“Let us go, then, to Bethlehem" these shepherds said, one to the other, solitaries in the night watch, when the silence they knew so well--a monotonous quiet like too many other nights spent on the hillside, watchful even as their heads drooped to their chests from the deep-down tiredness of the long day behind them,… Continue reading Let Us Go To Bethlehem
The Second Disciple
“When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home.” (Matthew 1.24) Back in the day, I usually ended up playing Joseph in the school Christmas programs. As I recall, getting the part of Joseph didn’t cause the same buzz for us boys as… Continue reading The Second Disciple
“Love is Action, Jack”
“Go and tell John what you hear and see.” (Matthew 11.4) Years back, wanting to draw the distinction between words and actions, a writer offered this example. He explained how a person could tell his friend all day long about how his grandma’s recipe for cookies was so great. But, as the writer said, until… Continue reading “Love is Action, Jack”
Boy in the Popeye Shirt
I watched the little boy wiggle and waggle, as all four-year-old boys do in church and near everywhere else, no fear of God anywhere on his mind, but more afraid of missing out on the sunlight that was straining to break through the stained-glass windows, a mind trying to do the impossible math of how… Continue reading Boy in the Popeye Shirt
Rants From the Jordan
“John the Baptist appeared, preaching in the desert of Judea, and saying, ‘Repent,’ for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” (Matthew 3.1) Prophets don’t have a wide circle of friends. There are good reasons for it. They never know when to shut up. That alienates people. They’re never satisfied with things as they are.… Continue reading Rants From the Jordan
O Christmas Tree
As a small child in a small school in a small town, life was simple. Except when the old nuns from Switzerland who taught us insisted each year at Christmas that we learn to sing “O Christmas Tree.” The problem was not with the song, but with the insistence on the sisters’ part that second… Continue reading O Christmas Tree
Stop and Think
“For you do not know on which day your Lord will come.” (Matthew 24.42) A “Dennis the Menace” comic from years back shows Dennis sitting on Santa’s lap. Other kids are waiting their turn, while Dennis’ mother is on the side, surely wondering what he is about to say to Santa, since she knows better… Continue reading Stop and Think
A Litany of Thanksgiving
Great Spirit, giver of the heavens and the earth, of the skies and the seas, and all that is in them, We come to you with gratitude for the plenitude of your gifts, too many to number, so many overlooked, just as many taken for granted. While we thank you for the beauty of the… Continue reading A Litany of Thanksgiving
The Opposite of Saving Yourself
“If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” (Luke 23.37) As he waited for his wife to come out of the office where she worked, his eagerness to call it a day apparent in his face, the not-old, but not-young man used the minutes to wipe off the water from his new black… Continue reading The Opposite of Saving Yourself
Let It Snow!
My mom was a winter person. I am not. Whereas she looked upon winter as the time of year when everything good happens—such as snowmen, Christmas carols, and arctic temperatures—I still look upon winter much the same as a smart bear would. When the weatherman forecasts the first warning of frost, I eat a big… Continue reading Let It Snow!
Sunday Brunch 