Author Archives: Ruth Harder

Several RMC members and I have been experiencing what I’m calling LITURGICAL MADNESS. It all started during Advent when I told some folks that when I was young(er), and whenever I heard fancy words in church like liturgical, I would … Continue reading →

Ever since becoming the pastor at Rainbow, I have performed a simple ritual of sprinkling the leftover communion juice around our church grounds. One of my ministry mentors, an ordained United Methodist pastor, introduced me to this ritual several years … Continue reading →

Last Sunday I said that for Jesus’ early followers, breaking bread together had economic implications. It was not only an act of remembering Jesus’ life, death and resurrection, but it was a way they shared with the poor the daily … Continue reading →

Our cats like to hold paws in between their cat fights. Sometimes they even like to take cat naps together. I share this because this past Sunday I invited people to hold hands with the people near them as we … Continue reading →

My friend Ian told me that when he was in 6th grade a volcano erupted in his hometown of Alaska. Guess what day it was? Ash Wednesday. He said, “We were sitting there in school, on a day like any … Continue reading →

Recently I spent two days at an Anabaptist Women Doing Theology Conference called “All you need is love: Honoring the Diversity of Women’s Voices in Theology.” This  was no “sloppy agape” as Melinda Berry put it. This was a time … Continue reading →

We have been taught different table manners. Some of us grew up with strict rules around how to hold silverware or set the table or how to chew. Others of us learned through observation and still others of us have … Continue reading →

Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, March 5 and concludes with Easter, April 20. Lent comes from a word that means “to lengthen,” referring to the lengthening of daylight hours as spring approaches in the northern hemisphere. Lent, which lasts 40 … Continue reading →

The one-and-only Olivia Bartel will be with us on Sunday, February 23. Olivia is the Director at Camp Mennoscah. I’ve asked her to come talk with us about the beloved camp community. Hopefully she brings the one-and-only AeroDynamic Duck, local … Continue reading →

J stands for Jesse Graber (fiddle and vocals) E stands for Eric Schrag (guitar and vocals) B stands for Bethany Schrag-not related to Eric (extraordinary vocals) B stands for Ben Regier (mandolin and vocals) Book stands for their repertoire. The … Continue reading →