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August 2022

August 04, 2022

When are F-bombs Appropriate in the Classroom?

Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Hebrews 11:1...

July 2022

July 30, 2022

Some Crooked Things Don’t Need to be Made Straight

Out of the crooked timber of humanity, no straight thing was ever made. Immanuel Kant...

July 23, 2022

Negotiating with God

I have the privilege of giving the sermon today at Trinity Episcopal Church in Pawtuxet,...

July 18, 2022

Time, Like an Ever-Rolling Stream

I’ve been thinking a lot about end of life issues lately. Really. They seem to...

July 14, 2022

Some Things Repair Themselves, and Some Things Do Not

My recently concluded crappy month of June ended with a minor fender-bender, the result of...

July 11, 2022

My Neighbor May Not Be the Person I Think It Is

I recently found myself in the midst of a Facebook discussion, the sort of online...

July 09, 2022

What They Don’t Tell Us About Wisdom–Part Two

A couple of weeks ago I posted an essay called “What They Don’t Tell Us...

July 07, 2022

Descending and Ascending the Mountain of the Lord

Facebook reminded me that eight years ago I was on retreat at the New Camoldoli...

July 02, 2022

On Independence Day, Be Glad that the United States is Not a Christian Nation

Christianity, or any branch of it, loses its Christian character when its self-proclaimed supporters outnumber...

June 2022

June 23, 2022

Problems with the Soul

Last week I posted an essay called “Left-Brain Christianity or Right-Brain Faith?” which discussed the...

June 21, 2022

So You Want to be Free? Face your Demons

Iris Murdoch is one of my favorite philosophers and novelists, a writer whose work is...

June 11, 2022

The Spiritual Life of Crows

My childhood was filled with unusual characters, all products of my father’s fertile imagination. A...

June 07, 2022

How Should a Normal Person Approach the Bible?

I recently came across a great podcast called “The Bible for Normal People,” hosted by...

June 03, 2022

Faith Needs Many Things, But It Doesn’t Need a Creed

One Sunday I decided to pay close attention to the words of the Nicene Creed...

June 01, 2022

Being a Philosopher Makes Me a Better Christian

I am not a regular reader of Christianity Today, but the title of Jon Ward’s...

May 2022

May 30, 2022

Loving My Country and Loving God are Not the Same Thing

The June edition of The Atlantic contains an excellent and sobering article by Tim Alberta. Titled...

May 26, 2022

Swallowing the Mystery

In her wonderful memoir Take This Bread, Sara Miles tells us of a conversation she had...

May 19, 2022

Making Darkness and Silence your Friends

Hello darkness, my old friend, I’ve come to talk to you again. “The Sound of Silence”...

May 17, 2022

An Evolving Faith: It’s About Survival, not Progress

To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven. Ecclesiastes...

May 14, 2022

A Story About Learning to See Things Differently

In a comment on last Thursday’s blog post—“God is Not a Vending Machine”—a Facebook friend...

May 11, 2022

God is Not a Vending Machine

My most recent blog post included some reflections from a recent student on what she...

May 08, 2022

It’s Okay to Be a Sheep

One of my prized possessions, purchased when Jeanne and I were on vacation during Summer...

May 04, 2022

Glad that Roe v. Wade is going to be overturned? You have sown the wind, and you will reap the whirlwind

I seldom jump into current events in this blog, simply because I don't want to...

May 03, 2022

The Gospel According to Compost

Alas, and did my Savior bleed, and did my Sovereign die? Would He devote that...

April 2022

April 28, 2022

Organizing Books is My Charism

Last weekend, Jeanne and I took a quick trip to Greenville, South Carolina to attend...

April 24, 2022

A Human Being Having a Divine Experience

Two decades ago, as my mother-in-law was steadily descending into the hell of Alzheimer’s, an...

April 20, 2022

Curb Your Enthusiasm

There is a saying attributed to Saint Francis that I have heard frequently in more...

April 15, 2022

Actually, He Died: A Good Friday Meditation

Several Christmas Eves ago, Jeanne, Justin and I were invited to share dinner with a...

April 14, 2022

Falling Asleep in All the Wrong Places: A Maundy Thursday Reflection

Some people can sleep anywhere. One of those people was a student in one of...

April 09, 2022

I’ll Be Jesus: A Palm Sunday Reflection

What is bothering me incessantly is the question of what Christianity really is, or indeed...

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