revmary

“The Bible” in Ten Hours

Leave a Comment / It All Started in the Garden, Lent, Teaching / By /

As an educator, sometimes curriculum writer, Bible teacher, and Presbyterian pastor, I am always on the lookout for new ways to bring the Story alive. “Bringing the Word to Life” is more than a blog title, it is my calling and life purpose. So when I heard that Survivor producer Mark Burnett and “angel” Roma Downey were releasing a five-episode television miniseries The Bible, gratitude and skepticism vied for the upper hand. Do I dare hope that we might get a truly authentic version of the Bible’s story on the History Channel? Let me declare my skepticism openly at the […]

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Is “The Right to Marry” the Real Question?

Leave a Comment / Marriage Definition, PCUSA / By /

Thesis promoted by the President of the United States: Same-sex couples should enjoy the same rights as heterosexual couples, and therefore, should be given the constitutional right to marry. What follows sounds like boiler-plate language shared with Presbyterians who have engaged in this debate for several years. The president himself said, in his 2nd Inaugural Address of all occasions, that everyone should have the right to marry the person they love. This argument, if it can be called that, is as wrong for the American people as it is for Presbyterians who believe the Scripture is the only rule of

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Can the PC(USA) Really Change?

Leave a Comment / Leadership and Spirituality, Lent, PCUSA, Personal, Theological Reflection / By /

Last Sunday night, my husband and I hosted a black-tie five-course dinner for eleven other friends in our home. The occasion was the finale of Season Three of Downton Abbey, giving us the opportunity to live a brief fantasy of British aristocracy. The purpose of the evening was to enjoy the company of friends, have a luscious meal served to us (the thirteenth person, by prior arrangement, was our footman—and a fine one he was indeed), and discuss the characters and plot lines of the British television series. [May I just say, in a moment of personal privilege, that the

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The Skeleton in the PC(USA) Closet Is a Woman

Leave a Comment / ECO (Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians), PCUSA, Personal, Women in Ministry / By /

The WQ (“women’s question”) remains one of the most elusive and baffling aspects of ministry, even within a mainline denomination such as the PC(USA). The WQ has been a part of my life-long learning process since the 1970’s, when I felt a strong call to the ministry but believed the Bible prevented me from aspiring to pastoral leadership. Since then, and with the help of marvelous evangelical scholars, I’ve explored the WQ biblically, theologically, organizationally, and personally. And now, as a PC(USA) teaching elder ordained for over 25 years, I face the WQ from a different angle. The current question

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Do Evangelicals Have a Voice in the PC(USA)?

Leave a Comment / Marriage Definition, Parnell v. San Francisco, PCUSA, Teaching / By /

I have lost my singing/speaking voice only once in my life. I had just completed a Palm Sunday performance of the Brahms Requiem, in which I was the soprano soloist. Some time during the reception to follow, my voice suddenly closed down. And so it remained for a full six days. I was advised to drink a lot of water, rest as much as a church worker can during Holy Week, and stop trying to talk. My greatest anxiety came with the awareness that I was scheduled to lead the musical worship at a large Easter sunrise service the following

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UFOs and Close Encounters

Leave a Comment / It All Started in the Garden, Quilting, Spiritual Disciplines, Teaching, Theological Reflection / By /

Quilters refer to UFOs, unfinished objects, to describe the projects tucked away in mid-course. The QT (Quilt Therapy) group I belong to ’fessed up to UFOs on Tuesday, making commitments to complete said projects within the year. For me, the list includes the famous “Ahwahnee Quilt,” inspired by Yosemite’s oldest and most famous hotel. This quilt has been stashed for at least five years, but 2013 is the year to get it done. In the same way, I have some UFOs in the writing realm, outlined but unfinished, that await my attention and effort. Here is the list of working

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Downward Mobility Gets Personal

Leave a Comment / Essential Tenets of the Reformed Faith, Fellowship of Presbyterians, Lent, PCUSA, Personal, Theological Reflection, Women in Ministry / By /

Ash Wednesday is as good a day as any to reflect on what God is doing in one’s life, and anything that tends toward “examination of conscience” is particularly fitting during Lent. Lent for some is seen as a period of self-imposed “downward mobility” during which one denies oneself in order to follow Christ. This concept is taking on new meaning for me, as I examine the contours of my life and Christian service with an eye to reshaping my ministry life.  Since it has been awhile since my last blog, and inertia must be overcome, today I am going

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Are We Relying on Mere Props?

Leave a Comment / PCUSA, The Property Clause / By /

A link in yesterday’s Presbyweb got me thinking about conditions within the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), particularly as experienced by the various parties involved in church dismissals. In “Army Removes Crosses, Steeple from Chapel”, it is noted that a U.S. Army chapel in Afghanistan has been required to remove permanent Christian symbols from the site, following a complaint of an atheist. The Army regulation enforced is quoted as follows: The chapel environment will be religiously neutral when the facility is not being used for scheduled worship. Portable religious symbols, icons, or statues may be used within a chapel during times of

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Living in Obedience

Leave a Comment / Essential Tenets of the Reformed Faith, Fellowship of Presbyterians, PCUSA, Theological Reflection / By /

We are on the home stretch now, in our tour of the essential tenets of the Reformed faith. It is the natural outflow of God’s grace, our election to salvation and service, and covenant community to consider how we shall live together to reflect God’s glory and enjoy him forever. We take some early cues from God’s chosen people, who in the exodus were walking through a great doorway into a new life defined by God’s gracious care. In their period of formation, the Hebrews counted themselves very fortunate indeed, compared to the neighboring peoples of the ancient Near East

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An Expanded View of Stewardship

Leave a Comment / Essential Tenets of the Reformed Faith, Fellowship of Presbyterians, It All Started in the Garden, PCUSA, Theological Reflection / By /

Stewardship seems to be a particularly Presbyterian emphasis. Your personal experience of this word may be annual, during your congregation’s fall “stewardship campaign” designed to invite your financial pledge for the coming year. You may be familiar with the idea that Christians are called to steward “time, talent, and treasure,” which in common usage refers to the giving or sharing of all three with the church. But the concept of stewardship is far richer and more encompassing than these interpretations. There are at least two catalysts for a broader view of stewardship: The first scenario goes back to the Garden

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