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Twenty Years On

“Something died in the United States of America this week. In the smoke and debris of lower Manhattan, in the western wing of the Pentagon of Washington, D.C., and in a placid wooded area of western Pennsylvania, our sense of invulnerability burned to the ground. In...

Seeing Jesus

“On a spring morning in about the year 30 CE, three men were executed by the Roman authorities in Judea. Two were ‘brigands’… the third was executed as another type of political criminal… Those who looked on doubtless thought that the world would little note what...

An Encouraging Word

“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” Ephesians 4:29 As a college junior, I once scored a 38 percent on an important test in my major....

A Prayer for our Students and their Teachers

Lord God, Creator of all wisdom and truth, we lift up our prayers to you as summer winds down and many begin a new school year. Both our students and our teachers are coming through the most disruptive year in memory due to COVID-19. Help both groups negotiate the new...

Think Small

As I look around the world, I see many long-term problems: chronic poverty, heart-rending injustice, inadequate food and medical care, unequal access to education, governmental corruption, human greed, entrenched violence, and endless wars, to name just a few. Such...

Big Imaginations, Generous Hearts

Some of the most beloved stories in our human storybook are stories of generosity and kindness. Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol depicts Ebenezer Scrooge, a classic icon of tightfisted greed who is transformed one Christmas Eve into a generous  benefactor. Leo...

The “Haunted” House

[Editor’s Note: today’s editorial is by Louise Valente of Santa Ana. Her meditation on grudge-bearing and the refusal to forgive invites us to pursue Jesus’ blessed invitation to practice peacemaking.] “For as pressing milk produces curds, and pressing the nose...

Small Revelations

Last week, I experienced a moment of revelation as I was riding in my friend’s car. Two cyclists were taking up the whole lane as my friend patiently drove behind them for a half mile before the opportunity came to pass. My friend handled the situation beautifully,...

The Comparison Game

If you desire glory, you may envy Napoleon. But Napoleon envied Caesar, Caesar envied Alexander, and Alexander, I daresay, envied Hercules, who never existed. Bertrand Russell From our youngest days, we compare ourselves with others. Which sibling notches the taller...

Kind Versus Nice

“Do you not realize that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?” —Romans 2:4b In his book “Love Kindness,” Barry Corey shares a meditation on his father’s death from cancer. He remembers his father’s strength in the face of cruel side effects, horrible...