March 2025 – Mike Angell

Prodigal Country

When it feels like the world has wandered far away from what you recognize, remember. Jesus tells a story of a universe that is not ordered for retribution, but for love. When you feel lost, don’t let go of that wild mercy.

How do we Belong?

One of the most difficult questions I face as a priest seems like it should be one of the simplest. How do I join the church? I can give a technical answer. But the question of membership is a trickier than paperwork. Taking a page from Buddhism: true belonging is a process of vulnerability and taking refuge.

Ash Wednesday in a Different Sort of Lent

I can’t cancel Lent. I can’t tell you we’re going to opt out. A rector simply doesn’t have that much authority. What I can say, is that I think this year it may be helpful to approach Lent differently.

Transfiguration

Today we have two strange stories about glowing faces. Moses and Jesus both shine so brightly they are said to be transfigured. Jesus and Moses don’t change into different leaders with different faces and different values. Rather these are stories about human beings who suddenly are **more** visibly, more recognizably who they are.