Monthly Archives: October 2009

Urbana Memories

25 years ago I attended Urbana 84, Intervarsity’s 14th student missions convention.  18,144 delegates descended on the University of Illinois in the last days of December to commit ourselves to global missions. I remember my first taste of Midwestern cold.  … Continue reading

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When Maple Trees Lose Their Leaves

When maple trees lose their leaves… some of them end up on the windshield: Morning mist and fallen leaves… signs of the season.

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Fashion In Global Politics

The Monitor reviews fashion in global politics, inviting us to decide the best and worst dressed.  My votes go to… Best dressed:  Michelle Obama, Hamid Karzai. Worst dressed:  Vladimir Putin, Michael Moore.

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Education In the Arts

Artist David Arzouman values education in the arts alongside math and science: So where is the education model that not only emphasizes balance, but also explores the parallels and connections across disciplines? One example is the quadrivium – arithmetic, geometry, … Continue reading

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Jesus the Good Muslim

Leo D. Lefebure recounts a time of Christian–Muslim dialogue at Georgetown University: The conversation reinforced my sense that the Jewish character of Jesus and his first followers is one of the most important elements in the relation between Christianity and … Continue reading

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What You Can Learn From the Girl Scouts

Girl Scouts of the USA has adopted changes in recent years to regain vitality.  According to this article in the Toledo Blade, they have 1.  Simplified their organization, going from 312 councils to 112. 2.  Focused on relevant issues, from … Continue reading

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CROP Walk 2009

The CROP walk began and ended at our church Sunday.  My wife chaired the event, which raises thousands of dollars to fight poverty.  I was supposed to co-chair, but I ended up being more like the little table next to … Continue reading

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Sermon on Blind Bartimaeus

Your Faith Has Made You Well (Mark 10:46-52) Blind Bartimaeus was sitting by the side of the road. He was there each day as the traffic went by. Since he couldn’t see anything, his other senses were heightened. He heard … Continue reading

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When Atheists Go to Church

Understandably, atheist Richard Dawkins seldom attends church: Though he’s not the sentimental type, Dawkins admits to “an English nostalgia for village life, including church. I never go, find it excruciatingly boring, but still, I have some nostalgia for evensong on … Continue reading

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Our Faith In Science

Belief in global warming is declining in America: Just 57 percent think there is solid evidence the world is getting warmer, down 20 points in just three years, a new poll says. And the share of people who believe pollution … Continue reading

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Go to Jail, Go Directly to Jail

I visited the county jail twice this week.  They don’t work hard to make it a pretty building — gray concrete walls and dark green doors that close behind you with a heavy clunk.  Inmates wear orange scrubs and orange … Continue reading

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“I was only heading to the toilet and found God”

The face of Jesus on a bathroom door in Scotland.  Or it might be Gandalf… they’re not sure. There are other ways of finding God in the toilet too.

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Why Do We Believe What We Believe?

Law professor Ann Althouse comments on a CNN segment analyzing the appeal of right wing talk radio, but her thoughts go beyond the matter and reflect on human motivations for all beliefs: Is it that CNN wants to psychoanalyze the … Continue reading

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Natalie?!

I’m stunned Natalie is leaving Dancing With the Stars.  Her face said she is too.  What a shock.  And Louie is staying?  Amazing.  Louie stands still while Chelsie dances around him.  He must have a lot of fans.  The Michael … Continue reading

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Cartoon God

Famed cartoonist R. Crumb has produced an illustrated version of the book of Genesis.  He spent four years on the project. But the biggest challenge was to draw a picture of God: What was it like trying to draw God? … Continue reading

Posted in Theology | 6 Comments

i txt ther4 i am

I sent my very first text message, “I love you,”  to the senior pastor at our church.  He was amused.  I had planned to send it to my wife but got things mixed up in the list of contacts. My … Continue reading

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In Praise of Pessimism

We need not always be cheerful.  So says Lisa Schiffren: Personally, I find relentless cheeriness in the face of the more serious aspects of reality kind of offensive. Positive energy is nice, of course, as are big smiles. But rational … Continue reading

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Prayer, not Proof

In a review of Karen Armstrong’s The Case for God, Jack Miles discusses apophatic (or negative) theology: The earliest Christian theology was apophatic. Apophatic theology — the theology of the original, Greek-speaking Christian church — was “naysaying” theology, a kind of religious … Continue reading

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Preaching and the Voice of Eva Cassidy

Theo Boehm praises singer Eva Cassidy. She was a transformative artist, who could take some fairly standard songs, and give them her own intense, beautiful, technically wonderful, personal take. Yes… transformative artist.  I discovered her lovely voice watching Michelle Kwan … Continue reading

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9 Ways to Help People With Cancer

A good post at Beliefnet on how to help people with cancer: 1. Don’t be afraid of honesty. 2. Offer to hug us. 3. Organize a fun get-together. 4. Tell success stories. 5. Skip the psychobabble. 6. Ask and listen. … Continue reading

Posted in Health | Tagged | 3 Comments