“‘Courage’ derives from Latin word ‘cor,’ which means ‘heart.’ When we consider the full Palm Sunday picture, these are frightful times. So much is happening that is both hopeful and terrifying. Tensions and tears are plentiful. But the Word will remind us to ‘take heart.’ Again and again, we take heart amid the drama. The script is unsettling, but we have not yet reached ‘The End.’”
— Rev. T. Denise Anderson
Commentary on John 12:20-33 for @sanctifiedart
“If you hold a newborn in your arms,All at once you will understandThe crook of your elbowAnd the cup of your palmAs never before—Ordinary curves of the bodyTransformed into a resting space.You were designed for love.”— Excerpt from “Hold” by Rev. Sarah AreFrom the Again & Again poetry collection by @sanctifiedart
“Gracious God, Scripture says that you are my keeper, which floods me with images of cradling hands softly catching me. I imagine I could slip through your fingers if I wanted to—the freedom is there. However, as long as I want to be here, you have me. What a comforting idea that is. I think…
“In this image, I have represented a woman spinning up out of a whirlpool, her face shining up at the sun. She rises above the ruins of ancient cities. Background motion spins up with the energy of the woman who represents the Holy Spirit, who represents the oppressed breaking free from the yoke, breaking ‘forth…
“In this image, God’s hands hold various animals and plant life, and are surrounded by the bands of the rainbow, shielding Creation from the swirling waters of chaotic destruction. I chose not to image humanity because the hands are at once God’s and ours. We must respond to God’s covenant by protecting and keeping the…
“Change, even when welcomed, means death. I once had the unenviable task of pastoring a church through dissolution. We realized that change would happen either with us or to us. We could die to some things so that we could live to others, or we could hold onto what is and die with it. Only…
“If there is one truth in my lifeThat unfolds again and again,It is the need to listen. For again and again, I will try, with good intentions,To act and walk with love.But again and again, I will make mistakes.Again and again, I will say the wrong thing.Again and again, they will call me Peter,And again…
