You Can’t Love Yourself Without Accepting Yourself
The Loft LA - Progressive Christianity in Podcast Form
Release Date: 11/03/2025
Fear Moves Us
The Loft LA - Progressive Christianity in Podcast Form
After Jesus’ birth, fear and oppression continue to pervade the lives of the Holy Family. Due to Herod’s persecution, we are promptly reminded that even with Christ among us, the world is still a broken and messy place. In our current world, as we continue to see refugees and immigrants targeted and deported, as well as genocides violently enacted by governing forces, the church has a responsibility to proclaim what is too often ignored: Jesus was born a refugee who escaped genocide by living in a foreign land. How might we notice and be moved by the fears that move us? www.TheLoftLA.org
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Step Into Your Calling
The Loft LA - Progressive Christianity in Podcast Form
What does it mean to be “called” to do something? There are many stories of prophets and leaders in the Christian tradition who say they were called to be in their roles. What can we learn from their call stories that might help us when we are unsure of which way to go? In the call stories of Jeremiah and Mary, we see that even if we are afraid, God invites us to step into our calling and walk through our fear, knowing that God will be with us, always. www.TheLoftLA.org
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Even In The Silence, God Is At Work
The Loft LA - Progressive Christianity in Podcast Form
After his encounter with the angel Gabriel, Zechariah is compelled into a period of silence, during which he grapples with faith, doubt, and hope. Similarly, we can be confident that when his wife, Elisabeth, learns she is pregnant, she also considers what will happen to their growing family. Their story is not unique; many families, especially mothers, cling to a quiet hope that God will make a way out of no way. This Sunday, Rev. Dr. Carter will be joined in the center by Brenda Vieyra, Program Director at Breastfeed LA, and our own Jennifer Duran-West, to explore how the mission and work of...
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In A Time of Nationalism, We Must Not Give In To Fear
The Loft LA - Progressive Christianity in Podcast Form
When Zechariah encounters an angel of the Lord, the angel tells him not to be afraid because his prayers have been heard. As an elderly priest, Zechariah had witnessed the fall of Judean independence and the start of Roman occupation. To be sure, Herod, who ruled at the behest of Rome, brought many things to fear. Despite his fears, Zechariah longed for the coming Messiah and a son. Similarly, we find ourselves in a time when many are afraid about the present, but what we see in this story is that God is present even in our fear, and even in our moments of silence, we can still insist on hope...
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A Chorus of Generosity: Justice & Compassion
The Loft LA - Progressive Christianity in Podcast Form
Our newly adopted mission statement reflects our core values of justice and compassion, which represent our public and private commitments to Christ-like acts of mercy. These values are rooted in the ancient wisdom of scripture, including teachings from Hebrew prophets and the life and witness of Jesus. This Sunday, we continue to focus on our congregation's mission and how the new community described by Isaiah invites each of us to be part of this community and its "Chorus of Generosity." www.TheLoftLA.org
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Liturgies for Resisting Empire: Seeking Community, Belonging, and Peace in a Dehumanizing World
The Loft LA - Progressive Christianity in Podcast Form
This Sunday, we welcome guest preacher Kat Armas. Kat Armas is a Cuban American writer, speaker, and theologian from Miami, FL. She holds a ThM from Vanderbilt Divinity School, and a dual MDiv and MAT from Fuller Theological Seminary. Kat has spoken at seminaries, universities, and conferences nationwide and her work has appeared in the National Catholic Reporter—where one of her essays was shared by the pope!, Plough Magazine, The Christian Century, Christianity Today, Sojornours Magazine, and more. Kat currently lives on a small farm in middle Tennessee with her family—which includes her...
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You Can’t Love Yourself Without Accepting Yourself
The Loft LA - Progressive Christianity in Podcast Form
During the fourth and final week of The Seasons of Origins, we are invited to imagine together a more just church and a way forward toward such a church. Imagination is essential here, and one key doctrine that limits the Church's ability to envision what it can become is Original Sin. St. Augustine developed the doctrine of original sin, which claims that we are born “marked with sin.” However, through his transgressions of the Jewish purity codes, Jesus shows us that none of us is born contaminated. We will also be observing All Saints Day. We encourage you to bring photos or...
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You Can’t Have Redemption Without Confession
The Loft LA - Progressive Christianity in Podcast Form
During the third week of The Season of Origins, we are invited to seek to repair past harms through justice-focused actions. Few harms have affected Christian communities as deeply as patriarchy. Women, children, and men have, and continue to suffer under the oppressive hierarchies that patriarchal thinking promotes. We invite you to join us this Sunday as we seek out new origin stories in the life and teachings of Jesus that can guide us in healing from the harms of patriarchy. www.TheLoftLA.org
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You Can't Have Authority Without Accountability
The Loft LA - Progressive Christianity in Podcast Form
During the second week of The Season of Origins, we are invited to name and lament the atrocities of the past and examine the role Christian theology played in justifying those past harms. As Angelinos, we can see the harmful effects of Manifest Destiny theology all around us. However, Jesus guides us toward a new way of relating to one another in the Gospels by constantly reminding us that the love of God should motivate us to be responsible to all people, not just those within our tribe. www.TheLoftLA.org
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Just Because It’s In The Bible Doesn’t Make It Christian
The Loft LA - Progressive Christianity in Podcast Form
Accounts of violence in the Bible, like the story of Joshua's conquest of Canaan, have been used by Christians to theologically justify violence, genocide, and war. But are these the only or main stories we should rely on when thinking about how to engage with the world? During this first week of the Season of Origins, we are invited to seek out the liberative anti-oppressive counter-stories within the Bible and our Christian tradition. As Christians, if we are to heal our past harms, we commit ourselves to living like Christ. www.TheLoftLA.org
info_outlineDuring the fourth and final week of The Seasons of Origins, we are invited to imagine together a more just church and a way forward toward such a church. Imagination is essential here, and one key doctrine that limits the Church's ability to envision what it can become is Original Sin. St. Augustine developed the doctrine of original sin, which claims that we are born “marked with sin.” However, through his transgressions of the Jewish purity codes, Jesus shows us that none of us is born contaminated.
We will also be observing All Saints Day. We encourage you to bring photos or mementos of loved ones you remember on this occasion to set on the altar during worship; you can bring them up to the altar before or during the prelude. After worship, please reclaim your items to take them home.
www.TheLoftLA.org