Week 11 (Year 1, NL)

When I got into cooking, it changed the way I understand Jesus’ statement, “You are the salt of the earth.”

A small but growing movement of Christians believes fervently that Torah observance is for everyone.

In the midst of anxiety, it can sound like an attractive option for a swift end to come.

We can lose that which feels most dear and essential to us: our health, a job, a relationship.

Putting flesh on the bones of justice

I feared it would last a week. Then came the moment of truth.

How my attraction to other religions deepened my love of my own

RAWtools began with a blacksmith and a friend’s donated AK-47.

The prescription for the persistent malady of God’s people

Isaiah 58:1–12; 1 Corinthians 2:1–12; Matthew 5:13–20

We need the prophets to unmask power’s seductions.

We are not prepared to be judged by Matthew.

While we're preparing for Jesus' birth, these texts talk about getting ready for the Second Coming.

J. Denny Weaver is steadfast in his conviction that any conception of God found in the Bible must first be compared to the person of Christ himself.

Here in Chicago, reporter Rob Wilderboer found a compelling story last week:

The Chicago Police Department throws out about $2 million every year. It’s money that is forfeited by the city when police destroy the guns they seize rather than sell them to licensed firearms dealers. The decision is made for emotional, political and ideological reasons.

Wilderboer sets it up as a simple choice: money for the CPD/other City services? Or the satisfaction of destroying weapons?

I work remotely, out of my home office. As such I am dependent on the smooth and ready operation of computer equipment. Recently I encountered some hitches.

Few things are more complicated than trying to erect a new monument in the heart of Washington, D.C., but on September 9, 1997, a gigantic crane cut through all of the red tape encircling Judiciary Square and lowered a four-ton sculpture to its permanent cement base. What made this particular installation remarkable was the biblical symbolism of the sculpture’s design. Titled “Guns into Plowshares,” this 16-foot-high steel plow blade consists of 3,000 handguns welded together to form the distinctive shape of the well-known farm implement. Artist Esther Augsburger and her son worked for two and a half years with the Metro Police Department. They molded handguns that had been surrendered by local residents.