“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). As I understand it, John 1:1 could read, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was face to face with God, and what God was the Word was.” I love the thought of God…
Tag: Christianity
Gremlins, Leeches, and the Failure of the Serenity Prayer
I have a toddler. Anyone who has raised one knows it is among the most exhausting things you will ever do. They are in constant motion—usually in the wrong direction. Whether toward danger or irresponsibility they jigger gigglingly toward it. Toddlers survive because parents constantly jerk their verbal leashes and, sometimes, their literal…
Incense
Crushed and broken Pulverized Laid on the altar Set on fire There’s nothing left but smoke to rise Everything consumed but fragrance and light Not I Christ
Just the Factions, Ma’am
America’s presidential election is…beyond description. People often say they’re voting for the lesser of two evils. But many see no clear favorite in the race toward lesser evil. (And what a sad finish line that is). The picture above captures this feeling. Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump are imagined as super-villains from “The Dark Knight,” part…
21st Century Faux
This is the 21st century. The colors have bled. There is no moral to our story. The myths are just that, and we have murdered the gods. But what of it? Everything is ours now. We created it. We, the bastard lords of the real world. And I just want to get what I can…
Hospice, Not a Hospital
Today’s post ran in the local paper where I live. I adapted it from a post that appeared on The Voice of One last year. *** Last year, I read Pope Francis’s encyclical, “Laudato Si: On Care for Our Common Home.” In it, the Pope lays out his views “on the environment and human ecology.”…
Jesus (Not Jones)
One of my mix CDs has a song by Jesus Jones called, “Right Here, Right Now.” During the chorus, the lyrics are, “Right here, right now, there is no other place I want to be. Right here, right now, watching the world wake up from history.” As the music rises and crests, you can almost…
Beef and Bourbon
Mahatma Gandhi famously complained that converting to Christianity meant converting to beef and bourbon. Some Indian converts also wore European clothing. This offended Gandhi’s religious and cultural sensibilities. Christianity’s interaction with culture has a complicated history. All of us live Christianity in our particular time, place, and culture. The eternal Word comes in our flesh,…
Head Covering
While wandering the internet I stumbled across a blog advocating that women cover their heads. Naturally, 1 Corinthians 11:5-6 was the author’s text— But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, since that is one and the same as having her head shaved. So if a woman’s head is not…
I am, He Is
I am in the One of whom the Father said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased” (Matt. 3:17). He pleases the Father in me. I am in the One who died to sin and now lives to God (Rom. 6:10-11). He is dead to sin and lives to…
The Voice of One 