Some of us have been around long enough to see that the Bible we treasure has been used to multiply the pain of racial minorities, women, the poor, the mentally ill, the divorced, abused, addicted, unemployed, and prisoners. This past week I attended an event that showcased the stories of people who have repeatedly heard the […]
Today is Yom Kippur. An article in the Washing Post describes what it means this year as a nation recognizes its sins, in the presence of its enemies. Also known as The Day of Atonement, this is a day of national repentance with a view toward national forgiveness and deliverance. I’ve often been moved by […]
After hurtling through 352 million miles of space for 8 and ½ months, carrying a 2.6 billion dollar Mars rover, the space-laboratory named Curiosity survived seven minutes of terror to make an amazingly ingenious landing on the red planet. Why curiosity? Because in yet one more attempt, NASA scientists are trying to find evidence of how […]
How much of the world beyond has echoes, or reflections, in the world we know? While thinking about the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Philippians, I’ve been thinking again about The Gambler, the Don Schlitz song that Kenny Rogers made famous in 1978. While The Gambler isn’t Bible, the perspective it offers from the mouth […]
Many of you may have seen the following video that went viral a couple of weeks ago. Titled “Why I Hate Religion but Love Jesus” it expresses a deeply felt faith that has resonated with millions. But just yesterday, I was sent the following link to a response to the first from the other side […]
Since the evening of September 28, the observant Jewish community has entered a 21 day holy-holiday season that encompasses the last three of the seven annual feasts given by God to Israel through Moses (Leviticus 23:4-44). Once again it’s important to remember that everything in life has a story. That’s true of the Fall Feasts. […]
Traveling in Asia with co-workers, have been reminded again of the value of persons, relationships, trust, and honesty. Have also seen how important it is to be able to honor together the values of truth and love without seeing ourselves as the measure of either. Even more impressed with the deepening impression of what, in […]
What did Jesus mean when he said that “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27)? Could people be more important than the laws of God? The question is similar to the business-related question we’ve been discussing the last couple of days: Are people and relationships more important than […]
In November of 1947, Harry S. Truman, the 33rd President of the United States lobbied for a United Nations resolution that would divide Palestine into Jewish and Arab States. Truman later expressed his faith in the reborn state of Israel saying, “I believe it has a glorious future before it – not just [as] another […]
I knew a man who had suffered one way or another over the whole course of his life. When he was old, I remember hearing him say that, by experience he’d learned that “The Devil always overplays his hand.” Thought of his comment during this last week. Was wondering, “What was Satan thinking when he […]
