Meditations 4 Misfits

In this presentation Dr. Grewe will invite us to consider how our concept of Reality is manufactured by the stories we create from various data points – our experiences, family, culture, and religious beliefs. This talk will focus on how religion works to help craft a meta-narrative of reality for various groups of people.  https://youtu.be/2glFuk7NUcc

This podcast is a lecture Fred gave on February 19, 2025 at Southern Oregon University. It was part of a series for the campus theme of “Unveiling Reality.” This presentation was titled, “Peeking Behind the Veil: Some Random Thoughts on How Religion Helps Shape Our Experience of Reality.” 

Slides: Peeking Behind the Veil

This is Fred’s last Sunday Sermon as interim pastor. The theme is how should we live? “What is your life? You are a mist, a vapor, that appears for a little while and then disappears.” – James 4:14

In this podcast we reflect on the message of John the Baptist as recorded in St. Luke’s Gospel, chapter 3:1-6. In our consideration of these words, we run into religion’s dirty little secret. “If you have forgiven yourself for being imperfect and falling, you can now do it for just about everybody else.” – Richard Rohr 

This reflection explores an apocalyptic saying of Jesus found in St. Luke’s Gospel, 21:25-26. Apocalyptic is a literary genre originating in Judaism in the centuries following the Babylonian exile (597–587 BCE). But as the poet Christian Wiman reminds us, “The revelation we need is not ultimate but intimate.” 

This podcast offers a reflection for the Christian Feast of Christ the King. As we consider what kind of King Jesus is, and what his Kingdom might be like, we are confronted with our concepts of real power. “This is the mystery of love. Power kills. Weakness creates.” – Henri Nouwen