Be Still and Go

The Gospel In This Moment (Andrew Patty)

"The institutional church that arose in the 20th century is struggling to keeps its hold together and all Americans are disaffiliating from what is called 'organized religion.' Yet, in this moment, we can see as that there are those who hold on to the past like the Fundamentalist, or we can be brave enough to live into our faith for the future of the Gospel." In your own words, what does the good news of God look like in this moment? // This episode was written and recorded by Andrew Patty. It w...

Lovingkindness (Abbey Smith)

Fundamentalism tells us that suffering is the cost of that changing and growing. Lovingkindness tells us that suffering is never acceptable where we can help it. // This episode was written and recorded by Abbey Smith. It was produced by Rev. Jim Keat. Background tracks include Trundle by Podington Bear and Quiet and Safe by Silence is Sexy. Visit www.trcnyc.org/BeStillAndGo to listen to more episodes from all five seasons of Be Still and Go. Visit www.trcnyc.org/Donate to support this podcast a...

It's Not About Winning (Joseph Yoo)

“What a small thing it is to be right when we are called to be righteous. What a small thing it is to be winners when we are called to love.” // This episode was written and recorded by Rev. Joseph Yoo. It was produced by Rev. Jim Keat. Background tracks include Trundle by Podington Bear and Seeking Clarity by Alex Fitch. Visit www.trcnyc.org/BeStillAndGo to listen to more episodes from all five seasons of Be Still and Go. Visit www.trcnyc.org/Donate to support this podcast and other digital res...

Fundamentalism vs. Love (April Ajoy)

Grant Us Courage For the Facing of this Hour (Rob Lee)

"Shall the fundamentalist win? Not if we have anything to say about it." In your opinion, what must the progressive and mainline church do to counter the fundamentalist movement we see in our world today? // This episode was written and recorded by Rev. Rob Lee. It was produced by Rev. Jim Keat. Background tracks include Trundle by Podington Bear and God of Grace and God of Glory as performed by The Riverside Church Choir. Visit www.trcnyc.org/BeStillAndGo to listen to more episodes from all fiv...

The Race for Christianity (Brian McLaren)

"For the last 100 years fundamentalists have fought as if they were losing and that led them to victory while mainliners have lived as if they were winning which led them to complacency, to a lack of creativity, to a lack of urgency." What is one thing the church must to do overcome complacency and reignite creativity? // This episode was written and recorded by Brian McLaren. It was produced by Rev. Jim Keat. Background tracks include Trundle by Podington Bear and Threnody by Goldmund. Visit ww...

God Is Still Speaking (Rev. Jim Keat)

“God is still speaking in the chaos. God is still speaking in spite of us. And God is still speaking in the created world around us." Where do you hear God in the world around you? // This episode was written, recorded, and produced by Rev. Jim Keat. Background tracks include Button Mushrooms by Podington Bear. Soundscape locations include East Harlem, Union Square, Times Square, and Central Park. This episode was originally published on April 20, 2019 as part of season 3 of Be Still and Go: Med...

It Is Finished (Rev. Dr. Debra Northern)

"What we believe in our heart and have found consistent with God's will becomes the blueprint for serving: caring for those who are most vulnerable, feeding the hungry, housing the unsheltered, treating people with equity." How would you describe your assignment? // John 19:30 "It is finished." // This episode was written and recorded by Rev. Dr. Debra Northern. It was produced by Rev. Jim Keat. Background tracks include Button Mushrooms by Podington Bear and A Piece of You and Welcome Home by A...

What's So Maundy About Thursday? (Rev. Jim Keat)

"Maundy Thursday is the context, the prologue for the events that are about to take place on the cross and at the tomb." What comes to mind when you think of Maundy Thursday? // John 13:34-35 I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. // This episode was written, recorded, and produced by Rev. Jim Keat. Background tracks include Button ...

Lament and Regret (Lee Sartain)

Isaiah 43:16-21 This is what God says, the God who builds a road right through the ocean, who carves a path through pounding waves, The God who summons horses and chariots and armies— they lie down and then can’t get up; they’re snuffed out like so many candles: “Forget about what’s happened; don’t keep going over old history. Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand-new. It’s bursting out! Don’t you see it? There it is! I’m making a road through the desert, rivers in the badlands. ...

Palm Sunday (Fr. James Martin)

“When you are praying to Jesus you are praying to someone who understands you because he is human and has experienced all things." What difference does it make to know that Jesus understands your suffering? // Matthew 21:1-11 When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. If anyone say...

