We have discussed prayer and its benefits several times. In 2021, we noted that our petitions to whatever Force we choose – God, Divine Love, Guardian Angels, Allah, Vishnu, etc. – direct our energies not only toward calming ourselves but also toward calling to mind the need for solidarity with like-minded souls. When praying or […]
More gun violence in the United States of America – truly a public health epidemic. There are outcries from liberals and progressives for action – as there should be. There has also been criticism of the pat – almost routine – offering of “thoughts and prayers” in the wake of tragic, unbelievable mass shootings. What […]
We are living in a time of enormous contrasts. On the positive side, we are finally seeing the rates of COVID-19 fall (although there are still warnings of a possible surge), along with rates of vaccination going up (although plateauing in some places). We can be grateful that our vaccines are being shared with people […]
I invite you to pray! Whether you believe in a supreme being or not, whether or not you are part of a religious group or congregation, you may feel the need to do something in these trying times. I’m prejudiced, but I believe that my Episcopal tradition offers a rich array of prayers for almost […]
Since President Donald Trump – twice impeached, convicted felon, defendant found civilly liable for sexual abuse and defamation – will not let up on his scorched-earth campaign to destroy our democracy, those Americans who are victimized by him and his cronies (many of them also criminals) continue to have to fight back. Victims of selective […]
The Advent and Christmas seasons in the West, especially in the United States, have become exceedingly consumerized. The origins of the seasons, of course, lie in antiquity, with the birth of Jesus and the stories about this as found in the Christian Testament Gospels and other early Christian literature. We have discussed stories about Jesus […]
Books Paranormal: A New Testament Scholar Looks at the Afterlife. Self-published 2015; printed by Shires Press, Manchester Center, VT Goddess and God: A Holy Tension in the First Christian Centuries. Marco Polo Monographs 10. Warren Center, PA: Shangri-La Publications, 2006 Women and Worship at Philippi: Diana/Artemis and Other Cults in the Early Christian Era. Portland, […]
Evil is a huge topic, but since some influential figures on the American right have been using the term more frequently lately to describe those on the left, it’s important to look at the word in our current political context. The straight white man who has been appointed by President Trump as Deputy Director of […]
In several earlier posts, we have examined women who were leaders in the early Jesus movement – thus disproving the traditional argument of many Christian denominations that women could not (and therefore cannot) serve as leaders. We have shown how many anti-women assertions in the New (Christian) Testament of the Bible that have long been […]
Millions of us in the United States are deflated, demoralized and even scared after the 2024 presidential election has been called for Donald Trump. How do those of us who not only voted for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz but also may have supported them financially cope with this tremendous loss? How do we move […]