Author: Jill Crainshaw
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Rock Us into Joy
Virtual worship. What an unusual and intriguing phrase, one that has made its way into my everyday vocabulary. Covid-19 has not been able to stop faith communities from worshiping together in spirit and truth–in safe and socially distanced ways. Zoom worship windows, Facebook watch parties, YouTube gatherings, and more have become sacred spaces where people…
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Catching the Light
. . . and the stars will be falling from heaven. MARK 13:25 Apocalyptic stars make a grand appearance in the lectionary texts for the First Sunday of Advent. I was reminded of these Advent stars when I walked in my neighborhood a few nights ago. A crescent moon wandered up beneath two twinkling…
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And also with you: A Liturgical Spirituality of Radical Peace-Sharing
The peace of Christ be with you. And also with you. Never before has the radical and prophetic power of these liturgical words struck me as it does in this post-Election Day liminal space. We often speak this greeting to each other in Sunday worship with an easy familiarity. Before Covid-19, we even embodied the…
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Unmute Yourself: The Prophetic Call of Zoom Worship Rubrics
“Unmute yourself.” “Be sure to mute yourself.” These phrases have become common pandemic parlance. We might even say they have become ritual rubrics, of a sort, for countless Zoom gatherings. I have begun to wonder if these rubrics, like many of our liturgies’ rubrics, are layered with meanings ripe for reflection. Liturgical rubrics provide guidelines…
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Creation, Day Three: Soil Underneath Our Fingernails
The Genesis verses that depict Day Three of Creation invite us to plumb unexpected sacramental depths.
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A Prayer-Poem for Not-So-Ordinary Days
I will heal their waywardness; I will love them freely. . . I will be like the dew to Israel; she shall blossom like the lily, she shall strike root like the forests of Lebanon. His shoots shall spread out; her beauty shall be like the olive tree, and his fragrance like that of Lebanon.…
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Windows in Walls
When we beautify our gaze, the grace of hidden beauty becomes our joy and our sanctuary. John O’Donohue I have been reflecting quite a bit in recent days about worship spaces. What is a “sanctuary” in these days when so many are worshiping virtually. One thing I have noticed is the conspicuous presence of windows…
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Professing Black Lives Matter
I grew up in a Lutheran church. We professed our faith by saying confessions and creeds. I am a Presbyterian now. We profess our faith through confessions and creeds too. I am also a professor. What do I profess as one who teaches in higher education? TO PROFESS The word “profess” comes from the Latin…
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Through a Glass, Dimly
COVID-19 Shaping Spiritual Communities COVID-19 dwells in the space between us. So we keep our distance. One nursing home in Cincinnati plans to use plexiglas to facilitate scheduled interactions for residents as the nation opens back up. Some people already visit their loved ones through windows. And Zoom meetings? How strange I have become to…