilation of Henri Nouwen’s writings, for a class I am taking on the topic. I have deliberately avoided reading anything by Nouwen, mostly because other people have gushed about his life and called his works “life changing”. When people start drinking the Life-Changing Kool-Aid, I usually run the other way… Continue reading On Forgiving Church For Not Being God
Freely Chosen 