"And over his head they put the charge against him, which read, 'This is Jesus the King of the Jews'." Crucifixions spoke in iron words: Rome rules. Centurions with their units of a hundred men bore witness. The commander on duty at this trial had seen other messiahs. When Rome lays down the law, he … Continue reading Conversion at a Roman Cross: We Have No King but Christ
The gentle carol “Silent Night” can quiet hearts whirling with holiday worry. Consistently included in curated lists of favorite Christmas carols, "Silent Night" offers us a moment to slip into grateful contemplation of the “holy Infant, so tender and mild." Though we know the words by heart, Father Joseph Mohr, the priest who penned this … Continue reading The Priest Who Penned “Silent Night”
I like open options. Who doesn’t? Even in my spiritual life. Sure, the Bible gives us a moral roadmap for life's big temptations, but once we accept its framework as truth, a zillion miniscule options are still a matter of choice. A menu of spiritual options presents itself each year the week or so before … Continue reading A Little Litany for Lenten Temptations: Choose Life
The traumatic loss of her mother when she was four deeply wounded the youngest daughter of French lacemaker Louis Martin. By the age of 13 Thérèse, all frills and curls, was a sensitive "tween" given to tearful outbursts. Pampered by her older sisters and doted on by a father her who called her his “little … Continue reading Descending Ego’s Stairs: St. Thérèse of Lisieux’s Christmas Conversion
Her story fans the flames of hope. It’s a story of recognition that against all odds: God is on the move and priorities must be reordered. It takes place many generations after Abraham. Two Hebrew spies, sent by Joshua to scout out the promised land, secretly enter the walled city of Jericho. They hide out … Continue reading Hope on a Rope: Keeping Vigil with Rahab
He was so old “his body was as good as dead.” Ages ago, or so it seemed to him and his barren wife, he’d left the land of the Chaldeans and led servants and livestock on a journey to a land God had promised to show him. “I will bless you,” God revealed to his … Continue reading The Old Man Whose Belief Became a Blessing for us All
I once saw a kitschy Christmas card featuring a photograph of a straw-filled manger. The caption read “King-sized Bed.” Despite its triteness, that caption stayed with me. The thought of God’s choice, binding himself to humanity by becoming one of us and in lowly circumstances whose fanfare was known only to shepherds and star-studying Magi … Continue reading The Call of the Small: An Advent Invitation
Sarah Clarkson, in her incredibleThis Beautiful Truth: How God’s Goodness Breaks into Our Darkness, describes her Holy Saturday during the Covid 19 lockdown of 2020. She’d been out for a walk on the downs near her English home, where in the first phase of the pandemic she was allowed only one walk a day. “The … Continue reading Halloween, Holy Time and our Longing for “Days that Are Different”
Two days before Christmas in 1949, Thomas Merton returned to his room in Kentucky's Abbey of Gethsemani and opened his mail. He had received a postcard bearing Fra Angelico's golden rendering of the Annunciation, the moment when the Angel Gabriel appeared to Mary with the invitation to bring God into the world through her own … Continue reading Contemplating Christmas Cards with Thomas Merton
Remember when email was fun? How simple it was to "shoot" a greeting to a friend, receive a pithy reply and close your inbox feeling content and connected? I now have three inboxes and I approach each of them with trepidation. Even my personal inbox is more like Pandora's box than a friendly greeting gatherer. … Continue reading End the Year on the Path to the Ever-Ancient, Ever-New Normal
