Author: Ken Sehested

Few know the federal regulations for handling and displaying Old Glory—and frequently are in violation of those laws

Ken Sehested

Invocation. “But your flag decal won't get you / Into Heaven any more. / They're already overcrowded / From your dirty little war. / Now Jesus don't like killin' / No matter what the reason's for, / And your flag decal won't get you / Into Heaven any more.” —John Prine, “Your Flag Decal Won’t Get You Into Heaven Any More”

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Ken Sehested

Who'd thought that just prior to commemorating our overthrow of a king, the US Supreme Court would reinstate monarchy?

That might be an exaggeration, but only a teeny-weeny one. With today’s Supreme Court ruling, presidents of the US have “at a minimum, a presumptive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts.”

Invocation. “I was blinded by the devil, / Born already ruined, / Stone-cold dead / As I stepped out of the womb. / By His grace I have been touched, / By His word I have been healed, / By His hand I've been delivered, / By His spirit I've been sealed.” —“Saved,” Bob Dylan

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Methodism’s founder John Wesley, an Anglican priest, was born on 28 June 1703.

Ken Sehested

Invocation. “Schindler's List.” —violin solo by Braimah Kanneh-Mason

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by Ken Sehested

The lectionary psalm for Pentecost Sunday (104:24-34, 35b) omits the wrathful premise (35a) of the final verse, which reads: “Let sinners be consumed from the earth, and let the wicked be no more.” Only then does the latter half of the verse return to proprietous devotion: “Bless the Lord, O my soul. Praise the Lord!”

I’m guessing the lectioners omitted that appeal for fear of inciting unruly discontent within the temple of pious obeisance and prudent civility.

Ken Sehested

Preface

As I write, the fifth day of Eastertide (which began on Easter eve ending 50 days later on Pentecost Sunday) draws close. As does the moment in 1968 when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated while standing just outside his Lorraine Hotel’s second floor room in Memphis, Tennessee.

It was 6:01 p.m. CST. The fourth of April. Barely a half-century ago. He was 39 years old.

Ken Sehested

Invocation. “Rainbow ‘Round My Shoulder (traditional chain gang song),” One Voice Mixed Chorus in remembrance of Bayard Rustin, the least-known-most-important civil rights leader.

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Giving your heart to Jesus will make you odd

Ken Sehested

Invocation. “Give Me a Clean Heart.” —James Cleveland & the Southern California Community Choir

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Ken Sehested

Introduction: On the proximity of the International Women’s Day (8 March 2024) and the cusp of Ramadan (10 March 2024 sundown, a month-long ascetically devotional observance commemorating the initial revelation to the Prophet Muhammad in 610 CE, later named the Noble Qur’an)

Little is known about the 8^th century CE Islamic poet and mystic often named simply as Rabia of Basri (a city/region in what is now southern Iraq). But her stature as one of the first saints in Islam is unquestioned, especially among Muslims who identify with the more mystical tradition of Sufism. The quote below which addresses (without naming) Allah (the Arabic word for God) as “eternal beauty” is a striking feature of mystical traditions of all sorts:

“If I adore You out of fear of hell, burn me in hell. / If I adore You out of desire for paradise, lock me out of paradise. / But if I adore You alone, do not deny to me Your eternal beauty.”