Psalm 29

Our baptismal covenant is a beginning, not an ending.

Can our baptism compel us to help mitigate the world’s disasters?

Going into the temple of the Lord would never be taken lightly. Still, Isaiah could not have imagined what was about to happen.

Have you not known? Have you not heard? asks Isaiah. Those with ears to hear, let them hear, says Jesus. Day to day pours forth speech, says the psalmist, but God’s speech is pitched in such a register that many cannot distinguish it from silence.

As Mark begins, it might seem a little early for Jesus to be commended as one with whom God is well pleased.

Inevitably, in the course of a pastoral career, one encounters that person—the spouse of an active member, or an avid golfer—who claims not to need to attend weekly services because “I can worship God in nature.” Possible comebacks range from mild to sarcastic, but they rarely make any impression. A better question is whether the assertion is correct.