Tag Archives: diversity

Godsend

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Pentecost C, June 8, 2025.  The Very Rev. Pamela L. Werntz

  • Genesis 11:1-9. And from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.
  • Acts 2:1-21. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit.
  • John 14:8-17. This is the Spirit of truth…[who] will be among you.

O God of our glorious diversity, grant us the strength, the wisdom and the courage to seek always and everywhere after truth, come when it may, and cost what it will.

A couple of Friday evenings ago, I had the honor and delight to preach at Central Reform Temple’s Shabbat service. I preached about how the Jewish and Christian liturgical calendars are so similar (like cousins) when it comes to the observances of Passover and Easter and the 50th day after each, which is the celebration of Pentecost (or in Hebrew, Shavuot). After the service I was having a conversation with one of the members of the Temple, who was asking me about the Christian story of Pentecost. I said that the traditional teaching for Christians is that the story in Act 2 is understood to be a reversal of what happened at the Tower of Babel. We heard the two stories a few minutes ago, about how the Holy One confused (or mixed or mingled) the language of the ancient Hebrew people, but on the 50th day after the resurrection brought people of all languages together to unite them. Continue reading →

Called In

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Yesterday while riding my bicycle from my home to my co-intern’s house to ride together to the prison for Art and Spirituality, I got into a minor accident on the ice that invisibly coated the side of the road I was traveling on. It was not until my rear wheel began slipping that I noticed the sunlight reflecting off of the patch of ice that was directly under me. As my bike slid out from under me and I slammed onto the pavement, I had a brief moment of uncertainty about how bad the accident actually was. In the moments that mark the climax of a crisis it seems as if my rational thinking goes out the window along with my normal sensory experiencing. Then, as quickly as it happened, the wave of feelings and fear come flooding back in like a tidal wave. Yesterday, I didn’t know if I was going to look down and see blood as I stood up and grabbed the frame of my bicycle. Luckily, I suffered no major injuries other than a potentially sprained wrist, and I was able to get back on my trusty steed and ride away fairly unscathed. Continue reading →