faith Archives - Page 3 of 6

Aedes aegypti mosquito

Photo credit: Alex Wild[1] (Click on the photo to get a larger image.) This terrifying picture shows an Aedes aegypti mosquito rising out of the water immediately after it has metamorphosed from its larval stage. Without a sense of scale this creature looks like some dragon from a Peter Jackson film. Despite the fact that it…

We Were Soldiers

The Mel Gibson movie, We Were Soldiers, is one of my favourite movies of all-time, with strong themes of leadership and courage. An example is Colonel Hal Moore’s stunning speech just before the young soldiers ship out under his command? I can’t promise you that I will bring you all home alive. But this I…

Day by Day

Do not worry about tomorrow. Tomorrow will have its own worries. The troubles we have in a day are enough for one day. – Jesus, Matthew 6: 34 (New Living Translation, NLT) I am once again learning to live by this wisdom. I’ve got to take it day by day. I cannot live my whole…

Stardust Memories

I have always found Woody Allen to be an honest atheist. He does not sugar-coat his atheism in either his movies or his interviews. He does not try to convince people that atheism will make them a better person, that they will be happier if they choose atheism, or that the world will be a…

Body and Wine

I write a blog, first and foremost, as a place to work out my own faith. There are times when the best way to sort out what is going on is to spill out emotions and words. The first draft makes little sense. The edits make it a learning process. On a really good day…

Living in a World of Turmoil

How will we respond when the world is in turmoil; when Syrian refugees are flooding European countries and seeking shelter in North America; when oil is $42 a barrel and people are losing their jobs; when Paris and Belgium are locked down; when travelers in the United States are warned not to fly? Do we live as functional…

Imagine True Religion

It has been a few days since the world witnessed the events of November 13 in Paris. The initial words used to describe the event were naturally filled with emotion: “Paris mourns,” “an act of war,” “World War III,” “Blood-bath,” and “massacre.” Now that a few days have passed, I am in a better…

Earning and Effort

Some of the most challenging passages in the New Testament are those related to “works” versus “grace.” Theologians have struggled to understand, and argued over, the meaning of these verses for centuries; and this debate is at the root of the greatest divides in all of Christianity. The spectrum of “divine predestination” on one side…

Liquid

“Liquid” is a brilliant song by the band known as Jars of Clay. They blend an ancient 11th century chant with contemporary music and lyrics that flow together with creativity and beauty. They remind us that in the midst of the many questions and perplexities of this world, there is at least one constant. They…

Tolkien on Judging Others

J.R.R. Tolkien reminds us that we must not be hasty in judgment in this line from The Lord of the Rings trilogy. It is a good reminder to all of us. “Deserves it! I daresay he does. Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then…