Will we be willing to sacrifice some of the pleasures of our precious “American” way of life - our vacations, our concerts, our cruises? Can we handle a few months of staying in more, modifying our behavior, taking necessary measures for the sake of public health, even when uncomfortable and inconvenient? Can we ask that the rich give up some of their excess wealth, in order to alleviate the unfair burdens carried by the poor and working class, in this time? Read more
For Christians who believe in the resurrection of the body it seems evasive to talk as though the body didn’t really die. And whether one believes in an afterlife or not, pretending that death is not death is not helpful, in the case of bereavement. It sounds like a denial that loss is real, that grief is real Read more
We must learn to speak words of peace that are not nonsense; words that are not a stumbling block to the little ones who believe. This means that we can no longer continue to assure our students (and ourselves) that some divine meaning drives our despair. Read more
We earlier discussed how Christians and Jews are united. Now we need to look at how Jews and Christians have different approaches to the idea of theological truth. Jews and Christians approach theological truth in a slightly different manner. Yet one can only make so much of this subtle difference before wandering too far afield. For Jews, truth is primary dialectical. For Christians, it’s primarily revealed. Again, this distinction has many weaknesses and limitations, but it does address some of... Read more
What they are actually demanding, even if they do not realize it, is not freedom but license: license to use their freedom irresponsibly, license to squander their freedom, their lives, and the lives of others. Read more
By guest writer Gregory Eran Gronbacher I’ve repeated this wry aphorism so many times – and you’ve likely heard it, too – “Get three Jews together and you’ll have at least six opinions.” The humor reflects something of the enduring nature of Judaism – it’s an ongoing conversation. For the past few thousand years, Jews have been talking, writing, even arguing about the core aspects of our tradition, our values, and our practices. The Jewish tradition is replete with... Read more
The danger of rejecting the moral significance of earthly life, the here and now, in favor of some ethereal beyond, has also been made evident. Religious leaders and faith communities that have rejected scientific data and care for the common good now state their willingness to risk death rather than give up their “right” to congregate in worship. Read more
How does doubting fit in a life of faith? It fits a constantly reforming life of faith and its maturation. Kill the questions and you kill the life. The desire for intellectual stasis is important but secondary. Read more
What people like Dan Patrick and R.R. Reno are proposing is literally human sacrifice. That might sound shocking, but consider for a moment that their approach is not really novel. We have always been willing to sacrifice human life for the sake of wealth. Read more
“God,”again by definition, isn’t in any sense a thing. God is a No-thing, whatever that may be. We are not going to bump into or even “kick” God as if God were Woodbridge’s stone in order to test God’s reality. God transcends the horizon of possible human experience which begins with sense experience Read more
suspended in her jar
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In