Blog Archive
Contemplating the messiness of Christian life
The Messy Jesus Business Blog is an ecumenical Christian gathering of musings about what it means to live the Gospel today. A variety of contributors offer prayer, poetry, book reviews, creative nonfiction and prose about what it means to live a life of faith in our complex, modern times.
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Returning to my body and my God, all Lent long
Return to me with your whole heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning. Rend your hearts, not your garments, and return to the LORD, your God, For he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love, and relenting in punishment. — Joel 2:12-13 As Lent began, I stood in a cathedral made of…
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Robert Ellsberg: Saints and Stories
Episode 58 of Messy Jesus Business podcast, with Sister Julia Walsh. Podcast: Play in new window | Download Subscribe: Stitcher | Email | RSS | More “We’re shaped … and affected by what we love, what we care about, what we pay attention to, what we admire.” – Robert Ellsberg IN THIS EPISODE “Our faith is rooted not in maxims, but in a narrative,” shares…
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The mortals return, as dust and ash.
As dust, as mortals, we move closer to our graves each day. Lent: this season summons us to deeper holiness with an airy invitation: a breeze blending the chaos of distraction, disappointment, despair with the brightness of hope, love, faith. Repent, Repent, Repent, Repent. We are worthy, God’s children and we are sinners, confronting our…
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Falling in Love
I spent my entire last year of college waiting to get into the Jesuit Volunteer Corps, your typical, post-graduate year of service program. I thought that I would love it. I didn’t. The top floor bedroom, that was mine, was sweltering. The city was noisy, dirty, disorienting. My foot broke. And the children at my…
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Liam Callanan: Listening and Welcoming
Episode 57 of Messy Jesus Business podcast, with Sister Julia Walsh. Podcast: Play in new window | Download Subscribe: Stitcher | Email | RSS | More “Readers complete a text. And so storytelling is a collaborative activity.” – Liam Callanan IN THIS EPISODE “The act of listening is a very powerful one,” begins Liam Callanan in conversation with Sister Julia Walsh as her guest in…
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Finding Christ in Every Corner of the Cosmos
The last time I wrote for Messy Jesus Business, I discussed one of my favorite topics –– the Holy Grail. I want to return to that subject, because I think it is such a fruitful picture. There is a vessel that caught the blood and water which poured from the side of Christ. But what…
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An Examination of Conscience: How Might We Take Capitalism Out of Being Catholic?
When I was 10 years old and preparing for the sacrament of reconciliation at the small Catholic parish in Minnesota where I was raised, I vividly remember sitting alone in a church pew, earnestly trying to concentrate on examining my conscience. At the time, the examen was pretty straightforward. I asked myself, “Was I holding…
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Being the Beloved
The first things I noticed when I entered the hospital room were all the tubes and the constant whirr of the fan inflating the bed. Visiting Gary, who was lying in a specialized bed, connected to a breathing tube, was part of my rounds as a chaplaincy student. “I can’t walk, I’m connected to all…
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A Spiritual Lesson From the Salamanders
Over Christmas break, after the brutal winter storm gave way to unseasonal warmth, my sister and I made a clandestine visit to the property where we lived during our teen years. We were looking for the freshwater spring where, every day, no matter the weather, the two of us filled jugs with cold water and…
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Sister Teresa Maya: Building a Common Home
Episode 56 of Messy Jesus Business podcast, with Sister Julia Walsh. Podcast: Play in new window | Download Subscribe: Stitcher | Email | RSS | More “Community extends beyond just a group I belong to… we need to extend that belonging to fellow human beings, no matter who they are.” –Teré Maya IN THIS EPISODE In this episode of Messy Jesus Business, Sister Julia Walsh…
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I Want to Tell You Something Brilliant
My Dear Friend, When I woke up on Christmas morning, I thought of John 1:5. It was a rare gift for me to have only one thought, not plagued by a system of worries and threats and to lie awake — even for a short time — with just this one thought. “The light shines…
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The heartbeat of Christmas
There is an ancient story that is our common heartbeat. It speaks to us, deeply, quietly and simply; its whispers are heard in the rhythms of our ordinary lives, in between the rushing activity of our regular days. As we move together and alone, the power of this ancient story is known and felt in…
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