This past Sunday, we talked about money. I thought it would be awkward, but, as I should have expected, everyone was generous and kind. If anyone is considering whether to come to Church in the Cliff and wondering what kind of place it is, I’m proud to say that’s it: generous and kind. The reason we were talking about …
Floodwater Utopia: No Place for Beloved Community
Matthew 25 gives us an image of the Gospel: a person shows up at your door in need and you serve that need. It sounds simple, but it requires you to look directly into the eyes of the other and find compassion. It would seem, in the wake of tragedies like Hurricane Harvey, that it has become on earth as …
In Which Scott Keeps Digging
During the conversation on Sunday, my friend and mentor, Jann Aldredge-Clanton, raised an important point. She said that she enjoyed my sermon on the birth of Moses and the courageous actions of the women who made his existence possible, and she thought that it was a message that needed to be given to a wider audience. However, she was concerned …
Nevertheless, She(s) Resisted
Our Scripture today brings us, perhaps, one of the most well-known stories in the Bible. It’s not just this story, but the broader story of which this is just the beginning. The story of the Exodus is the defining narrative of the Jewish people. It is a story of liberation and hope. A story of trials and tribulations. It is …
The Good Samaritan
Our friend and scholar Lindsey Mosher Trozzo lead worship this past weekend, as Scott was on vacation. She was kind enough to provide a summary of the conversation for this week’s blog. Scott was sad to miss it and heard that Lindsey “killed it.” Thank you, Lindsey! Sunday we looked at the Story of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10. …
Creation Care for Christians: Wrapping Up
by Lizbet Palmer This past Sunday, we finished out our series on Creation Care by talking about the events of this past weekend, and the dangers of “othering” both people and the environment. We lamented, and then we talked about why we have hope. I have hope, because I see so many people who are angry at injustice and are …
Creation Care for Christians: Climate Change
Last week, we were coping with despair in the face of immense problems. This week I made the turn toward anger. The chapter we read in Patricia K. Tull’s Inhabiting Eden focused on the prophet Jeremiah. The background of the scene is that the Babylonians are poised to siege Jerusalem. Jeremiah is going around telling everyone of the danger. He …
Creation Care for Christians: Fairness
This week we talked about environmental fairness, but we discovered that this is not a simple calculation. In theory, according to Scripture, there are the bad people that covet everything and the good people who are impoverished and oppressed. This is certainly the broad scope of the problem. There are certainly the rich and the powerful who think they have …
Creation Care for Christians: Animals
In Chapter 6 of Inhabiting Eden, Patricia Tull enumerates the terrible ways we treat animals, especially in Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs). I encourage you to read this list if you have the stomach for it. If you are easily traumatized by the suffering of animals, I recommend skipping that part of the chapter. You probably know it all, anyway. …
Creation Care or Christians: Food
Y’all know I love food. I was at home in New Orleans where the primary lunch conversation was what we would have for dinner. Our conversation on Sunday was a little different. It was largely about restriction, what we won’t eat and why. That’s a good conversation to have, especially when the environment is our focus. We talked about the …