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One of the most familiar, and most beloved, aspects of the Celtic Christian period is the artwork produced in the monastic centers of the 7th-9th centuries. Liturgical dishes and chalices, illuminated manuscripts, and stately carved crosses bear witness to an era in which art flourished in the service of the…
I remind myself that President Obama claims to be a Christian as I continue listening for anything remotely Christian in his manner of governance. Reading news journals lately this much has become clear: While Mr. Obama continues speaking, speaking, speaking - in town hall meetings, nationally-televised speeches, and anywhere anyone…
Anyone who doubts that the people of this country are still seeking something more, even seeking God, need only have watched the first episode of Ken Burns' new PBS series, "The National Parks: America's Best Idea." This first two-hour episode was bathed in the language of general revelation. Episode 1…
It was important to the writer of 2 Samuel that, in beginning the story of David and Bathsheba, he not-so-subtly imply that David was not where he should have been, and was not doing what kings are supposed to do (11.1). We couldn't say that David was dithering - he…
Home on the Lord's Day from a long weekend in Knoxville and Dayton, TN. Happy to be resting in the Creator, and meditating on the abundant evidence of His goodness, beauty, and truth which He trumpets day by day through the things He has made. One observation in particular has…
New Jersey parents are in an uproar over their children being led in a chant praising President Barak Hussein Obama. The Internet video is causing a furor all over the country, and rightly so. People are outraged because they insist it is not the mandate of the public schools to…
Last night's discussion at The Gospel and This World Group surfaced some important points about our involvement in talking about the political issues of the day. I thought I might try to summarize the conversation and challenge us all to think about becoming more consistently involved in political speech as…
Few natural structures in the creation are as elegant and wondrous as sand dunes. These crescents of sculpted loess accumulate as the wind picks up bits of dust and sand and shapes and carries them until the pull of gravity or the crest of an existing sand dune interrupts their…
After an essay woodshedding the Republicans and cheering the Democrats on to pass health care reform without the stubborn opposition, the editors of The New Republic (October 7) sign off with this: "If Max Baucus's months of work achieved nothing else, he has unmasked the true nature of the contemporary…
There are indications that the Western world's infatuation with materialism may be waning. For as long as most of us can remember, the "good life" has been considered to consist in success, ease, and abundance. Advertizing, credit card companies, and governments have helped to fuel this vision, and the public…
My Sunday afternoon reading in Church history brought to light two episodes which seem to me to have distinctly contemporary implications. We often hear, following some "natural disaster" or other, people musing about why God allows such things. Interesting to note that God rarely gets the credit for beautiful weather,…
In the main, I appreciate Fox News Network. I only watch in the evenings, and I don't watch everyone. I think the 6:00 and 7:00 news programs are what they claim, fair and balanced, which is more than I can say for the network news programs I used to watch.…
A brief report in The Economist (September 12th) raises a question about who should preserve the treasures of the Church. What treasures? Not monetary, to be sure; cultural, primarily, but also, foundational. Should Christians over the world be troubled by the fact that so many of the cultural and spiritual…
Suddenly, racists are everywhere in America. According to President Carter, who apparently knows a lot, scores of thousands of racists assembled last weekend in Washington and elsewhere to vent their diabolic rage against the President on the grounds of his race. In today's enlightened America, we just can't seem to…
Recent debates and changes in the political arena have caused a number of Americans to wonder aloud if the country is beginning to disintegrate. Not dissolve or disappear, but lose its essential federal and republican integrity. As more and more power is drawn to the Oval Office and White House…