How the Lord’s Prayer brought Dave Brubeck to the church

Last updated on: December 6, 2012 at 3:07 pm By Joel J. Miller

Jazz pianist and composer Dave Brubeck died earlier today at ninety-one, just a day shy of his ninety-second birthday. Known for his ability to make magic happen with unconventional meters, Brubeck leaves behind a hefty catalogue of amazing jazz. Albums like Time Out and Jazz Impressions of Japan continue to impress on the hundredth listen as much as they surprised on the first. What some may not know is that Brubeck also leaves behind several wonderful sacred compositions. (His obituary... Read more

It’s the little sins that kill you

Last updated on: December 5, 2012 at 9:00 am By Joel J. Miller

Judas Iscariot didn’t begin with betrayal in mind, and David didn’t intend adultery and murder. But then one day they sat alone, their minds consumed with guilt and recrimination, the deeds done. How? Judas was one of the twelve. David was a man after God’s own heart. What went wrong? The question is important if we want to avoid our own personal and spiritual disasters. One thing I know: It’s not the exotic sins that get us. We’re mastered by... Read more

St. Nick’s best gift

Last updated on: December 5, 2013 at 9:24 pm By Joel J. Miller

The memory of few saints is as cherished as that of St. Nicholas. Known as Nicholas the Wonderworker, he is remembered in the church on December 6 and closely associated with the Christmas season. While the legends around this humble bishop have swollen beyond recognition, the popular picture of the jolly fat man circling the globe dropping gifts to worthy children has some slender basis in fact. According to the tradition of the church, Nicholas was born at the end... Read more

Let the Bible elevate your mind

Last updated on: January 11, 2014 at 9:29 pm By Joel J. Miller

There’s a conversation running right now on the relative value of certain Bible translations. Depending on who’s talking and for what purpose, it might strike some as tedious. I happen to enjoy the discussion, and I think there’s one strain that’s worthy of consideration for those interested in how language might affect their spirituality. In discussing the recent republication of the Knox Bible, a mid-twentieth century translation, Michael Brendan Dougherty mentions one “fatal” flaw, the use of sacral language, such... Read more

Following Philip and Andrew following Christ

Last updated on: December 1, 2012 at 8:09 pm By Joel J. Miller

Today the Orthodox church commemorates Jesus’ first disciple, Andrew, a celebration that follows by two weeks the commemoration of his fellow disciple Philip. The stories of both men are captured in the first chapter of John’s gospel, and I think the pair has something to teach us this Advent season. We first encounter Andrew standing with John the Baptist. It was the day after Christ’s baptism in the Jordan and Jesus passed by the two men and another of the... Read more

Pro-life activist Chen Guangcheng named ‘rebel of the year’

Last updated on: November 29, 2012 at 11:18 pm By Joel J. Miller

While the gentlemen’s glossy is best known for featuring models and celebrities draped in high-priced clothes and others draped in barely anything, the current edition of GQ has taken the surprising move of naming Chinese antiabortion activist Chen Guangcheng “Rebel of the Year” for 2012. While perhaps more symbolic than substantive, symbols are important. For decades the pro-life cause has seemed terminally unfashionable. But now there’s Chen, the blind man who stood down an entire government because he opposed its... Read more

Forget your legacy, just do the right thing

Last updated on: November 28, 2012 at 2:57 pm By Joel J. Miller

My wife and I spent part of Tuesday in Atlanta with Alveda King, the daughter of A.D. King and the niece of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. During our time there we visited Ebenezer Baptist Church, which has now been carefully restored to its appearance during the civil-rights struggles of the 1960s. Following that, we walked down the street to the birth home of the King brothers. As we toured the building with Alveda and her daughter, a docent told... Read more

Don’t ask God for justice

Last updated on: November 30, 2012 at 4:44 am By Joel J. Miller

When we are wronged, do we ask God for justice? Maybe we should reconsider that impulse. After descending the mountain of the Transfiguration, Jesus sent some messengers to a village to prepare for his arrival. The villagers, however, did not want Jesus around and told the messengers to, in so many words, beat it. Jesus’ disciples, James and John, were indignant. “Lord, do you want us to bid fire come down from heaven and consume them?” they asked. You can... Read more

What it means to come to Christ as a child

Last updated on: November 25, 2012 at 3:19 pm By Joel J. Miller

One after another the kids kept coming. Parents were bringing their children to Jesus for his blessing, and Jesus was happy to comply. The disciples, however, were less accommodating. As the gospels report, “the disciples rebuked them” (e.g., Mark 10.13). Jesus was not pleased with his followers. Mark tells us that he was indignant. “Let the children come to me,” he said, “do not hinder them; for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever... Read more

Giving thanks for C.S. Lewis

Last updated on: November 24, 2012 at 9:47 am By Joel J. Miller

Besides Thanksgiving, November 22 this year marks the 49th anniversary of C.S. Lewis’ death. I read a newspaper obituary about Lewis that my grandmother kept. She preserved the entire paper. The event was buried in the back–barely two column inches if memory serves. The rest of paper, or at least the majority of it, was dedicated to reporting the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Both men died the same day. Coincidentally, both men answered to Jack. Though popular, this British... Read more