Spiritual but not religious (poem)

There are many people who say
that they are spiritual but not religious.
Perhaps they are this way
because there are so many
other people
who are
religious but not spiritual.

These are people who
go to church
but they don’t realize that
they are the Church.

They go into a building
but they don’t realize
that the Church
isn’t that.
It is them.

They believe that their
entire obligation to God
is to go sit passively
in a building
and listen
to someone else talk
for an hour
once a week.

This is not what Jesus meant
when he died for us
to create his Church.
When he said
“upon this rock I will build my Church”
to Peter,
he’s talking to a human being.
He didn’t mean a building.
He meant that we are supposed
to serve God
with every moment
of our days.

This does not mean
sitting in a church building
and singing hymns
and praying for people.
This means actually working.
This means actually helping people.

Many people have
left the Church
because the church
has left Jesus.
Many people don’t go to church
because they don’t find
Jesus
there.

Sealed (poem)

What would you do
if I told you
that the same oil
used to mark you
at your baptism
is the same
used to anoint
priests, bishops, kings, emperors?

You, in being marked
as Christ’s own forever
have a share in his kingship,
a part in his priesthood.

You, yes, you.

It was not for nothing
that you were born.
You are anointed,
consecrated to God.

Royal. Holy.

This honor is not limited to those
in the royal family.
Look at David.
A poor shepherd boy,
the youngest in the family.
Look at Moses,
raised in a stranger’s house.
They were nobodies until God called.

God called you too,
marked you as God’s own at your baptism.
Sealed. Sanctified. Saved.

What would you do now,
knowing this?

Why are you giving away your power,
your calling, to others?
Why do you follow priests and pastors, bishops, popes?
Your one teacher is God,
and God only.

Jesus says that we will do more and greater than he did –
more and greater than
restoring sight to the blind,
making the deaf hear,
making the lame walk,
making the dead come alive.

Us.

Imagine the healing of the world
at our hands,
the power of God
coursing through us.

It is here, now.
Anyone who tells you otherwise,
who keeps this to themselves,
is misleading you.

Easter eggs at the public library

I spy with my little eye, something that begins with E.

3

Eggs.

4

Easter eggs, to be specific.

2

At a public library.

1

The idea of separation of church and state means in part that the state cannot do anything to hinder people’s practice of their faith. But it also means that the state should not promote a particular faith either.

For a government-run entity to have any display of any one faith tradition implicitly excludes all others.

Where was the Purim festival for the Jewish families? How about an observance of Holi for the Hindu families? Both of these celebrations happened this week, but there was no notice of them.

How about understanding that there are people who do not practice any faith tradition at all? How about understanding that there are people who have been psychologically harmed by Christians?

Government-run organizations get their money from tax dollars from every citizen. That means that it should represent all of them, not just a few. If they are going to have religious displays, then they must have all of them. Ideally, they would not have any displays at all.