We live in scary times. Millions of people in this country and around the world find themselves unemployed or underemployed – in spite of the upbeat explanations of some economists that the recession is already at an end. The housing market, other experts tell us, has not stabilized. And the same is probably true of…

It is hard to hear today’s epistle without recalling Aesop’s fable about the grasshopper and the ants. Thinking about the fun-loving grasshopper who showed up at the hard-working ants’ door, cold and starving during a winter storm, seeking food and shelter, it’s easy to imagine what the ant doorkeeper had to say. Maybe something like:…

A book of remembrance was written before him… Malachi 3:16 There is a story, perhaps apocryphal, of an American professor of philosophy doing research in Asia. Deeply involved in her work, she asks a Japanese colleague to explain some of the complexities of Shinto and Buddhist belief. The Japanese scholar at first demurs. But the…

“Let’s get our priorities straight!” seems to be the message of this morning’s readings from Scripture. With the liturgical year coming to a close, the church turns its attention to the “End Times,” thus framing the Christian year with apocalyptic images. The challenge to Christians is how to incorporate the sense of urgency contained in…

The Gospel appointed to be read this Lord’s day is harsh, strikingly harsh. One of the theories as to why it is harsh is related to the probable date of Luke’s Gospel. Luke’s Gospel was assembled probably around 75 AD. This is roughly 40 years or so after the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus. If…