About Writing
A quote about writing from Thomas Merton, somewhat connected to my last post (whenever that was): “If you write for God you will reach many men and bring them joy. If you write for men–you may make some money and…
What’s My Problem?
I don’t know what it is with me and writing. Or probably I do know. I don’t know how to love others. I write to receive rather than to give. That seems like a real problem. Here’s a selection from…
Ambivalent Love
A friend sent me a song by The Civil Wars a few years ago, and quite stupidly I didn’t pay any attention. A few years later, another chance came along and I was hooked. Now, I have to force myself…
Being a Neighbor
If you’ve been following this sporadically updated blog, you know that I am a part of an effort to plant a community of missionaries in Alton, IL. I have written about the conviction that developed in me last summer that…
A Quote: Philosophy and Suicide
“There is but one truly serious philosophical problem, and that is suicide. Judging whether life is or is not worth living amounts to answering the fundamental question of philosophy.” What a way to start a book! The is from Albert…
4th of July
My good friend Ben Shive wrote a song that appeared on his first album, The Ill-Tempered Klavier, called “4th of July.” It is a beautiful song, which you can listen to on his My Space page. You can purchase the…
A Quote: End and Goal
“Not every end is the goal. The end of a melody is not its goal; and yet: as long as the melody has not reached its end, it also hasn’t reached its goal. A parable.” -Friedrich Nietzsche
A Prayer for My City
“Litany” by Langston Hughes Gather up In the arms of your pity The sick, the depraved, The desperate, the tired, All the scum Of our weary city. Gather up In the arms of your pity. Gather up In the arms…
A Quote about Church
Have been doing some thinking and reading lately about the idea of being a missional church. Maybe it’s not something that we can become gradually, but there has to be a near-complete break from what we’re doing now. Something like…
A Quote
Bertrand Russell was a 20th Century English philosopher. He wrote the essay “Why I Am Not a Christian,” which, along with other essays, was later published as a book critiquing religion. The quote below is from an essay titled “On…
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