Emmaus Blog

Thursday, February 19, 2026: anything can be solved at a table with a good meal, along with a slice of apple pie the way you like it warm from the oven From Calling Humanity to the Table by Brenda Bishop In the old ways, power was never loud. It did not scream or demand allegiance. Power lived in hands that knew how to feed others. Power lived where fire was tended and ingredients were honored. My grandmother once said that anything could be solved at a table with a good meal, along with a slice of apple pie the way you like it warm from the oven smelling of cinnamon and vanilla, hearty foods. Not erased. Not forgiven. But softened enough to be faced. Hunger sharpens fear. Nourishment lowers defenses. When people eat, they remember themselves. So, the table becomes sacred space.  The pot becomes a cauldron. The recipe becomes a spell passed down, not written. Butter Bean Curry is made for winter nights when the world feels brittle and split at the seams. Creamy coconut milk holds ...

Wednesday, February 16, 2026:  Lent: a lengthening; a leaning and a stretching. A pull towards a better kind of light. A Blessing by  John O'Donohue: Blessed be the longing that brought you here and that quickens your soul with wonder. May you have the courage to befriend your eternal longing. May you enjoy the critical and creative companionship of the question  "Who am I?" and may it brighten your longing. May a secret Providence guide your thought and shelter your feeling. May your mind inhabit your life with the same sureness with which your body belongs to the world. May the sense of something absent enlarge your life. May your soul be as free as the ever-new waves of the sea. May you succumb to the danger of growth. May you live in the neighborhood of wonder. May you belong to love with wildness of Dance. May you know that you are ever embraced in the kind circle of God.   Meditation on Lent and Light: I’m observing Lent for the first time in twenty years, tent...

 Sunday, February 15, 2026, Wisdom from the Outside:  “Go and sit in your cell, and your cell will teach you everything.”    CAC Dean of Faculty Carmen Acevedo Butcher takes inspiration from the desert Christians of the fourth century. These men and women fled to the deserts of Northern Africa and elsewhere to practice their faith apart from the Christianity of empire.   Around 313 CE and the Edict of Milan, Christianity became yoked with empire. [1] A lot of people who wanted to have a genuine experience of living out the promises of Christ left the empire, so to speak. They went out into the deserts of Egypt, Palestine, Syria and Arabia. There were women and men, rich and poor. Some of them had been working in royal courts, and some had been murderers (see Black Moses below). Some were people of high esteem in society while others were viewed by society as scoundrels. The Christians who went to the desert sought an interior martyrdom. That’s how they thou...

Saturday, February 14, 2026: Please Calendar This Upcoming event &  RSVP:  Becoming More Fully Alive: The Spiritual Practice of Aging Well: With Parker Palmer Our final video in the series presented by the Education Committee is the last of the of the 4-part series: It will be shown, followed by a lively and thoughtful discussion:   Wednesday, March 11th at 1:00PM Location: Nancy and Bob’s: at 2404 Marilyn Circle, Petaluma, CA 94954  Please RSVP to Nancy at (707) 773-0904 Or Via Email at rnmcfar1938@yahoo.com What if aging isn't about decline-but about becoming more fully alive? In this session, beloved teacher Parker Palmer invites us to reimagine aging as a season of depth, resilience, and possibility. Drawing from his lived experience and signature gift for storytelling, Parker explores how to stand in "the gap" between the world as it is and the world as it could be-without turning away from the sorrow or joy of being human. Together, we'll reflect on what it...

Tuesday, February 10, 2026: “The just person is a light in darkness” (cf. Ps 112:4) Frequently, a remarkably trustworthy, honest, and dependable person invites the characterization as being “the salt of the earth.” Such an individual has staying power in the community and is the one whom others turn to when the going gets rough. Jesus also uses the metaphor of salt, along with light, to say something about the nature of his followers. When he describes them as “salt” and also as “the light of the world,” he is not telling his disciples something they must become.  Jesus is informing them and us that, as his disciples, this is what they and we already are.   Like salt’s capacity to enhance food and bring out its full flavor, those who have encountered Jesus and live according to his teachings act to enhance others’ lives and bring about the best in those individuals.  Additionally, salt in the ancient world had always functioned as a preservative, ensuring the freshness of...

Sunday, February 8, 2026:  Join us  today  for our Sunday Celebration with community greeting at 1:45 followed by liturgy at 2:00PM In person at:  Christ Church United Methodist 1717 Yulupa Avenue, Santa Rosa, California 95405 Or Join us on Zoom:  Join Zoom Meeting using this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/5193158573?omn=89689065098 Passcode: 1234 Or open your browser and go to https://zoom.us/join When prompted to Join the Meeting enter: Meeting ID: 519 315 8573 Passcode: 1234 To use your phone:  One tap mobile +16699006833,,5193158573# US (San Jose) +16694449171,,5193158573# US Here's the liturgy for Tomorrow by Dan Vrooman and Dan Lambert Welcome: (Dan Lambert) Our theme for today’s liturgy revolves around living gratefully to become a blessing to others. The apostle Paul and Jesus speak of a light that shall break forth from the darkness of oppression, of the wisdom of the cross, and of a salt that can lose its taste. They each express awareness of con...