The first act of advent is adoration; the second is “activism” for the kingdom of God. It is far too easy for some to “spiritualize” the word “kingdom” so that it means personal relationship with God; it is far too easy for others to “socialize” the word “kingdom” so that it means social activism. The activism of advent that concerns the kingdom can be seen in Mary’s wondrous Magnificat. Here it is from Luke 1:46-55: 46 And Mary said: “My soul... Read more
There is a Third Way, and this post officially kicks off a series of occasional reflections about the Third Way. The Third Way approach to the orthodox Christian faith is one that gets beyond the fighting and between the fighters in order to carve out a middle way. The Third Way captures and sustains the good in both the conservative and the liberal. It is the Jesus Creed at work in the church’s theology and praxis. It affirms the great... Read more
All of us, I suppose, have stories about our medical system. But this one from our son is better than anything we’ve ever had. Lukas and Annika recently gave birth to a son — Aksel — and this is the medical bill’s explanation of benefits that Luke and Annika received after they submitted the hospital receipts: “We have reviewed your claim and have deemed the birth of Aksel a necessary medical procedure.” Mighty kind of them, don’t you think? Who’s... Read more
The first act of advent, which we looked at last week, is “adoration,” the second act of advent is activism. By that I mean this: a genuine commitment to the advent vision of the Bible is a commitment to active participation in the vision of advent. A good place to begin our “activism” actions is with the words of the angel to Mary in Luke 1: 29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this... Read more
Second Sunday of Advent Today we relight the candle of HOPE. Now we light the candle for the second Sunday in Advent. This is the candle of PEACE. As we prepare for the coming of Jesus, we remember that Jesus is our hope and our peace. From the prophet Isaiah: “For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of... Read more
Merciful God, who sent your messengers the prophets to preach repentance and prepare the way for our salvation: Give us grace to heed their warnings and forsake our sins, that we may greet with joy the coming of Jesus Christ our Redeemer; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. Read more
In Chicago, we vote early and often, and our Santas arrive early and often too! We haven’t said this in a while, but if you have a post or know of a post that you would like to spread around the internet, send me the link and we’ll take a look and see what we can do to get it posted on Weekly Meanderings. No promises … Division in the Church is never the ideal … but this seemed inevitable:... Read more
In Chicago, we vote early and often, and our Santas arrive early and often too! We haven’t said this in a while, but if you have a post or know of a post that you would like to spread around the internet, send me the link and we’ll take a look and see what we can do to get it posted on Weekly Meanderings. No promises … Division in the Church is never the ideal … but this seemed inevitable:... Read more
I read two wildly distinct pieces this week that somehow are joined at the hip — I read some more in Kathleen Norris’s book Acedia & Me: A Marriage, Monks, and a Writer’s Life , and I also read Barry Hankins’ fine biographical study of Francis Schaeffer (Francis Schaeffer And the Shaping of Evangelical America (Library of Religious Biography Series)). The connection might seem odd so explanation is in order. Our point today is this: acedia is not just the... Read more
Not that long ago I heard that Biro, a manufacturer of cheap pens, has now accounted for 100 billion Bic pens. These little pieces of silliness are disposable and are now clogging up pipes, glutting our dump yards, and defying the world’s nature decomposition. So, let me urge you to stop buying Bics, buy a fountain pen, and be a person who uses the same pen for the rest of your life. It is a matter of stewardship. So, here... Read more
Jesus Creed
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