If only we could learn the causes of violence. In a recent column Motive of destruction, (Boston Globe 1/8/14) Daniel Benjamin writes about terrorism, bombings and mass shootings. It now appears that the Boston marathon was not an organized act of terrorism, but rather the work of a mentally unstable young man and his brother. […]
At first the film Gravity seemed too fantastic. I mean when would I be dressed like an astronaut working on a space shuttle like Sandra Bullock’s character Ryan Stone? Then I recognized the spin. You know the one. Weightless without gravity she turns and spins with no direction, no stopping and no grounding. She is frightened, […]
One… What to buy to surprise your child? What to purchase to surprise your spouse? What to wrap to surprise your parents? We shop and plan and bake and wrap. Searching for that perfect gift that our friend both wants and will be surprised to receive, we hunt through malls, pore through catalogues, and listen […]
Twelve years a slave provide a riveting cinematic view of slavery in the 1840s and 1850s. The film opens with a shot of a violin bow dancing on strings. An accomplished musician and free man, Solomon Northrup plays the fiddle at a dance in his hometown of Saratoga Springs, NY. After Northrup is kidnapped and […]
Seven sons of Sceva, charlatons of the first century in Palestine, put on healing shows. (See Acts 19:11-20) Yes, snake oil salesmen and magicians fool generations in every century. But a fascinating detail in the biblical story claims that the demon recognizes the powerful name of Jesus but does not know the clowns who invoke […]
At worship last Sunday at Worcester Fellowship, an outdoor ministry with folks who are homeless or at-risk of becoming homeless, the pastor welcomed people for a prayer of blessing and a laying on of hands. Her question was whether anyone had an anniversary to celebrate – being free of drugs or alcohol or violence. One […]
The spiritual life is this simple: pay attention to life around you. However, such spiritual focus is not without effort. We are so easily distracted. We multi-task. We text, talk and travel. We acheive, accomplish and aquire. What will it take for you to pay attention to the world around you? Did you see the […]
“Because I don’t want her called Lucy, that’s why.” And so my mother won the argument and I was named Cynthia, not Lucinda which was my dad’s choice. I kind of wished that Dad had won because while there were two other Cynthia’s in my fourth grade class; the only Lucinda I ever knew was […]