Tabitha

“If Jacob had been a little less envious, if Esau had been a little less boorish, this epochal turn of things, this wholly unimpressive moment, would never have entered sacred history. This is an instance of the fact that the covenant is not contingent upon human virtue, even human intention. It is sustained by the will of God, which is so strong

“I don’t believe in proofs of God. Proofs are human things based in the logic of materiality. But it seems to me what we know as beauty must be the expression of God’s very nature. Unlike the arts we make, which are always open to interpretation, this sort of loveliness is purified of anything like thought. It is what it is—and isn’t that the name

“This is the epitome of the stories that seem far too ugly to be in the Bible. This is not trickery of treachery at its most abysmal. It should be said, first of all, that the Hebrew Bible does not romanticize the history of the people of create it, to whom it is addressed, and who have preserved it faithfully over millennia. It is as if America

“Trust in the value of making things, not just in the value of the things you’ve made. Try to avoid being overly invested in the outcome. Let go of that as much as you can.

“Remember: You’re not for everyone. Your work isn’t for everyone. If you’ve made something no one would object to, it’s probably something no one will feel passionate about

Hans Boersma writes that radically open communion invites the devil to the Table, but we with our own hubris are enough to cause problems. After all, wasn’t it pride that led Lucifer to fall from Heaven in the first place?

“For the growing good of the world is partly dependent on unhistoric acts; and that things are not so ill with you and me as they might have been, is half owing to the number who lived faithfully a hidden life, and rest in unvisited tombs." (George Eliot, Middlemarch)