License to Explore

On By fosteringyourfaithIn Uncategorized1 Comment

Instead of reflecting on the horrors and upsets of the day’s news, I’m choosing to share an essay that I recently wrote for a writing class I’m taking. The assignment was to describe an object that reminds us of memories or a story from our lives. Here is my story. I invite you to look around your home and wonder – what objects holds special memories for me? I’d love to hear your stories…

License to Explore: When I look at the 12×12 inch square piece of white sheet metal that hangs on my wall, it reminds me of a tumultuous time of personal growth and adventure. It brings me back to a foundational season in my life that shaped my future.

That thin metal plaque is the license plate of the first car I ever bought on my own – a white Volkswagen Bug – when I was 22 years old and living and working in Germany. Looking at the simple design recalls emotions and experiences that would eventually lead to my call into ministry.

The bold black letters at the top – FRG – recall memories of the county (Freyung) where I lived, a rural area in eastern (West) Germany known for its crystal glass manufacturing. I can visualize the utilitarian office where I processed orders with four co-workers overlooking the factory where fabulous pieces of crystal glass were produced.  Through the bank of windows, I could glimpse the glowing furnaces filled with molten glass that were drawn out to form mouth blown sparking lead crystal stemware or funneled into machines churning out thousands of elaborately cut vases, tumblers, and platters. Railroad containers stood at the ready, prepared to be filled and shipped around the world. Right out of college, I had moved abroad to enter the world of international business. 

The license plate is a memento of all those big “firsts” I experienced.  First car (a stickshift!  Another first!), first apartment, first full time job, first serious boyfriend, first time on my own to navigate the wide world. For the first (and last) time, I had six weeks of paid vacation at my disposal, inviting me to adventures in and beyond central Europe. The licence plate stands as a testament to the joy I felt as I considered what seemed to be limitless possibilities.

It also brings back memories of turmoil and despair.  It turned out that I was not cut out for the cutthroat nature of this particular business decades before the “Me Too” movement. The CEO was a vile, crude man who routinely criticized and mocked employees in front of their peers.  He expected me to teach his mistress English so she could accompany him on trips abroad.  Refusing was not an option. Too often people would emerge from his office shaken and in tears while refusing to describe what had been said or done. 

Trips to international conventions that might have been enjoyable opportunities to explore new cities were instead long days of work filled with endless innuendos about after-hours gatherings. I learned to skip dinner and escape back to the safety of my hotel room before the drinking and carousing began.  Before too many months went by it became clear that this was not the life path for me.

The license plate now stands as a symbol of escape. I remember driving my little Bug to the many hiking trails in the area. As I wandered the hills, I poured out my heart to the God I thought I had left behind in childhood.  Long walks gave me the opportunity to wonder where I was supposed to be, what I was meant to do, and how I could make any difference in this world. 

When I look at that license plate, I often wish I could talk with the 22 year old version of myself.  I would offer reassurance that she was not the failure that she believed. I would remind her of the courage it took to go into an unknown situation thousands of miles from home long before cell phones or email.  I would celebrate her strength and resilience as she survived the dissolution of her plans and rejoice in her ability to embark on yet another unknown future. 

Empathy: Our superpower

On By fosteringyourfaithIn Living our faith3 Comments

Here’s something I never thought I would say:  Elon Musk is right.  He is right when he says that empathy is risky.  He describes empathy as “the fundamental weakness of western civilization” that will lead to “civilizational suicide.”  Empathy is dangerous, he says, because it causes us to give too much of ourselves.  

But Elon Musk is wrong (you knew I’d get there) with the conclusion he draws. He believes that caring for others will harm us – as a nation and as individuals.  If I give of myself and if I care for someone else, it will hurt me.

He used this logic to halt USAID donations that prevented catastrophes such as polio, starvation, AIDS, and malaria, among many other devastating cuts to our national budget. This was behind his reasoning to deny aid to – just one example – the earthquake victims in Myanmar. 

I’m here to encourage empathy – the ability to understand another’s pain. I want to urge compassion – the ability to feel (passion) with (com) another human being.  This is literally what makes us human.

Jimmy Carter demonstrated this when he stated: “I have one life and one chance to make it count for something. I am free to choose that something…My faith demands that I do whatever I can, wherever I can, whenever I can, for as long as I can.”  That led him to public service as governor and President as well as hands-on involvement with Habitat for Humanity.  He lived his faith by caring for others. 

We can do the same.  We must do the same.

