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Jul 18, 2023 | 
christiancentury.org | Joann Lee |Peter W. Marty |Valerie Weaver-Zercher |Libby Howe
In December, a leak was detected in a section of the Keystone Pipeline located near the Kansas-Nebraska border. Eventually, 588,000 gallons of toxic tar sands oil—almost an Olympic swimming pool’s worth—spilled into Kansas’s Mill Creek and onto surrounding farmland. It was the largest oil spill in the pipeline’s 13-year history—larger than the previous 22 spills combined. And it could have been prevented. Read our latest issue or browse back issues.
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Jul 17, 2023 | 
christiancentury.org | Joann Lee |Peter W. Marty |Valerie Weaver-Zercher |Libby Howe
Six college students are preparing to move into new apartments in a former office building at Redeemer Episcopal Church in Jacksonville, Florida, after the church and its ecumenical partners converted the building to living space in response to a local housing shortage. The project was spearheaded by Jacksonville Campus Ministry, a partnership of congregations from seven denominations, including Redeemer.
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Jul 17, 2023 | 
christiancentury.org | Joann Lee |Peter W. Marty |Valerie Weaver-Zercher |Libby Howe
“Who hopes for what is seen?” asks Paul. Me. I do. I did, anyway. I expressed my hope with the same clichés everyone else did. I reached for something hope-related whenever the subject of a conversation was unpalatable and I did not want to bring anyone down with real life. “Don’t let it bother you too much,” I would say. Why? Because “there’s always hope, right?” It was what I said whenever I didn’t want to become encumbered by the overwhelming injustices and tragedies of our world.
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Jul 14, 2023 | 
christiancentury.org | Libby Howe |Peter W. Marty |Chad Martin |Valerie Weaver-Zercher
To receive these posts by email each Monday, sign up. For more commentary on this week's readings, see the Reflections on the Lectionary page. For full-text access to all articles, subscribe to the Century. In Baptized We Live, Dan Erlander defines the “Living Word” in contrast to a “Dead Word.” He writes, “Scripture as ‘Dead Word’ is truth packaged in propositions with which we can argue, agree or disagree. . . .
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Jul 14, 2023 | 
christiancentury.org | Peter W. Marty |Libby Howe |Valerie Weaver-Zercher |Joann Lee
Our house came with a chicken coop, complete with a fenced-in chicken run. We were used to cats: after the one we had for 16 years died, we loaded up with four more. Four cats is a lot, but that didn’t prepare us for chickens. Our roofer, an animal lover himself, gifted us with six chickens: two Ameraucanas, two Plymouth Rocks, and two Rhode Island Reds.
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Jul 14, 2023 | 
christiancentury.org | Peter W. Marty |Chad Martin |Valerie Weaver-Zercher |Samuel Wells
Editor's note: This story is part of "Growing a Green Church," an ongoing series focused on churches' efforts to steward their buildings and land effectively in the context of a changing climate. The project is produced in collaboration with the Christian Century, Episcopal News Service, Faithfully Magazine, National Catholic Reporter, and Sojourners, with support from the Solutions Journalism Network and funding from the Fetzer Institute. Find more stories in the series here.
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Jul 13, 2023 | 
christiancentury.org | Peter W. Marty |Chad Martin |Valerie Weaver-Zercher |Samuel Wells
On communion Sundays, I bless the children in our congregation. One by one they stretch forth a palm or hold back their bangs as I make the sign of the cross with oil. This oil is held in a small stone vessel that fits in the palm of my hand. I skim the surface with the pad of my thumb and mark each child. Each week I invite one of the children to offer me a blessing as well, to mark me with the sign of the cross.
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Jun 28, 2023 | 
christiancentury.org | Brian Bantum |Valerie Weaver-Zercher |Isaac S. Villegas |Rachel Mann
My friend joanne has been translatingDeuteronomy word for word, a book she calls “the great poetic part of the Torah.” Joanne is 88 and the author of more than 20 novels. A former EMT, firefighter, and college professor, she is a master of English and a student of Hebrew. She and I meet monthly in a group of writers—a mix of Reconstructionist Jews and deconstructionist Episcopalians—and I suppose it shouldn’t surprise me that Deuteronomy would eventually come up. Everything else has.
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Jun 27, 2023 | 
christiancentury.org | Kirk Jones |Brian Bantum |Valerie Weaver-Zercher |Isaac S. Villegas
A womanist theologian, ethicist, and minister was installed as the 10th president of the Unitarian Universalist Association on June 25, following an uncontested election in which she secured 95.5 percent of the vote. She is both the first openly queer person and first woman of color to lead the faith tradition and will serve a six-year term. The child of parents from Panamá and Chile, Sofía Betancourt has been a national leader in the UUA for more than two decades.
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Jun 27, 2023 | 
christiancentury.org | Joshua N. Hook |Kirk Jones |Brian Bantum |Valerie Weaver-Zercher
Midway through Thriving Families, the authors tell the story of a young boy named Damen. Joanne and Tom, who have been his foster parents for a year and a half, are thrilled when they learn that they can legally adopt him. They decide to throw an “adoption day party,” a celebration with close friends that presumes Damen is joyful about his adoption. Damen, however, refuses to come out of his room on the day of the party.
