Hello beautiful! It’s been a groovy week for “Mister Pastor Corey” as all my homies are calling me. In some ways it’s “business” as usual, but in other ways I feel there were some cosmic shifts in my psyche/soul. I guess that thing is always kinda shifty but maybe this time (please G*d) it was more of a shifting and clicking into place. I really like my “job”… which includes a Sunday morning gig putting on a ceremony of sorts (like a sacred show), but the fun stuff is really what goes on the rest of the week. The fun part is living in communion with Christ and living each moment as if my only purpose in the world is to add more love. That’s getting me into all kinds of fun scenarios and conversations!
I took a little mini-quest yesterday down to St. Augustine to visit two places that are special to me. I like to go down and walk the ancient street amongst the tourists and the shops. It’s familiar, but if you move slow there seems to always be a secret corner, some little place I’ve gone my whole life without noticing. On one of these journeys I stumbled into an Eastern Orthodox Shrine right in the heart of the hubbub. This was years ago, I hadn’t really delved too deep back into my Christian roots, but I remember being deeply moved by the art on the walls. I grew up in a beige, square evangelical church devoid of cool art. So although I know it’s easy to get lost in the trappings of design and aesthetic and miss out on the good stuff, I’m really moved by the iconography. I could’t believe that this (relatively) quiet little sanctuary had peacocks adorning the entrance! How had I not noticed this before? I didn’t linger too long, it being Saturday, there were quiet a few others haunting the small space.
So I meandered down the busy block to the big Catholic cathedral and passed a little time there. On that same solo trip a few years back (I think it was the fall of 2020 and I had just moved home from Seattle) I remember being struck by a plaque in this cathedral that says, “There is no misery that could be a match for my mercy.” I had read “The Universal Christ” by Richard Rohr that year, and although I was (in most ways) flailing around at rock bottom I went home that night and wrote a song about Jesus. I hadn’t done so, directly, in a very….very long time. I had this funny urge to cross over the boundary and go up to the altar (there were signs saying there would be alarms if I had done so). In my mind if I just told them I was a pastor they’d cool it and not take me down into their dungeon or slap my knuckles. Off to the side I found a humble statue of St. Francis (one of my favorites…Rohr is a Franciscan monk) to kneel in front of for a moment of gratitude. From this vantage point I noticed behind their ornate altar, an open door to the “backstage” area of their temple. I wonder what goes on back there.
I mean the capital C “Church” has a ridiculous army of skeletons in her closet….hard to even use the word “her” to talk about the church with how disastrously out of touch with divine feminine energy we are (although I do always love seeing Mary and other woman figures at least included in Catholic tradition). My wave of self-righteous, new guy “I’ve got this figured out” passed…and softened into compassion. Compassion for what a dangerous book the Bible is, compassion for how hard it is to be human. Compassion for what a pyscho-spiritual trap religion can be to so many people. I know I probably won’t be allowed behind the curtain of the Catholic Church, but it is so weird to find myself as the guy “back-stage” (upstairs in my office) at a humble contemplative Christian church in an old movie theatre. I feel inspired to try to continue to describe what it’s like being back here (it’s fun and weird). May we all break the illusion that a clergy member has some access to G*d that everyone else doesn’t. Blessed be the gatekeepers, may they laugh as an impossible flood of mercy destroys every shrine, every temple, every cathedral. May they too be swept into the eternity of NOW. May all who have been persecuted by those who claim to carry Christ’s message find forgiveness. May no child be harmed in this process. May the poor be fed, and the humble be rewarded with infinite, loving presence.
So here’s a few real-life admissions about my life right now. I don’t really get paid to be a Pastor yet (actually I’m not even sure that it’s official in the eyes of the government or the greater Vineyard organization lol). I try to scrape together a few shekels by playing my singing bowls for people but I also really try(probably to a fault) to let that be word of mouth and….well I don’t know it’s still slow (I like slow). I get some help from family and friends to pay the rent and it seems like every day someone wants to feed me. I’m just coasting, resting in my privilege, and trusting that G*d’s teaching me something. I’d really like to make a good living soon though. I will probably always shop at the thrift store, I just want to figure out how to live this life and have enough money to start a family. I’ve got a few years to figure it out. I accidentally spent a few hundred bucks in the Orthodox shrine gift shop! Haha! Maybe I just need to get better Beaches Vineyard merch going…..although Jesus flipping the tables is truly one of my most favorite bible stories. Tread carefully! I understand, somewhat, that logistics aren’t all bad and capitalism isn’t EVIL and all that. It does also say in the Gospel of Thomas “Businessmen will not enter the kingdom….” I’m just hoping that as a “minister” I can really find some way to thrive off giving my love freely and often. Here I am! I love you! If you want to drop a dollar in the digital donation bin so I can keep writing and hanging out and someday feed my children I’d appreciate that! Yewww!
Hey! I should plug my new song real quick. This one is called “Woo-Hoo”. It’s a silly little jam I started writing 7 years ago with my dear friend Tom Ebner (think we really just had the two-chord progression and an endless silly chorus of woo-hoos). I knew back then I wanted to write some clever verses that set up such a simple exclamation of enthusiasm, I don’t know if I succeeded or not but I really enjoy the heck out of playing this one and loved recording it. Landon and I wrapped up a local gig playing covers and headed up to my studio to jam. I remember feeling really at peace because my Father was at the gig (he’s at most of them!) and said some really kind things about how good we sounded together. It’s amazing how much the presence of a Father figure can heal the soul! Anyway, as you can hear from the opening of the track we laughed a lot in the creation of this tune. Don, our church accountant who has the deepest pocket of unusual music recommendations, played bass and drums one evening and we prayed together for divine, protective masculine energy to be in our drumming. My good pal the Florida man himself Lane Pittman came and laid down the lead guitar. It’s a cool tune. I don’t mean any disrespect to people that love Disney. I do think it’s the year of the Jaguars march to victory. And I’m also pretty pro-RFK although I don’t think it’s really helpful for me to get political anymore. I just like the way he talks about the earth. If we would all cherish the earth a little more…we’d all be singing WOO-HOO together and holding hands in the GARDEN.
Anywho…I should wrap this up. It’s almost 6pm and I’ve had a big day! Pastor Bobby got me all trained up and took off for Key West. I lead this morning’s service by my lonesome (with our wonderful team of course) and at about 8:30 this morning it all felt hilariously real. Like wait, we’re about to have a church service and I’m the PASTOR here to uhhhh help it happen? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA. If you told me that…even three years ago I would have probably used some profanities in my explanation of how impossible that is. G*d works in mysterious ways. A sweet woman, nearing death, told me with true sincerity this week that all yoga poses correspond to a specific demon and that chakras are satanic. She then went on and on complimenting the way I use my sound bowls (lots of chakras…I didn’t tell her that!). Well I’m still a punk and that sent me whirling out to a goat yoga class (don’t people think goats are the devil too?). I assure you, I needed the stretching and the animal’s silliness brought deep healing laughter to my belly and my bones. We know G*d by the joy in our hearts, and he is willing and able to use EVERYTHING/EVERYONE.
Much love family, always feel free to drop a line if you want to chat.
With reverence, gratitude, and creativity,
Pastor Corey
What a great story about prepping for what God has for you. It’s your journey. I’m so happy I get to watch.
💜