Reflecting on the heartbreak that is growth and change...

On San Jose and Columbine, and Sandy Hook, and Parkland, and Aurora, and Las Vegas, and Orlando, Atlanta, Chicago, Indy, Portland, Youngstown, Fairfield Township, Minneapolis, Jersey City, Oakland, Augusta... 

Recorded shortly after the May 2021 shooting at the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority.

Mass shootings in the United States

I'm not a fan of labels. Am I a Christian? It's complicated. Who's asking? And why do you want to know? What does it say about me if I use that label or don't in your eyes? Does it really matter?...

Welcome back! It's Season 2 of The Gospel According to Joe.

It's a strange time in our world. And so it is a strange Easter, but maybe that can bring some clarity...

"How did we get to the place where some of us feel like the words that we speak don’t mean what they used to mean? Where resurrection seems so natural and real as a symbol... but where it just feels sort of wrong within a list of doctrines and especially as a prescribed “belief” that we are sometimes explicitly compelled to assent to?"

"I’ve been kind of sad lately. I would call it a case of the Februaries…" 

"...before anything can change we have to grieve. I wonder about that, as I see so many people anxious and worried over so many things. So many people ready to spiral into dismay or to lash out at the so-called “other.” Is it really that we all need to grieve our losses, our communal losses together? But where? And how? We aren’t leaving space for that to happen, nor offering the solidarity it demands."

There's a little more to say about this "do not be afraid" thing. So this is just a slightly deeper dive, a closer look, a kind of meta reflection on the reflection...

Holiday spirit wears off fast, but maybe it doesn't have to...

"... I need a change right now. I need something different, something that doesn’t create walls or barriers or push anyone back into a corner, anxious and alone, or anxiously tribal and ready to fight the so-called “other.” I want to hear the good news of great joy that takes all that away..."

So why bother with all this talk of finding the good and beautiful amidst pain and suffering  or about trust in goodness? Where does that even come from? Maybe it's all Pollyanna BS... Or maybe it's about Christmas magic and skiing in the woods...  

Oh, and Merry Christmas!

Back to basics here, way back...

So this is fairly emotional... Nothing like jumping into the deep end here.