Mother’s Day on a Stick?

May 11, 2023 By Roger Wolsey

“…Women such as Julia Ward Howe, Anna Jarvis, and Anna Jarvis “Jr.” [the originators of Mothers Day] really ought to be more familiar to us. In some ways, I feel like being a bit of a party-pooper for reminding us of the overtly radical and political origins of this special day. I mean, there’s “nothing more American than baseball, apple pie, and mom.” Why politicize it? Well, because it is political. It is radical. And it is subversive. Sadly, the holiday was co-opted by commercial forces. Anna Jarvis was devastated,... Read more

Loving the Earth is Essential.

April 23, 2023 By Roger Wolsey

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Our planet is not well. That’s an understatement. The Earth is in a state of crisis. Human aggravated global warming/climate change is a real and present danger. The frequency and severity of storms, flooding, and wildfires around the world is increasing. We Are to Blame. “Human activities have caused the world’s wildlife populations to plummet by more than two-thirds in the last 50 years, according to a report from the World Wildlife Fund.” Globally between September 2020 and February 2021, 12.5 million people were... Read more

Discovering Fire – a Fiery Forward For Fungi Fueled Faith.

April 3, 2023 By Roger Wolsey

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The new book that I’ve written is a paradox. The topics it covers, and what I have to say about them, are subjective. How this book lands on people depends very much upon which context and subculture they’re part of. For some members of our society, what I’ve written may land with a nonchalant, “Yeah, that sounds right.” Other folks will experience it with a sense of elated pleasant surprise – “Can you imagine – a Christian pastor saying... Read more

Sensing the Sacred – Lectio Divina – a Spiritual Experience of Scripture

March 16, 2023 By Roger Wolsey

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…Another contemplative spiritual practice that works well in tandem with centering prayer is LECTIO DIVINA – Latin for “Divine Reading.” What I’m about to say may be new to many – including many Christians: one can do Lectio Divina, a divine reading, of any sort of text – not just the Bible. I want to put this out there first to help those whose eyes might normally glaze over when coming across something that seems to be “about the Bible.”... Read more

Fasting 101.

March 6, 2023 By Roger Wolsey

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A time-honored spiritual practice within the Abrahamic family of religions is FASTING. There are certain special times of the year where fasting is particularly encouraged – the holy days of Yom Kippur, Lent, and Ramadan. In my experience, a higher percentage of Jews and Muslims take those established fasting days seriously. Many Christians only fast one day a year, if at all. That said, there are quite a few Christians who do fast during Lent, or at least who fast... Read more

Omniamo – God’s All-Loving Nature.

February 14, 2023 By Roger Wolsey

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“Good orthodoxy leads to good orthopraxy” is a common aphorism wielded among conservative evangelical and fundamentalist Christians. It’s frequently worded in a more aggressive manner: “without proper orthodoxy, there can be no proper Christian discipleship.” These claims intend to convey that unless people believe certain doctrines and dogmas – and in a literal way – they are incapable of engaging in doing good in the world. Moreover, such declarations also seek to convey that if, for some freakish reason, some... Read more

A Slice of Centering Prayer.

February 7, 2023 By Roger Wolsey

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One feature of contemplative Christianity is an embracing of Mystery – the notion that God is somehow bigger than words can convey; and a way of quiet, reverent, stillness in the presence of the Divine fosters encounter with this Divine mystery. The most common form of this is known as CENTERING PRAYER. It draws from practices from the Desert Fathers and Mothers, the medieval text The Cloud of Unknowing, and is inspired by Psalm 46:10 – “be still and know... Read more

Gaslighting & Saving Face.

October 31, 2022 By Roger Wolsey

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“Hi. My name is Roger, and I’m a progressive Christian.” Apparently, those are fightin’ words that necessarily lead to estrangement, inquisition, and scapegoating when heard by evangelical Christians. Evangelicalism became the mainstream form of Christianity in the U.S. starting in the 1980s and they’ve rather enjoyed their time in the Sun – and aren’t at all happy to be losing their transient and fleeting clout and status. I’ve been in ministry serving as a pastor in the United Methodist Church... Read more

Groovin’ With God – beatnik process theology.

June 22, 2022 By Roger Wolsey

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Our Creator God does indeed create. Mercy and how! But She is not the only one who makes the decisions about what will be created. If that were the case, blind obedience… would be our only mission we would merely be puppets who could only do things when God ….pulls our strings. Dig this. As children of God who’ve been called to groove, let’s groove on the metaphor of “Jazz Music.” In jazz there is an imperative for listening to,... Read more

Santa in a Brothel.

December 7, 2021 By Roger Wolsey

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I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink …. I was imprisoned in a brothel and you rescued me. So begins Daniel Walker’s book God in a Brothel. It’s a bold and blunt beginning and the rest of the book is nothing but boldness and bluntness. The book is a primer on the ugly reality of human slavery – particularly sex trafficking. It’s a tell-all account of one... Read more