When that terrible earthquake hit Myanmar, there was a woman who was five months pregnant and was buried beneath the rubble of a collapsed building.  She was powerless to escape.  There was no way out.  All she could do was hope that someone would care enough to sift through the wreckage.  At that moment, empathy was her only hope. Compassion won that day.  Rescuers found her and both she and her unborn child have been given another chance at life.

Sometimes we are the ones buried by devastation, physical or emotional.  Sometimes we are the ones able to reach out a helping hand.

We are called – commanded – to love one another.  Our lives will be richer – not poorer, Mr. Musk, by our engagement with one another.  As Atticus Finch wisely said in To Kill a Mockingbird, 

“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view…until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.”  We will discover more about others and ourselves when we actively care about each other.

So keep doing those good things that I know you are doing.  Volunteer in the soup kitchen. Be a hospice volunteer. Send cards to people who believe they have been forgotten. Lend a hand to a neighbor.  Offer kindnesses to strangers. Participate in food and clothing drives. Use your unique gifts – your beautiful self – to spread compassion in this world. Go to the protests and defend democracy. 

Believe that your act of caring, however big or small, makes a difference.  Engaging with others and caring about our neighbors is what makes us human and what makes us whole.

We live in a world aching for love and caring.  Let us share these gifts whenever and however we can.  

Quote for today: 

“Like the ancient prophets, we are dispatched back to the work entrusted to us.

It is the work of peace-making.

It is the work of truth telling.

It is the work of justice-doing.

It is good work, but it requires our resolve to stay it, even in the face of forces to the contrary that are sure to prevail for a season.” 

  • Walter Brueggeman 

Sign of Support (each week I share a sign that offers hope for these troubling times)

Have sign, will protest

On By fosteringyourfaithIn Defending democracy3 Comments

Thank you for all your wonderful suggestions for my sign for the protest on April 5th!

I am inspired by your creativity and your engagement in this ongoing battle to defend our democracy.

Here are the ideas I received from you…

  • Fund Elmo, not Elon
  • Hands off our history
  • DEI is actually a Christian value
  • “Musk and Trump, grandmothers everywhere are ashamed of you! You turned out rotten!”  (quote from Bill McKibben)
  • If empathy is a sin, sin boldly.
  • We don’t want your Nazi cars.  Take a one-way trip to Mars.  (Timothy Snyder BlueSky post)
  • Get your greedy hands off our elections!
  • Let’s put ICE into deep freeze
  • The anti-Robin Hood:  Thief of the needy, benefactor of the greedy
  • I don’t want Greenland or Canada.  I want PBS, Social Security, and the Smithsonian.

I liked all of these.  And then I came across this quote from Dietrich Bonhoeffer: “Your ‘yes’ to God requires your ‘no’ to all injustice, to all evil, to all lies, to injustice, to all oppression and violation of the weak and poor.”  So my sign reads: “Saying YES to God requires saying NO to all evil.”

Since Bonhoeffer, a German Lutheran pastor, bravely stood up to the Nazi regime during a time when too many churches and congregations were silent, he is a role model. His sermons and his letters from prison offer insight and inspiration even now, 80 years later. His deep faith provided him compassion for the millions who suffered under the Nazis and the courage to voice his resistance to Hitler. 

His words speak to me because I believe in a loving God who calls us to care for one another.  And especially to care for those who are outcast, poor, suffering, and too often forgotten.  We are called to do whatever we can – large or small – to help one another.  To ignore the pain around us is evil. 

I want to say “no” to evil. 

I want to say “yes” to God with my words and actions – day by day, moment by moment.

That’s what my sign means to me.  And that’s what I will be sharing during the protest on April 5th.

Let’s stand together and say “no” to evil. 

Sign of support: Patti protesting the firing of so many National Park Rangers:

What should I say?

On By fosteringyourfaithIn Faith1 Comment

I am preparing for the April 5 nationwide protest which will be taking place in every state capital, Washington D.C. and several other cities across the country.

I have my poster board and my markers at the ready.

My question is – what should I say?

Should I focus on my heartache when I hear about lifesaving vaccines no longer being provided overseas?  Or maybe I could channel my outrage at tons of grains and food products sitting in warehouses in the vicinity of thousands of people who are near starvation. Should I write about my grief at the cuts at USAID and the immediate damage that this has done across the globe?

