This year Christians are marking the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicea–at least those Christians who care about or who are aware of such things. One Sunday not that long ago, I decided to pay close attention to the words of the Nicene Creed when it showed up as it does every Sunday morning in the Episcopal liturgy right after the homily. People usually pay about as much attention to the text of the Creed as they do to the... Read more
I haven’t had a chance to teach the ancient greats in philosophy in several semesters, largely because I haven’t been teaching in the freshman semesters of the large interdisiplinary program I regularly participate in. I’ve mostly been working in sophomore sections of that program, which means the late 18th century to t0day. The next time I teach ancient Greek and Roman philosophy, I will include a figure that I only became aware of a few years ago: Mediocrates. Mediocrates, who lived around... Read more
Blessed Are . . . The Feast of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple happens to fall on this coming Sunday, which means that the usual Epiphany 4 text is being bumped for Presentation-related texts. That’s unfortunate because in the normal run of things, Epiphany 4 is the first of several Sundays that, in Year A at least, take us through the Sermon on the Mount, beginning with the Beatitudes. Here’s what I wrote for Epiphany 4 in my... Read more
Rev. Dan Anderson, the pastor of the Lutheran church Jeanne attends and that I am attending more and more frequently, sends out a text with a scripture verse or passage each morning and invites thoughts and reflections. Part of the passage he sent on inauguration day was this verse from 2 Chronicles If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves, and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear... Read more
The pastor of the Lutheran church Jeanne attends sends out a scripture verse or passage each morning and invites thoughts and reflections. On Friday his chosen passage was from the prophet Micah, one of the few references from the minor prophets that many if not most persons of Christian faith can quote by heart: Micah 6:8. If you don’t know it by heart, look it up if you know your way around the minor prophets in the Jewish scriptures–it’s well... Read more
This coming Sunday is Epiphany 3; the appointed readings include two of my favorite passages from scripture. The opening verses of Psalm 19 invite us to turn our attention upward and outward toward the wonders of creation which, without words or sound, communicates more than could be processed in a lifetime. The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament show his handiwork. Day to day utters speech, and night to night shows knowledge. There is no speech, nor... Read more
Several weeks ago, I posted that because of a number of seemingly random coincidences, I was going to be reading some books about and by Julian of Norwich. After beginning that process, it’s time to touch base here with what I have learned so far–knowing that I still have a long way to go as I familiarize myself with the thought of this fascinating 14th century mystic. In the past six weeks I have read about two-thirds of Simon Critchley’s Mysticism,... Read more
It is an ironic quirk of the calendar that January 20th–the consitutionally designated date for the presidential inauguration every four years–fall this year on Martin Luthre King Jr. Day. I have no intention of watching or listening to any news today, so it’s a good day to think a bit about one of MLK Jr’s most quoted statements. Former President Obama loved this passage from MLK Jr.: “The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”... Read more
My relationship with adult beverages began when I was in high school. Of course, 95% of the adults in this country would probably say the same thing, but my story is a bit different. Alcoholic beverages were among the dozens of things that good Baptists did not indulge in (along with dancing, movies, colorful language, . . .). My father was a conservative Protestant minister, a national vice president of the IFCA, for God’s sake. That’s the Independent Fundamental Churches... Read more
I am currently two-thirds of the way through the second installment in Martin Walker’s “Bruno, Chief of Police” series (which has 17-18 entries). I like it–it is set in southwestern France where my hero Michel de Montaigne lived and worked five centuries ago. I’m learning a lot about rural French culture and a great deal about food and wine. I love mysteries and am reminded of an important conversation I had almost thirty-one years ago. “When you aren’t reading philosophy,... Read more
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