What would it look like if we lived like we are children of God? Wouldn’t everything look different? Our culture, relationships, even our politics? Each week, I do at least one interview about my latest novel, Plausible Liars. There is a commonality among the interviewers’ questions about the unusual title: my explanation of its origin […]
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Language: not so subtle pervisions One of the last classes I took to satisfy the number of courses needed for my undergraduate major in English was Linguistics. Taught by the head of the English department in the small college, it was, by far, one of the tougher courses for me. Not because the material was
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If you are angry… Take a look at his face, a close look at pure, undiluted rage and fury. Although it’s tempting to feel superior and judgmental at such complete loss of self-control, I can’t. I’ve been there, precisely where that enraged man is. And it seems as if many of our fellow citizens live
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Suffering: Should doctors fix it? Back in my secular days, I viewed the suffering of the dying as unnecessary-an enemy requiring intervention. In fact, I wrote my doctoral dissertation on the medical decision-making surrounding the withdrawal of extraordinary treatment for the terminally ill. I’d been disturbed by medical doctors’ fear and resistance to letting patients
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Religion begins with experience Religion does not start out with the notion of God. It starts with a personal experience, the overwhelming experience of ultimate belonging. Religion of the Heart Two pictures side by side in one frame hang on the wall of our Texas home. They reveal two views of a snowy cross-country skiing mountain
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Defining freedom: The old/new lure of socialism On this July 4th weekend, we ponder the origins of American exceptionalism and consider the warnings of the founders about democracy. This old/new lure of socialism is antithetical to what we stand for in these United States, a nation founded under God. But for a growing number of
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It’s June: Thinking About Time and Death It’s June, why aren’t you writing about excellent graduation speeches? I planned to do just that, even had a few graduation speeches selected for consideration, until Monday’s walk with Seymour and John’s comment about my second chance. Monday was June 1st. While putting my dog Seymour’s collar and
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STOP In The Name Of GOD: WHY? Only after my read of Charlie Kirk’s last book of that name, do I fully grasp the Sunday commandment and why I vow to abstain from unnecessary work or cause others to work on the Lord’s Day. So when God delivers Israel and gives them the Sabbath, He
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The distinctly separate natures of women and men “Wait—Are you saying that there’s no difference between men and women? “That the sole difference between the sexes is anatomic and biologic?” The air was suddenly charged. And the easy energy between us gone. Startled and confused, I said, “Well, yes, of course…” But my words faded
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Anamnesis Four-or more-syllable words are intimidating, like this one: anamnesis. But to lovers of words, this one means far more than remembering, recalling to mind. Or a psychological term indicating a return of lost memories. Wordsworth’s poem, Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood, describes anamnesis without ever mentioning the word. Because it
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