Or should I concentrate on matters closer to home?  The devastating cuts to the National Park Service, for example.  Our National Parks are deservedly a source of national pride and international wonder.  U.S. citizens as well as visitors from across the globe marvel at awe-inspiring vistas and regular sightings of animals large and small.  Cutbacks will reduce park hours, limit the services and programs offered, and inevitably result in a decline in maintenance and protection – not to mention devastate the lives of those faithful, hardworking rangers.

What about the reports of people being detained or deported without due process?  We are told that they are threats to our society but how do we know that if there is no investigation, no trial, and no reports?  Why are people being snatched off the streets by masked “officers”? If I don’t pay attention to moments when “they” are being arrested, I fear that all too soon it could also be “us” or even “me.”

All of that doesn’t even touch on my embarrassment (and horror) at the continued insinuations about taking over Canada or Greenland.  Or the suggestion that Ukraine caused the devastating war they are enduring.  Or our country backing out of world treaties and partnerships that have defined us as a compassionate and strong world leader for decades.

And don’t get me started on my anguish about cutting library budgets and destroying the Department of Education.  Or the threats to Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security.

All of this seems to be a bit much for my one small poster board.  So – please give me your opinion.  What should I say?  How can I best express my concern?  What are your suggestions for a quote that speaks to this moment?  What needs to be emphasized right now?

Write your suggestions in the comments.  

I’ll show you my sign when I am ready to go to the protest.

“There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest.” – Elie Wiesel

Each week I will be sharing a “sign of support” that I’ve seen in my travels.  This week’s comes from the local Democratic Town Committee supper fundraiser: 

“Don’t tell someone you love them, then vote for someone who will hurt them.” 

Signs of support

On By fosteringyourfaithIn LGBT2 Comments

People are being erased.

Records are being wiped clean.

History is being rewritten.

And it’s frightening just how easy it seems to be.

According to the AP, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered military websites to erase images in order to “remove content that highlights diversity efforts in its ranks.” Pictures of service members including women, people of color, and LGBTQI are being deleted. The purge even included – so ridiculous it would be funny if it weren’t tragic – references to the aircraft that dropped the first atomic bomb in World War II, the Enola Gay.

Is it any surprise that increasing numbers of people are afraid or feel under attack?

It is time to be intentional about showing support. 

Many churches are good at this.  In recent weeks, I have been appreciating church signs that proclaim their welcome to all of God’s people. It’s a message they want the whole world to see. 

The people most affected by these hateful attacks may never step foot in a church, but I hope they will notice the signs and symbols that remind them that they are cherished by a loving God.

Today I attended a church that provided pins and buttons with the encouragement to display them proudly to help spread the Good News of love, inclusion, and respect. 

Think of this as an ongoing campaign of support for those who are being threatened simply for being who they are. What signs have you seen? How can we share messages of solidarity and encouragement?  Here are some examples…

Wells of Wisdom

On By fosteringyourfaithIn Listening2 Comments

Gather around, everyone.

Come and draw deep from the wells of wisdom that exist around us.

This is not a time to be alone.  This is not a season for isolation.

We need one another – we need each other’s perceptiveness and insight, courage and indignation. 

Just as the ancients used to gather in the village square to draw water from the community well, we also need to come together to feed our spirits and allow our parched spirits to be nourished. 

In an earlier blog, I asked the question – what words or phrases offer you encouragement in these challenging times?

Let’s listen to some responses…

Drew: [God said to Joshua] “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of good courage; Be not afraid; Neither be thou dismayed; For the LORD thy God is with thee withersoever thou goest.” (Joshua 1: 9 KJV)

Mark: “For nothing is impossible with God.” (Luke 1:37)

Roger: “Whatever you do in life will be insignificant, but it is important that you do it, because nobody else will” (Mahatma Gandhi).

Tom’s email signature proclaims, “Work for justice.”

Suzanne:  “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well” (Psalm 139: 13-14). These words help me to remember that God created me to be the way I am, with gifts and challenges, and that all of them are there for good. 

Jill: “All will be well” (A quote from Sister Julienne/Call the Midwife, PBS) 

Julian of Norwich; (a 14th century nun whom Sister Julienne from the TV show is likely quoting): Even in the presence of sin, “all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well.”

Pastor John’s email encourages, “Grant us wisdom, grant us courage, for the living of these days….”

Would you like more encouragement?  Sign up to receive a daily Scripture verse and inspirational quote at  Sojourners 

We need these words.

We need each other.  Now is the time to gather together, to offer one another encouragement and the reminder that we are not alone. Join a church. Find a community where you feel safe. Be with people who celebrate who you are.  Volunteer with folks who are making a difference.

