Dear Friends,

Happy Valentine’s Day! Today we celebrate the commercialization of love, complete with cheesy heart-shaped helium balloons, pink chocolates, and overpriced dinner reservations. I must admit, I’ve never been a fan of Valentine’s Day ever since my crush rejected my heart-decorated card in the fourth grade. However, Esbé reminded me that we actually value love and should take every opportunity to acknowledge it. Valentine’s Day serves as a moment to pause and reflect on love. As much as supermarkets want to sell us love, we are inherently people who seek to deeply love and to be deeply loved. And if I’m being honest, I am a sucker for a good love story…

Dear Friends,

Last week, on Saturday, we had our long-anticipated Consistory Away Day. This gathering is organized by the Consistory to reflect on the year ahead and to discern what needs to be done. Since this was my first Away Day, I found myself pondering a fundamental question: Who is the ERC, and what are we called to do? While these questions may seem obvious, it is crucial for us to hold onto our core identity and to understand what we believe God is doing through our community. Otherwise, we risk being swept away by political uncertainties, public opinion, and the fleeting trends of our time.

During the Away Day, we created a timeline mapping out what God…

Dear Friends,

This Sunday is all about rhythm. Paul aims to remind the fractured community in Corinth that love is the essential rhythm of life to which all are invited to dance. He uses beautiful imagery to convey his message: without love, he says, we are like noisy gongs or clanging cymbals. As a parent of a toddler experimenting with pots and pans to develop his musical abilities, I can confidently say that Paul was right—there are few sounds more jarring than untimed cymbals.

Paul’s imagery reminded me of the origins of the word “djembe”. It is believed that this specific type of African drum originated with the Mandinke tribe in what is now known as Mali in the 12th century. Used for storytelling, rituals, and later, entertainment, the drum plays a central role in community life. Some say that the name “djembe” comes from the Bamana words “anke djé, anke bé,” which mean “gather” and “everyone.” Over time, this phrase evolved into “jebebara,” and eventually became “jembe.” However, the meaning has remained constant: when you hear the drum, you know it signifies “everyone, gather together.”

Isn’t this what love does? It serves as the underlying rhythm inviting us towards togetherness. When we hear it played or…

Dear friends,

This week, prayer made headlines—not only because it coincided with the ironically timed Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, but also due to two significant public discussions about prayer that followed poignant prayers surrounding the inauguration of the now US president, Donald Trump. The first prayer was offered by Rev. Franklin Graham during the inauguration on Monday, and the second was delivered by the Right Rev. Mariann Budde at a service attended by the president on Tuesday, held at the National Cathedral in Washington.

Both of these prayers reminded me of the South African book titled When Prayer Makes News, which highlights the controversy that arose on June 16, 1985, during the grim days of apartheid. Back then, a call for public prayer to end the unjust rule of apartheid sparked significant debate. Many churches rejected this call, and numerous leading theologians sided with the government against the prayer initiative. Allan Boesak summarized the reasoning behind their desire to pray during that time: “If the rulers will not hear the cries of the people or change their ways, if they continue to prevent justice, let us pray them out of existence. God will hear our cry... We do not believe in the power of violence, but we do believe in the power of prayer.”

This moment raised numerous questions and criticisms, particularly from the ruling elite: Who is the church? Who speaks for the church? What constitutes a church leader? With whose voice were they speaking?

Despite this, many who were involved in the struggle against apartheid would later assert that it was, in fact, the power of prayer that helped shift power dynamics in South Africa. However, prayer can also become intertwined with our own misunderstandings. The nineteenth-century German philosopher Ludwig Feuerbach stated, “The ultimate essence of religion is revealed by the simplest act of religion—prayer. Not the prayer before and after meals, the ritual of animal egoism, but the prayer pregnant with sorrow, the prayer of disconsolate love, the prayer that expresses the power that crushes man to the ground, the prayer that begins in despair and ends in rapture.” Theologian John De Gruchy reminds us that Feuerbach did not believe in the existence of God….

Dear Friends,

On Thursday evening at our Taizé service, I was once again reminded of the importance of Christian unity through the prayers prepared by our Roman Catholic brothers and sisters at the Begijnhofkapel: 

“God our Father, accept our praise and thanksgiving for what unites Christians in the confession of and witness to Jesus the Lord.

Hasten the hour when all churches will recognize each other in the one communion you willed and for which your Son prayed to you in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Hear us, you who live and reign now and forever.

Amen.”

The service marked the beginning of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity—a week in which, as the World Council of Churches states, we are “praying for togetherness to a God of togetherness.” This year…..

Dear Friends

As the new year progresses, Ive noticed through my conversations this week that the pace of life has picked up significantly. This might be a good moment to take a break, make yourself a cup of tea, and enjoy some momentary sunshine. 

This week, I was inspired by the PhD defence of an old friend at Vrije Universiteit. He wrote about the language of violence and war, comparing the imagery in the Book of Lamentations with contemporary Glavda accounts of violence. He discovered that, although these contexts are vastly different, people facing…

Dear Friends,

New King. New Kingdom. New Life. Happy New Year!

As we enter a new year, we are presented with the opportunity to reset, reevaluate, and restart. For some, 2024 may have been a wonderful year that you wish could last a bit longer. For others, it might be time to embrace fresh beginnings and let go of the past. This year can bring new habits, dreams, goals, and aspirations. However, some may approach a new year with scepticism, having experienced enough New Year celebrations to know that a new year does not always bring real change.

Wherever you find yourself on this spectrum, one thing is certain: time waits for no one. Research indicates that…

Dear Friends,

In Charles Dickens’ story, A Christmas Carol, the Ghost of Christmas Past takes Scrooge to Mr. Fezziwig’s home for an annual Christmas ball. This scene exemplifies everything that Christmas represents, or has come to represent, through music, dancing, feasting, drinking, decoration, and celebration. Just by looking at the famous illustration by John Leech, one can sense the joy of Christmas, along with the warmth, togetherness, and opulence we associate with this time of year. 

However, A Christmas Carol was not the only Christmas story that Dickens published.  In a recent article, the BBC reminded readers…

Dear Friends

I am, in many ways, the product of three Marys. This is our family name, and so my mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother all bear the name Mary. My brother and I used to joke that we only knew women in our family—women who were divorced or widowed. They were by far the greatest influence in my life.

The advantage of growing up with these three Marys was that, despite Protestant apprehensions, God’s grace was mediated to me through Mary. Today, I am grateful that I never got to know the meek, mild, and silenced Mary often portrayed throughout history. The Marys I knew spoke up (as in Luke 1:46-55), pondered often (as in Luke 1:29, 2:29, and  2:51), and consented to be channels of God’s grace (as in Luke 1:38). They embodied, in many ways, the triptych often attributed to their namesake: disciple, prophet, and mother….

The phrase “Slechte mensen zingen niet” has perplexed me since I first heard it in an Afrikaans song. The full version of the old Dutch proverb is: “Vrees niet waar weerklinkt het lied, slechte mensen zingen niet,” which translates to, “Fear not, where the song resounds, evil people do not sing.”

As we enter a season of singing—filled with carols and joyous celebrations—it’s worth re-evaluating this old saying, especially amidst the ongoing uncertainty of global conflicts.The prophet Amos presents a different perspective on this matter: “Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them; nor will I even look at the offerings of your well-fed animals. Take away from me the noise of your songs; I will not listen to the melody of your harps. But let justice roll down like water and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”

From Amos’ perspective, singing can also serve to mask pain, injustice, and suffering. He warns against singing if it becomes a cover-up. As theologian Dirkie Smith reminds us, history shows that evil people do indeed sing. In Elmina, Ghana…