By Denise, 1990s “God is a righteous judge who expresses his wrath every day. If he does not relent he will sharpen his sword, he will bend and straighten his bow. He has prepared deadly weapons he makes ready his flaming arrows.” Psalm 7 I used to take great offense at Old Testament readings that […]
Category: Denise’s writing – Faith and prayers
Denise’s writing for devotional publications, and other reflections on her faith
Justice: Is it Un-American?
Denise ~1992 Resurrection Farm newsletter Meghan McKenna, in her tapes on justice in the Bible redefines it for us. God’s justice is that everyone gets what they deserve. And everyone, being a child of God, a creation of the Almighty, a beloved of the Creator, deserves life, a full life, a life of being valued […]
Common Ground
Denise Autumn 1990 Resurrection Farm newsletter The great truths of Christianity are mostly always paradoxes. “To lose your life is to save it.” “Even though he dies, he will life forever.” “Blessed are they who mourn.” Jesus was the God-man, the victim-savior, the died-risen. To be a follower of Christ is to be able to […]
Autumn Leaves
Denise December 1988 St. John Catholic Church newsletter It seems to me that the leaves were particularly beautiful this year, a glorious burst of bright colors. I thought, how typical of our surprising God that he gives to the trees their greatest beauty and radiance right before they die for the winter. It usually seems […]
Questions for God when I see him
Denise, 2016 How come this one dies and that one survives? How come the hurricane hits that place and not the other one? Why do some people do terrible things and congratulate themselves after, And other people suffer lifelong guilt over a hurtful word? And why, in the name of all that is holy, the […]
Resistance
Denise, Resurrection Farm Newsletter, 1994 Is there a link between doing direct service for individuals and taking a public stand in the name of Justice? Is our well being linked to that of the poor, the marginalized and despised? I think so. Our own freedom to be ourselves, to follow the Gospel according to our […]
God’s Underground
Denise, 1998 He loves justice and right; of the kindness of the Lord the earth is full. Psalm 33:5 Devastated by the loss of a job I loved, I approached the bureaucracy of the state unemployment office with fear and shame. The job counselor, an older man, listened to my story with patience and compassion, […]
Call to Witness
If we could read the sacred history of our “enemies”, we should find in each man and woman’s life, sorrow and suffering enough to disarm hostility. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Denise, 1995 Those of us who know God as a merciful, compassionate and loving presence, who follow a Christ we know as non-violent, and all-embracing, […]
Miracle of the Monkees
Denise, June 2004 It was my first year as a single mother and life was pretty desperate. I had a minimum wage job and two pre-teen children. Every month was a race to get to payday before the food ran out. There was no money for extras. The girls loved the Monkees, watching the reruns […]
Christianity in the United States, 2016
Denise, December 2016 Christianity is backwards and brainwashed in the United States thanks to the special relationship it forged with the Republican party in the early 80s. The history of how that partnership developed is well-known. Here’s the rub. God makes it abundantly clear through the Prophets of the Hebrew Scriptures, through Jesus and through […]