Thanksgiving As An Environmental Holiday
The origins of Thanksgiving are as a celebration of the bounty of the creation and the gifts of the Creator. That makes it perfect for becoming THE environmental holiday in the United States.
Spirituality Archives
November 23, 2006 8:00 AM
Comments (6)December 6, 2006 11:43 AM
You Can't Go Wrong with 'God is Love'.
One Christmas when I was a local church pastor, I was giving the children’s sermon. I sat on the steps leading up to the altar and asked the children to gather around me. “What is the difference between Jesus and Santa Claus?” I asked.
January 3, 2007 12:50 PM
The Long, Dark Night of the Soul
One day God stopped speaking to me. When I prayed as I normally did, there was a big nothing in response. I was in my mid-twenties and a seminary student at the time. I was ashamed, embarrassed and told no one. I tried to figure it out on my own.
January 31, 2007 10:03 AM
Pray Unceasingly
The ideal of the life of faith is to make your life a prayer to God. With every breath you take, every act you do, every thought that comes, I believe the person of faith should try to live toward God. That is how I understand prayer and take it from me, this is not easy and I cannot pretend I do this well.
April 10, 2007 8:51 AM
Can These Bones Live?
I believe that Jesus of Nazareth, crucified, dead and buried, rose again in the disciples and in the faithful throughout the ages who have refused to let violence be the last word on human life. I believe in this because I have seen it.
April 11, 2007 10:08 AM
Feel the Presence of Your Being
One of my yoga instructors often ends practice with the instruction to “feel the presence of your being.” I have done yoga for years and honestly could not have survived the stresses of being a seminary president without it.
August 30, 2007 9:05 AM
Looking for God in Calcutta
What a tragedy it would have been for Mother Teresa’s letters to be destroyed. The publication of her piercing confessions of doubt and spiritual loneliness will be of immeasurable help to the millions of people of faith, like myself, for whom God’s silence is a constant companion and who live with piercing doubt every day.
September 19, 2007 6:38 AM
Other People's Cults
The term “cult” has gotten a bad rap in common usage, having been employed most often to describe drug-laden, mind-controlling groups. The term “cult” itself is neutral; cult is a term that merely means a cohesive group that the surrounding culture considers outside the mainstream. “Religion”, by contrast, is usually used to describe the solidly mainstream and institutionalized forms of faith.
October 11, 2007 10:26 AM
Still Dead: The Ghosts of New Orleans
I have just spent the last few days in New Orleans helping to rebuild a battered women’s shelter that was destroyed by the massive amounts of water that flowed over St. Bernard Parish, and many other parts of the city, when the levees broke after Hurricane Katrina.
January 31, 2008 9:50 AM
The Face of Faith
Religious leaders provide the face of faith for the rank and file members and also for the public. This is true no matter what the organization of the religious body and how the leader is viewed in theological terms. This is as true for the Latter-day Saints or the Greek Orthodox Church as it is in my denomination, the United Church of Christ. In the UCC, for example, Rev. John Thomas, General Minister and President, plays a crucial role for us in giving face and voice to our church commitments. John has done a wonderful job of representing us during our “God is Still Speaking” campaign and as head of our denomination.
February 5, 2008 6:19 PM
Jesus of Russia
Who would you rather follow, a brutal neo-dictator and former KGB member or a guy who claims to be the Siberian Jesus and who teaches that people need to love one and support one another?