Why Do We Cry? (Rev. Jim Keat)

"When we come together in the face of loss, when we discover empathy in the midst of grief, resurrection is possible, new life in the midst of what might feel like endless death." How have you experienced hope in the midst of grief? // John 11:35 Jesus wept. // This episode was written, recorded, and produced by Rev. Jim Keat. Background tracks include Button Mushrooms by Podington Bear and Threnody by Goldmund. Visit www.trcnyc.org/BeStillAndGo to listen to more episodes from all five seasons o...

Every Moment is a Choice (Rachel Ricketts)

“Nothing will ever change unless we speak to the injustices in the world.” What power and privilege do you possess and how can you best use it to fight injustices? // For those of us who live at the shoreline standing upon the constant edges of decision crucial and alone for those of us who cannot indulge the passing dreams of choice who love in doorways coming and going in the hours between dawns looking inward and outward at once before and after seeking a now that can breed futures like bread...

We Thirst (Rev. Bruce Lamb)

"We are thirsty for change." What changes do you want to see in our world? // “I am thirsty.” - John 19:28 // This episode was written and recorded by Rev. Bruce Lamb. It was produced by Rev. Jim Keat. Background tracks include Button Mushrooms by Podington Bear and Aqueducts by Falls. Visit www.trcnyc.org/BeStillAndGo to listen to more episodes from all five seasons of Be Still and Go. Visit www.trcnyc.org/Donate to support this podcast and other digital resources from The Riverside Church that...

The Tongue of a Teacher (Phil Salmon)

Isaiah 50:4-9 The Lord God has given me the tongue of a teacher, that I may know how to sustain the weary with a word. Morning by morning he wakens— wakens my ear to listen as those who are taught. The Lord God has opened my ear, and I was not rebellious, I did not turn backward. I gave my back to those who struck me, and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard; I did not hide my face from insult and spitting. The Lord God helps me; therefore I have not been disgraced; therefore I have set m...

Say Something (Rev. Amanda Meisenheimer)

"What is justice if we can’t hear the judge? What is love without the voice of the lover?" These aren’t rhetorical questions. Love and justice are essential to our humanity. // This episode was written and recorded by Amanda Meisenheimer and Rebecca Stevens-Walter. It was originally published on March 16, 2019 as part of Season 3 of Be Still and Go. It was produced by Rev. Jim Keat. The spoken word portions were written by Amanda Meisenheimer. Vocals by Amanda Meisenheimer. Background vocals and...

Abandoned (Rev. M Barclay)

“We are sacred possibilities, the image of God always ready to manifest in our skin.” What does it look like for the image of God to manifest in your skin? // Matthew 27:46 And about three o’clock Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” // This episode was written and recorded by Rev. M. Barclay. It was produced by Rev. Jim Keat. Background tracks include Button Mushrooms, Chimera, and Burned by Podington Bear and Wanderlu...

The Body of Christ is Wounded (Rev. Elle Dowd)

"Lament is important because it reminds us to pay attention." What do you need to pay attention to today? // 1 Corinthians 12:14, 20-21, 26 Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many....there are many members, yet one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it. // This episode was written and recor...

I Love Compost (Farley Lord)

“Like a grain of wheat falls into a compost pile, Jesus falls into the earth. The damp and still and timeless earth. The quiet earth, accept for the faint percussion of the blind critters who tiptoe over the beads of transforming matter.” When was the last time you really noticed the natural world around you? // John 12:20-33 Now among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greeks. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and said to him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus...

Alone (Rev. Phil Tom)

"No one should ever have to grieve or suffer alone." How can you come alongside people who are experiencing grief or suffering? // John 19:26-27 “He said to his mother, ‘Woman, here is your son.’ Then to the disciple, ‘Here is your mother.’” // This episode was written and recorded by Rev. Phil Tom. It was produced by Rev. Jim Keat. Background tracks include Button Mushrooms and Mortality by Podington Bear. Visit www.trcnyc.org/BeStillAndGo to listen to more episodes from all five seasons of Be ...

Active Hope (Rev. Amy Lunde-Whitler)

"Our faith calls us to a practice of active hope." In your own words, how would you describe active hope? // Psalm 27:1-3 The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? When evildoers assail me to devour my flesh— my adversaries and foes— they shall stumble and fall. Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war rise up against me, yet I will be confident. // This episode was written and recorded...

