What is it about either or all, that sparks your interest or desire? What impact does each or either have upon your gustatorial delights? What impact does each or either have upon your digestive processes? In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus addressed the matter of distinguishing the real from the unreal. He specifically focused […]
Jesus
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A summer “staycation” can open our listening hearts
“Every scribe who becomes a disciple of the Kingdom of Heaven is like a householder who brings out of the storeroom things both new and old.” Mt. 13:52 If I ran downstairs right now to check my “storeroom” aka the pantry, I’m pretty sure I’d find a fresh box or two of pasta, some crackers […]
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Deliver us from evil …
One of the most sobering requests cited by Jesus in what has been called the “Lord’s Prayer,” is a sobering request of God, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” In no uncertain terms, Jesus instructs those who were following him to include in their prayer requests to God, “Lead us not […]
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Compassion
The prophet Hosea describes God as one who “bends down … to feed, to lift up and to hold.” Strength and flexibility are both necessary in the act of bending. How grateful we are to have a God who is willing to bend on our behalf and who invites us to bend on behalf of […]
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Do we really want to be human?
Do we really want to be human? Sometimes I think not. I’m pondering this now in light of Pope Leo’s first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas: On safeguarding humanity in the time of Artificial Intelligence. Billed as the “AI” encyclical, it is more than that. The document includes a masterful summary of Catholic Social Teaching. It recenters […]
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Just before, just after, during: Experiencing Easter transformation
What are we doing during these 40 days of Easter? In more than six decades of living, I feel I’ve not yet grasped all there is to this feast of paschal mystery. This year, my ponderings have been ordered by three images, a triptych, if you will. The center panel is baptism – a very […]
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Garden serendipity
Last Sunday, Christians around the world celebrated Easter by joining Mary in the garden outside the empty tomb and proclaiming the day of resurrection. The Bible begins and ends with garden imagery. The creation story in Genesis 1 presents the cosmic garden with all the light and darkness across the universe coming into being through […]
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Power – A capitalistic cancer
Something about “power,” in whatever form, or source, from which it may come or exist, can cause great things to happen. When God stood out on the banisters of nothingness and declared, “Let there be …,” no greater power in heaven nor on Earth could have ever been affirmed. Even since that time the essence […]
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Reading the Bible through Jesus’ eyes
You may often hear how important it is for U.S. citizens to return to the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights so we don’t lose sight of the wise but imperfect aspirations that birthed our nation into being. Equally for Christians, reading and praying with scripture keeps us grounded in the […]
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A call for humility
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourself. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 2:3,5 During this season of Lent, Christians around the world prepare for holy week which begins with Christ’s humble entrance into Jerusalem on Palm […]
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Save one life at a time
“Whoever saves a single life is considered by scripture to have saved the whole world.” (Talmud, Sanhedrin 37a). These words were among the scriptures quoted last Friday at an interfaith prayer vigil held at First Presbyterian Church by Faith Coalition for the Common Good (FCCG) – an emergency gathering in response to the state-sanctioned violence […]
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She persisted
In November of 2018, on the 35th anniversary of my ordination as a minister of the word and sacrament in the Presbyterian Church (USA), I was well celebrated by Westminster Presbyterian Church, the congregation I served from 2013 to 2025. At the reception following worship, Associate Pastor Rev. Trajan McGill surprised me with the children’s […]
