James Derkits

I have a friend who is in her 90's who told me the story of when she her boyfriend eloped because they were of different Christian denominations and their parents forbade them to be wed. While that is not the only sort of "religion and relationship" I'm thinking of, it does illustrate a poor parental relationship for religious reasons. We often blame our bad decisions on religion even quoting bits of scripture to back up our agenda.  More broadly than the romantic relationship is importance of all our relationships. They are perhaps the most religious thing we can experience. Of course within this realm is our relationship with God. I heard a Bishop speak to a group of clergy and he taught about the greatest commandments: "'Love the God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and ...love your neighbor as yourself.' There are countless ways to love your neighbor, and only one way to love God." He looked at us allowing to worry that he might cal...

One of the beautiful features of our complex brains is that they help us find meaning. We are meaning-making creatures. The meaning making emerges through us in so many ways: in our story telling, through our artwork, and the way we communicate.  We can look at an oak tree and say, “I know a friend who is strong like that oak tree.” No one will wonder if your friend is made of wood, or flesh… At night, I look up at the stars and know them to be angels around God’s heavenly throne. When I mentioned that in my sermon this morning, no one stopped on the way out to ask if I didn’t understand that stars are scattered millions of lightyears apart and are formed of gasses burning so hot the fusion immits radiation and light, and their gravity holds them in the tension of galaxies... Angels. Messengers of God. Stars are singing angels. Last week on my Advent retreat, we walked, or really, stumbled around a hill country ranch littered with rocks and cactus. It was a moonless night with no f...

Gazing across the archeological site that was once Corinth (as in, St. Pauls' letter to the Corinthians... ) and seeing where St. Paul had been bound and on trial for spreading the Good News of God to the Followers of the Way, I gained a new appreciation for the history of what we call today Christianity. I'm not an expert in church history, but I've studied it along my journey. Some lament the divisions amongst our churches, and there is certainly plenty to lament about our history and some of the reasons we are divided. While there are "divisions" I also appreciate the variety of expressions of church made possible by the separation into denominations, even the new denomination creatively called "Nondenominational."  My working understanding of the Holy Spirit is that she speaks through the diversity of people and cultures, and we come closer to understanding God's guidance the more voices we are able to hear. In this age of the Emerging Church (th...

One of my favorite living spiritual writers is fond of the expression, "Happiness is an inside job." Pondering that shines a light on the disquietude so many people express as they focus on, "what is wrong with the world." Richard Rohr points out to his listeners and readers that if we are looking "out there" for the world to make us happy, we will never be satisfied. Instead, happiness is something that comes from within when we choose to allow the love of Christ fill our hearts and respond accordingly.  When we are children, we look to our parents for direction, including the joy of this season. We might accept their love in the form of tangible gifts under the tree and delicious meals. People often feel an edge of disappointment as we come of age and the "magic" of Christmas fades. Sometimes the joy returns when we discover the more fulfilling action of giving gifts to others. That may come from wrapping gifts for  family members, even our own...

As we enjoy our less crowded streets and enjoy our fall festivals from the Wooden Boat Festival to the Turkey Trot and all those Santa visits, I find myself once again grateful to live in this community where as my son is learning, "You can't go two blocks without seeing someone you know." I mostly enjoy that reality of our small familiar community. I enjoy seeing faces I recognize on the beach, in the grocery store, at a concert at the Gaff, or on the porch of our church. On the other had there are times when I don't want social interaction; I value solitude from time to time to feed my soul.  Another shadow side of our living in our smaller community is we sometimes miss welcoming the newcomer. I include myself in that sin of omission and think about folks I saw as strangers whom I failed to connect with to make a friend. Being here in my 14th year, I think it's partially a survival instinct that kicks in; I tend to put on my "tourist blinders" when I...

Sometimes experts complain about knowing too much about their field of expertise when it becomes a burden. I've heard preachers complain that they have trouble listening to a sermon without analyzing how they might have done it differently. When medical professionals hear conversations among friends or family, they can't help but come up with a diagnosis and wonder about a treatment plan. It can become overwhelming.  The sort of "knowing too much" I'm referring to here, though, is a little different, but can also be overwhelming. Imagine, if you will, living on this island near Texas many years ago, and waiting for a weekly paper to arrive to find out some news from the rest of the world. Can we imagine further back? What if you learned a big weather event had happened only when you and your tribe traveled to trade with a neighboring tribe after a few days' journey on foot. We can only try to imagine what that might have been like because today we have this co...