This Easter time of year, we often hear the story of the journey to Emmaus, one of the most moving and evocative in the gospels. But dare I say that it is often preached with a basic misunderstanding? I am absolutely not the first person to point this out, but the myth I am describing does seem very resilient. The story, from Luke 24.13-35, is well known. Two disciples are walking from Jerusalem to Emmaus. Jesus approaches them and talks... Read more
Many of us are yearning to "return to normal," as Americans tried to do a hundred years ago, after a far worse pandemic followed a world war. But perhaps COVID should cause us to pause and rethink the value of normalcy. Read more
Easter is a time for sober reflection on matters of death and Resurrection, and not, one would think, an occasion for humor. Yet throughout history, some Christians at least have so relished the news of Christ’s triumph that they cannot contain their glee in declaring the good news. Without apology, then, I turn to one of the greatest medieval explorations of the Easter experience, and of the whole idea of Atonement. Back in 2015, I wrote a book called The... Read more
Spanish Flu. SARS, MERS. Bubonic plague, if one wants to reach for a more distant point of reference. Such comparisons alarm us, or perhaps reassure us that things could be so much worse. They were worse in New England in the seventeenth century. This year, communities on both sides of the Atlantic are marking the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower and the planting of Plymouth Colony. In light of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is worth remembering that the success of... Read more
Guest blogger Jackie Den Hartog reflects on quarantining with children Read more
In the 18th century, few families escaped death at the hand of infectious diseases, not even the famous family of Sarah Pierpont Edwards. Read more
It may feel all but impossible to do anything right now not related in some way to the pandemic. For good reason, we are learning that the most ordinary things we do every day, like washing hands, wearing masks, and staying indoors, can have big consequences for someone else. In these practical ways we’re encouraged to take care of our own health as a way of helping care for the health of others, including others we never have met. 1918... Read more
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. (Zechariah 9.9) Many years ago, when velociraptors roamed the earth (okay, it was about 1971), I read a book that did a lot to shape my thinking. I stress: it was not necessarily a good book, but it bristled with amazing and... Read more
On March 14, an Asian American father brought his two young sons, ages two and six, on a mundane weekend errand: a Saturday trip to the store. But their visit to Sam’s Club in Midland, Texas, turned into a bloody nightmare when a nineteen-year-old man attacked the family, slashing the father and one of his sons across the face. According to the FBI, which has investigated the incident as a hate crime, the stabber had attempted to kill the... Read more
On October 22, 1939, C.S. Lewis ascended the pulpit of the Church of St. Mary the Virgin in Oxford. From there he delivered to the university’s students his now-famous sermon “Learning in War-Time.” It was, of course, quite an extraordinary time to be a college student in England. Less than two months earlier, on September 3, the United Kingdom had declared war on Germany after Hitler had invaded British ally Poland. Lewis addressed the elephant in the room: why bother... Read more
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