“Hope is a song in a weary throat.” (Pauli Murray) On July 1 we honored Pauli Murray as a saint of the Episcopal Church. She is the first African-American Episcopal priest who is also a supporter of civil rights, women’s rights, LBGTQ rights, and poetry. “Her throat may have been weary, but she kept on […]
by Dean Ben Shambaugh This coming Sunday is Trinity Sunday. With the Ascension of Jesus and coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the Godhead is complete and we are about to enter the long green season of Sundays after Pentecost that is sometimes called “ordinary time.” There are two problems with this: first, that […]
The first Earth Day was in 1970, 52 years ago. It was the beginning of the modern environmental movement in the United States. I remember our school planting a tree for the occasion. Little could I have imagined how many more trees would need to be planted, and that that would become a movement in […]
On Egeria’s travels… and our own. (A brief history and overview of Holy Week) In the period between 381 and 384 AD, a woman named Egeria made a remarkable journey from Spain to the Holy Land in order to participate in the services of Easter. Even more remarkably, she wrote and published her diary, which […]
Last week the news was filled with Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s Confirmation Hearing. Undeterred by abhorrent behavior, unrelenting attacks, and political posturing by members of the committee, Judge Jackson provided calm and thoughtful responses to the questions that were asked. Underneath it all, the divide in our country – and the philosophical divide on […]
What are you giving up for Lent? This question frequently comes up this time of year and is usually answered with some sort of answer like “chocolate,” “lattes,” “alcohol” or “Facebook.” Giving something up can be helpful if it encourages spiritual growth or specific action, if money that would have been spent on chocolate or […]
February 13 is the feast day of Absalom Jones. Jones is one of the most important Episcopalians we remember and honor in our Church calendar. He is a man who broke barriers in many ways; beginning life as an enslaved human being in the time of slavery in the United States, and as a disciple […]
One of the things that attracted me to my volunteer work as a Coast Guard was the idea of cross-training, of getting a refresher on ministry, and learning things that would enhance my ministry at St. Luke’s. I was reminded of this last week, when I received a letter from Captain Clifford Stuart, the Chaplain […]
The gospel for last Sunday was the story of the Wedding at Cana. Mary and Jesus were at a wedding. The hosts ran out of wine. Mary told Jesus and 12 huge jars of water were turned into wine, not just ordinary wine, but the very best. It is amazing to me that Jesus’ first […]
Last Sunday’s sermon and the lead Opinion Page article in the last Maine Sunday Telegram both addressed the history of Portland and the relationship of Maine to the slave trade. The bottom line is that the money trail is as clear as the triangular trade. Though our ancestors may not have owned slaves, we – […]
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