My car radio is pre-set to KPCC, 89.3 FM, our local National Public Radio station. Great programming, in-depth news analysis, comfortable host personalities . . . . and NO COMMERCIALS. Sounds perfect. So, this morning I turned on the car’s ignition, flipped on the radio and heard one of the familiar KPCC morning programs. I […]
The fallout from the exposé of the Southern Baptists’ coverup of sexual abuse by church leaders continues to ricochet after their recent Annual Convention in Anaheim.* Ironically, Baptist leaders were among the harshest critics when, a few years back, the Roman Catholic Church had to face up to similar problems, but now they’re forced to […]
Father’s Day has been a holiday in the U.S. since 1910. It has been celebrated since the 16th century in Catholic European countries in connection the birthday of Joseph, Jesus’ earthly father. In the Eastern Orthodox Church, all the males in the lineage of Jesus, back to Adam, are honored on the Sunday of the […]
The children who were shot. “I just want to see my friends. Being in school makes me happy. I feel safe when I’m with my teacher.” The child who shot them. “I’m only 18 years old, and I’ve got a killer gun. I’m really angry, and I’m going to take it out on these little […]
The Bible’s most memorable statement about the world has no prepositions in it: God so loved the world that he gave his only Son. (John 3:16) It’s a categorical statement of unconditional love. For emphasis, the text adds: God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world but in order that […]
Our church’s Bell Tower is now surrounded by scaffolding, as workmen have begun the repair / renewal project, which will continue for about a month. This is the part of our church structure that seems to symbolize who we are in the community. We have known for some time that the cross at the top […]
When I was six or seven and learning to read, one of the books that fascinated me most was an edition of Aesop’s Fables. I can still see some of the drawings that illustrated each of the fables, and I was well aware that every story ended with a brief, memorable “moral” that summarized the […]
Last week, somebody posted a meme about how the word STRESSED written backward spells DESSERTS. Ever since then, I’ve been treating my worrisome nature with bowls and bowls of ice cream. It worked. But now I can’t buckle my belt, which has given me something new to worry about. My DESSERTS have flipped me back […]
Communication is two-way. That’s what the “co” at the beginning means. Its definition is the sharing of information between two or more people, not the one-directional imparting of information. Unfortunately, we live in a society in which a lot of time and energy is spent on trying to get a message across. We’re bombarded with […]
What does a guy in prison think about? I imagine he’d spend hours feeling sorry for himself, going over how unfair life was and what things were being denied to him. The Apostle Paul lived at least two years under house arrest, in the constant custody of a Roman military guard (Acts 28:16, 30), and […]