December 23 - IRBIL, Iraq - “They saw their brethren murdered during Mass and then were bombed in their homes as they mourned. Al-Qaida vowed to hunt them down. Now the Christian community of Iraq, almost as old as the religion itself, is sensing a clear message: It is time to leave.” __________ Such was the news in the Minneapolis Star Tribune...
Read MoreRead MoreThe donkey was tired and wet like me for my water had broken over him though he was not in pain I was I wanted my mother not this strange town for there were no beds anywhere Joseph returned for the twelfth time shaking his head, angry there is no room he said for the twelfth time but I’m going to have a baby as if he didn’t know it hurts I’m scared doesn’t anyone see...
Read MoreRead MoreWho first named God? Adam, perhaps. Well, maybe not. Apparently he was too busy naming animals. Okay, then Noah, who had those long conversations with God about ark-building. Nope. Guess he was busy sawing wood...
Read MoreRead MoreYesterday I sat at a table in a garden store, Otten Brothers of Long Lake (http://www.ottenbros.com/) as part of a town-wide art exhibition* and signed some books and generally talked about The Scarlet Cord. WiFi didn’t work there, so during quiet moments, I just reflected on the beautiful, warm sun-lit room, realized how good it felt to be surrounded by...
Read MoreRead MoreThe Scarlet Cord: Conversations with God’s Chosen Women is finally in print. I say finally because it’s been a five-year project. That’s nothing compared to the thousands of years these biblical women have waited to tell their side of things, so no big deal there. O Books of England did a great job. Pictured above is Ruth, one of twelve...
Read MoreRead MorePublishing ain’t what it used to be. And if it were, I’d have an editor jumping on me for saying “ain’t.” I have a terrific publisher — O Books of England: www.o-books.com/home. But it’s a whole new world. In the old days, the writer would finish a manuscript, deliver it to the editor, and the document would be swallowed up...
Read MoreRead MoreWhat signs do you see that tell you God is active and loving and working in YOUR world? Large birds seem to carry messages for me: owls, eagles, osprey, herons, egrets. And in driving across Wisconsin yesterday on my way to a conference, I saw something I’d never seen before: three herons in a field, standing on their long pointy...
Read MoreRead MoreThe other day I saw a book entitled Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World. Ah, yes, Mary and Martha of Bethany. Martha gets the bad rap again. Mary, the sister who sat at Jesus’ feet and listened, wins again. Martha has been the object of condescension throughout the years for not taking the time to reflect, for doing busywork...
Read MoreRead MoreSometimes it’s just time to make a change. For more info on that for me, see: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81831_123373_ENG_HTM.htm Choices come to all of us in life. Sometimes it’s good to alter direction; other times it’s not. That’s one common denominator of the 12 Bible women I worked in The Scarlet Cord: the ability to make decisions and move on them. Eve took...
Read MoreRead More