The Suffering of the Saints
This week on November 1 we celebrate the feast of All Saints. This seems a fitting occasion to say a few words about the saints. In this posting, I’d like to reflect on one aspect of the saints: their suffering. No, I’m not going to describe the gruesome things some of them endured—like being eaten by lions or being burned at the stake. Rather, I’d like to list some of the saints who endured sufferings that are perhaps more akin to our own. (more…)
The Need for Spiritual Maintenance
Here’s an interesting fact: it takes hundreds of pumps in the New York City subway system to keep water out of the tunnels. If those pumps did not receive regular maintenance and if they suddenly stopped working, the subway tunnels would be flooded within thirty-six hours. Thirty-six hours! That’s a lesson on how important maintenance is for keeping things functioning well. (more…)
Leafing through the Yellow Pages
The “yellow pages” arrived the other day. You know—the telephone book with the listings and ads for the businesses in the area. It’s a relatively small book: 8 ½” by 7” but thick: 560 pages long. It covers only two counties: Lake and Geauga here in northeast Ohio. Before I put the book on the shelf, I sat down for a few minutes and leafed through it. I wanted to see what this book says about our contemporary society and what it reveals about our needs, values, fears, and priorities. (more…)
The Spirituality of Walking
I love to walk. Ordinarily I walk one or two miles a day. Often I go to a nearby park. Other times I roam the neighborhood. I’ve even learned to walk in the rain—if there’s no thunder and lighting. But if the weather is really bad, I grudgingly use the treadmill in the basement. I walk for the exercise, true. But I also walk because something happens to me when I walk—especially when I walk by myself outside. (more…)
What Is God's Favorite Word?
What is God’s favorite word? Some might argue that God’s favorite word is LOVE. After all, it certainly was one of Jesus’ favorite words. “Love one another, love one another,” he said over and over again. Others might say God’s favorite word is COMPASSION, FORGIVENESS, GOODNESS, BEAUTY, or TRUTH. Still others might argue that God’s favorite word is NO. Just look at all those “Thou-shalt-not’s” in the Bible. (more…)
