Rev. Nate (he/him)
@rev-nate.bsky.social
Progressive pastor in the American Baptist tradition. MDiv from Berkeley School of Theology. 🏳️🌈🏳️⚧️ LGBTQ+ advocate. Contemplative. Cat lover. Indigo Girls superfan. Married to @jasonwoodz.bsky.social
The wonder of seeing snow for the first time ever 🙀😻
November 29, 2024 at 1:00 PM
The wonder of seeing snow for the first time ever 🙀😻
Current mood: cozy.
November 24, 2024 at 3:04 AM
Current mood: cozy.
Show me your pet and what they're named after 💖
George - So huggable and pettable and squeezable!
George - So huggable and pettable and squeezable!
November 22, 2024 at 7:41 PM
Show me your pet and what they're named after 💖
George - So huggable and pettable and squeezable!
George - So huggable and pettable and squeezable!
Jasper made the mistake of dipping into the news to see how bad things really seemed. “I can’t even…” he muttered, as he went back to bed.
November 16, 2024 at 1:53 AM
Jasper made the mistake of dipping into the news to see how bad things really seemed. “I can’t even…” he muttered, as he went back to bed.
If you've been following me, you know I have a special place of affection for contemplative Thomas Merton. This biographical article in The New Yorker is an excellent primer on who he was.
"Thomas Merton, the Monk Who Became a Prophet"
by Alan Jacobs
www.newyorker.com/books/under-...
"Thomas Merton, the Monk Who Became a Prophet"
by Alan Jacobs
www.newyorker.com/books/under-...
November 15, 2024 at 5:52 PM
If you've been following me, you know I have a special place of affection for contemplative Thomas Merton. This biographical article in The New Yorker is an excellent primer on who he was.
"Thomas Merton, the Monk Who Became a Prophet"
by Alan Jacobs
www.newyorker.com/books/under-...
"Thomas Merton, the Monk Who Became a Prophet"
by Alan Jacobs
www.newyorker.com/books/under-...
Timeline cleanse: beautiful fall colors that I didn't get to share earlier. We recently moved and this was the view from our new backyard two weeks ago.
November 11, 2024 at 8:49 PM
Timeline cleanse: beautiful fall colors that I didn't get to share earlier. We recently moved and this was the view from our new backyard two weeks ago.
Spent this hot day at the cool seashore between Pacifica and Half Moon Bay. There are not many prettier scenes than a day at the rugged Pacific coast.
July 12, 2024 at 3:04 AM
Spent this hot day at the cool seashore between Pacifica and Half Moon Bay. There are not many prettier scenes than a day at the rugged Pacific coast.
A quiet sunset on a Saturday evening...
...sets the stage for a thankful Sunday morning.
...sets the stage for a thankful Sunday morning.
July 7, 2024 at 4:04 PM
A quiet sunset on a Saturday evening...
...sets the stage for a thankful Sunday morning.
...sets the stage for a thankful Sunday morning.
Cecil, my favorite peacock 🦚
July 5, 2024 at 9:17 PM
Cecil, my favorite peacock 🦚
I come to the garden alone.
June 23, 2024 at 6:20 AM
I come to the garden alone.
Cecil the peacock has returned to hang out with us during his molting season 🦚❤️
June 19, 2024 at 3:54 PM
Cecil the peacock has returned to hang out with us during his molting season 🦚❤️
Desert bloom... for one day only 🌵🌼
June 6, 2024 at 6:18 PM
Desert bloom... for one day only 🌵🌼
No context neighborhood peacock.
November 14, 2023 at 11:40 PM
No context neighborhood peacock.
Let there be a place
somewhere
in which you can breathe
naturally
quietly
and not have to take your breath in
continuous
short
gasps.
A place
where your mind can be idle
forget its concerns
descend into silence
and worship God in secret.
There can be no contemplation
where there is no secret.
November 10, 2023 at 3:40 AM
Let there be a place
somewhere
in which you can breathe
naturally
quietly
and not have to take your breath in
continuous
short
gasps.
A place
where your mind can be idle
forget its concerns
descend into silence
and worship God in secret.
There can be no contemplation
where there is no secret.
How far
have I to go
to find You
in Whom
I have already arrived!
~ from The Seven Storey Mountain,
Thomas Merton
November 2, 2023 at 12:17 AM
How far
have I to go
to find You
in Whom
I have already arrived!
~ from The Seven Storey Mountain,
Thomas Merton
We are already one.
But we imagine
that we are not.
And what we have to recover
is our original unity.
~ from the Asian Journal
of Thomas Merton
October 27, 2023 at 11:37 PM
We are already one.
But we imagine
that we are not.
And what we have to recover
is our original unity.
~ from the Asian Journal
of Thomas Merton
Love
comes out of God
and gathers us to God
in order to pour itself back into God
through all of us
and bring us all back to God
on the tide of God's own infinite mercy
So we all become
doors and windows
through which
God shines back
into God's own house
~ from New Seeds of Contemplation
October 27, 2023 at 2:03 AM
Love
comes out of God
and gathers us to God
in order to pour itself back into God
through all of us
and bring us all back to God
on the tide of God's own infinite mercy
So we all become
doors and windows
through which
God shines back
into God's own house
~ from New Seeds of Contemplation
Up...
with the revolution of tulips!
Tulips are not important,
they are essential.
Yes, sing.
Love and Peace,
silence,
movement of planets.
~ from The Courage for Truth,
Thomas Merton
October 26, 2023 at 1:35 AM
Up...
with the revolution of tulips!
