I would argue that it is my job to address moral concerns, and that, in this, my job overlaps with the work of a politician. The difference is, that a politician addresses moral issues through policy and lawmaking. I address morality by interpreting scripture, and trying, in this way, to discern where God’s love leads us.
[The] transfiguration from human truth to ultimate truth is not the final goal of the religious practice… The spiritual story may involve a movement to solitude, but it does not end there.
“Authority and power are not the same,” Hugh told me. “Power is seized but authority is granted. Power is wielded but authority is exercised.”
The snow had started up again, but not in earnest — these flurries were the storm’s last, half-hearted, whispered asides — the tail end of a mid-January snowfall that was heading northward into the hills. And there I stood, my intention thwarted, with nothing to do but look around.
We are all children of God.
And when this fundamental claim is at the core of our being — we begin our relationships with each other from the starting place of dignity.
During Advent, we anticipate the birth of the Christ child. During Christmas, of course, we rejoice at Christ’s birth. What, than, is Epiphany?
In case you are not acquainted with this particular maneuver–that is, of bringing a Christmas tree into the house and setting it up — you might benefit from knowing some of the best practices…
The first thing to do, is not do what I do…
An oral tradition is not an act of remembering. It’s an act of maintenance. When something that was written 800 years ago is passed from one generation to the next, it stops being 800 years old, and becomes something that your grandmother taught you.
When we find ourselves on the edge — confronted by the inevitable challenge of our mortality, facing eternity, we are humbled by a mystery that cannot be fathomed.
This is a moment of religious desperation, a moment when try, in vain, to tame the ultimate.
