There are a lot of things that Jesus taught that most of us tend to ignore. We may like abstract ideas about love, self-sacrifice, and a society of peace and justice. But Jesus wasn’t simply an advocate of a new social program that can be slotted into our world the way it is. The brokenness …
I celebrated Good Friday for the first time in the spring of 2007. I went with a few friends over to the Salvation Army where they were showing The Passion of the Christ, the ultra-gory Mel Gibson movie that depicts the last 24 hours or so of Jesus’ earthly ministry. It was a brutal film, delighting …
When Jesus entered Jerusalem, it was a big deal. The city was packed with pilgrims who had come to celebrate the Passover. The occupying Roman army was on high alert, well-aware that insurrection was common during the days of the festival. The air was electric as devout Jews from across the diaspora gathered together in the city …
It used to bother me that so many of the stories Jesus told were about servants obeying their master. I didn’t like the unequal, hierarchical imagery. I didn’t want anyone bossing me around and treating me like a servant – not even God! Yet it’s no accident that Jesus told stories in the way he …
I was one of those kids who was raised to believe I could do anything I set my mind to. I was encouraged to dream big; the only limit was my imagination. When I watched movies or read books, I saw the heroes as people who I could aspire to be. I’ve lived my whole …
The battle over the role that guns should play in our national life has been intensifying in recent months. And rightly so. The murderous attack in San Bernardino, and the string of mass shootings that came before that, should be a wake-up call that our relationship with firearms is unhealthy. America’s gun problem is far more …
Isn’t that what being young is about, believing secretly that you would be the one person in the history of man that would live forever? – Vanilla Sky (2001) It’s not just the young who think they can cheat death. Most of the time, none of us dares to hold that stark reality before us. We live …
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