Blog

Hildegard’s “Cookies of Joy” in a Serious World
I’m still not quite sure what Hildegard believed nutmeg did, scientifically. But I can certainly recommend making nutmeg cookies during a church staff meeting and

Thankful in the Night-Season, and all the day long
Eugene wouldn’t come since driving his car from the Baltimore to New Jersey would take too much of his time. We countered that he could

ASCENSION IN HAVANA
I’ve had my friend Ulises and his community on my mind as the Church celebrates the ascension of Jesus. In the holy intrusion of God

Boundary Waters: A Love Song
The BWCAW is the most visited wilderness area in the system and most visitors are canoe trippers. The popular routes, ironically, can be busy places

Facing Ourselves During Mental Health Awareness Month
I have journaled, made notes, read, listened to podcasts, talked with my therapist, gone to CoDA (Codependents Anonymous) meetings, and thought endlessly about how to

Unvarnished Storytelling at the National Parks
A handful of national park rangers moved between various sites. They were knowledgeable, accessible, patient, and passionate about their work. From these rangers I realized

Loving and Leaving American Evangelicalism
The more deeply rooted one is in the evangelical world – in its congregations, conferences, family and friend networks, schools, publishers, book clubs, social media

Practicing the Presence of God: Spiritual Discipline in the Yosemite Public Restrooms
That summer, perhaps more than any other time in my life, I was reminded of God’s presence in a way I still can’t entirely explain.

The Spiritual Practice of Nagging
The bittersweet end of the academic year means waving a fond goodbye to our graduates and wishing them well. It also means a sigh of

Kuyper the Mensch
For me the book’s most intriguing contributions lie in Kuyper’s largely private, lives: as world traveler and mountaineer.

Mom, Are Aliens Real?
Would the presence of intelligent extraterrestrial creatures diminish human dignity or force us to reconsider what it means for us to be created in the

The Mothers We Celebrate and The Ones We Don’t See
For every mother who is being celebrated, there’s another who is deep in grief. For every mother at a family brunch, there’s another who sits