Once upon a time there was a mother with many children. Like most parents, this mother loved her children and did all she could to provide for, care for, and nurture them. She gave sacrificially of herself year after year. Not all of her children, however, followed her example. Some… Continue reading
God is best experienced as we reach out in compassion and love to others, especially those who are disenfranchised and discounted in our culture. If Jesus was correct in presenting a God who has proclaimed divine solidarity with “the least of these” of our world, then it’s natural to expect that we will find God best as we touch others in God’s healing and liberating name. Continue reading
The church where Susan and I are members [Downey Ave Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)] ends each Easter service with our talented organist Monna Breland playing the “Hallelujah Chorus” from Handel’s Messiah. Everyone in the sanctuary follows the custom of standing during this rousing piece of music. The tradition behind… Continue reading
(6 minutes) Over seventy years ago J. G. Bennett observed that we tend to see ourselves primarily in the light of our intentions, which are invisible to others, while we see others mainly in the light of their actions, which are visible to us. And so, he suggests, we often… Continue reading
There is much talk about the need for a revival in the church today. The only revival I believe worth pursuing is one which is willing to be embraced by the divine imagination of a new creation. We need the alternatives Jesus offered just as much as those early disciples did. We need not remain paralyzed and stunted by our stymied hopes and defeatist expectations. Continue reading
When I was a pastor I was often asked what I thought about “near-death experiences” (NDEs). We have all heard of these, and some of you may have even had such an experience. The media has certainly capitalized on this phenomenon, and many trees have been sacrificed to print books… Continue reading
Theologian Paul Tillich told the following story in one of his sermons: In the Nuremburg war-crimes trials a witness appeared who had lived for some time in a grave in a Jewish grave-yard. It was the only place he and many others could live, when hiding after they had escaped… Continue reading
“It is only because I can see God entering the darkness of human suffering and evil in his creation, recognizing it for what it really is, meeting it and conquering it, that I can accept a religious view of the world. Without the religious dimension, life would be senseless, and… Continue reading
The great Christian ethicist and theologian Reinhold Niebuhr once said, “Nothing worth doing is completed in our lifetime; therefore, we must be saved by hope.” As we enter this season of Easter we might benefit from reflecting on these words. During the latter portion of the nineteenth century there was… Continue reading
As we approach Easter, we can only imagine what that first Easter must have been like. The shock, the surprise, the unbelievable joy, and the restoration of trust in the faithfulness of God and the truth of Jesus—all of this must have been the experiences of those who first met… Continue reading
