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Sep 24

[Kara Slade] This sermon is not (only) about money

ALH asked me to post this sermon, so here it is.  – Kara

Proper 20 – Luke 16:1-13; 1 Timothy 2:1-7

Goodson Chapel, Duke Divinity School, September 25, 2013

The Rev. Kara N. Slade

 

                                    O, Thou far off and here, whole and broken,
                                    Who in necessity and in bounty wait,
                                    Whose truth is light and dark, mute though spoken,
                                    By Thy wide Grace show me Thy narrow gate.  Amen.[1]
 
 

            Let me be frank.  The parable we just heard from Luke’s gospel offends my sense of propriety.  I suspect I’m not alone in that assessment.  All the commentaries I consulted – and I consulted quite a few – contained the Biblical Studies equivalent of the warning on ancient maps: Here be dragons. This passage is hard to interpret.  It’s a parable that reminds us of the importance of rightly interpreting these stories, of resisting the urge to turn them into universal moral imperatives.  And, while a lot of people seem to think this morning’s parable is about money, or about networking your way into heaven, I’d like to suggest it’s about something else entirely. Read more

Aug 21

The Babysitters’ Club: Bad to the Bone (?)

Tripp York: “Which pacifist would you rather have on your side in a bar fight: Steve Long, Michael Budde, or Amy Laura Hall?”

Tobias Winright: “Amy Laura Hall, who is a Texan like Stanley Hauerwas but also George W. Bush and Rick Perry, would, I think, verbally disarm the hostile crowd…I’m sure her words in such a scenario would appear in ALL CAPS if they were written down later. She would stop people in their tracks.”

Here’s the Babysitters’ (and Dogsitters’) Club, trying to live up to the image.

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The Babysitters’ Club is: Sarah McGiverin, Meghan Florian, ALH, Kara Slade, and Kate Roberts (who also took the photos).

 

 

Aug 9

1 Comment

[Robert Hall] It All Comes Down to Silence

Here at profligategrace.com we’re grateful to host the Rev. Robert Hall, who recently retired from 47 years of ministry in the Southwest Texas Conference of the UMC, and who still serves as dad to Amy Laura and grandfather to Rachel and Emily.

It all comes down to silence.

Our Hebrew kinfolk have it right.
“Adonai” substituted for the divine name.
“I will be what I will be,” Moses heard from the burning bush.

Or old St John of the Cross,
God is “No lo se que.”
Or St Anselm, God is “that which nothing greater can be conceived.”
The “still small voice,” Dr Powers taught us, really means no voice at all.
An indecipherable whisper,
Like a breeze.

I have spent my adult life word-smithing,
searching for just the right words for the subject or occasion,
looking for beautiful pearls of wisdom.
Which is a joyful gift, this passion for expression.
And yet, there have been times when words have gotten in the way of truth.
“Less is more.”
All language, sooner or later, leads to quietness.

Pray?
Yes: ask, beg, praise, intercede, confess–as we must.
But prayer to God ends with mouths shut,
hands still.
Like the silent sitting-together with a friend.
Or the peace which descends after beautiful music,
clapping be damned.

 

Aug 6

3 Comments

Postcards from Moral Monday

My mom and dad raised me with a passion for public school.  This photo is of my mom, about the same time she was working at Sears to help fund her college education.  She taught for over three decades, middle school and high school, French, Theater, History, English Literature, whatever the job market required, as my dad itinerated for the Methodist Church across Texas.  She is only 4’9”, and she continues to be a charming force to be reckoned with.  Two of her closest, lifelong friends Eva and Jeannie, were also lifelong school teachers.  Eva is an expert quilter and Jeannie knows absolutely everything about public school politics in Texas.

CAM00135

Read more

Jul 31

2 Comments

Backup

wordless-wednesday-20-feet-to-stardom-L-Gl1wp_It turns out that super-spiritual-tantric Sting needs more than a message in a bottle.  He needs a sit-down and come-to-Jesus.  And, maybe if Mickey J. had actually made love to (rather than just “had fun with”) the woman singing with him on “Brown Sugar,” he might have gotten a clue and used his charismatic power to shake-up the white boys’ club that is the industry.  Well . . . a girl can dream, right?

If you live in the Triangle, please go see 20 Feet from Stardom at the Carolina.  It just won’t be the same on a small screen.  This is a rare opportunity to hear some of the most gifted women in music.  Each one tells a unique story about the history of backup singers. Read more

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