Eaten alive. Roasted on a grill. Lit on fire. Hit with rocks. Skinned alive. If we think about the way we’d like to die, these sorts of deaths never make the list. They are not what we’d call a “good death” or a “blessed death.” And yet these and many other grisly deaths are the means by which the martyrs of the Christian church have entered into … [Read more...] about The Holy Art of Dying Part V: The Blessed Death
2022
Crossing Paths…on the Road to Jericho Part 5
The Friend Who Asks (Mark 10:46-52) It’s the Friday before Memorial Day. Folks at work are discussing their plans for the summer. What if you said you were going to take your family to a big city? An excited colleague might immediately bludgeon you with helpful advice: “You need to see this! You need to do that! You need to stay here! You need … [Read more...] about Crossing Paths…on the Road to Jericho Part 5
Remembering the Service Industry
“Good help is hard to come by!”… or so goes the saying. And whether you’re a consumer, an employer, or an employee, you’ve experienced the reality of this proverb in recent months, perhaps more than ever before. I’ve even noticed an extraordinary social media effort being made by one local restaurant group lately. They’re giving special honor to … [Read more...] about Remembering the Service Industry
What Can I Say to a Dying Person?
What can I say to that person who is on hospice care and is facing imminent death? The afflicted person may be in a coma. What can or should you say, if anything? You do not need to say much, but make it worthwhile. Even the comatose person most often can hear to the very end. Sometimes, no longer able to speak, you can ask the person to squeeze … [Read more...] about What Can I Say to a Dying Person?
Pastor, I Have a Question September-October, 2022
Recently, the federal government released video footage of Unidentified Aerial Phenomona (UAPs for short) recorded by various military aircraft. Meanwhile, at the University of Puerto Rico, astronomers at the Arecibo observatory have developed a growing database of potentially habitable planets orbiting other stars. These developments raise a … [Read more...] about Pastor, I Have a Question September-October, 2022
Martin Luther’s September Testament (1522): The German New Testament
This year marks the five hundredth anniversary of Martin Luther’s (1483–1546) translation of the New Testament into German. He titled it The German New Testament (Das Newe Testament Deůtzsch). Since it was published in September of 1522, it was also called the “September Testament” (Septembertestament). Luther’s German Bible was without a doubt his … [Read more...] about Martin Luther’s September Testament (1522): The German New Testament