A Wide Embrace" by Lisle Gwynn Garrity | A Sanctified Art LLC | sanctifiedart.org Greetings Westwood Community, Last Friday night, as I was sharing a holy moment with Kaiser mental health care workers on strike--eight of whom had been fasting as a hunger strike all through the week--I heard testimony...
Greetings Westwood Community, Lately, I’ve been leaning hard on treasured wisdom from our Christian faith: keeping love at the center of everything, claiming belonging in divine power that’s stronger than even death, holding onto defiant hope in the face of so much that feels under threat....
Greetings Westwood Community, The last few weeks have been quite busy for me! Gabi, Isaiah and I recently returned from an amazing vacation in Ireland. For religious studies and theology nerds like myself, Ireland is a bit of a pilgrimage because the country is dotted with a multitude of...
Dear Westwood Community, Last month, our Church Council started a process aimed at helping clarify and articulate the vision and mission of our church; this will be a significant part of the work of the Council this year. Already after our first conversation, some common themes...
Dear Westwood Community, In many activist circles, people refer to “radicalizing moments.” It’s essentially a “come-to-Jesus” moment in the context of social justice, often a moment of witnessing something that is so deeply wrong and unjust that you realize you have to be a part of...
Dear Westwood Community, Last week, President Trump gave what was, for all intents and purposes, a nearly one hundred-minute state of the union speech. The speech included his usual pomp, half truths, and outright lies. I didn't watch the speech because I love myself too much...
Dear Westwood Community, Whether or not we are ready, Lent arrives, inviting us into a journey of transformation. This season invites us to be intentional about our devotional lives, drawing from the deep well of meaningful practices in our spiritual tradition. This year, we encourage you to...
Dear Westwood Community, Last Sunday, we celebrated baptisms in the Sanctuary. Baptism Sundays are some of my favorite Sundays. I love that our tradition of infant baptism gives us a courageous claim on grace--it reminds us that our belonging does not depend on our knowledge or...
Dear Westwood Community, I confess that, among a variety of emotions, I've been resentful lately: I am tired at having to explain what I believe about God in reaction to some really bad ideas, offered by powerful voices. It's not new: I've long been frustrated at the...
Dear Westwood Community, It's been just over a month since devastating wildfires ignited here in LA County. So much has changed in that time. My prayers continue to be with those whose lives and families are forever reshaped by this disaster--especially those who have lost homes,...