Presider: Do you believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God?
Assembly: I believe in Jesus Christ, his only son our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary…

See, already I’m having trouble.

Two years ago I started only sometimes believing Jesus was actually God. I don’t know if my rational post-enlightenment self can really hang on to the literal interpretation that Jesus was God, a deity. (Oh my poor in-laws are having such heart attacks right now. Try not to panic my loves. It comes and goes — sort of like mono.)

It all started when one of the pre-school moms’ discovered that I was … {read more…}

I’ve finally finished three chapters of my book project currently subtitled “12 Spiritual Practices for Soulful Kids.” This, plus the (finished) introduction and some (unfinished) collateral materials will begin their hopeful rounds of publishing houses in the next two weeks. If you have any contacts you would lovingly like to share with me, now is the time. (publishing contacts? agents?)

For now, you can sample the chapter on the Anger Altar at my other site here. I’ll be keeping it up for two days and then selfishly taking back down again to hoard it for a book offer.

Thanks for reading along faithfully with me until it was time for something good to get born!

-Your Urban … {read more…}

Yesterday I caught Eden staring out the window with her hand over her heart, waiting to see if the lightening would strike the Space Needle and reciting this:

I pledge alligance to the thunder storm,
They give me laughs
And times to run to the windowseat with my sister.
Amen!

Given that most Christians in America today consider the Pledge of Alligiance a prayer second only to the Our Father, I figured this little ditty to the power of mother nature would convince everyone that we are raising a fine littlr batch of pagans.

P.s. When I typed this up Eden read it and asked, “Mama, are we pagans?” — which reminded me of yet another kid-and-mother conversation which made Paul clap his hand over … {read more…}

seeing fall birds
eating pumpkin pie
snow (sometimes)
jumping into leaf piles

eating pumpkin pie
new clothes
jumping into leaf piles
going to school

new clothes
snow (sometimes)
going to school
seeing fall birds

by Eden Claire Mee Chapman, age 7

Check out the new yummies here and new parenting advice over at minti!

Eden’s Image of the Holy Spirit.
Read about it here.

Okay, I promised to tell you about the other forms of prayer we use during our Morning Cuddle time, so here are two more:

Rhyming Prayer:
When the kids are feeling giddy and not ready to settle into a time of focused prayer or meditation, they often request that I make up a ‘rhyme-y prayer.’ To do this I just pick simple things that they will be doing on that particular day and give thanks or ask a blessing for them. For instance, one bright morning in October I prayed something like this:

“Thank you God … {read more…}

I’ve been posting several times a week over at Minti. If case you haven’t had a time to mosey on over there, here’s a post about praying with the kiddos that the urban abbess readers might like:

_______________________

One of the things that interest me most about parenting is watching the spiritual development of my children. I enjoy watching and watering their little souls, and they engage with the world around them and the emotional and spiritual unseen world that seems to occupy so much of my girl’s time. As an ordained minister and a Jesus-y kind of person, I’m pretty attentive to soulcare and spiritual growth. But I’ve also see how damaging organized religion can be to supple … {read more…}

I’ve opened up a new blog over Minti, an advice-o-pedia for parental types. I’m doing a series of posts there about children’s spirituality, along with random lists of my favorite tips and reccommendations regarding the world of kids. Stop by to give advice, get advice, or just laugh along with the rest of the breeders.

My children refer to our various and sundry “big trips” as though they are reaccuring national holidays. Two years ago, after a trip to Hawaii, we were sitting around having after school snack when Cate asked: “Momma, when’s Hawaii?” Slightly perplexed I replied, “What do you mean ‘when’s Hawaii?’” “You know,” Cate said, through a mouthful of chewed goldfish crakers, “When’s Hawaii? First comes Christmas….then Valentines…then New Year’s….When comes Hawaii? Is it before our birthdays?”

As it was raining, cold, and already dark at 3pm, it seemed especially cruel and unusual to explain to a four-year-old that Hawaii is not, in fact, a reaccuring event. Rather, given the economic reality of the Mee-Chapman household it is most likely a … {read more…}

Sorry to have been so absent folks, but the Urban Abbess is busy, busy, busy. Doing what, you might ask? How about: buildling floats for the Solstice Parade on Saturday; doing the solo-parenting thing while Paul’s in Boston for eight days; babysitting overnight for two kids ages 1 and 4 (one of whom threw up); pet sitting Spike, the girl guinea pig (who came without her water bottle, thus necessitating a trip to Petco to buy a new one); running Cate has her last dance rehersal before the recital; attending her Kindergarten graduation (hat, gown, and all!); buring a deceased sparrow complete with a burial bed made of poppy flowers and a prayer circle; coaching a teenager finals; … {read more…}