Quiet Wonder It is possible to get through life by skimming over the surface of reality. Most things in the world of advanced modernity…
Sapiens (Yuval Harari, 2015) and Homo Deus (Yuval Harari, 2017)
A Secular Story Yuval Noah Harari, who teaches world history at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, knows the importance of myth and story. Ideas,…
Every Moment Holy (2017)
When We Wonder How to Pray I make my living with words. Still, I often run out of them at just the wrong moment.…
Light in a Darkened Room
When I teach on film and have the chance to recommend books I always include the ones written by Roy Anker. In fact, I…
Nine Fabulous Books for Giving with Side Musings on Chickens and other Creatures
As Christmas approaches with the speed of an escaping mouse, you were wondering what to give that special picky person in your life who…
Terrorizing the Masses: Identity, Mass Shootings, and the Media Construction of “Terror” (Ruth DeFoster, 2017)
Shaped by media in an age of toxic masculinity A question: how often do mass shootings occur in America? Well, it depends on how…
The Recovery of Classical Greek Thinking
There were certain ancient schools of thought, particularly Stoicism and Epicureanism, which could not be fully embraced without abandoning some fundamental Christian principles. Again,…
How Do You Know That? (Ellis Potter, 2016)
On believing, knowing and finding “Epistemology,” Ellis Potter insists, “is not a disease” (p. 9). It is also not something boring we can ignore.…
Excerpt: Mink River (Bryan Doyle, 2010)
Books / Community / Spirituality
The Nun’s Funeral The old nun’s funeral was held at dawn, in accordance with her specific wish that her life be celebrated as holy…
Reformations: The Early Modern World, 1450-1650 (Carlos Eire, 2016)
A necessary, perilous venture I ordered Carlos Eire’s new book because I am entranced with his earlier one, Waiting for Snow in Havana (2003).…