by The Rev. J.C. Austin | Jun 23, 2024
As almost everyone here knows by now, I announced at the beginning of this past week that I would be concluding my ministry in Bethlehem at the end of July in order to accept a call to serve as pastor to another congregation. In the Presbyterian Church, pastors are...
by The Rev. J.C. Austin | Jun 9, 2024
As most of you have heard me say before, one of the most impactful experiences of my childhood was visiting my maternal grandparents on their farm in Alabama. Much of that was with my grandfather, out on the farm learning how to care for animals and crops, or in...
by The Rev. J.C. Austin | Jun 2, 2024
The other day, a friend of mine posted a photo of a sumptuous breakfast feast on her Instagram account. And I do mean sumptuous: we’re talking steak and eggs, home fries, avocado toast, English muffins, coffee and fresh orange juice, sides of bacon, berries, and more...
by The Rev. J.C. Austin | May 26, 2024
“Somewhere.” It’s one of the great songs of musical theatre, from one of the greatest shows in musical theater, Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story. It’s one of those shows that probably a few of you have memorized, or close to it. But even if you’ve never heard of...
by The Rev. J.C. Austin | May 19, 2024
The Amazon Prime series Good Omens is arguably the most overtly theological, if decidedly unorthodox, mainstream television show in decades. The premise is an unlikely friendship between an angel, originally one of the guardians of the Garden of Eden, and a demon,...
by The Rev. J.C. Austin | May 12, 2024
As most of you know, I spent all of my elementary school years here in the Lehigh Valley as a student at Cetronia Elementary School in the Parkland School District over in Allentown. But during the summer between 6th and 7th grade, my family moved from Allentown to...
