“With all it’s sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.” Max Ehrman
Mary Magdalene thought the resurrected Jesus was the gardener. The Gardener, whose job is to raise up new growth from a lifeless seed. The Gardener, whose job is to call forth new life out of the darkness of dirt. Perhaps Mary wasn’t wrong. Perhaps she was seeing Jesus’ true identity. The Gardener of the original … Continue reading She Thought Jesus Was the Gardener
Jesus walked willingly to the Garden of Gethsemane on the night of his arrest. The courage in that act alone - it’s hard to fathom. God and humans don’t have a good history in gardens, after all. The last time God shared a garden with humanity, it didn’t end well. The humans betrayed God, eating … Continue reading Gethsemane
Let’s de-Hallmark-ify the Christmas story, shall we? Instead of a warm and cozy barn - try picturing a dark, grimy cave, full of loud, smelly animals who aren’t fond of sharing their home. Instead of a serene, beaming Mary - let’s imagine an exhausted teenager who just survived the risky business of labor, far from … Continue reading Let’s de-Hallmark-ify the Christmas story, shall we?
I've often heard it said that all of Jesus' friends abandoned him on that Good Friday, his time of greatest need. But it needs to be said that not all of his friends disappeared into the darkness of the moment. A few were there, at the foot of the cross. They were the women, the … Continue reading Love at the Foot of the Cross
A Reflection on Mark 2:1-12 Jesus Heals a Paralysed Man – vie de Jesus mafa Jesus, you looked with compassion on the men who disassembled the roof of your home to bring their paralyzed friend before you. They tore through the structure that kept you protected from the rain, sheltered from the hot sun. The … Continue reading On Disassembling Jesus’ House
A Reflection on Luke 24 They said it was an “idle tale”. The women rushed into the house with wide eyes and fierce conviction, proclaiming that Jesus’ tomb was empty, that angels greeted them, that Jesus is risen. And the men brushed aside the women’s word like you’d brush away a delicate butterfly. An "idle … Continue reading Before Peter Spoke, Women Preached
Abba Father, like my girl quietly playing with her toys while I sit nearby book in my lap, and she looks up at me, eyes alight with wonder, crying, "Look, mama!" wanting me to see the spectacular discovery before her of how colors of clay blend in her kneading hands - and I smile and … Continue reading I Have Calmed and Quieted My Soul (Psalm 131)
I don't often share posts about my thoughts on Scripture, but Mary of Bethany has captured my imagination this week and I felt compelled to share her story. I am intrigued by the outrageous display of affection she lavished upon Jesus in John 12:1-8. This is an easy story to gloss over, to write-off as … Continue reading Love Unbound: A Glimpse into Mary of Bethany
What does love look like? Like water spilling onto the floor as Jesus dipped his hands into the basin and wiped the dirt from his disciples' calloused feet. Love is a messy business. I can see them - the twelve disciples, with their shifty eyes, sweating palms, nervous laughs - what in the world is … Continue reading What Does Love Look Like? (A Maundy Thursday Poem)
Was no one there to rub her backwhen she got sick by the side of the road?Poor child, that Mary,fleeing the angel's earth-shattering words to Elizabeth's tranquil countryside.Did her traveling companions pretend not to noticeher queasiness and sleepy eyes and swelling gut,or did they whisper too loudly in her directionwith obvious glares of disdain?One can … Continue reading Naming the Blessing as a Blessing: A Poem of Mary and Elizabeth
Rev. Laura Johnson 