I have been back from Assisi for a few weeks now, after spending over two weeks on pilgrimage there. The effects of the experience are still sinking in. Slowly, I am coming to know what the after-effects of my Assisi experience actually are. It has occurred to me, though, that certain images and experiences linger…
It’s my last morning in Assisi. Soon I will depart and go on the next leg of my journey before returning home. I’m restless and nervous, for transitions and travel challenge me. I came here as a pilgrim two weeks ago. I experienced this city as a pilgrim. Now I understand that I also leave…
I am on pilgrimage now, in Italy. I arrived Monday evening and started having physical reactions right away. As I was leaving the Rome airport and looking around at the vegetation, it crossed my mind that the landscape I was seeing probably would have been familiar to St. Francis of Assisi, plus many other holy…
It’s St. Francis day and we have a Pope Francis! Thanks be to God, Pope Francis is really using his time in leadership to make big changes and redefine roles. Basically Pope Francis is doing a great job of honoring his namesake, St. Francis of Assisi. This is really good news for Franciscans like me who…
I’m going to flip a song over on its head. I want to offer a spiritualization of something that probably was supposed to be completely secular. Lent, by British indie-pop band Autoheart, is totally onto something. I got absorbed into the song’s catchiness the other day, and I naturally found myself thinking about the love of…
Trying to be a faithful Christian sometimes feels like living in God’s limitless art studio. God is the Great Artist who is always at work creating us anew. We get to co-create and this communion brings us closer to God. Since ending my ministry at the high school my creativity has been slightly out of…
Living by the Spirit that is Truth is not comfortable. We can feel crammed into corners, we have to give up control, we have to trust others. Sometimes we are exhausted but still have to keep pushing ourselves. Our bodies can hurt, but we still have to carry heavy loads and keep moving onward. When…
I am an urban-educator who grew up in the country. I often feel like my entire life is a Truth-seeking adventure. I grew up in Northeast Iowa in a very rural community. Currently, my parents live in an unincorporated village where the town welcome sign proudly announces 27 residents. Practically everyone I knew growing up looked and…
True story shared by guest blogger Liz Diedrich I was happy to see William pull up next to me on his bike. Last I heard he had been stabbed in a fight and I did not know the extent of his injuries. Surprised at the opportunity, I ask him how he was doing. He seems…
Our world is a mess and in need of redemption. Christ is coming to save us. Yet, Christ the Light has already come to save us and we are redeemed now. The Kingdom of God is now and not yet. There’s a power in the paradox that teaches us how to hold out hope. Yesterday…
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