The following are the words of the Rt. Rev. Craig Loya, Bishop of the Diocese of Minnesota in the Episcopal Church. Originally given at a Prayer Vigil on13 January 2026, and subsequently posted in full on his Facebook page. They are posted here without editing or comment, except to say “Amen”.

I used to read this parable and think about hearts. Rocky hearts. Thorny hearts. Good soil hearts. Then I started gardening. Now I think about the actual soil. How I’ve planted seeds in ground I didn’t prep and watched them struggle. How weeds have choked out plants I neglected. How the good harvests came from soil I took time to nurture. Jesus used farming metaphors because his audience understood them. They lived it. They knew that good fruit doesn’t come from shortcuts. We’ve lost that connection. But when you work the land, the parables come alive. The Kingdom of God makes more sense with dirt under your nails.

Update and apology on going m.i.a after posting my 1st note. I started a stream, posted 1 note and then didn’t come back. At least that’s how it looked.

Many of the "weird" passages in the Bible (stories of giants, divine beings, cosmic conflict, and the supernatural) tend to be ignored or flattened into allegory because they don't fit neatly into the modern, rationalistic worldview most people inherit. Since Western culture has been shaped by Enlightenment thinking, anything that sounds too supernatural is often treated as symbolic to make it more palatable. On top of that, church traditions sometimes emphasize theological systems that prefer tidy categories, encouraging readers to smooth out passages that are hard to explain. As a result, instead of letting the text speak in its own ancient context, where a divine council, spiritual beings, and cosmic geography were normal, modern interpreters often reinterpret or dismiss these verses to avoid discomfort. Because these supernatural elements aren't taught clearly or taken seriously, our understanding of the Bible ends up incomplete and sometimes distorted.

On the day we celebrate Harriet Bedell, a deaconess of the Episcopal Church (TEC), we remember a woman whose quiet courage opened space for dignity, healing, and hope. From Alaska to the Florida Everglades, Bedell lived as though every person bore the image of God. The story of her life invites us to consider where we, too, are being called to walk with faith and trust. This reflection, the first in our 2026 series Stories That Open Space: Women Who Walked Ahead, explores Bedell’s legacy, spiritual practices shaped by her witness, and the gentle beginning of a year that asks us to listen, to show up, and to make room for holy possibility.

In 2026, we are going to spend a year walking with women who widened the world. Each month, Stories That Open the Way will follow women who made space for courage, hope and holy possibility, as well as exploring spiritual practices inspired by their stories that steady the soul, and ground us in faith. It’s a year for women walking their own path, for becoming, and for making space for the story you’re living now.

Today (5 January) the calendar names three Desert Mothers: Sarah, Theodora, and Syncletica. They lived on the edges of fourth‑ and fifth‑century Christian life, practicing prayer, hospitality, and stubborn attention in quiet places. For busy people, their witness is practical: small, reliable habits that protect interior life and make generosity possible.

Moses wasn't a missionary; he was a refugee. The standard Sunday school narrative suggests a prince of Egypt, steeped in the polytheism of the Nile, fled to a "backward" desert and brought the light of the One True God to nomadic sheep-herders. Text, and the archaeology, shows the exact opposite. Moses didn’t go to the desert to teach; he went to learn. He didn't bring God to the Midianites; the Midianites introduced him to the God of the Mountain.

This is an excellent bible verse because it offers direction in the way the Lord works. It directs the lost and heals the abandoned. To give hope and not superiority.

This verse is very important to friendship because a friend is one who is consistent in their time. One who does not lunge out in haste.

Meet the heart behind Rooted — where faith and homesteading grow together. An introduction to this space and an invitation to dig deeper.

What makes the "born-again" concept difficult for some Christians to accept or understand? Then Eoh Mil attempts to answer the question, but his response leads people astray. He says, “What most so-called Christians have erroneously accepted in their minds is the doctrine that all new covenanted believers must be born again, accepting all English bibles ERRONEOUS interpreting and translation of John 3:3. The Greek word used in John 3:3 - “anathon” means ABOVE and not AGAIN, which is another Greek word “palin.” Is this error translating “anathon” (which means above) to “again” of NO IMPORTANCE or NOT SIGNIFICANT?” He goes on and on; I think he is an atheist.

There is a profound simplicity in the act of kneeling. In our fast-paced, digital world, the image of someone stopping their "walk" to simply talk to the divine feels both radical and deeply human. This poem captures that exact moment of transition—from the weight of a lonely journey to the lightness of being heard.

The Democrat Party has little affinity with Father God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. Max Burns in the Hills' "Where does faith fit in for today’s Democratic Party?" wrote, "Engaging with these tough issues did more than just solidify my own understanding of my faith. It taught me that there are tens of millions of faith-filled people in this country who defy the stereotypes foisted onto them by both the left and the right. Democrats can win those voters back — but first they’ll need to rediscover that Christianity isn’t a dirty word." Democrats have profaned God and the Holy Word by comparing their lives and their living to Jesus' persecution and crucifixion on the cross. Hey, Democrats, Jesus wants his crucifixion back!

Trusting in the Lord is a very important part of faith. There should always be some systems. Flexing a faith muscle is an important task for overall health.

The question that a lot of people ask what is the point of living, and why are we here people seek solitude through religion or some through science. But this writer is also asking these questions like is god or are creator real are we just an accident we have to think about it. Is the bible man made

Over the holidays the diocesan EfM (Education for Ministry) Book Club is reading CHURCH TOMORROW? by Stephanie Spellers. This book is widely based on interviews with “Nones” and “Dones” regarding their faith journey. In preparation for reading and discussing Spellers’ book, I decided to interview myself using her four questions. Here are my answers.

Welcome to Faith in Focus, which has a double meaning-- keeping a focus on my strengthening faith in the Lord as well as my focus behind the lens while creating art through photography and behind the computer while writing stories.

The Church Year and Calendar play significant roles in every liturgical faith tradition. In this essay, we take a closer look at how the Calendar and the seasons of the church year are experienced within the Episcopal Church and through the Book of Common Prayer.

"Una Caro (One Flesh): In Praise of Monogamy" is the title of a 40-page publication that the Vatican's Dicastery for the Doctrine of Faith issued. It outlines the Catholic Church's tenet that marriage is a singular and exclusive union between a man and a woman. Although the text mentions that the Church has focused more on the indissolubility of marriage than on the unity of the partners, it nevertheless emphasizes that marriage demands both. Unity is defined as the mutual belonging of two individuals that is unshareable with anybody else. Through Scripture, Church teachings, and cultural allusions, such as Indian traditions and the poetry of Pablo Neruda and Walt Whitman, the paper examines the notion of unity in marriage. In order to promote monogamous relationships, Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández said that the document was written in response to demands from African bishops serving in communities where polygamy is prevalent.