Blog

96 Days Until Spring Training*
Every move they make is evaluated. Every at bat, every pitch, every error is computerized. Every player is rated by a sophisticated system. All that

An Old Book for a New Moment
Hawthorne’s heterodox hermeneutic rested on the premise that we are always being addressed. Invited. Summoned. Warned.

Listen, We’re All Good People Here
Arendt challenges the notion of some great evil other. Instead it says everyday ordinary people are capable of committing unthinkable atrocities.

In Thankfulness for All-Saints Day
I couldn’t quite tell, and that was frustrating for me! Hearing him speak, I couldn’t quite tell if he was German or if he was

It Was Fifteen Years Ago Today
In a 2011 planning session, Phil Tanis said an online presence was paramount, and suggested starting a daily blog.

Varia Hungariana
Why did Calvinism thrive in Hungary? Because of the eternal law of politics: the enemy of my enemy is my friend.

The Marks We Carry: On Aging, Baking, and Gratitude
She was, to me, an old and unfussy grandma, but her hands were slender, with fair unblemished skin and beautifully shaped, tapered nails. No polish,

Seasonal Stretching
It’s been such a gorgeous autumn this year here in West Michigan, temperate and luminous and providing every excuse to escape outdoors. There’s never a

What the Church Needs Now Is a Rock Concert
U2 is celebrating in the face of despair, betting that rock and roll can be a needed antidote to dwelling on what’s bad.

Show Me the Money
The sheer torrent of political advertising hitting us here is stunning. Little of it is positive. Even less of it is fully true.

Get Over Yourselves
There may have been a significant issue at stake in all this. But who of us would be surprised were we to discover one day

Minutes of the Heavenly Reformation Day Planning Committee
Perhaps we could all use a few moments of levity in these difficult days? –Ed. INT. CAFÉ CLOUD NINE, HEAVEN – ETERNAL DAY Small groups