I turn 75 tomorrow. I don’t feel old or irrelevant, although my culture may tell me otherwise. Older, more savvy friends and pastoral mentors shared with Wayne and me in our early 40’s that life doesn’t even get really fun and rich until your fifties. That was a bit of experiential advice that I put…
Tag: Current Events
Terror and Beauty
I pause with reverence on the balcony of my hotel room in the Holy City. Across from me stands the New Gate, and my eyes follow Jerusalem’s ancient walls as far as I can see. The golden Dome of the Rock faintly gleams as dawn peaks its way up and over the horizon and walls….
I Am Jesus
In the scorched earth of the October 7th war and against the black shroud of inconceivable inhumanity, death, and mourning, I unexpectedly discovered a riot of living and colorful resilience, hope, and even joy among Israelis during our recent trip to the Mid East. I had not imagined this response, and it captured my attention…
To Safe Haven Inch-by-Inch
Hurricane Harvey, summer of 2017. We are sick of hearing about it, and we are not. It’s heart wrenching and heartwarming at once. On August 22, the wind howled while the black stormy sky dumped 50 inches of rain in the Houston area. Some heeded warnings and “got of of Dodge” in time, while others…
About the Royal Wedding…
A European couple gets married — and in a church — honors traditional values and the sanctity of marriage. Yes, the royal wedding was an important statement in our world today. It doesn’t matter what the couple did before or will do after marriage. This event spoke volumes about the significance of sure foundations in…
His Big Shoes
Evangelist, pastor, writer, speaker, and radical life changer, Reverend David Wilkerson, died in a car accident yesterday in Texas. The world has lost a servant and heaven is richer, but how we will miss him. My heart goes out to his wife and four children. May God comfort their grieving and heal their loss. The…
The Opportunity to Give a Reason…
Widely acclaimed by Church leaders and theologians, Pope Benedict the 16th has written a new book, published in seven languages and released on March 10th. The title, “Jesus of Nazareth: Holy Week—From the Entrance Into Jerusalem to the Resurrection” speaks for itself—a scholarly analysis of the last days of Jesus. In writing the book, the…
It Takes an Earthquake…
I am so grieved to hear about the earthquake in Japan. Devastating. And I am praying that God will comfort, direct, and turn this into good for those who remain. Like any natural disaster, it would be unbelievably hard to pick up and go on if you had lost family and friends. But I believe…
Anti-Semitism vs Anti-Zionism
I believe that Helen Thomas’s remarks were anti-Semitic. Basically she called for the ethnic cleansing of the state of Israel. That call was purely racist. Any demand for ethnic cleansing is outrageous and should not be tolerated. Anti-Semitism is anti-Zionism in post-modern language. The media endeavors to soften the rhetoric by saying that anti-Zionism is not…