Zoar

I know I’ve said this before, but I feel like it bears repeating: I don’t give nearly as much time and attention to the news media as I once did. I just can’t. And based on a number of conversations I’ve had recently, I think many of you resonate with that…. So, these days I dip into the news just enough to stay informed because it’s important to be aware of what’s happening in our community and in our world – in all the places where you and I live and work and play. One

A couple of weeks ago, I had the honor of attending a bat mitzvah for a dear friend's daughter. I always enjoy going to synagogue services even though I don't speak or understand a lick of Hebrew. But I appreciate the depth of dedication to the Torah and the intimacy of the Jewish community in that sacred space. And as I was basking in the beauty of the service and delighting in the pride of the entire community centered on that bright 13-year old girl, I wrestled with today'

Perhaps I only imagined it or maybe it showed up in one of my dreams because I've searched all over, and I've never been able to find it since.... I'm talking about a cartoon drawing I saw several years ago that shows Jesus behind a gated wall. In the cartoon, there are people standing inside the gate, alongside Jesus, and one man is scratching his head and saying to another one, "I just don't understand it. The gate is locked, so how do all these people keep getting in?" The

Luke the Evangelist tells us that the road from Jerusalem to Emmaus is a distance of seven miles, but you and I know better.... We know better, because even though most of us have never been to Jerusalem, at one time or another, we've all walked that stretch of road to Emmaus, though we probably know it by a different name— A name like Death. Depression. Divorce. Abuse. Addiction. Alzheimer's. ....You can fill in the blank!... And yet whatever name we give that road, you an

I love today's gospel. It is one of my absolute favorites. Poor Thomas. My memories of sermons related to this story centered on Thomas's failures to believe. They shame poor Thomas for his suspicions. I mean what do we normally call this story? The story of Doubting Thomas! Thomas has been labeled for millennia by his - quite rational, in my opinion - disbelief and need for reassurance. While Jesus's post-resurrection appearance is also recorded in Luke 24, there is no men