Our King is coming. Now, how should we prepare our house? This is the central question of Advent. How must we order our lives, our work, our communities, our faith and our society, in order to be pleasing to the King of kings? Historically, this period of preparation and reflection looked much different from the … Continue reading Advent — a time of preparation, a time of penitence
Christmas
May Christmas transform our hearts and our society
The Christmas season is upon us — in the traditional Church calendar, Christmas began on Dec. 25 and ends at Epiphany on Jan. 6 (followed by the beginning of the Orthodox Christmas season Jan. 7). Regardless of when you believe Christmas begins and ends, the season is, at its best, a time of family, … Continue reading May Christmas transform our hearts and our society
Advent: A time for spiritual housekeeping
There’s a lot of housekeeping this time of year. From Thanksgiving to Christmas, we spend a lot of time tidying up for the arrival of loved ones. But, there’s a different kind of cleaning that is called for this season, for a different kind of loved one. You see, despite the manic gift-shopping and decorating, … Continue reading Advent: A time for spiritual housekeeping
The inward journey to Epiphany
If you follow the traditional church calendar you may recall today is the last day of Christmas, which also makes it Epiphany Eve. The Epiphany, often overlooked in the wake of Christmas and New Year’s celebrations, is a holy day unto itself, and a festival day in many countries. Drawn from the Greek word epipháneia, … Continue reading The inward journey to Epiphany
Advent: Cleaning house with Mary
In the words of the old Bing Crosby song, “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas.” No, this is not one of those grumpy War on Christmas columns. I love Christmas with all its trappings, though I do wish it were more about the spirit of giving and less about the price of the … Continue reading Advent: Cleaning house with Mary
Diwali, Light and Christian Love
Today marks the last day of Diwali, the five-day Hindu festival of light also celebrated by followers of the Jain and Sikh faith traditions. I must admit, my knowledge of Diwali is limited to a high school religion class a quarter century back and some online searches to refresh my memory. What I remember and … Continue reading Diwali, Light and Christian Love
