The Next Step
There are moments in history—and in every life—when everything familiar gives way at once. What once seemed certain no longer is. What lies ahead is not yet clear. In those […]
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Connecting the Dots
There’s a gap most of us learn to live with We know what we believe. We have known it for years. We can say it clearly. We can explain it
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Love in Action
Scott Peck, the late psychiatrist and best-selling author of The Road Less Traveled, once wrote that love is “an act of will—both an intention and an action.” It is a
What Are You Holding?
There are moments in history—and in our own lives—when the ground seems to shift beneath our feet. What once felt settled no longer holds. What once seemed clear begins to
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Driven or Led?
More than fifteen centuries ago, a man named Augustine—who would later become one of the great teachers of the Christian faith—looked back on his life and described it with a
Stay With Us
Many people today move through the world with a kind of constant distraction. A phone in the hand, earbuds in the ears, eyes drawn again and again to the small
When Faith Becomes Real
Most of us know the name Helen Keller. What is sometimes forgotten is the moment when her world first opened. As a small child, Helen Keller lost both her sight
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The Morning the Stone Was Gone
Easter begins quietly. In today’s Gospel lesson, John tells us that Mary Magdalene came to the tomb while it was still dark. The city had barely begun to stir. No
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Don’t Look Away
Recently, a documentary told the story of several photographs taken secretly inside the Warsaw Ghetto during the Second World War. The photographer was not a journalist but a young Polish
The Loneliness of the King
Henri Nouwen, the spiritual writer, once observed that one of our greatest temptations is to turn away from our own suffering—and in doing so, to miss the chance to recognize
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The Timing of Love
In today’s Gospel lesson, John tells the story of the raising of Lazarus. It is often remembered as a dramatic miracle story, a preview of Easter. But if we listen
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When Sight Disrupts
In today’s Gospel lesson, a man who had been blind from birth is given sight. It is a remarkable event, and everyone around him wants to make sense of it.
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Come and See
Thirst has a way of getting our attention. Urgency replaces perspective and nothing else matters. Scripture understands that kind of urgency. In Exodus, the people of Israel are thirsty in
After the Vision
There are moments in life when everything seems to fall into place—when what has been confusing suddenly becomes clear, when what has felt hidden is briefly revealed. We recognize those
No Half Measures
Lent does not begin with denial. It begins with choice. Before Jesus teaches, before he heals, before he gathers disciples or confronts authorities, he is led into the wilderness. Not
The Last Word
Jesus is very clear in today’s Gospel episode… “If you are bringing your offering to the altar and you remember that your brother has something against you—leave your gift there.
You Are the Light of the World
In today’s Gospel lesson, Jesus speaks words we have heard many times: “You are the light of the world” (Mt. 5:14). He does not offer them as encouragement or aspiration.
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Make It Stick
There are words that sound beautiful the moment we hear them. They land gently, even comfortingly, and for a time they seem to steady us. The Beatitudes are like that.
When God Moves Into Our Neighborhood
There are moments in history—and in our own private lives—when the world seems to dim around us. Not dramatically, but gradually, as if something has shifted and we are left
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The Lamb Who Will Not Be Fleeced
A woman once described stepping out of a long winter of grief and noticing, for the first time in months, the ordinary brilliance of things — the shape of a
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