Welcome, Sister Fire?

I've heard stories and songs inspired by St. Francis praising "Sister Moon" and "Brother Sun" in his incredible "Canticle of the Sun," but "Sister Fire" sounds more like a '70s disco band than the prayerful words of a medieval saint.

Of course, everyone is talking about St....

In "As I Lay Dying," the main character Anse appears self-absorbed when at his wife's death he says, "God's will be done. ... Now I can get them teeth." His character will certainly not be remembered for altruism. But Anse will be remembered for the...

Elvis wrote in the margins of his Bible.

Wouldn't you love to see a few of his margin notes?

In 1957, Elvis received a new Bible for Christmas from his Uncle Vester and Aunt Clettes. One margin note offers a glimpse into his personal prayer life: There is a...

Watch the Video: ON Scripture - Eating with the Enemy: Esther's Story

In honor of National Play-Doh Day (and the upcoming presidential election), I propose a Play-Doh Manifesto. I believe this declaration might make a difference for my kids, your kids, and kids in need around the world.

I've been thinking of this manifesto after reading the mission statement at...

Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran. And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and...

Carly Rae Jepsen has everyone from Cookie Monster to Katy Perry to Obama singing, "Call Me, Maybe." As the catchy tune plays ubiquitously across the radio and Internet, I'm reminded of many a children's message or sermon illustration that draws on a phone call...

What is the future of "denominations"?

Each fall, during an introductory college course to Christianity, we discuss the significance of the four marks of the church: one, holy, catholic and apostolic. After viewing an image of the varying threads of denominations, we discuss whether or not this picture is a...

Eight and a half billion dollars. Anyone have a guess what $8.5 billion might buy in today's world?

Solid guesses are the cost of J.P. Morgan's financial loss under the leadership of Jamie Dimon, the cost of the 2012 presidential election, or the cost of pulling our troops out of...

Forty is a sacred number.

When the number forty appears in the Bible, the reader knows a change is about to take place. In Scripture, the number forty marks a moment of transition, transformation and transcendence.

Forty years in the wilderness? Forty days on the ark? Forty days of...

Viola Davis Comes to Visit in a Vision

Picture Viola Davis in an orange dress. The aubergine undertone of her skin is the perfect complement to the vibrant hue. She wears an ivory mandala around her neck composed of three concentric circles so each wheel can spin forward and backward....

In her article, "What Would Jesus Do at the Masters?" Maureen Dowd laments a week when the exclusion of women from the Masters tournament is just one example of gender bias at play in the world today.

From the Pope's Easter message to the snub of Saudi Arabian...

Thomas is permanently labeled a "doubter" by two millennia of history books, sermons, cartoons and theological treatises in the Christian tradition. A cartoon by Joshua Harris has Thomas crying out, "All I'm saying is we don't call Peter 'Denying Peter.'"

Thomas is not...

Annie Dillard, in her book "Holy the Firm," asks, "Has God a hand in this? Or does the accidental world spin mute? How do we know?""

Good Friday is a day that leaves us spinning with questions about the nature of God. Is God's hand in this? Or does this...

I have never completed a Lenten discipline.

Such confession may cause you to breathe a sigh of relief or perhaps, make a judgment. Recently a parishioner heard me say this in all its honesty, "Really, you too?" Certainly I have tried to be disciplined. I have made charts to...