Posts

What a Pastor Looks Like

“Well, I guess this is what pastors look like nowadays.” I have served in ministry for thirteen years now, and comments like these still strike me silent. I’m not sure what to say that isn’t assuming, snarky, or defensive, so I often just politely nod.  The most recent time such a comment was made was […]

Can You Ask Them If They’re Okay With a Woman?

“Can you ask them if they’re okay with a woman?” It was late morning on the Friday after Christmas.  It was one of what feels like only a small handful of days each year when I didn’t have anything really pressing on my to-do list, so I came into the church that morning determined to […]

My Friend, the Mortician

I met Rob Pecht, owner of Bordentown Home for Funerals, in a hearse. At least that’s how I remember it. Our first conversation on a long drive to a cemetery centered around my being relatively new to the area and our mutual love of the HBO show Six Feet Under. I vaguely remembering asking him, […]

The Nearness of the Clouds

Just before Christmas, I preached at the funeral of a beloved church and community member named Wendy. She struggled with cancer for many, many years—far more years than I knew her. We became especially close in the last two years of her life: years which were also marked with my mom’s cancer diagnosis and death. […]