Come together online or – even better – gather in person. Break bread together. 

Share words of power and proclamation so we can resist the evil and indifference that is being thrust upon us. 

This is a marathon, not a sprint. We will need sustenance for this journey.

Gather around, everyone.  Let’s open our minds and hearts so our spirits can be renewed.

And then –  let’s work together for justice.

Bedtime prayers

On By fosteringyourfaithIn Prayer4 Comments

When I was young, my mother would sit on my bed and listen to my bedtime prayers.  Before I got to the long list of “God bless” everyone in my family, all our pets, and my best friend, and prior to ending with the fervent wish “and make Susie a good girl,” I would pray the “Now I lay me down to sleep” prayer.

But my mother taught it to me with an important change from the traditional chilling images of dying before I woke up:

Now I lay me down to sleep

Pray the Lord my soul to keep.

Be with me throughout the night

And wake me with the  morning’s light.  

That image of God lovingly watching over my slumber is embedded in my psyche.  It is  especially meaningful at the end of a long or draining day. My childhood prayer reminds me to “lay down” my worries as I prepare for bed.  Or, as my wise seminary mentor warned me, “Make sure you don’t take your congregation to bed with you.” In other words – there are times when I need to let go.  Times when I turn my very real concerns over to God’s care so that my nighttime rest is not haunted by the actions of callous and uncaring people.

I am leaning into a practice that I started a couple of years ago. Instead of my mother witnessing my prayers (which, at age 95, she actually would still be glad to do…), I go to our front door, open it up, and lean out into the fresh air.

I look up.

  Some nights I observe stars and gauge the moon’s phase. I recognize a few constellations and point out a planet or two. Some nights it’s overcast with no light in the sky. Other times it’s raining or snowing.  

But every single night, I say goodnight to God and entrust the world into God’s care. In those moments I am intentionally trusting that God is actively present. Looking out at the universe reminds me that powers much greater than my own are at work. It helps me believe that ultimately, God’s goodness will prevail even when I can’t see the way forward.

My new favorite nighttime prayer comes from the New Zealand Prayer Book.   It offers me comfort and peace as I prepare to rest so that I can be strengthened to begin again tomorrow. 

Lord,

It is night.

The night is for stillness.

         Let us be still in the presence of God.

It is night after a long day.

         What has been done has been done;

         What has not been done has not been done;

         Let it be.

The night is dark.

         Let our fears of the darkness of the world and of our own lives

         Rest in you.

The night is quiet.

         Let the quietness of your peace enfold us.

         All dear to us,

         And all who have no peace.

The night heralds the dawn.

         Let us look expectantly to a new day,

                     New joys,

         New possibilities.

In your name we pray.

Amen. New Zealand Prayer Book, p. 184

Do you have a favorite nighttime ritual?

Say it out loud

On By fosteringyourfaithIn Faith3 Comments

The very wise Rev. Dr. Mary Luti recently encouraged congregations to consider regularly saying together what they believe. In our denomination, the United Church of Christ, it is often not a weekly practice to read a statement of faith or a creed to proclaim our shared beliefs. Mary Luti says that now may be exactly the time to declare those time-tested wise words aloud and remind ourselves of our foundational beliefs. Instead of allowing our faith to “devolve into generalized emotions and good ethical intentions”, congregations need to clearly state what they believe and then proclaim that belief with their actions. 

What is true for congregations is also true for individuals.  Listening to the news  these days is like receiving one gut punch after another. Government institutions and practices that we thought we could “always” rely on are being dismantled. In the face of a rapidly changing world, where it feels like the foundation is being eroded beneath us, it is vital for each of us to declare what is unchanging and true. 

For me, short, easy to remember statements work the best.  At those moments when despair threatens to overcome me, I rely on these brief sentences to bolster my faith and push back my fear. There are still moments when I weep in despair and frustration, but I regularly return to these ancient words of assurance. 

Now is the time to develop a list of readily accessible words to whisper or shout as we declare our refusal to give up.

Here are some of mine:

God’s steadfast love endures forever. (Psalm 136)

The light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot overcome it.  (John 1:5)

God is love.  (1 John 4)

God is our refuge and our strength, an ever present help in times of trouble. (Psalm 46)

On the surface, saying (and believing) these words solves nothing.

Terrible things still happen.  Appalling headlines still appear. 

