Martin Elfert

The Rev. Martin Elfert is an immigrant to the Christian faith. After the birth of his first child, he began to wonder about the ways in which the Divine was at work in the world. Shortly thereafter, he joined Christ Church Cathedral in Vancouver, BC, where he and his new son were baptized at the Easter Vigil in 2005 and where the community encouraged him to seek ordination.

All Stories by Martin Elfert

Father Knows Best: “God wants us to be sexual”

By Martin Elfert — December 2, 2014
To begin, a quick quiz. How many times does the Bible mention masturbation?

Father Knows Best: Has the church lost its way?

By Martin Elfert — November 19, 2014
Three thoughts on losing your way.

Father Knows Best: I’m not sure what I believe

By Martin Elfert — November 11, 2014
Practice...

Father Knows Best: How can I forgive myself?

By Martin Elfert — October 29, 2014
...open yourself up to the possibility that, if God is able to forgive you, then you might just be able to forgive yourself.

Father Knows Best: How do you create strong bonds in relationships?

By Martin Elfert — October 22, 2014
Show up. And listen.

Father Knows Best: Does God get mad when you sin?

By Martin Elfert — October 15, 2014
What if the idea of sin exists in order to open us up to forgiveness? What if it exists in order to remind us that, no matter how unforgivable we may believe ourselves to be, God doesn’t agree with us?

Father Knows Best: “Only the suffering God can help”

By Martin Elfert — October 8, 2014
Resonance, in other words, is vital to us. And, more than that, nurturing resonance in others is part of our job as human beings.

Father Knows Best: Do you think the Gospels were editorialized?

By Martin Elfert — October 1, 2014
By Martin Elfert Do you have a question about life, love, or faith? Submit it online, fill out the form below or email it to [email protected]. Hey Readers! Two weeks back, I advised Anthony — a young man who doesn’t like to dance and who likes his girlfriend’s interest in dancing even less — to […]

Father Knows Best: Why do people push their beliefs?

By Martin Elfert — September 24, 2014
I believe that when we choose to focus on a story about love, it makes it possible to find the grace that we need to encounter even the most intemperate and hostile folks.

Father Knows Best: I hate when my girlfriend goes clubbing

By Martin Elfert — September 17, 2014
Do you have a question about life, love, or faith? Submit it online, fill out the form below or email it to [email protected]. Hey Rev! Is going clubbing a sin even if you don’t take part in any of the promiscuous activity that clubbing is often associated with? My girlfriend and I, of about two […]

Father Knows Best: I’m not sure I can still support World Vision

By Martin Elfert — September 10, 2014
"...We are alienated from God, each other, and our own souls, and cannot find the way back by ourselves. But the situation is not without hope, for what sinks can be made to rise again.”

Father Knows Best: So many bad things are happening. Where has God gone?

By Martin Elfert — August 27, 2014
I’m so troubled by all that is happening in our world. The forest fires this summer, the airplanes being lost or shot down, the fighting in Gaza. Where has God gone?

Father Knows Best: Where is it easiest for you to notice God?

By Martin Elfert — August 20, 2014
In thin places, the conversation with God that we call prayer comes a little more easily. In thin places, there is a gentle invitation to relax into love and generativity and peace. In thin places, as a wise old friend once said, there is a burning bush around every corner.

Father Knows Best: Is masturbation a sin?

By Martin Elfert — August 13, 2014
A sin is an act of selfishness, it’s an act of destructiveness. A sin is something that fractures your relationship with your neighbor, that makes you smaller and more angry and more afraid...

Father Knows Best: Will I ever be happy?

By Martin Elfert — August 6, 2014
...what are the things or habits or stories or people that are holding you back from living with joy right now?
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