Dear Friend,
Having finished all of the Harry Potter books, Caleb and I are now alternately reading and listening to The Hobbit. I remember my own father reading it to me when I was a child, but I remember little of the story itself. In general, the worlds of Tolkien don’t take up residence in my imagination the same way the worlds of Harry Potter or Narnia do, but I have to admit to loving and feeling great empathy for Bilbo Baggins in this novel.
Perhaps it’s because I love the imagery of the Shire—the idea of living beneath a hill with a round door and many comfortable rooms. Perhaps it’s because I, like Bilbo, would be entirely befuddled by the course of events that begin the book and send Bilbo on his great adventure, seemingly without his even having agreed to go. But mostly I think it’s because I, like Bilbo, have often felt that longing and desire to be back home, especially when out in the wide, wild world. I, too, dream of sitting by my own window, safe and warm, a quilt over my lap, a cup of tea by my side, and a book nearby. Especially as winter descends and the weather turns colder and darker, I find it more and more appalling that we have to leave our houses. Hibernating sounds like a much more sensible response to cold temperatures and dull skies.
But, like Bilbo, few of us have any choice about the matter. Life requires that we continue braving the elements, putting on shoes and boots, and venturing into the wider world. But as the world continues to darken earlier and earlier, may you find moments of comfort and joy in small circles of light, in the warmth of your space, in the coziness that you create. And, if you’re one of those winter-loving people, well, it takes all types, so God love you.
May you find in this email something that will cause you to think about something a little differently, something that will bring you a small measure of comfort, and something that sparks joy or excitement,
Pastor Sarah
something Worth reading
Why I Came Back Around to Repentance
by Brittney Cooper
This is a longer article (and I admit to skimming some of the middle section), but there were so many parts that I thought were thought-provoking, well-written, and/or aptly put that I wanted to share it with you. In general (though the article talks about everything from confession and prayer to the Bible and literature), it’s an article that defines repentance as the practice of changing our mind (turning around) and argues that it is one of the spiritual practices to which we are called as Christians.
Here are two of my favorite quotes:
“I wore dogma about the neck, literally spending most of college wearing a blue and white What Would Jesus Do lanyard with my keys on it. I was a walking billboard for Jesus freaks everywhere. At some point, the lanyard broke. I vaguely remember wondering as it fell to the ground whether this had some deeper spiritual meaning, whether I had, in some of my moral failings of late, become an unworthy ambassador for the faith. The most compassionate answer I can offer to myself is that dogma is a ready response to trauma.
…
“Changing one’s mind is one of the ritual disciplines of the Christian faith. To change one’s mind is one of the earliest definitions of the word repentance. It is a definition and practice that we should reclaim.”
something worth hearing
Lambilotte: Come Holy Ghost
something worth watching
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something worth praying
40
you bless us with bread—
“fruit of the earth and work of
human hands,” gift of nature and
of culture, primary image of all
food, and symbol of our human
communion around a worldwide
table. May I eat each morsel of
bread with a gratitude that implies
outrage at hunger; may I grow ever
more famished for a justice that
distributes food fairly and do all I
can until every child on earth has
bread enough.
Amen.
from 99 Blessings: An Invitation to life by Brother David Steindl-Rast
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