To listen to this reflection as a podcast, click here. The leaves of the milkweed plant apparently taste delicious. But few marauding insects and grazing livestock ever get the chance to enjoy a milkweed meal. That’s because this common herb has not one or two but three major lines of defense to keep hungry visitors at bay. First, the plant’s leaves and stems are… Read more »
To listen to this reflection as a podcast, click here. The memory of a visit to a rocky English shoreline inspired one of the 19th century’s most famous poems. In Dover Beach, published in 1867, the British poet Matthew Arnold declares that belief in God is slowly but surely fading away. The old assurances about divine care in this world and blissful life… Read more »
To listen to this reflection as a podcast, click here. The Dead Sea is one of the earth’s most extraordinary natural features. This large lake, located on the border of Israel and Jordan, is the lowest point on the surface of the planet – a full one-third of a mile below sea level. It’s not shallow, either. At one spot it’s 997… Read more »
A few years ago, as the workplace pastor for a faith-friendly healthcare organization, I visited one of the office work teams. I was holding something in my left hand, which was tightly closed. “So what do you think I’m holding right now? Anybody want to take a guess?” There were lots of guesses. A coin. A marble. An acorn. I… Read more »
Throughout November we’re taking an in-depth look at Ruth, the little book that helped pave the way for God’s Messiah to come into the world. In the Bible’s library of 66 books, Ruth is distinctive. Along with Esther, it’s one of only two books named for a female. No other book reserves the starring roles for two women (Ruth and… Read more »
“Once upon a time, something happened to someone and he decided that he would pursue a goal. So he devised a plan of action. And even though there were forces trying to stop him, he moved forward, because there was a lot at stake. And just as things seemed as bad as they could get, he learned an important lesson. … Read more »
Bertrand Russell, the celebrated 20th century British philosopher, wasn’t shy about his atheism. As he looked across the cosmos, he doubted the existence of a transcendent Being. In his book Why I Am Not a Christian, Russell didn’t pretend that such a conviction provided humanity with any grounds for a feel-good assurance that life has ultimate meaning: That Man is… Read more »
