Rev. Catharine Is Currently
On Medical Leave

Why So Rushed?

Beloved– Let’s talk about the term “white supremacy,” and how it relates to our own personal and communal spiritual journeys. Let’s think about what many of us consider “normal” interpersonal behavior and how that might shift if we consider various cultural perspectives. First of all, the term “white supremacy.” I know it puts a lot […]

Hospitality of the Holidays?

complex woven Christmas ball with lights inside

In some ways, this is a season of hospitality or its lack. Many of us hear the story of the emigration and return of Joseph and Mary to and from Egypt, reminiscent of the time the Israelites spent in Egypt generations earlier. Many of us hear the story of the pregnant Mary being welcomed by […]

The Coming Solstice Dark

What comes with the solstice, the last and deepest dip of the sun, Midwinter here in the Northern Hemisphere? The first last and deepest is answer is darkness, darkness, darkness. In some parts of North America, the continent where I live, it means bright sun on very short, very cold days; cloud-packed skies where it […]

Advent: Waiting and Hope

Through my years as a Roman Catholic, especially as a teen, I became enamored with the liturgical calendar, the sort of Wheel of the Year for Catholicism (and many other Christian traditions, as well). Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, and everything that followed, including saints’ and Marian days and other holidays. The liturgical year began this past […]

The Upcoming Joys of 2016

Things have been awfully serious in my blog land lately. Sexual assault. Compost and death (on my Patheos blog). I think it’s time for some lighter fare. And some joy! Katy Takaoka, my co-conspirator, and I met this week and planned out the rest of 2016. Now, I don’t know about you, but for someone […]

The Questions of Solstice

frozen river in a forest

In three days, we will go into the dark. We will begin the three days leading up to the December Solstice, Midwinter, or Yule, in the Northern Hemisphere. That first day of the three, I have invited you—and I invite you now—to make a day of retreat. A day of renewal. Let it be a […]

Collaborations of the Winter Solstice

solstice sunrise with snow and tree

Sometimes—and today is one of those times—I think, How great it is to have colleagues and comrades in spiritual community. Or, if you will, for the Psalm-loving among us, How blessed it is when we live together in unity! I am just happy and feelings fortunate, so I thought I’d share my heart’s gratitude with […]

Retreat Hopes

I’ve been writing quite a bit here and there about the season, the growing nights, the shrinking days, and the invitations of the darkness. I am also hosting a virtual retreat—a day of rest and renewal you take for yourself at home, supported by four calls, recordings, and handouts from me—on December 19th. For more […]

Spending the Dark of Winter Together

I know we’re still in the days of the Mighty Dead – blessings of All Souls Day for those who celebrate – but my mind (apparently in a rush to slow down?) is turning towards the solstice. Here in the Northern Hemisphere, the December solstice is about darkness. Some places about snow, some about rain, […]

What the Bells of Christmas Have to Say

“I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day” (Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882), 1867) I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day Their old familiar carols play, And wild and sweet the words repeat Of peace on earth, good will to men. I thought how, as the day had come, The belfries of all Christendom Had rolled along […]