#episcopalian

[janepaulina]

"Atom-bombed Mary", also known as Our Lady of Nagasaki.

It is a part of a wooden statue of Mother Mary that survived the atomic bombing of Nagasaki in 1945. It was found in the ruins of Urakami Cathedral.

[abs0luteb4stard]

“Let me make one final plea, Mr. President. Millions have put their trust in you, and as you told the nation yesterday, you have felt the providential hand of a loving God. In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now. There are gay, lesbian, and transgender children in Democratic, Republican, and independent families — some who fear for their lives. The people who pick our crops and clean our office buildings, who labor in poultry farms and meatpacking plants, who wash the dishes after we eat in restaurants and work the night shifts in hospitals — they may not be citizens or have the proper documentation, but the vast majority of immigrants are not criminals. They pay taxes and are good neighbors. They are faithful members of our churches and mosques, synagogues, gurdwara, and temples. I ask you to have mercy, Mr. President, on those in our communities whose children fear their parents will be taken away, and that you help those who are fleeing war zones and persecution in their own lands to find compassion and welcome here. Our God teaches us that we are to be merciful to the stranger, for we were all once strangers in this land. May God grant us the strength and courage to honor the dignity of every human being, to speak the truth to one another in love, and walk humbly with each other and our God, for the good of all people — the good of all people in this nation and the world. Amen.”

[loveslop]

hi everybody. I don't often make religious posts since I've experienced a lot of toxicity when I've tried to in the past, but I really feel the need to do so now. Forgive the use of a burner account. My grandfather, Marty, has been experiencing kidney failure for several years now and has been on dialysis daily to stay alive. He is deeply in need of a kidney donation, but has been unable to find a donor and has been waiting. Recently, he fell and fractured a vertebra in his back, which has caused further complications.

Marty is a deeply intelligent man. He was an aeronautical engineer before his retirement and is also incredibly knowledgeable about the natural world around him. He is loving and kind and a very very important figure in my life and the lives of my family. When I've been at my lowest, I've always been able to find peace and tranquility by his side. I'm asking, please, if every religious person who sees this could pray for him and his health. I can't lose him now. Regardless of your denomination or even of your faith, if you could please pray for him, I would be eternally grateful.

I apologize for the spam in the tags, but I want this post to be seen by as many people as possible.

[mariam-en-christo]

One of the best things I've done for my faith is learn about the nuances in the original meaning of "Kyrie, eleison." It's almost always translated as "Lord, have mercy," and while this made sense in the way the word "mercy" was used centuries ago, it doesn't really line up with the contemporary English meaning. Today, "have mercy" feels pretty solely like pleading to a judge to be pardoned for a crime and can make the church feel like a courtroom rather than a hospital for sinners. However, the original English (and Greek) meaning was far broader and quite far from this legalistic meaning. "Eleos" was the Greek translation in the Septuagint for the Hebrew word "חֶסֶד," or Chesed, which refers to a steadfast love grounded in the covenant. Furthermore, while we now know they aren't actually etymologically related, "eleos" sounds a lot like "elaion" (olive oil, used for light and medicine), and the Church Fathers (like St. John Chrysostom) associated the two deeply. When early Christians prayed "Kyrie, eleison," what they meant was something closer to: "Lord, pour out Your healing grace unto me and soothe me." They weren't so much pleading for a mitigation of punishment as they were pleading for God to hold to His Covenant with His people, which entails the treatment of sins and comfort through distress. So mentally, when I hear or say it, I translate it internally to "Lord, heal us," or "Lord, be gracious." This really helps me genuinely mean it and put my heart into it when I say "Kyrie, eleison" during the Divine Liturgy, or another liturgy.

[bieshu]

just a few queer christian/catholic themed brat album pics for yall to enjoy. i made all of these so if theres any mistakes lmk thats on me lol

[autumnsgambit]

Being a progressive Christian can be pretty damn irritating because you’ll hear people that you otherwise politically and morally align with try to make a point against specifically right-wing Christians, but instead of doing that, they just insult Christianity in general.

I understand why. I understand that the main group of people (at least in the U.S.) bringing Christian imagery into their political rhetoric is right-wing fundamentalists who use their religion as an excuse to harm marginalized communities and strip away women’s rights. It’s sad but it’s true. So when Christianity comes up in a political context, the natural inclination is to associate Christianity with the right, especially if you aren’t Christian yourself.

“Hate” towards Christians (again, I’m talking specifically about the U.S.) is a lot like misandry in some ways. It’s not, and probably never will be, a systemic force of oppression. They’re both also mainly spewed by people who A) don’t fully mean it and are just making an ill-articulated point or B) do mean it, and are assholes for that, but have understandable reasons that point to a larger systemic issue in which they’re ultimately more of a victim than the people they’re hating on.

But the thing about hating on Christianity, as opposed to Christian nationalism and fascism, isn’t that it’s just mean or annoying to those of us who are both politically progressive and devoutly Christian. It’s that it plays into the hands of right-wing Christian nationalists. Their rhetoric depends entirely on framing their social and political adversaries as not just that, but enemies of the Christian faith itself. Giving them what they want, rhetorically, only allows them to further dehumanize and demonize you, and convince less radical/more politically neutral Christians to see you the way they do.

So the point I’m trying to make is that in the United States, no, Christians are not oppressed, and yes, the real oppressors are a certain type of Christian, but they don’t represent the faith itself. We shouldn’t allow them to. Non-Christian progressives need to recognize that, and Christian progressives need to be louder about it.

[episcopaldailyrosary]

It is our duty as Christians to protect the marginalized. Standing with ICE is standing against Christ.

Protect your neighbors. Learn how to protest and how to de-escalate. Learn first aid and CPR. Be prepared to step in as a witness and protector.

We should embody the same self-sacrificial love of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Loving your neighbors is and always has been a political act.

[lightshiningbright]

please pray for me. everything is going wrong. the stress is killing me