It’s one thing to know something in your head. It’s quite another to feel it in your bones. I had that experience recently in St. Peter’s Square in Rome. Dr. Edward Sri, who led our pilgrimage, had told us in advance what to expect: the grand central basilica, built over the graves of early Christians; […]
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STOP KEEPING SCORE! True love is not 50-50
“Everything is 50-50 in our marriage,” a friend told me. “That’s why it works.” I cringed, not knowing how to respond. Clearly she was proud of the way she and her husband shared things equally, down to the daily chores. But 50-50 isn’t just equal; it’s divisive. By which I mean you have to divide […]
YOU’VE BEEN CHOSEN . . . NOW WHAT?
I’ve been thinking of Matthias this week, Matthias who was chosen in Acts 1 to replace Judas as the twelfth apostle. When someone’s a traitor to the cause, then kills himself, the matter of filling that spot is a sober one. Imagine today, being part of a movement and one of your own puts out […]
A MOTHER’S DAY GREETING FROM ST. PAUL
Reading the end of St. Paul’s letter to the Romans, the part where he lists everyone he wants to greet, I was struck by verse 13: “Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine” (NABRE). Is that one woman or two? The English Standard Version, while not as literal, gets across what […]
DON’T BE AFRAID: Jesus is with you!
One week after Easter, I can totally relate to the disciples. They are huddled behind locked doors, afraid of what the Jews might do to them. They must be still in shock from the crucifixion, even though they’ve been hearing that Jesus has risen. He’s not with them in the same way that he used […]
REFLECTING ON THE RESURRECTION: the Easter Octave
The sun is setting on another beautiful Easter Sunday. My phone and news feeds are full of Easter greetings. He is risen! The Lord is risen indeed! But at the back of my mind are the closing words of today’s gospel reading: “For they did not yet understand the Scripture that he had to rise […]
HERE COMES JESUS: Will you receive him?
In the mid-60s we were living in Hong Kong – my Dad was helping to start a missions hospital for refugees there. I was six. We heard that Princess Margaret and Lord Snowden were coming for a state visit, and we ran to the street to see them drive by. I couldn’t wait! From my […]
WHO DESERVES MERCY?
The man lies on a stretcher, desperately in need of medical attention. He’s not far from the door to the hospital, but no one will admit him. It’s a Union army hospital—and the man is a Confederate soldier. A nurse tries in vain to get him help. Finally she cries out, fiercely, “Everyone deserves mercy!” […]
THE LORD BRINGS LIGHT TO THE DARKNESS
Some situations just never get better. And I wonder: God—where are you?? We’re two weeks into Lent and the darkness is starting to settle in. I’m feeling the effects of self-denial and am not enjoying it. But worse is the longing for resolution to a long-standing problem. Lord—this is crushing me! I cry. Where is […]
NOT BY BREAD ALONE: How to live by the word of God
I wasn’t thinking of Lent when I scheduled our annual baking day in the old wood-fired oven. The home we meet in was originally a boarding school, built in 1830 just as the side-flue oven was invented. The 7’ deep, brick-lined oven heated by a fire in an adjoining chamber provided ample room to bake […]
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