In a question and answer session with children this week, Pope Francis was addressed by a little boy overcome with emotion. Francis beckoned the child forward, and on camera and in public, listened to the child’s story privately. Follow the link to see the video: https://youtu.be/cwREgr43_x0 Here’s a translation of the Pope’s words: If only all of us could cry as Emanuele does when we have pain in our hearts. He was crying for his father, which he had the... Read more
When I was in high school, I went into my girlfriend’s house to find her dad standing in the kitchen, looking at the stove. “What are you doing?” I asked. “Waiting for the kettle to boil.” “Well,” I said, “it’s not going to boil, if you keep watching it.” I don’t remember his response, but I do know that time is relative. Eight seconds in a warm shower goes by much quicker than eight seconds on the back of a... Read more
No one in the lynch mob that murdered Walter Johnson was ever convicted. Government officials tried to save his life by hiding him in the woods when the armed crowd attacked the Princeton City Jail in Mercer County, West Virginia. Led by railroad foreman Gordon White, on Sept. 5, 1912, more than three hundred people stole a train, cut the telephone lines and set out to avenge an alleged assault of White’s daughter. The bloodthirsty mob ignored the assertions of... Read more
First Mennonite Church, Richmond, Va., has conducted a bread service the Sunday after Easter for 20 years. Five breads representing five themes are paired with five hymns. I shared this message. Tumeric Bread: Hope Mark 6:34-43 34 As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things. 35 When it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, “This is... Read more
Through the heart of Colonial Williamsburg. Literally in the footsteps of Thomas Jefferson and George Washington. Read more
Germany’s authoritarian Nazi Party had members who were moderates. Moderate Nazis were called Nazis. There is no ‘moderate,’ middle ground when a portion of the population supports bigotry, racism, and discrimination, and a larger portion accepts it by not rejecting it. Vitriol and lies pour out of the Trump White House – stoking the flames of hatred and encouraging the mainstreaming of previously extremist bigotry. For example, because the president agrees with their racism, the former leader of the Ku Klux... Read more
March 14, 2018 To my 4-year-old little girl: Walk out. Leave. Stand up, and walk out. Lead the way out the door. Across the country, young people got up and walked out of school, to call attention to gun violence. When it’s your turn to walk out, I hope you do. Have the courage to face wrong, to stand up for justice, to speak for the voiceless. Oppose unjust laws. Demand change. Imagine a better world, and then work towards... Read more
Positive thinking seldom cures debilitating diseases. All the prayers in the world won’t regrow an amputated limb. But how you respond to situations lays the foundation for future situations. Scripture says the rain falls on the just and the unjust. How do you react to the rain? How do you respond to difficulty? Your reaction to situations impacts what happens next in your life. Life is short and difficult and astonishingly beautiful. Moments of wondrous miracles are intertwined with the... Read more
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