Category: Pastor Paul’s Ponderings and Letters

It’s the Season of Journeying through the Shadows to the Light.

We have entered Holy Week, the most sacred stretch of our liturgical year. It is a journey that mirrors our own lives: a movement from the intimacy of the table to the shadows of the cross, and finally, to the breathtaking joy of the empty tomb. Our mission of sharing God’s Unconditional Love and Justice… Continue reading It’s the Season of Journeying through the Shadows to the Light.

A Pastoral Response to the War with Iran

In a world reeling from the escalation of conflict with Iran, our mission as a community of faith has never been more vital. We ground ourselves in the radical pursuit of God’s unconditional love, justice, and extravagant welcome—values that stand in stark opposition to the drums of war beating across the globe. While political rhetoric… Continue reading A Pastoral Response to the War with Iran

A Season for Resurrection: Social Justice in Bloom

As spring starts to give way to the heat of April, we find ourselves entering the most vibrant season of our faith. At The Church of the Palms, we believe that Easter is more than a single day on the calendar; it is a movement. In the words of Ecclesiastes, “For every matter there is… Continue reading A Season for Resurrection: Social Justice in Bloom

It is a Season for Reclaiming Our Priorities

At The Palms, we ground ourselves in a mission of unconditional love, justice, and extravagant welcome. But as we look at the landscape of our nation today, we must ask: are our collective priorities reflecting those values? If Jesus walked through the United States today, I suspect his message would be startlingly direct. Guided by the… Continue reading It is a Season for Reclaiming Our Priorities

The time for silent prayer has passed.

In the quiet of our sanctuary, we often seek peace—but the world outside calls us to a different kind of holy work. As we look toward the Middle East, many of us feel a deep, unsettling grief. For decades, but especially recently, U.S. involvement in the region has mirrored a pattern of devastation rather than… Continue reading The time for silent prayer has passed.

This is a Call for Moral Clarity and Peace

As we look at the world today, the contrast between our nation’s priorities and the needs of its people is stark. We find our resources poured into global military expansion while, at home, the divide between the ultra-wealthy and the vulnerable grows into a canyon. While a few invest in luxury and longevity, the middle… Continue reading This is a Call for Moral Clarity and Peace

How can we turn our Lenten disciplines into tools for advocacy?

As the sunshine of February transitions to March, we find ourselves in the middle of another Lenten journey. This year, our congregational theme—“A Season for Every Matter”—takes on a profound weight. If we look at the world around us, it feels as though we are living through a season of “breaking down” and “weeping.” In… Continue reading How can we turn our Lenten disciplines into tools for advocacy?

Let’s turn our Lenten contemplation into courageous advocacy

Lent invites us into the season of sacred pause—not for the sake of hollow piety or performative sacrifice, but for deep, honest self-reflection. In the quiet of this season, we are called to look inward and identify the personal and systemic barriers that keep us from loving our neighbors fully. In our progressive faith, the… Continue reading Let’s turn our Lenten contemplation into courageous advocacy

I wrote a poem at this start to Lent.

Holy One, sometimes life just seems to have too many times;    too many times of violence and dying;    too many demands and problems;    too many broken dreams and lives;    too many wars and fights and arguments;    too many moments of greed andsounds of people devouring each other             like vultures on a dead carcass;    too many mountains of unpaid bills      … Continue reading I wrote a poem at this start to Lent.