Sweet Spots
Ideas and messages from Len Sweet.
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The Stole of Remembrance
The Stole of Remembrance Lectionary 6 March 2016 Fourth Sunday in Lent Joshua 5:9-12 Psalm 32 2 Corinthians 5:16-21 Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32 Text to Life One of the most common Lenten observances is “giving up” something for Lent. Historically one of the most popular things “given up” is some form…
Wicked
Wicked Story Lectionary 6 March 2016 Jesus’ Lenten Parables Week Four God’s Creation of Humankind and the Command to Bear Fruit (Genesis 1) Psalm 1: Blessed is he who yields fruit in season Psalm 128: The Lord’s Blessing Proverbs 11:30; 1:31; 12:14 You are the Fruit of Your Actions The…
I recently watched a DVD of Adele. And during her concert, several times, she stopped singing, inviting her fans and audience to take over. The glee in their voices was palpable. And they sang their hearts out. Pop culture knows well that the best experience are participatory. This Lent, make…
Pastor’s Prayer for 6 March 2016
Heavenly Father, we come to you in prayer during this time of Lent. You who have created us, sustained us, lifted us in all times of our lives, create in us a strength of faith and resolve, so that no matter what trials we encounter in the world, our souls may be salved in the waters of your grace and salvation. May Jesus be our hope and our guide. Amen.
Lenten Listening 3
Anton Bruckner lived in the hinge between the romantic and the modern eras. As an Austrian in the 19th century, Bruckner had access to the broadest experience of contemporary, classical music. He was a devout Catholic, and he played the organ extraordinarily well, even presenting concerts of organ improvisations for his musical friends. Although this was his primary instrument, Bruckner wrote just a small fraction of his compositions for the organ. He is most well-known as a composer of symphonic works … extremely long symphonic works! read more…
A Hobbit, A Wardrobe, and a Great War
A Hobbit, A Wardrobe, and a Great War
How J.R.R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis Rediscovered Faith, Friendship, and Heroism in the Cataclysm of 1914-1918
by Joseph Loconte
Author Joseph Loconte is a masterful writer. In his book A Hobbit, A Wardrobe and a Great War, Loconte has captured the influences of hearth and home on the lives of C. S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. By blending these homespun details with the history of the time and biographies of the writers, Loconte has produced an especially intimate look into the lives of long time friends Tolkien and Lewis. But in a deft use of contrast, Loconte has also placed primary emphasis on an aspect of the two writers’ lives that is as far from homey and comfortable as one can get. Loconte brings to the forefront of his story the interval of time that Lewis and Tolkien spent in the trenches fighting for Britain in World War I, and has used this as the lens through which he views the authors’ most famous works. Throughout A Hobbit, a Wardrobe and a Great War (2015 Thomas Nelson), Loconte looks for answers as to why Lewis and Tolkien wrote as they did, and he attempts to interpret the impact of the Great War on the authors and their stories. read more…
To be a saint
“To be a saint means to be myself,” Thomas Merton wrote in his 1949 book New Seeds of Contemplation. “Therefore the problem of sanctity and salvation is, in fact, the problem of finding out who I am and of discovering my true self.” Christ reveals who we are to ourselves.…
Resurrection
“We have become unaware of how our actions and lifestyles contribute to the destruction of both God’s creation and human dignity. We like to focus on the promise of the Easter Resurrection, instead of dwelling on Ash Wednesday’s call for repentance or the suffering of Good Friday. But in order…
Leaplings All
Leaplings All Lectionary 28 February 2016 Third Sunday in Lent Isaiah 55:1-9 Psalm 63:1-8 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 Luke 13:1-9 Text to Life This Sunday we stand perched on the edge of a great gift—a gift we receive only once every four years. In J.R.R. Tolkien’s first installment about middle earth,…
Faith and Belief
Rabbi Rami Shapiro explores the difference between faith and belief in the following way: “Belief is about knowing; faith is about not-knowing. Belief is about content: I believe this, and I don’t believe that. Faith is an attitude toward reality, a trusting in what is unfolding without knowing just…