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What Is Evil?
I was in a Sunday morning adult education class about the book of Revelation (I call it the book of Revolting) when someone suggested that this book was a study of good versus evil. I asked the class who gets to decide who or what is good or evil.
Dictionary.com defines evil as “morally wrong or bad; immoral; wicked.”
Most of the world says that Hitler and the Nazis were evil.… Read more >
My Aversion to Conversion
I recently read a magazine article about an acclaimed Jamaican author, Marlon James, and his award-winning book, A Brief History of Seven Killings.
My interest was piqued when he shared his “deep secret.” Before his writing career took off, Marlon became a fundamentalist Christian to deal with the fact that he was gay in a country plagued with homophobia.… Read more >
Give Yourself Away
Many years ago, when my family lived on the island of Oahu in Hawai’i, my wife, Annie, wrote and received a grant to start a volunteer group at the Hawai’i School for the Deaf and the Blind (HSDB). Our middle daughter, who is deaf and legally blind, went to school there.… Read more >
An A-Theist Goes to Church?
Some folks might find it strange that an A-Theist even bothers to go to church where there is a great deal of talk about an UpThere God who isn’t UpThere—as far as he’s concerned. Wouldn’t it be easier just to stay home and do something more interesting? It seems so hypocritical to waste time hearing about God, Jesus, the Trinity, and all that other dogma and doctrine when you don’t believe any of it.… Read more >
“They’ll Know We Are Christians by Our . . .”
The other day a friend sent me a good story that has been around a long time, but it’s still as relevant as it was the first time I heard it.
The light turned yellow as he was turning right. He saw pedestrians in the crosswalk, so he stopped. The woman behind him was furious, so she leaned on her horn, flipped him the finger many times, and shouted angrily from her car.… Read more >
Is It A-gáp-ē or A-ga-pé?
This Greek word describes the highest form of love. How do you pronounce it?
I am reminded of the story of two women who visited Hawai’i and wanted to know how to pronounce it. They asked a local, “What’s correct? Is it Hawai-e or Havai’e?” He said, “Havai’e.” They thanked him, and he replied, “You’re velcome.”
My contention is that Jesus’s main message wasn’t about being the Sacrificial Lamb (Saint Paul made that up) but about the power of agape.… Read more >
Killing Jesus, Again
Every day, to get off to a good start, I like to read the comics, Dear Abby, and Dear Amy. I think it was in Dear Amy that I read the letter from “Concerned Mom and Dad.” It seems that their daughter and niece grew up together and were very close.… Read more >
Who Was the World’s Most Famous Oenologist?
I suspect some of my readers aren’t quite so sure about the word oenologist.
How does one say an o and an e together? Is it pronounced o, then enologist? Do folks just forget the o sound and simply say or write enologist? I do the latter. It’s easier! Anyway, an enologist studies and masters the very sophisticated art of making wine.… Read more >
Why a Cross?
As a child and teen, church was the center of my life. My dad was the rector, which made me a PK (Preacher’s Kid). I was an acolyte and loved serving at the altar. I was big into our youth group. If you wanted, I would give you a private tour under the church, in the pipes of the pipe organ, and in the bell tower.… Read more >
I’m Falling in Love—with John
I have been terrified of John for some fifty-five years. He’s complicated, threatening, outrageous at times, secretive, and almost unintelligible. I wanted to have nothing to do with him. He was poison.
Then a strange thing happened. My wife and I had been working with inmates at the local jail on Tuesday afternoons, but the jail changed leadership and didn’t need our services anymore.… Read more >