Remember back when people defended truth? And postmodernists were the enemy for questioning it? Ah, the good ol’ days. With nostalgia, I remember the days when it felt radical to criticize “absolute truths.” Only ten years ago, I was sparring with a large Evangelical organization that initiated a campaign for […]
Yesterday, I had a shallow hole cut in the centre of my chest. It was for a very low-risk biopsy; by itself, this is no news worth sharing. However, a little over a month earlier, I was sitting in my dermatologist’s waiting room to check out what was probably an […]
It is not being conservative to honour and respect the traditions and wisdom of the past, it is mature. It is not being liberal to question those traditions and that wisdom, it is mature. It is not being fundamentalist to have deep commitments that you honour, it is mature. It […]
Having confidence in the truth of one’s own religious beliefs has seemed like a crucial part of believing for most Christians. Those who disagree are in error and this error in beliefs (and resulting lifestyle) has ultimate consequences. In the perceptions of most Christians, this has not been at all […]
So I’ve been reading a book by a relatively agnostic neuroscientist who suggests that pretty much everyone – believer or atheist – has their brain do positive, expansive, compassionate things that are good for them when asked to think about God. (In case you’re curious, those few who do not […]
It doesn’t get much better than the right kind of sad song that somehow leaves you, all at once, feeling like you’ve been stripped of your armour, yet you’re stronger, braver and more hopeful. For me, the music must fit, must open me up, stirring something deep inside. Good words, […]
Imagine two kinds of people who live passionately: The first type live lives of wild freedom. They hold onto everything lightly, knowing no single thing comes with a guarantee. Yet they believe that life itself is good and beautiful. They are fully present in the moment, open to caring for […]
The ways that most of us gather information these days keep us “grazing on the same side of the fence.” We read or watch thinkers and commentators who reinforce our own somewhat entrenched positions. If we do peek over the fence, it might be to mock the laughable stupidity of […]
If displacement is the word we kept hearing when looking at the struggles of the people, accompaniment is the word that marked the path of those seeking to help. Having been separated from so many of their resources, displaced people need others to walk alongside them, assisting them in restoring […]
Beauty is very important to me. Seeking beauty makes a lot of sense as a human calling, and I believe it to be thoroughly intertwined with spiritual hunger. We need beauty as much as we need food. But just like we’ve often needed several words to clarify types of love, […]