Sometimes you get the sense that someone else is simply trying to pin you down. They ask what news agency you follow, what authors you read, who you voted for in the last election. Their intent is to label you, jam you in a box, usually with the intent of writing you off. Conversations around … Continue reading Navigating the Divide: Part 8–What We Must Pin Down When Everyone Else Is Trying To Pin Us Down
There is a lot to be uneasy about right now. This coronavirus is not only deadly, it also seems to be highly contagious. People are dying. They are dying alone. Those that are left behind have to grieve alone. On another level, people are losing their jobs, and their businesses. A lot to be uneasy … Continue reading When We Find Ourselves In Total Chaos
One of the great developments of my lifetime, hands down now, is the reduction in homework given to grade school children. My son and daughter do way less homework than I did at grades well below where they are now. And no, this isn’t a moment to brag about walking uphill both ways in the … Continue reading Navigating the Divide: Part 6–Do Your Homework! (You Know, Before Screen Time)
You can learn a lot when talking with your friends about beer. A number of years back now, my wife and I were having dinner with a couple from our faith community. The subject of beer came up, and our friends suddenly went on and on about the evils of alcohol, beer, wine, etc. And … Continue reading Navigating the Divide: Part 5–What I Learned from Talking with My Friends about Beer
Would it surprise you to know that I am feeling pretty disenchanted with our political systems lately? Okay, probably not. How about that I’m disenchanted with the “greatness” of the country in which I live? Oh, you, too? Right. How about that I am disenchanted with professional sports, or the music industry, or the “church … Continue reading Rhyme and Season: Part 10—We Can’t Let The Song Go Out Of Things
Maybe there isn’t a maternal or paternal instinct to love a child. There are scholars, who, having combed through the histories of people, question the assumption that parents naturally will care for and love their children. And you can see why. An ancient Roman gutter was found clogged with the bones of over a hundred … Continue reading Rhyme and Season: Part 7—We Are Not Their God
There is this fascinating statement very early on in the Hebrew Scriptures which makes a statement about the divine, that, frankly, no one sees coming. We are told this about the Giver of all things: “On the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.” Huh? In case we forgot who we are told it was … Continue reading Rhyme and Season: Part 5–Out of Breath
When my friend was in high school, he and a few of his buddies decided to make the trip from the San Francisco Bay Area to Disneyland in Southern California, spend two days at the park, and then drive home. In a weekend. That’s an eight hour trip, mind you. Drive Friday night. Do the … Continue reading Rhyme and Season: Part 3—Eat, Sleep, and Be Weary
Time is not a human construct. At least not according to the ancient wisdom. The ancient Hebrews, in an effort to give a framework to their reality, penned a book called “Genesis”. Genesis begins with an accounting of the beginning of all that is. But it is not written like an annal, or history, or … Continue reading Rhyme and Season: Part 1—Time Is Not A Human Construct
In the really old stories, pledging allegiance was shaped by your understanding of beginnings. Many people know of the Genesis creation story, the one that Jews and Christians look to to shape their understanding of who the Divine is, who we are, and what we should be giving our lives to. But before the Hebrew … Continue reading I Pledge Allegiance: Part 3–The Divine Rule