Tag: Kevin Newell

Our Redemption

This is a tough Sunday for me to preach.  On the one hand, it’s been a big week for me, personally. I graduated on Thursday, my husband and I move on Tuesday, and this is the last time I am privileged to address you in my current capacity. I feel the need to mention and…

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The Magic of Easter

There we stood, the parish priest, the janitor, and me. The sink in the newly-renovated parish kitchen was emitting a gentle jet of water, straight up and out of the base of the faucet, which gracefully landed—thankfully—in the sink. The three of us stood in silence for a while, gaping, amazed that a brand-new sink…

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Perseverance

I was listening to the radio the other day, and caught an interview with two NASA scientists. It turns out, the new Mars rover Perseverance has landed on the Red Planet. The host interviewing the scientists promised not to go overboard with her own speculations, but asked the question that we all wonder about: what would it…

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Speak

He told me, “I have built a life that is perfectly balanced. I’m like a trained seal. I’m standing on a rubber ball, with a tray on my flipper, stacked with porcelain plates and cups. If I make a move in any direction, it’ll all come tumbling down.” * * * My family moved to…

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Our Gospel (A Children’s Homily)

In our first reading today, Paul says something really bold. He’s talking about the good news of Jesus, and he says “according to my gospel.” My gospel. I couldn’t believe it, because usually we say it’s Jesus’ gospel, or God’s gospel, but Paul said “my gospel.” I found that surprising.  “Gospel” is an old word that means “good…

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Our Gospel

My family has been on a bit of an emotional rollercoaster the past couple of weeks. There was a pregnancy that became compromised, and it was a scary thing as the mother was put on bedrest in the hospital. There was eventually an emergency C-section, and all the things that could have gone wrong somehow didn’t. When…

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In the Midst of Life

It was about nine o’clock in the evening when my beeper sounded. I was on call at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, where I’m currently completing my Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE), and this was the first time in two months that I’d received a message on the “pastoral care” pager, rather than the frequently-used “trauma” pager. Dialing…

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