Tag Archives: politics

Praying the Psalms in Detention

Every morning, when I do my morning devotions, I read from the Psalms.  About every two months I work my way through all the Psalms at least once. Psalms are prayers, so when I say I read through, I am … Continue reading

Posted in Compassion, Current Events, Devotional, Evil, Immigration, Lament, Mission, Old Testament, Prayer, Psalms, religion and politics, Social Justice, Social Ministry, Spiritual Growth, spirituality, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

  The Universe and Us I want to start this by asking you to look at the photo here.  Few years ago some scientists pointed the Hubble Deep Space telescope into what looked like an empty part of space. This … Continue reading

Posted in Climate Emergency, Current Events, Psalms, Sermons, Social Justice, Social Ministry, Spiritual Growth, spirituality, Theology, Trinity | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Preaching the News (NOT)

  In my previous post I confessed my addiction to the news. Throughout my day I keep up with national and international events, from a variety of sources. I talked about how the news helps form my prayers, and my … Continue reading

Posted in Church, Church Growth, Current Events, Karl Barth, Musings, News, Preaching, religion and politics, Social Ministry, Spiritual Growth, spirituality | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Total Depravity and Redemption

I have a Facebook friend who regularly posts about the inner peace he finds by avoiding the news like a plague. He has a kind of evangelical fervor about it (you too can enjoy this serenity, and all you have … Continue reading

Posted in A River Runs Through It, Compassion, Current Events, Evil, Growth, Hope, ministry, News, Social Justice, Social Ministry, Spiritual Growth, Theology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Spiritual Politics and other Rare Breeds

  Writing almost 50 years ago, Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk in Kentucky, wrote about what he called political principles spiritualized by the Gospel. In his book Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander, Merton’s reflections on society at large, he starts … Continue reading

Posted in Community, Compassion, Hope, Musings, Poor, religion and politics, Social Justice, Social Ministry, Uncategorized, Virtue, Wealth | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Leading From Below

  An old friend of mine, Joe Moran, took his son to a Catholic worship service when he was visiting his family in New York State. Joe was a former priest, and his family was very Catholic. After Joe left … Continue reading

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Presbyterians and Politics Part Deux

06-16 Back in the 2000s, during the presidency of George W. Bush, I saw a bumper sticker that said, “I never thought I would miss Nixon.” A few weeks ago I saw one that said, “I never thought I would … Continue reading

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Presbyterians and Politics

  Note: At this summer’s General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (USA), the following statement was passed. “No congregation, session, presbytery, synod, or national office of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), nor any individual acting on behalf of or in an … Continue reading

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The Sacred

A few years ago I was asked to write about something sacred as a writing exercise. I immediately knew I would be writing about the Magnolia Tree in Reynolda Gardens where I used to hang out when I was a … Continue reading

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