When You're Weary (Rev. Cameron Trimble, ft. Victory Boyd)

"According to Jesus the way that we show that we belong to his movement is that we love one another and that we act out our love by being kind to one another." How has someone shown you kindness recently? How can you show kindness to someone today? // John 13:35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. // This episode was written and recorded by Rev. Cameron Trimble. The cover of Bridge Over Troubled Water was performed by Victory Boyd. This episode...

Paradise (Rev. Amanda Meisenheimer)

"In paradise, we all have names." What are people calling you today? What will you hear when you enter paradise? What do you call yourself? // Luke 23:43 “Truly, I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” // This episode was written and recorded by Rev. Amanda Meisenheimer. It was produced by Rev. Jim Keat. Background tracks include Button Mushrooms by Podington Bear and Buona Sera by Sam Barsh Visit www.trcnyc.org/BeStillAndGo to listen to more episodes from all five seasons of Be Stil...

From Inheritance to Glory (Minister Charlene Wingate)

"What happens when our inheritance is the fruit of stolen land and lies, built on a history of selective truths?" There's nothing simple about it. // This episode was written and recorded by Minister Charlene Wingate. It was produced by Rev. Jim Keat. Background tracks include Button Mushrooms by Podington Bear, Battle Hymn of the Republic by Bob Minner, John Brown's Body by Gloria Jane, and Rivers by Makenna Susan. Visit www.trcnyc.org/BeStillAndGo to listen to more episodes from all five seaso...

It Bends Towards Justice (Dr. Ronald Lonesome)

“It’s not enough for me to sit on the sidelines and throw rocks but I need to be part of helping to do something, whatever I can." What is God calling you to be a part of? // This episode features a conversation with Dr. Ronald Lonesome and was originally released on March 15, 2020. Dr. Lonesome passed away in August of 2020 and was a part of The Riverside Church since the 1981. This episode was produced by Rev. Jim Keat. Background tracks include Button Mushrooms and Backwater by Podington Bear...

Forgive Them? (Minister Richard X III)

"Black forgiveness is a continuation of the use of religion to console white fear, to ease white guilt, to atone for white sins, to coddle white fragility. Forgiveness for the crucified today, for people marked as Black by the European gaze, has always been used to calm Black anger, to chastise Black rage, to curb Black tears, to cool Black righteous indignation." How do you navigate the tension that you feel around forgiveness? // Luke 23:34 Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do....

I Am Weeping (Rev. Dr. Cláudio Carvalhaes)

"I pray that the weeping of my body will turn my salted tears into sweet waters for the birds, for the animals, for the trees, and for my children." What are you weeping for? // Jeremiah 31:15 Thus says the Lord: A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more. // This episode was written and recorded by Rev. Dr. Cláudio Carvalhaes. It was produced by Rev. Jim Keat. Background tr...

Cold and Broken (Rev. Lynn Casteel Harper)

"The cross on our foreheads on Ash Wednesday is not a victory mark. It is a cold and it's a broken hallelujah. Because ours is a faith that resists triumphalism, resists any attempt to downplay or spiritualize suffering. Our hallelujahs and our hope are always rooted in the truth of suffering, not its erasure. And this is good news, that we are not part of a victory march. We are part of a beloved community, arm in arm, praying, loving, serving, rejoicing, weeping, forgiving, seeking justice, he...

From Lament to Alleluia (Rev. Jim Keat)

"The season of Lent invites us to journey with the weight of our humanity, our morality, the ashes we feel imposed upon our brow, a reminder that we are human and every human emotion - especially lament - is valid." What do you need to lament during this season? // Psalm 13:1 "How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?" // This episode was written, recorded, and produced by Rev. Jim Keat. Background tracks include Button Mushrooms and Hearts Aflutter by Podington Bear. Visit www.trcnyc.org/Be...

Tiny & Weak at the Edge (Rev. Amanda Meisenheimer)

"Jesus has challenged the authority of oppressive regimes for 2000 years because love is undefeatable, justice is unavoidable, and what appears to be tiny and weak changes everything." What oppressive regimes need to be challenged in our world today? // Herod, O Herod Have you heard the news A baby is born today To free all the captives To find the lost sheep To bring hope and peace to people in need Oh babies May be tiny and weak And babies change the world Caesar, O Caesar Ruler of Rome A baby...