A week from today, 4:15 a.m. and I are going to resume our annual nine-day relationship. “Friendship” would be too strong a word. Some days, I’ll leap out of bed; some days, I’ll groan out loud. Yes, it’s that time again, time for the Filipino Simbang Gabi/Misa de Gallo (“Mass of the Rooster”) novena that… Continue reading Hello, 4:15 a.m.
Category: Life in the 50s
On the Nightstand: November
Earlier this year, a work colleague gave me a signed copy of Rebuilt: Awakening the Faithful, Reaching the Lost, and Making Church Matter, a how-to book of sorts co-authored by the Rev. Michael White, pastor of my friend’s suburban Baltimore parish. I’m finally getting to the book now as my church’s Pastoral Council is reading it… Continue reading On the Nightstand: November
Being Christ in Our Lives: Anna LaNave
Anna LaNave was wearing a green-and-white-striped shirt and a radiant smile when I met her in 2005. She was in charge of a ministry called Landings at the parish I’d tiptoed into as someone away from the Church for decades. Anna and Landings gave me a safe place to ask questions about God… and to come back… Continue reading Being Christ in Our Lives: Anna LaNave
Answering the Call
Note: This essay was written for the St. Davids Christian Writers Association, of which I am blessed to be a member. Check out SDCWA if you’d like to learn more about this writers-owned-and-operated association and annual conference. God’s a funny guy. I always considered myself an editor, not a writer. And, unchurched from the age… Continue reading Answering the Call