The Archangel from Tobit, as retold by Frederick Buechner, explaining how we blame suffering on everyone but ourselves. “When terrible things do happen, they fail to understand that for the most part they have brought them down on their own heads. They prefer to think that it is time itself that is terrible and that […]
Many of you know that last year I was the interim rector of an Episcopal parish going through transition. Requiring an interim is one of the better things that the Episcopal church does, and the thoughtful review and reflection process is another. This year I took up a new role as the inaugural dean of […]
It is oddly gratifying and encouraging that we live in perhaps a “golden” time for those who grieve and mourn. It is commonplace this time of year, in addition to the joyous posts of children on Santa’s lap and endless photos of cookies, to read posts by and about those who struggle to make it […]
UPDATE 2017: I originally posted this two years again, when it was first produced. It has been making the rounds again unattributed so I wanted to be sure folks could find Everett’s site. But on looking at it again this Advent, I was struck again by how right he got this. His interpretation accurately depicts […]
After tragedy has occurred to us, fallen upon us, how do we walk on, lacing up those painful shoes I talked about in my poor analogy? How do we carry on, day after day? We must begin by being open to and accepting the grace that is offered to us. I consider what happed to the […]
Do you think the folks at Radio Free Babylon read my essay from last week? I would like to think so.
“It is what it is.” A phrase people utter when they are enduring a hardship or, just as often, when there is a problem they would rather not deal with. It is what it is. A horrible, trite phrase. Used all the time, devoid of any real meaning, and all too often intended as a […]
It has been years since I have posted anything within the Biblioblogosphere echo chamber. (Hello? Is anyone still reading?) But this weekend I noticed a new “service” for biblical scholars. The Expurgated Review of Biblical Literature is “a community project of the Society of the Blessed St. José Buenaventura Durruti (SBSJB).” Durruti was a Spanish […]
In mid-February 2017 we had a funeral for a beloved member of the parish. He had lived a long, full life and his family surrounded him at his departing and gathered for the service. The first reading was this beautiful passage from The Book of Wisdom (in the Apocrypha). Wis. 3:1 But the souls of the righteous are in […]
Yesterday’s epistle (in the RCL) was Philippians 4:1-9. The preacher at Good Shepherd, Lexington was the Rev. Canon Elise Johnstone. Good Shepherd is beginning a time of transition as their rector, Brian Cole, was called to be the Bishop of Eastern Tennessee. The Canon preached on this passage from Philippians and began her sermon in […]