Tulips are not important,
they are essential.
Yes, sing.
Love and Peace,
silence,
movement of planets.
~ from The Courage for Truth,
Thomas Merton
Sunrise
is an event
that calls forth
solemn music
in the very depths
of one's nature
as if one's whole being
had to attune itself
to the cosmos
and praise God for the new day
Praise God in the name of
all the creatures that
ever were or ever will be.
~ from Confessions of a Guilty Bystander
is an event
that calls forth
solemn music
in the very depths
of one's nature
as if one's whole being
had to attune itself
to the cosmos
and praise God for the new day
Praise God in the name of
all the creatures that
ever were or ever will be.
~ from Confessions of a Guilty Bystander
October 25, 2023 at 4:53 PM
Sunrise
is an event
that calls forth
solemn music
in the very depths
of one's nature
as if one's whole being
had to attune itself
to the cosmos
and praise God for the new day
Praise God in the name of
all the creatures that
ever were or ever will be.
~ from Confessions of a Guilty Bystander
is an event
that calls forth
solemn music
in the very depths
of one's nature
as if one's whole being
had to attune itself
to the cosmos
and praise God for the new day
Praise God in the name of
all the creatures that
ever were or ever will be.
~ from Confessions of a Guilty Bystander
O flaming Heart
unseen and unimagined
in this wilderness
You, You alone are real
and here I found You
here will I love and praise You
until my white devoted bones
long bleached and polished
by the winds of this Sahara
RELIVE at Your command
rise and unfold
the flowers
of their everlasting spring
unseen and unimagined
in this wilderness
You, You alone are real
and here I found You
here will I love and praise You
until my white devoted bones
long bleached and polished
by the winds of this Sahara
RELIVE at Your command
rise and unfold
the flowers
of their everlasting spring
October 24, 2023 at 4:29 AM
O flaming Heart
unseen and unimagined
in this wilderness
You, You alone are real
and here I found You
here will I love and praise You
until my white devoted bones
long bleached and polished
by the winds of this Sahara
RELIVE at Your command
rise and unfold
the flowers
of their everlasting spring
unseen and unimagined
in this wilderness
You, You alone are real
and here I found You
here will I love and praise You
until my white devoted bones
long bleached and polished
by the winds of this Sahara
RELIVE at Your command
rise and unfold
the flowers
of their everlasting spring
I loved being introduced to James Baldwin’s writing in seminary. Glad to see that (Southern Baptist affiliated) Baylor University is introducing its students to such a great perspective.
religionnews.com/2023/10/12/i...
religionnews.com/2023/10/12/i...
October 22, 2023 at 2:41 AM
I loved being introduced to James Baldwin’s writing in seminary. Glad to see that (Southern Baptist affiliated) Baylor University is introducing its students to such a great perspective.
religionnews.com/2023/10/12/i...
religionnews.com/2023/10/12/i...
But look:
The valleys shine with promises,
and every burning morning is
a prophecy of Christ
Come to raise and vindicate
Even our sorry flesh.
~ from "The Trappist Cemetery—Gethsemani"
The Collected Poems of Thomas Merton
The valleys shine with promises,
and every burning morning is
a prophecy of Christ
Come to raise and vindicate
Even our sorry flesh.
~ from "The Trappist Cemetery—Gethsemani"
The Collected Poems of Thomas Merton
October 21, 2023 at 3:26 PM
But look:
The valleys shine with promises,
and every burning morning is
a prophecy of Christ
Come to raise and vindicate
Even our sorry flesh.
~ from "The Trappist Cemetery—Gethsemani"
The Collected Poems of Thomas Merton
The valleys shine with promises,
and every burning morning is
a prophecy of Christ
Come to raise and vindicate
Even our sorry flesh.
~ from "The Trappist Cemetery—Gethsemani"
The Collected Poems of Thomas Merton
The real job is to
lay the groundwork
for a deep change of heart
on the part of the
whole nation
so that one day
it can really go through
the *metanoia*
we need for a peaceful world.
~ from The Hidden Ground of Love,
Thomas Merton
lay the groundwork
for a deep change of heart
on the part of the
whole nation
so that one day
it can really go through
the *metanoia*
we need for a peaceful world.
~ from The Hidden Ground of Love,
Thomas Merton
October 18, 2023 at 9:41 PM
The real job is to
lay the groundwork
for a deep change of heart
on the part of the
whole nation
so that one day
it can really go through
the *metanoia*
we need for a peaceful world.
~ from The Hidden Ground of Love,
Thomas Merton
lay the groundwork
for a deep change of heart
on the part of the
whole nation
so that one day
it can really go through
the *metanoia*
we need for a peaceful world.
~ from The Hidden Ground of Love,
Thomas Merton
This is what it means
to seek God perfectly:
To have a will
that is always ready…
to fold back
within itself
and draw all the
powers of the soul
down from its
deepest center
to rest in
silent expectancy
for the coming of God.
to seek God perfectly:
To have a will
that is always ready…
to fold back
within itself
and draw all the
powers of the soul
down from its
deepest center
to rest in
silent expectancy
for the coming of God.
October 8, 2023 at 1:22 AM
This is what it means
to seek God perfectly:
To have a will
that is always ready…
to fold back
within itself
and draw all the
powers of the soul
down from its
deepest center
to rest in
silent expectancy
for the coming of God.
to seek God perfectly:
To have a will
that is always ready…
to fold back
within itself
and draw all the
powers of the soul
down from its
deepest center
to rest in
silent expectancy
for the coming of God.