Dear Crossroads,

When I had my first Sunday preaching at Crossroads back in April, I mentioned that we were ALL entering a transitional, liminal time – the time between an ending and the new beginning yet to come.

Franciscan priest, Richard Rohr, writes this about the liminal space:

“It is when we are betwixt and between, have left one room but not yet entered the next room, any hiatus between stages of life, faith, jobs, loves, or relationships. It is that graced time when we are not certain or in control, when something genuinely new can happen … it is the ultimate teachable space.”

Irish poet and priest, John O’Donohue writes, “At this threshold a great complexity of emotion comes alive: confusion, fear, excitement, sadness and hope.”

Friends, if my experience is anything like yours, these last few months have brought a great complexity of emotions. Each of us had left one room and not yet entered the next and in the midst, we’ve been doing our best to show up for one another, to breathe deep, and to trust in the journey that’s unfolding. You’ve been doing it. We’ve been doing it. Pastor Jacob and his family are doing it. 

And now with your new beginning on the horizon, I pray you continue to take lots of deep breaths. Take time to slow down and observe all that is taking place within you and beyond you. Give thanks where you’re able, don’t be afraid to ask for guidance or help, and allow yourself to just be with what is. That’s enough. I promise, for now, that IS enough. 

There is more to be revealed, dear ones, more to learn, observe, reflect upon and eventually act upon. What a wonderful thing. 

Creator God, Embodied God, mischievous ever-present Spirit God is in our midst – you are doing a beautiful, new thing. It's a lot and it's so, so good. 

With big love and excitement for all these new beginnings unfolding,

Pastor Laura

It is hard to believe, but we are halfway through 2026.

Our June pledge offerings dropped noticeably. However, by the end of June, we are ever so slightly over budget for our total offerings received. The same is true for our facility use income. In terms of spending, too, we have spent less than we budgeted for our day-to-day operations. This means we are in a good financial position. Instead of being $11,000 in the red, we are actually $10,000 in the black. I feel very lucky to be able to report this as your Treasurer!

Having said that, we have spent and will be spending a good amount of money this year on renovations and other construction projects. As we prepared for Pastor Laura’s arrival, the Council budgeted $30,000 for renovating the parsonage. I don’t yet have the figure for final actual expenses. In addition, at the June meeting, the Council approved up to $120,000 for renovations on the custodian's house based on the three bids that PUM (Property Use and Maintenance mission team) received. Since the June Council meeting, work on the custodian's house has begun and is going well. PUM recently requested that the Council approve an additional $40,000 to replace the windows, back door, and install air conditioning. In order to facilitate the completion of the project without interruption, the Council had a special meeting on July 8th and approved PUM's request.

It is important to note that the money for both of these projects will not come from our operating budget. We have been able to put some money aside over the past several years, particularly due to spending less than we had budgeted, and those funds should allow us to cover the renovation expenses for both properties.

The Council is also looking forward to the possibility of two other big expenses in this or next year—repaving the back parking lot that we share with the Early School and purchasing an organ. These projects have been discussed over the last two years. With respect to replacing the church organ, Dr. Collin has been researching the cost and desirability of various types of organs. His expertise and consultation have been important for this project and will become more important when the Council moves toward a decision.

Your Coordinating Council members take seriously our stewardship of your offerings and tithes. Similarly, we take seriously our stewardship of our land and its buildings; in large part a legacy of all the Crossroaders since the founding of this church. Kathy Triolo, Bruce Anderson, and I welcome your questions and input regarding the specific projects reported in this report or just about the budget in general. We are also interested in what you would like to see included in a future Treasurer’s report.

Aloha Church of the Crossroads,

We are at the beginning of a new chapter for Church of the Crossroads. I am so energized to join in ministry alongside you. This period of new discovery is full of learning about each other and in many cases learning new things about people we have known for years. 

It is also a moment of vulnerability when we open ourselves up to other people and new ways of relating. Pastor Laura talked about this in her sermon on June 7th in conversation with Matthew 9:9-13,18-26. She spoke about times when we try so hard to not allow people to see us as vulnerable and the deep cost that can have on our bodies and spirits. As it turns out, masking vulnerability lowers our capacity to thrive together. We understand mercy more when we can accept our own vulnerability.

I feel Laura’s words very deeply right now. It is daunting to relocate and begin something new and somewhat unknown. It can be tempting to try and hide those feelings and just push through. But as Laura preached, that is not how relationships are built. We miss out on being known and building lives of mercy. I would rather risk it and be vulnerable enough to be known. This is what I hope for us as we begin together. 

This moment reminds me of a story of Herbie Hancock when he was young and first playing piano with Miles Davis’ jazz quintet in the 1960’s. Herbie recalled one of Miles' trumpet solos that seemed to lift the entire room. As Herbie was swept up in the moment, he played a completely wrong chord. Herbie froze — thinking that his mistake would be noticed and called out. But something else happened.

