Pastor’s Ponderings

After Disagreements Over LGBT Clergy, U.S. Methodists Move Closer To Split NPR: All Things Considered, June 26, 2019  

As I shared on Sunday, Christian hospitality takes many forms. This week, it takes the form of opening up the church buildings to 100 plus children and many teenage and adult volunteers for Vacation Bible School. From 9 to noon each day, we have busying signing songs,...

Tips for Living Jean Vanier died last month. He was a Catholic philosopher, humanitarian and author of many books. His father was the Canadian ambassador to France and Vanier served as an officer in the Royal Navy in WW II. His greatest contribution to the world came...

Update on Recent Annual Conference Session Annual Conference is a time when clergy and lay members from each of the 600 plus United Methodist congregations in our region gather for worship and business.  This was the first time our Annual Conference was in session...

I love Vacation Bible School.  What is the most hectic week of the year at the church? It’s not Holy Week. It’s the week of Vacation Bible School! The buildings are full of energy and excitement as over a hundred children and many youth and adults come together for...

Next week the Baltimore Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church will be meeting for the 235th annual conference session. Our conference is the oldest in the United Methodist connection, going back to the Christmas Conference of 1784. The Baltimore...

Changes in Youth Ministry Martha Moked is the chairperson of the Staff Parish Relations Committee. On Sunday, she shared the following announcement at the morning services. I asked her if we might repeat this announcement here: The Staff Parish Relations Committee is...

Every time we go through Holy Week, there is a difficulty that comes up. In addition to the sorrow and sacrifice of Jesus, there is also a part of the reading from the Gospel of John that is problematic. The author of the Gospel regularly refers to “the Jews” as the...

Thank you, youth! The youth lead us in a great service of worship on Sunday. Through the music, the Bible readings and their own words, they held up a radical kind of faith for all of us to see. They spoke from their own experience at school, home, and in the church....

Calvary Weekday School to Have a New Director Louis Walmsley will be retiring as the director of the Calvary Weekday School at the end of June.  She has served as the director since 2015. I am pleased to announce that after an extensive search, a new director has been...