News

When my daughter Grace was a little girl she gave me a small philodendron plant for my office. Philodendrons do very well in low light, which was good because the office window was stained glass. The plant did very well in that light. When I came to Elmwood, of course...

“On Thursday the National Archives located the original handwritten “Juneteenth” military order informing 250,000 people held in bondage in Texas that they were free.” (Boston.com) “The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the...

"Blessed Are Those Who Are Persecuted for Righteousness’ Sake, for Theirs Is the Kingdom of Heaven. Blessed Are You When People Revile You and Utter All Kinds of Evil Against You Falsely on My Account. Rejoice and Be Glad, for Your Reward Is Great in Heaven, For in...

Note that Jesus says “peacemakers” not merely “peace lovers.” Most people love peace, they enjoy living free from violence and chaos. But not everyone is willing to do the hard work of making peace. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they get clobbered from both...

We can all claim to be poor in spirit at one time or another. Sooner or later everyone mourns. Most of the time we have a realistic view of our capabilities, not to high, not too low. We try to be good; we seek ways to follow God’s will. We extend mercy a lot of the...

When people criticized Jesus for dining with sinners and selecting tax collector Matthew to be a disciple, Jesus cited Hosea 6.6, “Learn what this means, ‘I (God) desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ I have come to call, not the righteous, but sinners.” By traditional...

When Jesus spoke these words many people lived on the edge of starvation. Often they went hungry; children’s growth was stunted; people of all ages suffered from diseases caused by malnutrition. This is serious hunger. In a dry land people could literally die on the...

First off, let me just say that “meek” is a terrible translation; it does not accurately convey Jesus’ intended meaning. Having said that, there doesn’t seem to be any one word in modern English that does. So the translators agreed to use meek. Meek here does not mean...

Sooner or later everyone mourns. People we love pass from this life, and they are sorely missed. Even if they have been sick for such a long time that death comes as no surprise, the news hits like ton of bricks. If they have passed suddenly the shock is far greater....

Jesus gave the Beatitudes, Matthew 5.1-12, as part of The Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5-7. “Blessed” means to make a connection between our life circumstances and God’s grace and goodness. When life is good, peaceful, when we are filled with hope, joy, and positive...

As far as I know this is not a true story. One very rainy day Bob visited his friend Tom. Tom was sitting there amid buckets and pans that were catching water coming in from his leaky roof. Bob: “Tom, why don’t you fix your roof?” Tom: “It’s raining and slippery; I’d...

Before phones had digital cameras, taking pictures was much more complicated. You had to buy film, put it into the camera and remove it properly, then take it somewhere to have it developed, then go back and pick it up later. People would go on vacation for two weeks...

Many people absolutely love lobster; for them it is delicious and the height of luxury. Steamed, or baked stuffed lobster served with lots of melted butter is a spectacular treat. Otherwise dignified people put on plastic bibs and dig in. Yumm! But I wonder about the...

The last job I had before entering seminary was selling construction equipment to contractors. My territory was in central Connecticut. A guy named Stan had a great farm stand with fresh locally grown produce as well as breads, pastries, and jams his wife made. I went...

“And now, let us go forth into the world in peace, being of good courage, holding fast to that which is good, rendering to no one evil for evil, strengthening the faint-hearted, supporting the weak, helping the afflicted, honoring every person, loving and serving our...