Every religion which does not confirm that God is hidden is not true. Blaise Pascal One of the most fascinating and troubling verses in the Jewish scriptures is from the book of Proverbs:. “It is the glory of God to conceal a thing, and the glory of kings to search it out.” I, as many people of faith, often wonder why the divine is so unavailable, so frequently silent. I, as many people of faith, have often assumed that this... Read more
Over the holiday season my house always welcomes at least a half dozen new books (as if we needed any more). Jeanne buys me a couple; I always give her more than a couple (because I always include some that I know I’ll want to read as well). I just finished Ali Smith’s Autumn, a fascinating and creative novel that makes me want to read more of her work. Throughout the story the elderly Daniel Gluck frequently asks Elizabeth, the young woman... Read more
My friend Michael lives with his family in Florida. That in itself makes me wonder how he can be my best friend. Given our academic professions, Jeanne and I can only visit in the summer, which means that we annually have to answer questions along the lines of “What kind of fool goes on vacation to Florida in July?” My response usually is “The same sort that goes on sabbatical to Minnesota in the middle of the winter.” It would... Read more
Today is the First Sunday after the Epiphany (which was celebrated yesterday). I’m at a Benedictine Abbey on retreat this weekend, gearing up for what promises to be a challenging semester in a number of ways. Epiphany is a cool liturgical season, but it never grabbed me in the same way that, say, Advent does until I overheard a conversation on public transportation early one Sunday morning. I wrote about it a few years ago. —“It’s the cold mornings that it’s the... Read more
I recently got a shout-out from a colleague in the history department with whom I have taught in an interdisciplinary course on several occasions. In my college’s quarterly magazine publication for “alumni, parents, and friends,” this colleague was asked to provide a brief reflection on an aspect of his experience at the college. He wrote of what it is like to walk down the hall of our beautiful center for the humanities as he heads toward his office in the... Read more
I read a fascinating article in the November edition of The Atlantic recently that explores the various ways in which virtual assistants such as Alexa and Siri have begun to occupy more and more important spaces in our lives. My household is one of the few that does not have such an assistant, and it’s probably a good thing. Home is the one place where my conversation tends to be unfiltered, I talk to our dachshund Winnie as if she... Read more
Discovering a new author is one of my favorite things–it frequently happens during the holiday season between semesters. My latest discovery is Rachel Held Evans. I received two of her books as part of my small library of Christmas presents; I’ve already finished Faith Unraveled and have started Searching for Sunday. Her work resonates with me because her story is somewhat similar to mine, an emergence from Protestant fundamentalism toward what one of my students once described as “a more nuanced and interesting faith.”... Read more
Discovering a new author is one of my favorite things–it frequently happens during the holiday season between semesters. My latest discovery is Rachel Held Evans. I received two of her books as part of my small library of Christmas presents; I’ve already finished Faith Unraveled and have started Searching for Sunday. Her work resonates with me because her story is somewhat similar to mine, an emergence from Protestant fundamentalism toward what one of my students once described as “a more nuanced and interesting... Read more
I’ve been blogging for well over five years, but just joined Patheos last April. As I hoped, this move caused my blog traffic and readership to explode! According to Google Analytics, these are my top five posts of 2017: I’m a Christian, but I Won’t Be Saying “Merry Christmas” This one from early November was not a big surprise–everyone has something to say about the supposed “War on Christmas.” 2. God and Darwin Walk Into a Bar . . . This... Read more
Last Thursday was the Feast of the Holy Innocents, the liturgical day that commemorates King Herod’s ordering the slaughter of the male children under two years old in Bethlehem in an attempt to eliminate the newborn Messiah who was rumored to have been born there. I have written about this gruesome part of the New Testament narrative before, focusing on the text from the haunting medieval “Coventry Carol”: Herod the king, in his raging, Charged he hath this day. His... Read more
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