Miles paused for a second — then he played some notes that made Herbie’s chord sound good. Miles was able to make something that was wrong into something that was beautiful with the power of his choice of notes in response. What Herbie realized later was that Miles didn’t hear it as a mistake. Miles heard it as something that just happened, just part of the reality of what was moving at that moment. Miles felt it was his responsibility to find something that fit. Herbie spoke of this moment as a central lesson in his growth as a young musician. 

We can look for perfection and try to protect ourselves from the vulnerability of mistakes, but then we miss the opportunity to grow. The only way we can grow is to be open enough to embrace our vulnerability and risk being seen in moments like Herbie experienced. The way we help each other grow is to respond to the mistakes and vulnerability of others the way Miles responded. After all, it wasn’t really a mistake. It was an unexpected discovery that demanded the full vulnerability of Miles to play the next note. That kind of musical and spiritual attunement expresses the power of practiced vulnerability and improvisation in unexpected moments.

To my ears, and to my spirit, this story of Herbie and Miles sounds like mercy. It isn’t a responding in spite of a mistake, but a posture of being that sees the world as possibility when people are vulnerable enough to take what each other offers and make something beautiful together. I believe that is the opportunity God is placing in front of us right now. I will do my best to be vulnerable enough to play the next note. And then I ask that you all be vulnerable enough to play the one after that. Something beautiful is possible.

Peace,

Pastor Jacob

Bridget is a rising senior (this is her summer between junior and senior year) at Iolani. And, like so many other children and youth in this church, she is such a delight and so talented. She comes from a delightful and talented family: Mom Libby (a teacher and a member of the Search Committee that brought us Pastor Laura and Pastor Jacob), Dad Michael (Community Relations Program Manager for Honolulu’s Department of Emergency Management and a member of the 2026 Coordinating Council), eldest brother Nathaniel (Boston University, majoring in theatre, and just completed a semester abroad in London), and middle brother Gabriel (New York University majoring in collaborative arts). 

What possibilities are on her horizon? Bridget is interested in smaller colleges like Boston U, Wesleyan, and Sarah Lawrence (so sad, not a West Coast school in sight). Bridget is looking for colleges that provide her with cross-disciplinary choices. There is a practical need for this because Bridget’s passions are writing and STEM topics including experimental biologies and genetics. She wants to immerse herself in a learning environment with classmates who are more diverse (race, ethnicity, gender, etc.) and who are accepting and interrogating of others who may be “different” from themselves. Other important factors include snow, seasons, and trees! 

Bridget gave a very thoughtful answer when asked about her religious/spiritual life. She took Christianity for granted, a given since her family attended a Christian church. Her search for something more complex came to the fore around the time of the Covid lockdown. Crossroads has helped her journey. She was happy to be able to bounce questions off of Pastor Malia, who accepted and supported Bridget’s questions and searching. Ellen Godbey Carson’s Bible workshop designed to help practicing Christians deal with “clobber verses” (misused by those who use Bible verses as weapons) was particularly helpful by providing an antidote to individuals and institutions that claim to represent a Christian god antithetical to the truth that God is love and the commandment to love God and love your neighbor as yourself. Bridget favors prayers prayed through action. She also often feels the pull to sit quietly for an extended period of time to be in a space of prayer.

(As an aside, someone like Bridget can hardly do better than to have a role model who writes: “I learned that the historical purpose and meaning of these [“clobber”] passages is very different from how those passages were being interpreted and used now. It was the most exciting spiritual journey of my life, and has helped me reconcile my faith with these scriptures. My spiritual journey at an ONA [“open and affirming”] church has been joyously life-affirming, and has enriched and renewed my faith.” Ellen, https://www.hcucc.org/single-post/how-ona-has-changed-my-life.)

Bridget recently attended a worldview changing event in San Jose—the National Activism Camp, organized by the national GSA (Gender Sexuality Alliance) Network. The width and depth of intersectionality she experienced shifted her baseline. Yes, Hawaii is a wonderful diverse place but, as with other places, we are a particular kind of silo. For example, our silo does not include a critical mass of Black Americans or Hispanics or Latinos. Bridget took workshops in social/gender justice, indigenous peoples and forced integration, and institutions that embody among other things—white supremacy and patriarchy. This experience has also informed her college choices.

“Intersectionality” is an important concept that has informed scholarly discussion of race, gender, etc. but has gained importance in practical application. As explained by Bridget: “Intersectionality is the overlapping of identities, such as race, gender, and class. It’s a concept that explores how aspects of your identity cannot be looked at in isolation; every part of yourself affects your experience.”

Her hobbies are: Writing and writing and more writing of stories and poetry (one of her favorite poets is Lucas Jones, see: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DYmgwVAC-HQ/?hl=en).

Reading—lots and lots of books very quickly! Thinking and reflecting. Hanging out with friends. Eating—one favorite dish is malai kofta (North Indian dish deep-fried dumplings made from paneer and mashed potatoes in a gravy of cashews, tomatoes, and spices) and all kinds of desserts. Baking and cooking. Talking.

You are encouraged to take a moment to talk and chat with this dynamic young woman!