Religion

On Oct. 7, 1885, a 16-year-old German barber named Friedrich boarded a ship for New York.  Fleeing the military service then required in Germany, he became one of more than 1 million German immigrants who flooded these shores between 1880 and 1885.  Once he had...

At the beginning of this year, I am reminded once again of the connection among all people. I heard just a couple of days ago that former President Jimmy Carter believed that there was a spark of the divine in all of us. I...

Prayer takes on different forms in different religious expressions. Prayers are chanted, spoken or sung. Prayers are spoken aloud or uttered more silently.  One of the notable expressions of prayer in Christianity is the prayer Jesus taught his disciples when they asked, “Lord, teach us to...

With Christmas decorations sometimes going up before Thanksgiving, and even Halloween, it may seem unnecessary to prolong Christmas. However, Catholics and many other Christian traditions can extend Christmas into the second week of January.   We do so because the overwhelming and joyful reality of the...

At the time of writing, we are just days away from another presidential election here in the U.S.  Depending on your viewpoint, you may be excited, disappointed or frustrated at the results of the election.  Yet no matter who has won, the response of Christians...

The Jewish High Holidays begin at sundown Wednesday, Oct. 2, with the onset of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. It continues until sundown Oct. 12, with the conclusion of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.  While we value all of our senses, we have...

Everyone in South County is invited to Faith of our Neighbors, an educational program presented by the Interfaith CommUNITY of South County (ICSC) and the Interfaith Clergy Alliance.  In this series, the focus is on the ways different faiths acknowledge and celebrate lifecycles, including birth,...

My friend Allie is wise, creative and caring. She is a truly loving soul, open to all she meets. She spends her days sharing her light with others. As a result, she has many friends. Among them is one I’ll call “Maggie.” The two...

This time of year, many of us think about going back to school, for ourselves or for our children or grandchildren. There are all sorts of questions: Who is taking children to school? Do we have the correct supplies? Who is making the lunches?...

“Lord, you have apportioned to your people the manifold gifts of the Spirit: Grant amid the changes of the world that your Church may abide, and be strengthened in ministry through continuous outpouring of your gifts; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and...