Downtown was just warming to sunrise as Sister Elyse and I unloaded the contents of the van onto the sidewalk at Fourth and Adams streets: a tent and table, loads of fresh bread and a tote full of handcrafted items from Sister Kristin. This was our last day at the Old Capitol Farmers Market; it […]
Beliefs
Posted inCommunity & Lifestyle
Refreshing honesty
“My joy is gone, grief is upon me, my heart is sick. The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved. For the hurt of my poor people I am hurt, I mourn, and dismay has taken hold of me. Is there no balm in Gilead?” – Jeremiah 8:18, 20-22a “To […]
Posted inCommunity & Lifestyle
Pardons and forgiveness
However perceived by men, the matter of “pardons” involve actions done which are considered personal, social, political and/or legal. Such actions involve something done which, at the least, are either immoral, illegal, improper, embarrassing, undeserved and/or inconveniencing to another person or group of people. The “pardon” does not deny the truth nor reality of the […]
Posted inCommunity & Lifestyle
Jesus and The Bab: Parallels in divine lives
On Nov. 10, Baha’is around the world will celebrate the birth of The Bab, the herald of their faith. From small villages on the continent of Africa to modern mega-cities such as New York and Toronto, to our own small Baha’i community here in Springfield, Baha’is will gather to celebrate the birth and the life […]
Posted inCommunity & Lifestyle
A summer “staycation” can open our listening hearts
“Every scribe who becomes a disciple of the Kingdom of Heaven is like a householder who brings out of the storeroom things both new and old.” Mt. 13:52 If I ran downstairs right now to check my “storeroom” aka the pantry, I’m pretty sure I’d find a fresh box or two of pasta, some crackers […]
Posted inCommunity & Lifestyle
Revisiting reverence
Then Jacob woke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place – and I did not know it.” – Genesis 28:16 The fall of 2001, I found myself driving alone from St. Louis to Chicago to be with my mother who was to undergo lung surgery. I was feeling a mixture […]
