"Nobody likes the prophets much..."
(H/T: republished from Dover Beach)
"Nobody likes the prophets much. But whenever the prophets are silent, the Church is first made powerless and then regarded, quite properly, as parasitic. The Church in a liberal and capitalist world has preferred popularity to prophecy. It is not surprising that now the Church discovers that 'from . . .
Evangelicals, transgender, war, and sin
we're barking up the wrong tree
Today the President tweeted that "the United States Government will not accept or allow… Transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. Military.” As expected, response from Evangelical Christians has been swift and overwhelmingly supportive. Our fixation with sexual sins continues to take the forefront of almost . . .
to America, on her 241st birthday
As much as I am outspoken against churches who act as though they worship our country more than Jesus and our foreign policy that does little to provide security or true aid to anyone except the deep pockets of defense contractors, I deeply love my country. On this, her 241st birthday, there are two emotions that fill my . . .
the war prayer
NOTE: Being asked to give the invocation for our wing’s 100th anniversary later this summer and thinking about the dissonance between many Christian chaplains’ prayers and the teachings of Scripture led me back to this classic by Mr. Twain. It is pointed, sarcastic, and wonderfully still as relevant today as when it was penned.
. . .Posted in: chaplaincymilitaryprayertheologywar
on chaplains and their prayers
what are we praying for and why?
One of the most memorable scenes in the move Patton is when General Patton summons his chaplain, Fr. James O'Neill, and orders him to write a prayer for good weather just before the beginning of the Battle of the Bulge. Chaplain O'Neill wrote the following, now-famous, words:
Almighty and most merciful Father, we humbly . . .
Posted in: chaplaincymilitaryprayertheologywar
on loving the poor
and seeing Christ in them
"The mystery of the poor is this: That they are Jesus, and what you do for them you do for him. It is the only way we have of knowing and believing in our love. The mystery of poverty is that by sharing in it, making ourselves poor in giving to others, we increase our knowledge of and belief in love."
-- Dorothy Day
Photo . . .
an Orthodox Pascha
We entered the dark and crowded sanctuary as part of a steady stream of worshipers coming out of the night from the parking lot, across the street, and down the sidewalks. In the dim light, I could barely make out icons on the side walls and icons across the front of the sanctuary (iconostasis). The only light came from behind the iconostasis . . .
