Exploring Faith and Community • Macalester Plymouth United Church October 15, 2020 Rev. Adam Blons Are you getting a lot more emails these days? I couldn’t easily find statistics, but I would say my email volume has at least doubled on a daily basis during the pandemic. Along with managing the increase, each communication feels more important…
Exploring Faith and Community • Macalester Plymouth United Church September 14, 2020 Rev. Adam Blons Bill Gates, whose foundation focuses on global health issues, started an August 5, 2020 Gates Post blog entry this way: “A global crisis has shocked the world. It is causing a tragic number of deaths, making people afraid to leave home, and leading to economic hardship not seen in…
Exploring Faith and Community • Macalester Plymouth United Church September 3, 2020 Rev. Corinne Freedman Ellis I follow self-described “clinically depressed motivational speaker” Glennon Doyle on social media, and if you’re a social media person, I’d highly recommend doing the same. She names what so many of us are feeling but perhaps aren’t brave enough…
Exploring Faith and Community • Macalester Plymouth United Church August 27, 2020 Rev. Adam Blons The Sufi poet Rumi said: “The morning wind spreads its fresh smell. We must get up and take that in, that wind that lets us live. Breathe before it’s gone.” Air is life, and yet the air is currently at the crossroads…
Exploring Faith and Community • Macalester Plymouth United Church July 2, 2020 Rev. Adam Blons During one of my first church interviews, I learned about a partnership between a white suburban congregation and an urban African American congregation. The partnership started with a shared Bible study in people’s homes. From there it grew to pulpit exchanges, choir…
Exploring Faith and Community • Macalester Plymouth United Church July 30, 2020 Rev. Adam Blons The work of the church continues, not just here at Macalester Plymouth United Church, but through our local and national denominations. Both the United Church of Christ and the Presbyterian Church (USA) work on our behalf, advocating for social justice, nurturing the church…
“If racism is not about hate, then the answer to racism is not love. It is justice. “
Over the last two weeks, I have been sitting with the question, “What are the behaviors of white allies in anti-racism work?”
Exploring Faith and Community • Macalester Plymouth United Church June 12, 2020 Rev. Adam Blons Some say, “Time heals all wounds.” I don’t think that’s quite right. Healing takes time but also a lot of energy. Both. That is what we are noticing again during this time Megan is recovering from surgery. Even though the surgery and her transition home went well, and she is…
Exploring Faith and Community • Macalester Plymouth United Church June 4, 2020 Rev. Corinne Freedman Ellis These last couple of weeks have been a time of incredible pain, grief, stress, and trauma in our beloved cities. The primary trauma of the senseless and tragic murder of George Floyd has given way to countless secondary traumas, as centuries of oppression are made manifest…