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December 2019

December 10, 2019

Living in a Minor Key

At some point early in their musical training, all serious musicians are introduced to the...

November 2019

November 19, 2019

Don’t Worry, Be Hopeful . . . and Get to Work

In the liturgical cycle, we are headed toward a new year that begins on the...

November 14, 2019

Political Jesus: No, it’s not an oxymoron

In a well-known and often-quoted passage from the Jewish scriptures, the prophet Micah asks a...

October 2019

October 22, 2019

Living the Dream and Getting S**t Done

Your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. This, promises...

October 17, 2019

How to Tell if You are More Christian Than I Am

If we remembered that water takes its color from the vessel containing it, we would...

October 15, 2019

A Story from Syria: Listen to People Other than Yourself

As the expected chaos and violence in Turkey and Syria continue to develop in the...

October 05, 2019

Spiritual Lessons Learned from an Obese Cat: A reflection for “Blessing of the Animals” Sunday

I was reminded yesterday that exactly eight years ago, one of my favorite pictures of...

October 03, 2019

Possible Responses to the Current Insanity: “Whatever” and “Oh, Well”

Given my teaching schedule this semester, I begin each Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday on the...

September 2019

September 22, 2019

Are You Jesus? A Prophetic Challenge from Joan Chittister

Yesterday I had the privilege of attending a talk given by one of my heroes....

September 05, 2019

Donald Trump, Pardons, and Forgiveness

Pardons are in the news, particularly Presidential pardons. Presidential pardons are nothing new, and most...

September 01, 2019

Jesus and the Compassionate Capitalist: A Reflection for Labor Day

There are a couple of sayings attributed to Jesus that Christians often use when attempting...

July 2019

July 13, 2019

You mean THOSE people are my neighbors???

Not long ago, Jeanne and I saw “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?”, the documentary about...

June 2019

June 08, 2019

The Message of Pentecost: God Is Not Angry At Us

Jeanne and I watched a documentary not long ago called “Fierce Light: When Spirit Meets...

May 2019

May 23, 2019

When God Is Silent

Every religion which does not confirm that God is hidden is not true. Blaise Pascal One...

May 17, 2019

Scottish Sheep are Waterproof, and other takeaways from Good Shepherd Sunday

One of my prized possessions, purchased when Jeanne and I on vacation last June in...

May 14, 2019

Are Evangelical Christians Discriminated Against? The Dangers of Tribal Christianity

Last week, a Christianity Today article reported that "Half of Americans Say Evangelicals are Discriminated Against." www.christianitytoday.com

May 11, 2019

A Mother’s Day Remembrance: Her Children Rise Up and Call Her Blessed

I once learned something interesting about giraffes from one of my colleagues. He was lecturing...

April 2019

April 23, 2019

What Do We Hope For?

“Now abide faith, hope, and love; but the greatest of these is love.” These words...

April 21, 2019

Now I See You: An Easter Reflection

Easter Sunday--the most triumphant day on the Christian liturgical calendar. According to New Testament scholar...

April 10, 2019

Remembering What Matters Most

The sea pronounces something, over and over, in a hoarse whisper. I cannot quite make...

April 03, 2019

Faith By the Skin of Your Teeth

Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy...

April 01, 2019

Jesus and April Fools’ Day

IT’S APRIL FOOLS' DAY–A PERFECT TIME FOR SOME IRREVERENCE! One of my unexpected reading delights...

March 2019

March 17, 2019

Why I Am Done Trying to Prove the Existence of God

If you think you understand it, it is not God. Soren Kierkegaard In Marilynne Robinson’s...

March 03, 2019

Our Wishes Are Not God’s Primary Concern

Therefore with joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. Isaiah 12 In his...

February 2019

February 28, 2019

Choice, and “a certain lightness of heart”

On the recommendation of one of my colleagues, I recently read Alexander Waugh’s The House of...

February 26, 2019

Forgiveness with No Boundaries

As we drove home from a lovely two-day celebration of our twenty-fifth anniversary several years...

January 2019

January 29, 2019

“You are the Man”: Speaking Truth to Power

Not long ago, my wife Jeanne decided to audit a graduate theology course on campus...

January 17, 2019

Know Your Bible, and Know Your Greek Mythology

During summer orientation for freshmen, I often help the director of the Honors Program on...

December 2018

December 16, 2018

Joseph: An Awesome Stepfather with a Questionable Pedigree

In my religious tradition, we didn’t do saints. But we did do Christmas pageants—big time....

December 09, 2018

Banging on the Door of Hope

We’ve all done this, we bang and bang on the door of hope, and don’t...

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