All Our Answers Are Wrong

A three-year-old little girl died today. Her name was Hala Abu Sebakha. She died because Israel launched an airstrike in Gaza, because a Palestinian sniper from Gaza shot an Israeli who was doing maintenance on the border fence, because the Israelis did this…because the Palestinians did that…because…because…because… Hala, or هالة, means aura or glory in … Continue reading →

AAUGH!!!

It’s December 23, 2013, and right now, my level of “Christmas spirit”, whatever that is, is just about zero. Zip, zilch, nada. Apparently, I’m not alone, as WikiHow says that “many people fail to be full of the Christmas Spirit” and provides this (frankly horrifying) list of ways to “be happy during the holidays.” (That … Continue reading →

The Hopes and Fears of All the Years

I’ve often commented (not entirely in jest) that when God wants to get my attention, he has to hit me over the head with a 2×4 soaked in motor oil. I don’t have a burning bush, I’ve never had a donkey speak to me and I’ve never looked up from the dinner table to see … Continue reading →

Let. It. Die.

In the latest development in the “ohmigosh the sky is falling on the mainline Protestant church!” hysteria, this blog post about the decline in Sunday school enrollment in my denomination has been getting shared a lot in the last couple of weeks, usually under headlines like “Why is no one talking about this?” or “Am … Continue reading →

Not Okay, Mr. Takei

This post might sound like whining at first, but bear with me. I find myself growing increasingly frustrated with the portrayal of Christians in the culture, particularly in social media. This morning, while scrolling through my feed, I ran across a post from self-appointed “Godfather of the Internet” George Takei featuring this photo:     … Continue reading →

Cultivating the Gift of Self-Awareness

“The unexamined life is not worth living for a human being.” –Socrates, 399 B.C. Various philosophical and spiritual traditions down through history have affirmed the value of regular self-examination. While it is tempting to view such self-examination as self-flagellation (and it can easily be turned into that), the true purpose and benefit of such reflection … Continue reading →

RSA Shorts, The Power of Empathy

Brene Brown is a research professor at the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work. She speaks and writes about her research into the areas of vulnerability, courage, worthiness, and shame. Every time I hear something from her my own experience in pastoral care echos with a resounding, “Amen.” This short animated clip is … Continue reading →

Overload

I could see this collision coming from a mile away.  As I was walking out of the gym, trapped between the door and a handful of people navigating in and out of the cold, a young woman plowed into me.  Even for one moment she couldn’t be bothered to look up from her phone.  She … Continue reading →

Pontiff of the Year

Surprising no one except perhaps Edward Snowden, Time magazine today named Pope Francis as its Person of the Year for 2013. (Click here or on the photo to read the article.) In my opinion, this is a worthy choice. Over the nine months since his election as pontiff, Francis has certainly generated plenty of headlines and created … Continue reading →

Eucharisteo

In the beginning was this Word. This Word that grew and swelled bursting seams and cracking the hard fickle coating.  Like an idea growing that cannot be ignored this Word came to the lips of humanity.  Some choked it back and swallowed deep tears, others turned their backs and denied its power. But still others dared … Continue reading →