The Rev. Gordon Stewart

Denomination: Presbyterian Church (USA) (PCUSA)

Gordon Stewart is a public theologian whose publishing on faith and culture took flight with a guest commentary aired on Minnesota Public Radio's "All Things Considered" focused on Amish grace following the Amish school massacre at Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania. His sermons had been published previously by The Christian Century ("Worship and Resistance: the Exercise of Freedom"), Harper & Row's Best Sermons 1 ("Jesus and the Woman at the Well") and Best Sermons 2 ("An Idea Whose Time Has Come").

A native of Broomall, Pennsylvania and graduate of Maryville College (Maryville, TN) and McCormick Theological Seminary (Chicago), his studies at Harvard Divinity School (Charles E. Merrill Fellowship for Pastoral Excellence) and at the University of St. Andrews, Scotland included original research into the economic-religio-political context of the Gospel of Mark stories of the Stilling of the Storm and the Gerasene Demoniac, and critiques of religion as illusion (Marx, Feuerbach, and Freud).

An ordained minister of the Presbyterian Church USA), he has served ecumenical campus ministries in Wisconsin, New York, and Ohio, and Presbyterian churches in Decatur, IL; Wooster, OH; Cincinnati, OH, and Minneapolis and Chaska, MN.

Gordon's essays have been published by Minnesota Public Radio, MinnPost.com, Star Tribune, Presbyterian Outlook, Sojourners' "God's Politics: Blogging with Jim Wallace and Friends," and Views from the Edge (gordoncstewart.com), among others.

He and his wife, Kay, write from Chaska, Minnesota where their Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Barclay, helps keep their feet on the ground.

Day1 Weekly Programs by The Rev. Gordon Stewart

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Gordon Stewart: He Was With the Wild Beasts

Tuesday February 13, 2018
In his sermon for the first Sunday in Lent, the Rev. Gordon Stuart says Mark’s account of Jesus’ wilderness retreat simply says Jesus 'was with the wild beasts, and angels ministered to him.' We can draw both comfort and challenge from that, because we all face times when the beasts of life are all too real, when faith falters, when despair gnaws at us, and hopelessness nearly destroys our sense of well being.

Articles by The Rev. Gordon Stewart

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Gordon Stewart: Elijah Cummings and the Blue Note Gospel

Saturday October 26, 2019
Elijah Cummings never seemed to get too big for his britches. He seemed unaffected by praise or the lack of it — “a speaker” whose soul was uncorrupted by the need for public praise.

Gordon Stewart: "You're Reading from MY Book!"

Thursday June 21, 2018
Like Lewis Black, I’m not big on televangelists who misuse the Hebrew Bible. I’m even less fond of institutional powers and authorities that use MY book, the New Testament, to justify a policy that is beyond justification.

Gordon Stewart: Our Dwelling Place and the Wrath of God

Tuesday January 09, 2018
Six old friends have arrived from Indiana, Minnesota, and Illinois for New Year’s Eve in the Dempsey’s living room. A seventh unbidden visitor ”” pancreatic cancer managed by chemotherapy ”” makes us freshly aware of our mortality...

Gordon Stewart: When the news goes away

Saturday October 14, 2017
Days away from internet access brings a calmer reflection. Being in touch isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Out of touch with bad news brings relief to the body.

Gordon Stewart: All Us B*stards - On Will Campbell

Thursday August 31, 2017
'Rev. Will D. Campbell, Maverick Minister in Civil Rights Era, Dies at 88' read the New York Times obituary. Will Campbell (1924-2013) was more than unusual. He was idiosyncratic.

Gordon Stewart: “If you love him, why not . . . ?”

Sunday August 20, 2017
Fourth in a series on “Jacob’s Ladder at Almost 75”

Gordon Stewart: “My Jesus”

Saturday August 19, 2017
Part 3 of “Jacob’s Ladder at Almost 75” “Sinner, do you love my Jesus?” The day I met Tony Lewis, “my Jesus” fell off the ladder.

Gordon Stewart: “Every round goes higher, higher”

Friday August 18, 2017
Part 2 of “Jacob’s Ladder at Almost 75” As a child and youth, Jacob’s Ladder touched something deep within me. I couldn’t have described what it was or why at the time.

Gordon Stewart: Jacob’s Ladder at almost 75

Thursday August 17, 2017
Sometimes I can’t get it out of my head. I go to sleep with it. Wake up with it. Walk the dog with it. It’s been over a month now. “We are climbing Jacob’s ladder” begs for my attention.

Gordon Stewart: Who Am I?

Sunday July 30, 2017
Who we are – where we come from, who we’ve been, who we’re becoming, and where we’re going – 'consists almost entirely of two parts: the knowledge of God and of ourselves.'

Gordon Stewart: The Parents, the son, and the girlfriend

Sunday July 16, 2017
She was homeless when he welcomed her into his parents' new townhouse. So far as the parents knew, she was 'sort of' their adult son's 'girlfriend' but they weren't exactly sure what their relationship was. It was strange. It didn't seem romantic. She seemed different.

Gordon Stewart: The Seagull and a double rainbow

Saturday May 20, 2017
A double rainbow appeared last evening over the tidal river beyond the house where five seminary classmates and our spouses are staying this week on the coast of Maine.

Gordon C. Stewart: “HOMELAND MILITARIZATION” From Be Still! Departure from Collective Madness

Friday April 28, 2017
The helicopters that had been sent to Iraq and Afghanistan to protect us here at home were flying around downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul. The Blackhawk helicopters were on 'urban training exercises,' rattling the windows of residents’ condos, homes, and apartments right here at home in Minnesota. Why were they here?

Radio by The Rev. Gordon Stewart

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Gordon Stewart: Two Universities: Paris and Liberty

Tuesday October 03, 2017
In this audio feature, the Rev. Gordon Stewart compares Thomas Aquinas' experience at Paris University with today's Liberty University.

Gordon Stewart: Tide Pools and the Ocean

Friday September 01, 2017
In this audio feature, the Rev. Gordon Stewart reflects on the tide pools he played in as a child, wondering if, like religion, the soul itself is like a tide pool.

Gordon Stewart: Only One Sin: Exceptionalism

Tuesday August 01, 2017
The Rev. Gordon Stewart offers an audio essay reflecting on the story of Dr. Kosuke Koyama and Hiroshima Day, August 6, the day the bomb was dropped.

Gordon Stewart: Stillness at Blue Spring

Tuesday July 11, 2017
The Rev. Gordon Stewart reflects on manatees, Blue Springs State Park in Florida.

Gordon Stewart: Memorial Day and the Soldier's Helmet

Tuesday May 23, 2017
'Memorial Day and the Soldier’s Helmet' is one of the chapters from 'Be Still! Departure from Collective Madness,' by Gordon Stewart, p.10-12.