Driving around Tulsa we can see huge billboards that read, "Birth Control is Harmful." These are countered by other billboards that say, "Birth Control is Easy." The first slogan and its implications are much more harmful than birth control itself. The second slogan is inadequate in its response to the first. There are enormous moral issues at stake in this debate and they require more than a billboard campaign. Sex is not a sin. However, religious dogmas that lead to overpopulation, increased poverty and the spread of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases (such as a ban on birth control) is a sin of deadly proportions. Religions that promote ideologies that inadvertently lead to suffering and death are much more harmful than religions that advocate for responsible sexual behavior. You may hear more about sex this Sunday than you have ever heard in church before. Well, at least more positive comments about sex.

In 1970 Earth Day began and since then environmentalism has become a part of the fabric of American life. Today, environmental concerns influence how we live, what we buy and who we vote for. Nevertheless, there is no popular consensus on what is an appropriate moral response to the current situation. There is even a lot of confusion about what is the current situation. Even so, Americans know that environmental stewardship is important, yet we differ on the depth of our commitments to living in environmentally responsible ways. Religions, which claim to support life and be concerned with relieving suffering, have been slow to respond to issues of the environment. Is it an anti-scientific bias in religion, an unwillingness to challenge their members’ lifestyles, or is it a fundamental worldview which has kept religion from being a prophetic voice on the environment? There is a growing "green" awakening in American life that is finally penetrating mainstream religion. Even at All Souls we are rethinking our relationship to the environment and looking into the question of "How green are we?"

Nothing doesn’t seem to mean nothing these days. When we say we are doing nothing, often we are actually daydreaming, spending time with loved ones, resting, living. This kind of nothing can create our most meaningful experiences. When asked about the impact of some event on our lives I am often greeted with the answer: "It’s nothing," when the circumstances and all affectual cues say otherwise.

In Eat, Pray, Love, Elizabeth Gilbert illustrates the guilt associated with indulging in pleasure. Gilbert goes to Italy in search of pleasure after a messy divorce. When she arrives however, she find that it takes time to allow herself to settle into any pleasure because she is too used to working hard, being responsible, and maintaining a disciplined grip on her life. She writes, "During my first few weeks in Italy, all my Protestant synapses were zinging in distress, looking for a task. I wanted to take on pleasure like a homework assignment. I pondered such questions as, 'How is pleasure most efficiently maximized?'" She goes on to say, "Generally speaking, Americans have an inability to relax into sheer pleasure. Ours is an entertainment-seeking nation, but not necessarily a pleasure-seeking one. By contrast, the Italians are the masters of Bel far niente - the beauty of doing nothing."

When I was growing up I used to prefer Christmas to Easter. Christmas included candy and lots of presents, and Easter included lots of candy and a few presents (mostly clothes). Now that I am more interested in the spiritual side of the holidays, my appreciation has shifted towards Easter.

One metaphorical way to understand the spiritual significance of Christmas is that it symbolizes the birth of hope and an awareness of holiness in us and in our world. Easter, on the other hand, represents the rebirth of hope and holiness in the aftermath of painful experiences such as betrayal, death and loss. The renewal of hopefulness after walking through the valley of the shadow of death and despair has a spiritual maturity that comes from encounters with life's most poignant and painful experiences.

In the Jewish Passover ritual, green herbs are dipped in salt water and then eaten. The green plant represents hope and new life while the saltwater represents the tears that were shed during the Jews captivity prior to their passage to freedom. Renewed hope in the aftermath of tears is the kind of gift any of us can appreciate.

May the deeper spiritual significance of this season become real for all with open minds and hearts.