Ashes and Guilt by Association
I walked into the noon service today, and felt a great sense of comfort at this great annual shift into Lent. The purple cloth over the cross, the silent gathering, the smell of burned palms, the...
View ArticleThe Vanities of Lent
“We urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain.” (2 Cor. 6.1) As I sat in yesterday’s Ash Wednesday service, listening to the great and profound readings associated with that day—Joel’s prophetic...
View ArticleBecoming Neo-Pascalian: The Augustinian Problem
In pursuing Pascal, it is not long before we come face-to-face with a conundrum. It’s the sticky wicket that challenged Pascal, and while we won’t be able to resolve it, we can at least look at it....
View ArticlePascal, Ash Wednesday, and the Hidden God
In the Anglican Ash Wednesday ritual, we pray for the grace of true repentance. Repentance means to turn around, which obviously means you’re going to be looking in a different direction, seeing...
View ArticleLife in the Spirit: The Igniting God
Some of the stories from the Desert Fathers and Mothers are just too weird to mean much to me. Or they’re too hard. Or they’re just too hot and windy and covered in sand. But sometimes – and timing is...
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