Rev. Amy’s Monthly Blog
In July and August, the Soul Matters group encourages us choose our own theme,or even forego the thematic schedule. We decided to have a summer theme, forJuly and August—Our Stories. Even as we welcome guests to the pulpit, storieswill abound. The act of coming together to hear the goings-on of other people,other places, is a … Continue reading Our Stories
Of course June would contain delight. Not only is it the month when we gathertogether for General Assembly, but the weather in most areas is getting luscious.There are the June celebrations of Juneteenth and Father’s Day and PRIDE, plus,for some, graduations and the June wedding.Delight is, in my understanding, a very specific happiness. It is … Continue reading DELIGHT
Friends, the time for submitting an article has come while I am simultaneouslyparticipating in a weeklong meeting (online) of Interim Ministers AND packing upmy life from Elkhart IN. I hope that you will enjoy this link, or the printed lyricsof my favorite song for May. Recorded by 10000 Maniacs, sung by NatalieMerchant, These are Days.Written … Continue reading May Creativity
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” (There is argument over who gets the attribution for this quote, but it is a good thought, eloquently stated) Being involved in resistance against evil simply means doing something instead of nothing. Resistance against evil might take some of … Continue reading Resistance is our theme, resilience is our goal
Truth can be shared with anybody, and honesty is good. Most of philosophy involves pondering if Truth is an objective value, or subjective. People tell THE truth and that is called honesty. But when people share THEIR truth, expressing their innermost, private truths, well, that is vulnerability. While telling the truth can lead to trouble, … Continue reading Vulnerability
Our theme is love. Even though February is all about hearts and Valentines Day,the love on my mind is not flowery or romantic. The love on my mind is an actionmore than a feeling, and sometimes it looks more like hard work than pleasure.When we say to someone dear, “I love you” it is not … Continue reading Love
Happy New Year, everybody! May 2023 and its fresh-slate first month be the timefor finding our center.A ritual I have often led around the New Year is called the Coffin and Cradle. Itwas written by my colleague and friend, Rev. Barbara Child. Her intern, back inthe day, was Rev. Roberta Finkelstein, who taught me the … Continue reading Finding Our Center
Being a wordsmith, I think about those subtleties of word choice often. Thismonth’s theme is “wonder,” and so I have been, well, wondering about it. Wonder, like, I wonder what will happen or I wonder what is in there…..Certainly,wonder is about curiosity or thinking about the unknown. But it seems to holdpositivity for expectation of … Continue reading In the Interim: Wondering about Wonder
November’s Thoughts are about CHANGE Hymn #361 tells us “Don’t be afraid of some change.” Is that how we feel about change—fearful? Are we afraid of change? Fear seems like a big word to use about a small conflict, a small change. Well, although scary might be more present with a big change, change is … Continue reading In the Interim, by Interim Minister, Rev. Amy DeBeck
by Rev. Amy October’s theme is Courage Growing up unchurched, I knew what spirituality felt like. But the first time I felt like mine fit into an existing, established way of thinking or believing was when I studied Existentialism. In the philosophy and practice of existentialism we learn that we are always in a state … Continue reading In the Interim
