Category Archives: Christianity

Good thing Jesus isn’t afraid of dirt

Posted on December 13, 2014 by salooper57

In 2013, a record 2 million people visited Bethlehem. It was estimated that there were 75,000 tourists in the Holy Land for the Christmas holiday, and most of them were expected to celebrate Jesus’s birthday in the city where he … Continue reading →

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What is it I’m not getting about Ferguson?

Posted on November 28, 2014 by salooper57

After months of deliberations and thousands of pages of evidence, the St. Louis County grand jury decided not to bring charges against Officer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of Michael Brown. Officer Wilson is white. Mr. Brown was black. … Continue reading →

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He’s not the person I thought he was

Posted on November 22, 2014 by salooper57

“He’s not the person I thought he was when we got married.” Most pastors and counselors have heard that line from people in marital crisis. They usually mean the person they married is not as good, as kind or as … Continue reading →

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A shadow in the shade

Posted on November 8, 2014 by salooper57

People often say, ‘I never forget a face.” I think there is something wrong with me. I never remember one. Well, “never” is an exaggeration. But I’m pretty sure my “facial recognition software” is faulty. I can recognize a picture … Continue reading →

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No-oh-oh, it’s not magic

Posted on November 1, 2014 by salooper57

A Kansas City Royals fan puts his lucky hat on the couch, five minutes before the first pitch – and it must be facing south. Another drinks only one kind of beer on game days. Still another watches a different … Continue reading →

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Is religion a do it yourself project?

Posted on October 25, 2014 by salooper57

The famous writer and Oxford don C. S. Lewis once walked in on a debate on comparative religions. The conferees were discussing whether or not there are any beliefs that are unique to Christianity. It seemed like incarnation and resurrection, … Continue reading →

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Whatever happened to tolerance on college campuses?

Posted on October 18, 2014 by salooper57

It wasn’t that long ago (in the politically correct era of the ’90s) that everyone was talking about tolerance. In those days tolerance meant that the viewpoints of others, particularly those of the socially or politically stigmatized, must be granted … Continue reading →

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For heaven’s sake, take the call

Posted on September 20, 2014 by salooper57

For months a company called A.R.M. has been calling our home phone. When we see their name on caller I.D., we let it ring. We’re fed up with calls from survey-takers, fund-raisers and political haymakers. But A.R.M. is in a … Continue reading →

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There are no ordinary people

Posted on September 13, 2014 by salooper57

It is common now – among intellectuals and even among government agencies – to deny humans a nature and regard the characteristics once attributed to human nature as merely “social constructs.” Gender, for example, is now viewed by many as … Continue reading →

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Use the “show-then-tell” approach

Posted on September 6, 2014 by salooper57

If there is a rule in writing fiction, it is this: Show, don’t tell. John Updike impressed that principle on me many years ago in an essay on writing short stories. More recently, I ran across the same principle at … Continue reading →

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