ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSDecember 19, 2024Willa Cather, the famous Nebraska author, said, “Where there is great love, there are always miracles.” Willa Cather understood the power of love to not only produce miraculous happenings but to be a miracle itself. As we read in 1 John, the act of loving one another is the means by which we pass from death to life—a miracle! At the same time, the act of
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSDecember 18, 2024In my Etching yesterday, I asked the question: What part of your world needs to know that it is loved? Today, I wish to pose another question: Where do you need to show yourself a little mercy and kindness? In this Advent season, as we eagerly await the arrival of God’s manifestation of mercy and kindness, where do you need to create space for those
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSDecember 17, 2024What part of your world needs to know that it is loved? For most people, answering this question is a bit complicated. Or maybe the answer feels as if it is constantly in flux. I might have responded differently yesterday morning, but now, in light of another school shooting, I am changing my answer. In a country where, contrary to what politicians would like us
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSDecember 16, 2024Prayer for the Week: Let the divine joy pulsate through my veins with a sacred insurgence as I strive to present an alternative vision of life to a world consumed by the devaluation and dehumanization of others. O Great God of All, grant me a clear understanding of the love that was born into the world and, for the sake of the world around me,
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSDecember 15, 2024Have you ever gone to the grocery store for just one item, walked out with $70 in groceries, and not picked up the one item? It is probably just me. While in the grocery store, I remembered a wonderful Christmas dessert my mother used to make, and with some slight allergy-mindful modifications, I can eat it. Well, I can make that dessert but was not
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSDecember 14, 2024Recently, I have been thinking about the time I spend determining what streaming services I should purchase as compared to the time I spent adjusting the rabbit ears on top of the tv 45 years ago. And along with the rabbit ears, I often spent time trying to find the needle-nose pliers that we used to change the channel after the nob broke off. How
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSDecember 13, 2024Each Sunday in Advent, we are exploring a slightly different take on the idea of: For God so loved the world… In my study, I’ve come to realize that there’s no single, universal way to interpret those words. Sometimes, people perceive “the world” as an abstract, with little or no direct relation to their daily experiences. It is beautiful that God so loves this world,
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSDecember 12, 2024On this day in 1866, a tragic explosion in an English coal mine claimed the lives of 361 individuals. While I had dreams of becoming the next Indiana Jones, embarking on thrilling adventures into deep and spooky caves, coal mines have always created within me a profound sense of dread and apprehension. I visited an old abandoned mine when I was a child, and we
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSDecember 11, 2024Don’t you love the classic claymation version of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)? I feel pretty confident that I watched it every year on NBC as a kid. The evening it was scheduled to air felt like a holiday in itself. Of course, one of the major segments of the show was the Island of Misfit Toys, which included some other classic characters, including a
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSDecember 10, 2024I am old enough to remember sitting with the Sears catalogue, turning down corners, and circling specific items in the toy section. It was our version of conducting a search on Amazon and then emailing certain products to individuals seeking gift ideas. Things change, and those of us who remember the old way might grumble over the newfangled way of doing Christmas shopping. Of course,