I am blessed to have one Sunday off each month, and I usually sleep in and rest up that day, grateful for a precious TWO DAYS OFF IN A ROW (Monday being my usual day off). I don’t usually think about attending church; it would defeat the purpose of a …
People new to congregational life are often anxious about pledging. After all, this is a financial commitment you didn’t used to have. Here’s what I hear most often: How much should I pledge? Pledging is a spiritual practice, a commitment to the future of the congregation. The practice of making a …
Aha! You knew some day this blog would grub for money, didn’t you? Churches are all the same. Church financial scandals in recent decades have led many to view fundraising as an example of religious hypocrisy: if religious people really want to make the world a better place, why don’t …
So much has been written about children attending worship services that I feel I have little to add. At the same time, parents with young children have many questions and worries about attending church with children. So here goes. Many parents are surprised to learn that children are welcome to …
You made it to church for the first time! You got yourself out of bed on Sunday morning, had the right set of directions, found a parking spot, and arrived not too late for the start of the service. You even enjoyed the service! But… Something off-putting happened. There was …
Before I became a minister, I never, ever, even once went through the receiving line to greet the minister after a worship service. I assumed that everyone else waiting in line had something meaningful to say about the service, something deep. I had no idea what to say. I came …
I started this blog a couple of years ago, mainly as a place to post my sermons. While in my parish internship, I began posting my monthly newsletter column here. And then at some point, I started actually blogging, writing for this invisible internet audience. This blog has never been …
Representatives of the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations met in Phoenix last week for our annual gathering, called General Assembly (G.A.). Unlike previous years, our gathering this year had a focus on learning about and participating in social justice work (particularly on immigration issues) in partnership with local activist groups. …
This wonderful seven-minute video is one of my favorites, a concise and easy-to-understand summary of Edwin Friedman’s theory of “differentiated” (also sometimes called “non-anxious”) leadership. This video is based on Friedman’s book A Failure of Nerve.
I visited Glide Memorial United Methodist Church this past Sunday. It is known as one of the largest, most diverse, and most dynamic churches in San Francisco. According to their website, 2000 people attend their Sunday “celebrations.” The congregation is actively involved in their local and urban community, offering programs …
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