Posted by Rev. David on May 17, 2012
I have received multiple requests for copies of the homily that I presented at the UUA Pacific Southwest District Assembly this year, and instead of continuing to email it out, I thought I would publish it here at Celestial Lands. The task was to reflect on what “Beyond Borders” meant to me and my ministry”. [...]
Categories: Military, Military Chaplaincy, Ministry, UU Movement, Veterans
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Tags: beloved community, chaplain, liberal faith, Military, military bridgebuilder program, military chaplain, Ministry, radical hospitality, responsibility, soldier, unitairan, Unitarian, Unitarian Universalism, Unitarian Universalist, Universalism, Universalist, UU, UU Military, UU Principles, UUA, war, welcoming
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5 comments
Posted by Rev. David on November 11, 2011
When I reflect on the few years after “coming home” from Bosnia, the years before some friends and a veteran counselor helped me to “get my head back on straight”, I realize that I had more than my share of luck. I was lucky to be in a university that had a large and experienced [...]
Categories: Military, Turnings, Veterans
| Tags: activism, Bosnia, chaplain, Chrys Parker, combat stress reaction, David Pyle, faith, History, homeless veteran, homelessness, hunkered in the bunker, justice, Military, military chaplain, Prophetic Voice, ptsd, relationship, responsibility, veteran, Veteran's Day, war
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Posted by Rev. David on November 7, 2011
My dear friend, Chaplain the Rev. Seanan Holland visited us this weekend, and as usual he and I got into one of our hours-long rolling discussions about Life, the Universe, and Everything. This time in particular, we were rolling around the origin and nature of religion, the fundamental flaw in Friedman Economics, a mathematical definition [...]
Categories: Faith, God, History, liberal faith
| Tags: Christian, faith, fear, fear of death, fear of humans, fear of nature, fear of people, fear of uncertainity, four great fears, fundamentalism, great fear, History, Jesus, liberal, liberal faith, liberalism, meaning of religion, politics, relationship, religion, religious fear, responsibility, theology, types of religion, war
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Posted by Rev. David on October 31, 2011
This week, I received an email from an organization I track, known as the Military Religious Freedom Foundation. It is an organization that advocates both legally and in the media, for the protection of the Free Exercise of Religion in the military, often with more passion than restraint. Yet, over the last few years that [...]
Categories: Evangelism, Military, Military Chaplaincy, Ministry, Religious Freedom
| Tags: air force chaplain, are military chaplains constitutional, army chapalin, bad chapalin award, bad chaplain, chaplain, chaplain corps, constituion, constitutionality, Evangelism, faith, katkoff v. marsh, Military, military chaplain, military religious freedom, Military Religious Freedom Foundation, Ministry, MRFF, navy chaplain, religion, Religious Freedom, responsibility, soldier, UU Military, war
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Posted by Rev. David on September 20, 2011
It may not be something that is in the minds of most of the public, but today, September 20th, has been a date on my mind for these last two months. It is a day long hoped for, long worked for, and dreamed of by many. It is a day when thousands of military service [...]
Categories: liberal faith, Military, Ministry, Patriotism, politics, Social Engagement
| Tags: activism, chaplain, DADT, David Pyle, Don't Ask, don't harass, don't pursue, Don't Tell, gay, gay military, GLB, GLBT activist, justice, LGB, lgbt, liberal, liberalism, Military, military chaplain, Ministry, Obama, Outserve, politics, responsibility, September 20th, soldier, UU Military, UU Principles, war
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Posted by Rev. David on July 11, 2011
I was determined to give myself a gift at the end of 5 years of seminary, church internship, military chaplain basic training, hospital internship and hospice residency… and I did not know what I wanted. Could I be craving a vacation on a beach in the Caribbean? Well, always… but I doubt I will ever [...]
Categories: Inspiration, Military, Turnings
| Tags: av's, Bosnia, chaplain, colorado avalanche, David Pyle, David Weber, gift, hockey, honor, Honor Harrington, Honorverse, internship, Jim Baen, Military, military chaplain, Ministry, red wings, religion, residency, sci fi, science fiction, seminary, soldier, Spiritual Practice, theology, Unitarian, Unitarian Universalism, Unitarian Universalist, Universalism, Universalist, UU, UU Military, UU Principles, war
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Posted by Rev. David on March 23, 2011
For all our power in the world, the United States is still a very young nation. Unlike the modern states in Europe, in Asia, and in the Middle East, we do not stand upon thousands of years of history in the location where our nation is. Because of our youth as a nation, and a [...]
Categories: History, Military, Patriotism, politics, Turnings
| Tags: america as gods chosen people, America as new rome, American empire, American Exceptionalism, American superiority, David Pyle, divine right, Doctrine of Exceptionalism, Exceptionalism, growing up, History, justice, liberal, Libya, Military, politics, responsibility, superpower, U.S. superiority, war
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Posted by Rev. David on February 21, 2011
What gives mass protests their power? Is it the will and voice of the people? Is it the power of the ideals that motivate them? Is it the amount to which they adopt civil, peaceful, resistance methods? Is it their hope for the future? Or when they represent a broad spectrum of the populace? Or [...]
Categories: History, politics, Prophetic Voice, Social Engagement
| Tags: activism, civil disobediance, Egypt protests, election, Gov. Walker, hope, justice, liberal, liberalism, mass protest, Middle East, peaceful protest, politics, Prophetic Voice, protest, protesters, protestors, revolution, Tunisia, violent protest, war, Wisconsin
| 7 comments
Posted by Rev. David on February 12, 2011
Hidden amidst all the celebration and joy these last 24 hours in Egypt, and in those who support democratic movements around the world, is a piece that seems to have been lost… and that is that, contrary to the Egyptian Constitution, President Mubarak ceded power not to the leader of Parliament, but to the Supreme [...]
Categories: History, Military, Patriotism, politics
| Tags: activism, autocracy, democracy, Egypt, Egypt military, Egypt revolution, government, History, justice, merit autocracy, Military, military dictatorship, military discipline, military government, military officer, military rule, militayr coup, Mubarak, relationship, war
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Posted by Rev. David on February 2, 2011
The next person who even hints to me that, because I am a reservist I am not a “real” military chaplain, I might just scream at them. Fair warning. I’ve been somewhat defensive about this for awhile, and quite frankly I’ve moved beyond defensive to feeling darned angry. I’m not just angry on my own [...]
Categories: Military, Military Chaplaincy, Ministry, Patriotism, politics, Prophetic Voice
| Tags: active duty, Army Chaplain, army national guard, army reserve, chaplain, Chaplain Pyle, David Pyle, guardsman, guardsmen, justice, Military, military chaplain, mission, national guard, navy reserve, Prophetic Voice, reserve, reservist, responsibility, soldier, war
| 5 comments
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