Sunday, April 12, 2026

Dear Talmadge Hill Family,

Easter is more than a single day; it is a 50 day season of "practicing resurrection." One of the most practical ways we do this right now is by participating in the Holy Cow! Congregational Assessment Tool (CAT). By completing this, you are helping lay the ground for Talmadge Hill’s future. It is a defiant act of hope and a vital investment in what is breaking through. If you haven't yet, please take 30 minutes to complete the survey before the Friday, April 17 deadline. (Find the link to the Holy Cow CAT below, in the Transition Committee Update).

As we continue through this Easter season, we are delighted to welcome The Rev. Deacon Eleanor Withers Kumar to the pulpit this Sunday. Elly is in her final year at Yale Divinity School and was recently ordained as a deacon in the Episcopal Church. She will share reflections from her recent "Borderlands Pilgrimage" to El Paso and Juarez. Just as the disciple Thomas sought to touch Jesus’ wounds to believe, Elly’s stories will help us "touch the wounds" of our migrant neighbors, inviting us to find the living Christ in our midst today. While you are reading this on Friday, April 10, I am currently away on vacation visiting my family in South Africa. I look forward to being back with you all on April 22nd. During my absence, please contact JP for general assistance or Cheryl for pastoral care.

Mooi Loop,
Dries

Sunday, April 5, 2025

Dear Talmadge Hill Family,

As we sit in the quiet of this Good Friday, the shadows of the cross and the silence of the tomb are with us. We are in that "Holy Saturday" space—the world holding its breath. But even in the silence, the story isn't over. We are preparing for the "defiant conjunction" that changes everything.

This Sunday, I invite you to join us for our Easter service at 10:00 AM, where I will preach "The Defiant ‘But’," grounded in Matthew 28:1-10. In Matthew’s account, the Roman guards—the image empire—became "like dead men," while the women were met with a life-changing word: “But”. Easter is an invitation to practice resurrection by looking at structures that declare themselves permanent and saying: “Not the final word.”

One practical way we "practice resurrection" right now is by participating in the Holy Cow! Congregational Assessment Tool (CAT). By completing this, you are helping lay the ground for Talmadge Hill’s future. It is a defiant act of hope and a vital investment in what is breaking through. If you haven't done so, please take 30 minutes (Access the Holy Cow CAT here) before the Friday, April 17 deadline. Detailed instructions follow below.

I look forward to being with you this Sunday as we run from the tomb with "fear and great joy." Following our celebration, I will be away for two weeks visiting my family in South Africa, returning April 22nd. During my absence, please contact JP for general assistance or Cheryl for pastoral care.

Mooi loop, 

Dries

Sunday, March 29, 2026

Dear Talmadge Hill Family,

I'm keeping this week's message short because it's that important.

Two things need your attention this week. Please read Lisa's announcement below for the full details on both.

First: The Holy Cow! Congregational Assessment. You received the link on Tuesday. Please complete it this week. Completing the Assessment is one of the most valuable things we will do together during this interim season — it measures our energy, names our strengths, and helps us discern the path forward — including what we are looking for in our next pastor. It's anonymous. Every voice shapes what we discern together. Lisa's note below has everything you need to know before you sit down to complete it.

Second: This Sunday — stay after worship. Our Listening Session is happening, and we want you there. Details are below.

In worship, we will celebrate Palm/Passion Sunday as we mark Jesus' entry into Jerusalem, his last supper with his disciples, and his new commandment to love one another as he has loved us.

Be there. Share your story. Add your voice. Showing up makes a difference.

Mooi loop, 

Dries

Sunday, March 22, 2026

Dear Friends,

It has often been said that “you can’t think your way to God.” The phrase has been repeated so widely—and attributed to so many—that its original source is hard to verify. I tried. Still, its truth feels familiar. We can become so entangled in our thoughts about faith, and so attached to the idea of a clear, straight path forward, that we lose our ability to encounter the deeper, more transformative presence of God.

This Lent, what if “giving something up” included loosening our grip on the thoughts and habits that keep us from that deeper knowing?

On Sunday, we will hear the story of Lazarus. When he emerges from the tomb, he is still bound in grave clothes. Jesus then calls for him to be unbound and set free. It is a moment that feels both deeply human and deeply spiritual. Where, in your own life, might something be restricting your freedom? Is it worry? Fear? Grief? Or simply the quiet weight of a full and busy life?

As we move toward the final days of Lent and approach Holy Week, I find myself returning to this story through a Lenten lens. Lent invites us to travel a little lighter—to gently set down some of the intellectual and emotional burdens we carry—so that we might go a bit further into the wilderness, and closer to the transforming love of God. In addition, this story is not just a call to Lazarus, but a call to the community: “Unbind him.” It is a reminder that we do not do this alone. Part of what it means to be in community is to help loosen what weighs one another down, making space for new life together.

I look forward to being with you on Sunday as we reflect, gently unbind what holds us back, and celebrate the strength and grace of a community that walks this journey together.

Love,
Cheryl

Sunday, March 15, 2026

Dear Talmadge Hill Family,

This week, we are excited to share the news that Jonathan Parker (JP) will join our Talmadge Hill family as our new Church Administrator. Jonathan brings essential community-building and administrative skills to our team, honed through his experience managing educational initiatives and serving as a college instructor. As a wonderful bonus, he is also an accomplished bass player. Jonathan deeply values being part of a community where people gather to worship, create, and support one another, a commitment that aligns perfectly with our calling as a church.

This spirit of communal support is the "solid ground" we are exploring in our Lenten Series, “Tell me something Good: Grounding ourselves in the good news this Lent.” This coming Sunday, the good news we find is the protection and care for the vulnerable. Contemplating Matthew 19:13-15 and Deuteronomy 24:17-22, we see that the children are a metaphor for all who lack societal status—the migrant worker, the immigrant, the alien, the homeless, the powerless, and the undocumented. Harking back to Deuteronomy, where God commands the people to care for the socially downtrodden because they themselves had been beaten down in Egypt, Jesus issues a clear command for his followers: they are to live as an ekklesia—a church that exists in this world as a refuge of radical welcome.

As we strive to be that refuge, it is vital that we also look inward to honor our own story. I warmly encourage you to mark your calendars and attend our rescheduled Listening Sessions on the Past on Sunday, March 29, directly after worship. These conversations are an important part of our Interim journey together as we honor our history honestly and fully to discern the way forward.

Mooi Loop,

Dries