The Rev. Susan Sparks
American Baptist Churches USA
Madison Avenue Baptist Church, New York, NY
The Rev. Susan Sparks, the only female comedian in the country with a pulpit, is senior pastor of the historic Madison Avenue Baptist Church in New York City (and the first woman in its 160 year history). Susan's work has been featured in the New York Times, in O (The Oprah) Magazine, ABC, CNN and in numerous comedy clubs, including Carolines Comedy Club in New York City. Susan is the recent recipient of an award from Intersections International for her interfaith work to promote justice, reconciliation and peace among diverse communities.
Her book, Laugh Your Way to Grace: Reclaiming the Spiritual Power of Humor, was released in May 2010.
Rev. Sparks is regular blogger for Psychology Today as well as a Key Voice Blogger for Day1; check out her blog here.
Latest Content by The Rev. Susan Sparks
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(
ABCUSA)
Readers, do me a favor. Fold your arms and don the surliest expression you can manage. Done? Good. Now you know what my last standup comedy audience looked like.
Mercifully, times like these don't happen often. However, when they do, it's excruciating. When faced with a surly crowd, I always fall back on the words of a long-time comic friend who once warned me to "never allow yourself to be defined by your audience." He went on to explain that it's inevitable to encounter the random angry, unstable person -- the person who wants to bring you down. But no matter what happens, "you can't let up and you can't shrink in fear. Just the opposite -- you have to stand straighter in defiance and keep on going."
Read full article...
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(
ABCUSA)
(This blog also appears in Huffington Post)
Many probably think I'm on a slippery slope to hell. I drink beer, I dance, and God help me, I'm a Baptist minister. However, it's not the Stella Artois or tango lessons that are greasing my downward slide. The real shocker? My belief that online gaming may revive organized religion.
Read full article...
Other Recent Content by The Rev. Susan Sparks
February 18, 2013
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
How Taylor Swift and Jesus can help us avoid bad relationships
September 21, 2012
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
Shabbat with a twist
February 21, 2012
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
Like pinot noir grapes, the human heart thrives only with the most patient of growers
January 13, 2012
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
We all need a wee boost every once in a while. Sadly the squishy stuffed animals we used to carry around don't always fit into our daily business world. We need an alternative.
January 04, 2012
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
Revitalize your 2012 with wisdom from "the most interesting man in the world."
December 06, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
While everyone from the newspaper delivery person to our great Aunt Hazelene is on our holiday shopping list, one name that is conspicuously missing ... is the baby Jesus.
November 12, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
A Vietnam Vet's view of war and religion
October 24, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
How to recover from the blows you never saw coming.
October 01, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
A short essay on giving up the past and focusing on the gifts of the road ahead.
September 06, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
A 9/11 reflection based on blood and the Jungle Book
August 31, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
A reflection on the upcoming tenth anniversary of 9/11
August 14, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
In Colossians 3, the Apostle Paul asks us what trash do we need to throw on the mulch pile, and what beautiful new things will we grow in its place?
August 07, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
As TV mobster Tony Soprano might put it, "So you're a Christian? Whattaya gonna do about it?" Some Christians do nothing. Others take a middle of the road approach. Susan Sparks encourages us to go "all in" and truly follow Christ.
August 01, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
Use the fires of life to make yourself stronger -- to forge yourself a heart of Pyrex.
June 14, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
Take off your emotional training wheels and discover what life's like out on the open road.
May 18, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
Realize the precious, fragile nature of our hearts. Draw some boundaries. Grow a spine. Every little heart needs some cactus pricklies to protect it.
April 20, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
Does the resurrection of a Messiah have any chance in our jaded, over-stimulated 21st Century world?
April 07, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
When all seems hopeless, when all appears to be gone, remember the tide will turn and life abundant, like the sea, will flood back into our lives.
March 23, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
A Lenten message about finding more intimacy and honesty in our spiritual lives
February 28, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
How noisy is your life? And what damage is it causing?
February 18, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
How Twitter highlights new possibilities with non-violence
January 09, 2011
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
A study of cheese grits and the baptism of Jesus
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
Sherre Hirsch and Daniel Pawlus in conversation with Susan Sparks, who says, "Make small, everyday changes in your life. Whether it's to go to a retreat, or buy a book or take a class. Just take one step towards where you think God is calling you."
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
Susan Sparks, Pastor of Madison Avenue Baptist Church in New York City, recalls how a storm-laden, cross-country motorcyle trip in South Dakota taught her an important lesson about weathering the storms of life.
December 29, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
Use taking down the Christmas tree as a New Years resolution exercise
December 23, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
A Christmas message about coming in from the cold.
November 10, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
What would a redwood tree have to say about love?
October 26, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
God calls us all to find the hero within.
October 11, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
How to find life in exile: A study of Jeremiah, the Chilean miners and Project Runway.
September 09, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
In my childhood home on Lockhart Drive in Charlotte, N.C., there was a place considered holy space. You spoke of it in hushed terms. It was only used on the most special of occasions. It was -- the living room.
August 14, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
I am doing my own version of Eat, Pray, Love this morning: I am eating breakfast in a fun new place, and praying that my arteries can support the love I feel for the croissant with egg, cheese and pesto sitting in front of me.
August 02, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
Get rid of the trash in your life and grow something beautiful and new
July 27, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
The gifts of Christmas should be celebrated all year long!
June 01, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
The Rev. Susan Sparks spent a week in Nashville recently for the Festival of Homiletics. But in addition to all the sermons she enjoyed, she also partook of a lot of good ol' Southern cooking--including Chicken Fried Steak. Read on...
May 13, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
A blessing of the motorcycles reminds us to sanctify everyday life.
April 18, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
The Rev. Susan Sparks takes a look at Jesus' healing of blind Bartimaeus, and finds a challenge to Jesus' followers to experience and share his healing touch.
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
Day1 host Peter Wallace sits down for his third interview with the Rev. Susan Sparks, Senior Pastor of Madison Avenue Baptist Church, and discusses her strange road to becoming a pastor, her upbringing in the church and her two year trip culminating in her calling to seminary.
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
The Rev. Susan Sparks sits down with Day1 host Peter Wallace for her second interview, this time discussing the flock at Madison Avenue Baptist Church and what its like being a southerner in the heart of New York City. How does the Madison Avenue Baptist Church reach out to the city around them? Watch and learn.
April 11, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
The Rev. Susan Sparks wonders about the impact Christians could have in the world if they behaved more like Elvis fans, instead of like doubting Thomas.
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
The Rev. Susan Sparks, one time Lawyer and Comedian who made the unlikely jump to senior pastor at Madison Avenue Baptist Church, sits down with Peter Wallace to discuss the intersection of faith and comedy. Rev. Sparks discusses the important role each play in bringing joy to peoples lives, and how too often people of faith forget the role of Christianity in bringing joy.
April 04, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
As we celebrate Easter, the Rev. Susan Sparks reminds us that life without the resurrection of Christ can be heavy and flat--it's the missing key ingredient many of us are missing.
March 13, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
How to keep our faith when God seems silent
March 01, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
How we image God drives how we communicate with God
February 16, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
A Rabbi, a Muslim and a Baptist preacher walk into a room...
January 18, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
Love thy neighbor...but at an appropriate and safe distance
January 06, 2010
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
Life is just better when slow cooked.
December 08, 2009
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
Jesus as the bread of life -- the sourdough bread that is -- has much to teach us in this busy advent season.
November 19, 2009
The Rev. Susan Sparks
(ABCUSA)
We must trust in what never changes, so we can then trust in what does.
