Bread and wine (actually Israeli grape juice) on the Sea of Galilee Mark 4 (NRSV): 35 On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” 36 And leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him. 37 A … Continue reading The historical Jesus and the Christ of faith on a dark and stormy night (Pentecost IV)
Theologian N.T. Wright rethinks ‘multi-ethnic, polychrome, mutually supportive’ early church, justification by faith
"Century Marks," Christian Century, April 21, 2021, p. 8. We're still quarantining magazines as they come into the house, and when I was going through them last night, a billboarded pull quote from British theologian N.T. Wright in a back issue of Christian Century jumped up off the page, snuggled up to me and wanted … Continue reading Theologian N.T. Wright rethinks ‘multi-ethnic, polychrome, mutually supportive’ early church, justification by faith
A dissent on the ‘assertion of imaginary freedoms’ in Trump’s Supreme Court, by an English major turned jailhouse lawyer and armchair historian
“It was all Mrs. Bumble. She would do it," urged Mr. Bumble; first looking round, to ascertain that his partner had left the room.That is no excuse," returned Mr. Brownlow. "You were present on the occasion of the destruction of these trinkets, and, indeed, are the more guilty of the two, in the eye of … Continue reading A dissent on the ‘assertion of imaginary freedoms’ in Trump’s Supreme Court, by an English major turned jailhouse lawyer and armchair historian
How a trip to the eye doctor’s and the Serenity Prayer renewed my interest in Turlough O’Carolan, the blind Irish harper
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xInuesYrUPA Steve Cooney's arrangement of 'Si Bheag Si Mohr' (Carolan's melody begins at 1:32). It started with a visit to the eye doctor's back in October, when the case positivity rate for Covid-19 was low enough to allow for routine medical appointments. My eye test came back with signs of the very beginnings of something … Continue reading How a trip to the eye doctor’s and the Serenity Prayer renewed my interest in Turlough O’Carolan, the blind Irish harper
‘Christ was born in Bethlehem’ — an Appalachian ballad that sums up Holy Week and the Easter season
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzmzb1ZyL6c Norm Williams, Amanda Parker and Bob Mallalieu, Maidencreek Festival, Maier's Grove, Blandon, Pa., Aug. 29, 2010 (song begins at 1:29). Our services for Holy Week are all online this year, and it's quite a different experience for someone who always sang in the choir and couldn't quite shake the feeling they were performances. I … Continue reading ‘Christ was born in Bethlehem’ — an Appalachian ballad that sums up Holy Week and the Easter season
How to make some pretty good soup in a global pandemic (with apologies to Simon Ortiz and Nora Dauenhauer)
It's best made in dry-fish camp on a beach by afish stream on sticks over an open fire, or duringfishing, or during cannery season.In this case, we'll make it in the city baked inan electric oven on a black fry pan. [...]-- Nora Dauenhauer, "How to Make Good Baked Salmon from the River" When I … Continue reading How to make some pretty good soup in a global pandemic (with apologies to Simon Ortiz and Nora Dauenhauer)
Can the free exercise clause be used to establish white Christian religious norms? We may be about to find out
[Roger] Williams described the true church as a magnificent garden, unsullied and pure, resonant of Eden. The world he described as “the Wilderness,” a word with personal resonance for him. Then he used for the first time a phrase he would use again, a phrase that although not commonly attributed to him has echoed through … Continue reading Can the free exercise clause be used to establish white Christian religious norms? We may be about to find out
Connecting the dots for Lent III on covenants, the destruction of the temple and the Church of the Nativity
Editor's (admin's) Note. Third of ___* Lenten meditations based on lectionary readings on the covenants of Noah, Abraham and Moses. This one riffs on the Ten Commandments and the passage in the Gospel of St. John where Jesus speaks of the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem. 'My father's house' -- Church of the Nativity, … Continue reading Connecting the dots for Lent III on covenants, the destruction of the temple and the Church of the Nativity
A Lenten meditation on covenants, a Christian nationalist lynch mob, green bananas and a book proposal
Editor's (admin's) Note. Second of ___ Lenten meditations based on lectionary readings on the covenants of Noah, Abraham and Moses. This one takes off from the covenant of Abraham, makes a quick stop in Puritan New England and deplanes in today's central Illinois. Clearing skies over Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem, November 2012 Mark 8 … Continue reading A Lenten meditation on covenants, a Christian nationalist lynch mob, green bananas and a book proposal
