Communion in Chaos in the UMC
The coronavirus pandemic has shuttered United Methodist Churches throughout much of the United States. Over the past week Methodist pastors have made many difficult decisions. More are still to come.
Treasures for the Partially-Connected: Offline Ideas for an Online Forum
By Paul D. Wheatley
I begin this reflection on the nature of connection to the life of the church in a socially-distanced and virtually hyper-connected time in era of COVID-19 with a story of my own physical... Read More...
Podcast: Just Add Quarantine: Help for Instant Homeschoolers
Only a few days ago, millions of working parents became homeschool teachers — instantly. Writer and PhD candidate in ethics Abigail Woolley Cutter interviews Susan Wise Bauer, well-known educator and historian, on how caretakers can quickly pull together metho... Read More...
Unintended Blessings of the Pandemic
Many of us, in addition to much prayer (and, to be honest, not a little worry), have started to think about some of the potential benefits of this experience of pandemic.
The Annunciation and the “Impossible”
By Jonathan Mitchican
The angel Gabriel came to Mary and told her a series of impossible-seeming things. The first and most obvious is the thing we’re celebrating today. He announced to Mary that she would c... Read More...
Worship in a Time of Pandemic (Part 2)
By Matthew S. C. Olver
Part one of this essay considered questions of administering Holy Communion during the pandemic as well as the question of whether or not to hold public worship. Today I consider the responsibilities of clergy and the faithful and off... Read More...
Worship in a Time of Pandemic (Part 1)
Many bishops and dioceses have sent all manner of instructions, suggestions, and directives, and parish priests are in a difficult situation as they try and figure out how to approach this pastoral challenge, especially when it comes to worship.
Working from Home: A Rule of Life
Now, as we are hunkered down due to COVID-19, they can be a good reminder of our own need, as human creatures, to create meaningful order and to be ordered, to refuse to return to the chaos from which creation was originally pulled and shaped.