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. […]
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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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When Brightness Blinds
There are moments in Scripture when the ordinary world seems to open just enough for something greater to be seen. The baptism of Jesus is one of those moments. It
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The Light That Finds Us
It is striking that the story of Epiphany unfolds not only in the pages of Scripture but in the long memory of the world. Like so many moments in salvation
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A Liminal Beginning
There is a word many people rarely use yet generally understand: liminal—a threshold space. Not the room we left behind and not yet the room we are entering. A doorway.
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When Love Takes Flight
For the Holy Family, it happened in the middle of the night, long before the world had finished catching its breath from Bethlehem. A dream that would not let Joseph
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Don’t Forget the Baby
The Christmas pageant was running late, and the auditorium was buzzing with last-minute instructions and nervous excitement. Robes far too big, wings crooked, shepherds restless. A teacher knelt beside them
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Closer Than We Think
One evening a father was helping his daughter with a school project about money. Trying to explain why things cost more than they used to, he said, “It’s called inflation
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What are We Waiting For?
There are weeks in December when everything seems to move faster — the cards to send, the gifts to wrap, the calendar bursting with obligations. We live in a world
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Clear the Way
The first sound of Advent is not the jingle of bells or the rustle of wrapping paper—it is a voice. A voice crying out in the wilderness, cutting through the
A Gift on the Way
It was the week before Christmas when a mother suddenly realized she hadn’t mailed a single card. In mild panic she handed her teenage son, home on break, the car
Looking Good or Doing Good?
In his book, The People of the Lie, author M. Scott Peck writes, “Those utterly dedicated to preserving their self-image of perfection are unceasingly engaged in the effort to maintain the
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Reach Across the Aisle
I’m sure we’ve all grown tired of the cliché politicians used to spout so freely: “I promise to reach across the aisle.” Today, in these divided times, most holding elected
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Before It’s Too Late
In his book, “Life After Life‚ Investigations Into ‘Near-Death‚’ Experiences,” Dr. Raymond Moody explains a typical case this way: A man is dying. As he reaches the point of his
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Don’t Choke!
In the spring of 1843, a renowned British engineer by the name of Isambard Kingdom Brunel took a rare break from work to entertain his children with a magic trick.
The Ground Between Us
Ordained Presbyterian minister the late Rev. Fred Rogers, also known to millions as Mr. Rogers, once said in an interview: “All of us, at some time or other, need help.
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Getting Down to Business
There is a play in which a troubled man spends his whole life tormented by thoughts of God, leading to feelings of inadequacy and guilt. Finally, he decides to end
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