I still regret not going to Hattiesburg, Mississippi with Gary Hickok. Gary and I were the only Presbyterians in our class at the University of Chicago Divinity School. He and Maryjo and Sue and I became friends and when Gary and I graduated and were ordained as Presbyterian Ministers of Word and Sacrament we stayed […]
Humble & Riding on a Donkey
April 5, 2020 by 11 Comments
I’m feeling like a displaced person, ripped from the familiar home where I have lived for years and set down in a strange, alien place. Since I was ordained a Presbyterian Minister of Word and Sacrament in June, 1963, and before that even as a student minister from 1960-63, time has been marked for me […]
A Ray of Light
December 9, 2019 by 9 Comments
Long ago, in childhood and youth, I loved the weeks of heightened excitement and anticipation before Christmas: the first festive decorations appearing in store windows, never before Thanksgiving back then, Christmas trees for sale on corner lots, and at home searching through the pages of the mammoth Sears catalog for toys to add to my […]
A Woman’s Choice
June 18, 2019 by 10 Comments
The Word became flesh and lived among us. (John 1:14) In Christ God was reconciling the world to himself. (2 Corinthians 5:19) Incarnation has been, for me, the defining issue, the guiding light since I was ordained to the Ministry of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church. God, we dare to believe, cares so […]
The Children
January 23, 2019 by 11 Comments
Christmas is over but a singular Biblical incident is haunting me this year. The Christian story, from the beginning, is set in the context of political power, insecurity and cruelty. “In the time of King Herod” is the way Matthew begins. The Magi, mysterious seers from the east- modern Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia, following […]
The Wondrous Gift is Given
December 23, 2018 by 6 Comments
One of the important, and sweet, transitions in life is learning the truth that it is better to give than to receive. It is important, sweet, happy and much more joyful to give than to get: “more blessed” is the way Jesus put it. Earliest Christmas memories are about getting, receiving: childhood anticipation and waiting […]
The Little Children
June 21, 2018 by 28 Comments
I have never in my life been ashamed of my nation. I am now, profoundly and angrily ashamed. In recent weeks the president of the United State has insulted and alienated the allies who have fought and died with our brave soldiers, sailors and Marines, including members of my own family, fighting and defeating fascism, […]
No Story So Divine
March 30, 2018 by 6 Comments
Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by? Look and see if there is any sorrow like my sorrow… Lamentations 1:12 For as long as I can remember I have been acutely aware of the conflict Christians experience during Holy Week. Long gone are the days when the culture acknowledged the sanctity of […]
Working for Something Better
January 27, 2018 by 4 Comments
A technological error resulted in the previous post being published without the final two paragraphs! Apologies to you all! Below is an updated version of “Working for Something Better” with the entirety of John’s reflections. Thanks for your patience. The President’s racism hits me like a body blow. Of course I know that people talk […]
Hold to the Good 
Across the Divide
Our minister, Shannon Kershner, read Matthew 5: 13-16 to us Sunday morning, told us we are the salt of the earth and the light of the world and challenged us to start acting like it. Shannon said that a clergy friend of hers was invited to the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington last week so […]