James Derkits

It is not only because of the problems that would arise with our IRS non-profit and tax status that discussions around the church tend to avoid politics, but that, too, is an important reason. We also avoid "political" conversation because the spiritual conversation, or our spiritual lives, necessarily supersedes particular politics; in other words, a healthy spiritual life should shape our response to the needs of the world around us, and that response can sometimes take the form of one political action or another, no matter our particular political leanings. It is my opinion that real reason we avoid conversation around politics in the church is that (in the best scenario) churches tend to be a mixture of people from different political leanings, and the conversation between people of divergent views has become so broken down that any mention of issues from the political arena quickly become heated. This, I believe, is shaped by our quest for entertainment on television: ...

A couple of weeks ago, we baptized Wes down at Caldwell Pier in Port Aransas. It was actually my second baptism in the Gulf, at that site. The first was a vacationer, and we were just there with his family. This time it was our family: someone from Trinity by the Sea.  Before the first baptism, I called up the Baptist Pastor in town to ask him how it worked. We just didn't get much experience with "living water" baptisms in seminary. Pastor William gave me some advice, and I took it. This time I had a bit of experience, and I had a relationship with Wes. We gathered there on the beach for the first part of the service, then Wes and I waded out together for the actual dunking (the Greek word for dunking is where we get the word baptism .) Wes had been for a run right past that very spot earlier that day. I had been surfing there a day or so before. What we both learned from our previous activities was that there were a ton of jellyfish in the water! I don...

Giving Thanks I only know how to say, “Thank you” in a handful of languages: American Sign, Spanish, German, English, and Greek. I think it is probably one of the most important phrases to learn in a language. The reason I know how to say thank you in Greek is not because I have traveled to Greece. I know how to say thank you in Greek because of my tradition’s practice of hanging on to Latin and/or Greek words for special actions and things. I have mixed feelings about that, to be honest. Sometimes hanging on to those ancient words can alienate people. If someone were on a quest to find God, would she look in a ciborium? (I digress.) Instead of abandoning traditional language, part of my work as a priest is to decode, or translate, when appropriate. The central "code word" for me is "Eucharist." It's what we do every Sunday morning when we gather for worship, including sharing bread and wine in Holy Communion. Eucharist means, "Thanksgiving." Centr...

Halloween is just around the corner, so we carved pumpkins at our youth gatherings this week. A friend found a lesson to go along with the carving. It's a simple lesson about being like these pumpkins: opening up to God, how God cleanses us, and most importantly, that the light of Christ in us shines out from us. The Eve of All Saints' Day (All Hallows Eve) is going to bring all sorts of fun and creativity. That's a good way to allow God's light to shine. Create like the creator. It's a holiday that brings out a playfulness in us. We dress up and play tricks on each other, and even get a treat. Celebrate your created-ness, and your creativity. Be playful, and as you do, shine your light. We all need to see light!

This is one of those little praying places. A spot I've returned to again and again over the years. When I returned to this spot on the Guadalupe River, at Camp Capers, I remembered some of my prayers from that summer in 1998 when I was on staff there. That summer I brought a site-specific outdoor education curriculum (it had been an independent study toward my B.S. in Geography Education from Southwest Texas, San Marcos.) That curriculum helped me weasel my way onto the summer staff, since I had never gone to Camp Capers as a camper. I made it on, and was allowed to take each cabin for a nature hike and do some outdoor education. I enjoyed my time with the campers, and I think that's the first summer I tried to grow a full beard. I figured it went with the outdoor theme. That summer some of the other staff started calling me "Nature Boy." It was also a dark time for me. I was trying to understand my calling to the priesthood, seeking to trust that calling, and ...

If you're reading this from outside Texas (South Texas, even) this may seem a bit ridiculous, or just a bit late. Oh well. The weather just cooled off here. I'm actually wearing long sleeves! The cool weather makes me want to sit around a camp fire and play music. Yesterday, when I was sweating just walking to my truck, I didn't want to sit around a camp fire and play music. That little temperature drop changed everything. Last time I felt this cool (it's 66 degrees right now) was in July...I was not in Texas then, but in the Smokey Mountains of North Carolina. We were on vacation, and I spent  the mornings reading and writing on a screened in porch. I even sat next to a camp fire and played music. The weather is right. It's shifted my attention. It makes me want to be creative. The world seems to be conspiring, like in the beginning when that wind blew across the face of the waters. I bet it was a cool breeze, dropping the temperature of the planet just eno...

Yesterday I had the good pleasure of visiting a hospital not because someone was ill, but because someone was just beginning! Michael Andrew Rembisz was born yesterday morning to Mark and Anne, and Alex is a proud older brother. This comes just after the birth of Fr. Bill and Judith Calhoun's granddaughter, Olivia. Bill snapped an amazing picture of Olivia grasping her mother's finger. It was only after he took the picture, that he noticed the positioning of mom's ring, providing the perfect caption: "FAITH." Faith, Belief, and Trust all come from the same Greek word "pistis."  The Faith-Belief-Trust of an infant in her mother must be one of the purest. For a newborn, what else is there? Last week, I also got to see a picture of another grandchild, the Schlechten's 4 month old, Annibelle (in the knit cap and pink jammies.) All these babies. All this life. In a season of thanksgiving, it's an easy time to give thanks for these...