There are powerful people who apparently don’t care about millions of people who are suffering because of their actions. 

This practice of saying out loud what I believe is for my benefit and personal wellbeing. It grounds me in a truth larger than the one in the headlines. It tells me that my identity cannot be taken away, despite outside circumstances.

Saying what I believe – reminding myself that God is a refuge in this storm – provides me a moment to pause, breathe, and gain some balance before I try to venture on.

This is a new intention for me – to daily say out loud what I believe so that I am empowered to act on that. 

Now I am curious – what words, phrases, quotes, or images help you?

What do we do now?

On By fosteringyourfaithIn Uncategorized5 Comments

Is it just me, or do you also wake up in the middle of the night worrying about the state of our country and the world?

Do you also experience an ache in the pit of your stomach when you imagine the pain and suffering resulting from shutting down USAID payments?

Does it bring tears to your eyes when you read about children going hungry in Columbia, families in Africa dying from discontinued AIDS medications, and displaced civilians in Ukraine having no shelters to offer food and trauma care?

The cruelty and heartlessness of our government leaders (elected and non-elected) is staggering.

Screaming at the radio hasn’t helped.

Neither has slamming my laptop closed when I simply can’t read any more news.

So let’s do this. 

Let’s share ideas.  

What are you doing to respond?

What ideas – big or little or even merely symbolic – do you have to combat the tide of callous indifference that is washing over our country?

This is what I am doing so far: 

  • I installed the app “Five Calls” on my phone.  It provides phone numbers for my senators and state representatives and makes it easy for me to call them to express my outrage and to encourage them to speak up. Phone calls matter.  Five Calls offers sample scripts that I find very useful when I feel under pressure to be eloquent (or at least clear). My experience so far is that the people answering the phones are unfailingly polite, professional, and helpful.  I’m using my voice in this small way and hoping that it will make a difference.  
  • I added my pronouns to the signature of my email.  This is merely symbolic, I know, but I want to stand in solidarity with federal employees who have been forbidden to express their pronouns or to even acknowledge that a spectrum of gender identities exist.
  • I’m supporting organizations doing important work.

My small donations won’t make up for the billions of dollars halted from USAID but I want to do what I can. I’m supporting (among others):

  • Doctors without Borders. 
  • UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund): “UNICEF” is on the ground in 190 countries and territories to save and protect children. Let’s keep this critical work going. 
  • Church World Service is a faith-based organization that works in the United States and across the globe to combat hunger, poverty, displacement and disaster.
  • I also increased my donations to the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) and National Public Radio (NPR) because I rely on their truthful and non-hyperbolic reporting.

What are you doing?

What are your suggestions about how to help?

Share your ideas in the comments and I will pass them on in a future blog.

It’s important for us to remember that we are not powerless.  

We may not be able to tackle all of the problems but each of us can do something.

Don’t give up!

When to avoid church

On By fosteringyourfaithIn Church, Faith6 Comments

Much has been written about Bishop Mariann Budde’s sermon to the newly elected President on January 21st. Now the recently presented House Resolution 59 whines that her words from the pulpit were a display of “political activism” and should be condemned.

There is a simple solution for those who don’t wish to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ proclaimed  – don’t go to church.

If you don’t want to hear Jesus’ command to care for the least of these, skip church that day.

If you would rather not know that all of God’s people are expected to act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with our God (Micah 6:8), by all means avoid the faith communities who proclaim that ancient truth.

If you don’t want to be reminded that all of us are called to care for the stranger and welcome the foreigner, then you should absolutely give communities of faith a pass.

Just don’t go into a place of worship and imagine that you can dictate which words should be spoken that day. 

Holy Scripture in every tradition calls us – commands us – to share God’s compassion especially with those most in need.  That truth must be proclaimed to the people in attendance so that they will be inspired to embody God’s love with their actions.

So – 

If you are looking for inspiration in these wearying days of bad news – go to church.

If you yearn to be reminded that you are not alone even while our leaders try to isolate and divide us – find a place of worship that fills your spirit with hope.

If you need to be assured that you are created in the image of God and loved by God just the way that you are today – find people who are proclaiming this life-giving Good News.

There are many churches, synagogues, and mosques who are living God’s words of hope – search for them.  Support them. Become part of a congregation because we are always stronger together.

Here is a way to find a church in my tradition (United Church of Christ) in southern New England:

Gather with the people of God.

Be inspired by God’s Word that proclaims peace, justice, and hope.

Go out into the world and share God’s mercy and love.