The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) recently rejected the traditional definition of marriage in one of their decisions. Many celebrate this decision. Even as I write, I am forced to view a rainbow banner across the top of the page, something WordPress has inflicted on all its users. (If you feel this is…
Category: Social Issues
Celebrating One Solitary Life–Dennis Patrick
Painting by Salvador Dali The following is a piece by my father-in-law, Dennis Patrick. Dennis writes a weekly column called “The Passing Scene,” which appears in the Mountrail County Promoter. “Celebrating One Solitary Life” appeared in the March 27 edition of The Promoter. *** Eastertide is as good a time as any to reflect on the many positive…
To Judge or Not to Judge (Part 3)
In part one we found that judging is appropriate when the source of a judgment is God and not self. Part two suggested ways we might know whether a judgment is from God. Knowing whether a judgment is from God or not is a good start but it isn’t the whole picture. We can know…
To Judge or Not to Judge (Part 2)
Previously, we explored the subject of judging and the confusion it can cause. We discovered that judging in itself isn’t wrong but that it does matter who the source of a judgment is. If God is the source, we are called to express that judgment. If self is the source, our judgment is wrong. The…
To Judge or Not to Judge. That Is the Question…
For many Christians, judging is a confusing subject. “Do not judge, so that you won’t be judged” is an ever-ready verse in discussions about judging (Matt. 7:1). Yet being a Christian automatically involves a person in judgments. Christianity claims Christ is the only way to God and calls a number of socially acceptable behaviors sinful…
A Demon’s Advice on Prayer
Recently, I began re-reading CS Lewis’s classic, The Screwtape Letters. For the uninitiated, Screwtape is a series of letters in which a senior demon, Screwtape, instructs a junior demon, Wormwood, on the finer points of capturing a human soul. The letters begin when Wormwood’s subject is an atheist; they end after Wormwood’s subject becomes a Christian and later…
Unleash the Beast!
And he requires everyone…to be given a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark: the beast’s name or the number of his name. […] His number is 666 (Rev. 13:16-18). 666 has reared its ugly head in the popular imagination again. Numerous viral…
Bobblehead Devil
My wife took my son for a haircut the other day. The barber had a bobblehead devil decorating her space for Hallowe’en (pictured above). My son said, “Look! A hungry guy!” She chuckled because all my son saw was a guy with two forks. I mean, what else can you be but hungry if you have…
I Believe in Science!
I follow a couple blogs that do a lot of outreach to atheists. They are Hardwired and See There’s this Thing Called Biology… Both of these sites feature engaging authors who are incisive and quick-witted. I laugh as much as I think when reading their posts. These blogs never disappoint when it comes to generating discussion, often with die-hard…
The Defeat of Islamic Fanatics
Last week, a friend asked an interesting question: What did I think about ISIS and the situation in Iraq? What did I think God was doing or allowing in Iraq? Had I blogged on this topic? I confessed: Other than being grieved by ISIS’s crimes, I hadn’t given the topic a lot of thought or blogged…
The Voice of One 