The Rev’d James Spencer

a stained glass window depicting Jesus as a carpenter

The Carpenter Just Keeps Working

There’s an old movie, starring Tom Hanks and Shelley Long, called “The Money Pit.” It’s a comedy about a young…

A long, straight two-lane highway stretching through a vast, arid desert landscape as seen from the side of a bus.

Why Worship Needs A Destination

There’s a video game called “Desert Bus”. It was never officially released and was only intended to be part of…

fishing ropes in a pile

A New Year of Freedom: Trading Duty For Christ’s Love

It’s a tradition in my house that every New Year’s Day, as my wife, my children, and I sit down…

Open Bible held up to a bright, golden sunset, next to a quote about loving God and your neighbour

Beyond The Moral Mess: Reclaiming Love As The Only Law

I’ve watched a lot of movies in my time. A lot of television, too. I’ve read a good number of…

four young people and a statue of a buffalo

Newfoundland Youth Find Learning and Friendship at CLAY 2025

We nearly didn’t make it! We had four young people attending the Canadian Lutheran Anglican Youth Gathering (CLAY) from the…

a yellow background and a graphic of a country church with a quotation from this column at the top of the image

Taking the Church to The “Young People”

A fellow member of the clergy asked me the other day about my views, as a parent of teenage and…

an Anglican priest between two modesl of churches that he has built from Lego

Lego Churches!

The Parish of St. Mary’s (Clarenville and Burgoyne’s Cove) have recently enjoyed a new feature in their church buildings: Lego…

pull quote from the article: "It sometimes just seems so hard to forgive someone, even when you know that you should."

The Gift of Forgiveness

I bought my wife a blanket for Christmas. It’s a fuzzy, warm, black blanket, just about large enough for two…

remote control "lost" in a couch

Lost and Found: The Search for What Matters

I keep losing my TV remote. I think this is a side effect of: a) having kids, and b) having…

War Should Not Be A Game: The Cruelty of Conflict and the Pursuit of Peace

Do you ever watch Family Feud? Or Jeopardy? Or any other game show where people stand with their hands on…