Posts By This Author
Verse of the Day: "Speak Out For Those Who Cannot Speak"
Speak out for those who cannot speak, for the rights of all the destitute. Speak out, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy.
- Proverbs 31:8-9
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Voice of the Day: Vandana Shiva
We can make the power of those who exploit us irrelevant... Choose to know the truth about global struggles, and live in a way that supports a just alternative.
- Vandana Shiva
from the 2002 World Social Forum
Verse of the Day: Calling out to God
Incline your ear, O Lord, and answer me, for I am poor and needy. Preserve my life, for I am devoted to you; save your servant who trusts in you. You are my God; be gracious to me, O Lord, for to you do I cry all day long. Gladden the soul of your servant, for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call on you. Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer; listen to my cry of supplication. In the day of my trouble I call on you, [...]
Julie Clendenin: Talking to Children About Tragedy
Monday was a heavy day. That night, my family sat down for our usual routine - some quiet moments before dinner when we sit and pray together. My two younger daughters, ages 9 and 7, were in their places as their daddy began to pray, "God, we're so grateful for all the good things you give us." But this night, he included something else in our prayer. As he asked God to comfort the [...]
Verse of the Day: "Here I Am"
Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am. If you remove the yoke from among you, the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil, if you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday.
- Isaiah 58:9-10
Verse of the Day: "Here I Am"
Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am. If you remove the yoke from among you, the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil, if you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday.
- Isaiah 58:9-10
Verse of the Day: "Here I Am"
Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am. If you remove the yoke from among you, the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil, if you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday.
- Isaiah 58:9-10
Brian McLaren: Sorrow Can Make Us Better, Not Bitter
When tragedies like the Virginia Tech massacre occur, we all share certain questions.
Why did this happen? How could this happen? Should anyone be blamed? Should someone be punished?
Often these questions lead us to seek a kind of rational explanation - so that the irrational can be folded into our sense of order in the universe. Often these questions send us on a search for someone to blame - a person, a group, the devil, even God.
I have found that our [...]
Voice of the Day: Fred Rogers on grieving
Confronting our feelings and giving them appropriate expression always takes strength, not weakness. It takes strength to acknowledge our anger, and sometimes more strength yet to curb the aggressive urges anger may bring and to channel them into nonviolent outlets. It takes strength to face our sadness and to grieve and to let our grief and our anger flow in tears when they need to. It takes strength to talk about our feelings and to reach out for help and comfort when we need it.
- [...]
Verse of the Day: "The Lord will Comfort"
For the Lord will comfort Zion; he will comfort all her waste places, and will make her wilderness like Eden, her desert like the garden of the Lord; joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of song.
- Isaiah 51:3
+ Sign up to receive our social justice verse of the day via [...]
Verse of the Day: "The Lord will Comfort"
For the Lord will comfort Zion; he will comfort all her waste places, and will make her wilderness like Eden, her desert like the garden of the Lord; joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of song.
- Isaiah 51:3
+ Sign up to receive our social justice verse of the day via [...]
Verse of the Day: "The Lord will Comfort"
For the Lord will comfort Zion; he will comfort all her waste places, and will make her wilderness like Eden, her desert like the garden of the Lord; joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of song.
- Isaiah 51:3
+ Sign up to receive our social justice verse of the day via [...]
Video: Tony Campolo on Jesus and Taxes
Tony Campolo offers some thoughts on "rendering unto Caesar what is Caesar's."
Ryan Rodrick Beiler: Kurt Vonnegut, 'Christ-Worshipping Agnostic'
I'm not an evangelical who reads only what affirms my theology, or failing that, tries to pretend that the artists I like somehow conform to my beliefs. (I tire of the endless debates in evangelical circles about whether Bono is a "real" Christian or [...]
Ryan Rodrick Beiler: Kurt Vonnegut, 'Christ-Worshipping Agnostic'
I'm not an evangelical who reads only what affirms my theology, or failing that, tries to pretend that the artists I like somehow conform to my beliefs. (I tire of the endless debates in evangelical circles about whether Bono is a "real" Christian or [...]
Ryan Rodrick Beiler: Kurt Vonnegut, 'Christ-Worshipping Agnostic'
I'm not an evangelical who reads only what affirms my theology, or failing that, tries to pretend that the artists I like somehow conform to my beliefs. (I tire of the endless debates in evangelical circles about whether Bono is a "real" Christian or [...]
Voice of the Day: Rumi
Enough of phrases and conceits and metaphors!
I want burning, burning...
Light up a fire of love in thy soul,Burn all thought and expression away!
- Jelalludin Rumi
Verse of the Day: The Spirit of the Lord
A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear; but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth...
- Isaiah [...]
Verse of the Day: Righteousness and Justice
See, a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule with justice. Each will be like a hiding place from the wind, a covert from the tempest, like streams of water in a dry place, like the shade of a great rock in a weary land. Then the eyes of those who have sight will not be closed, and the ears of those who have hearing will listen. The minds of the rash will have good judgment, and the tongues of stammerers will speak readily and distinctly. A fool will no longer be called noble, [...]
Voice of the Day: Henri J. M. Nowen
Prayer leads you to see new paths and to hear new melodies in the air. Prayer is the breath of your life which gives you freedom to go and stay where you wish and to find the many signs which point out the way to a new land,. Praying is not simply some necessary compartment in the daily schedule of a Christian or a source of support in time of need, nor is it restricted to Sunday morning or a as a frame to surround mealtimes. Praying is living.
-Henri J.M. Nouwen