This weekend, I took part in a Quaker street outreach in downtown Philadelphia. We arrived early Saturday morning, setting up camp in the “free speech zone” near Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell. We were there for most of the morning and afternoon, holding public worship and engaging with people walking by. We really had …
Dietrich Bonhoeffer writes that, “when Christ calls [a person], he bids [them] come and die.” This is a message that Jesus repeats time and again: no one can follow him unless they are willing to take up the cross. The way of Jesus is one marked with unspeakable joy, but also with tremendous suffering. When …
I am fascinated by the often dysfunctional relationship between God and Israel. In Exodus, God appears, seemingly out of nowhere, and provides the Hebrew people with a hope and a future. For reasons known only to God, the Lord chooses an insignificant group of Egyptian slaves and promises to guide them to freedom, peace and …
And now it’s moving, and everybody plays a part. It’s a living breathing being, with a brain and a heart. It’s a living breathing being, you can tell it by its art. It’s a living, breathing being just like corporations aren’t. From Occupy Your Life, by Jon Watts It’s hard to think of any organ …
My impression is that many of us, including a lot of folks who don’t identify as Christians, would say that we like Jesus’ teachings. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. What’s not to like? Yet from the first time I read through the gospels, I have sensed that Jesus offers …
Over the course of my lifetime, it seems that consumer has become the most common word used to refer to individual members of our society. On television, in newspapers, and on the radio, we regularly hear stories about what consumers are doing and thinking. We are constantly being updated on how consumers are reacting to …
In the circles I run in, it is fashionable to be busy. Most folks I know juggle overfilled schedules, and the little bit of free time we do have is mostly dedicated to recovering from all the hours we spend working. It’s a real challenge not to get sucked into this dynamic of chronic busyness. …