Good morning... Do you know the root word for quarantine? Quarantine is derived from the Latin quadraginta, meaning "forty." Similarly in Italian, quarantine comes from quaranta meaning "forty," which goes on to form the phrase quaranta giorni, which literally means "space of forty days." We have been at this quarantine routine for more than forty days, and as we consider gradually reopening [...]
Good morning... "It looks like your Mom and I need to get to Atlanta so we can have our hair cut," my dad texted this weekend from Ohio, joking about the controversial decision by Georgia's governor to reopen some "essential businesses." Hair and nail salons. Tattoo and massage parlors. Restaurants, movie theaters, and bowling alleys. Sequestering for several [...]
Good morning... "This is the kind of life you’ve been invited into, the kind of life Christ lived" says 1 Peter 2:24-25 in the Message translation. "He suffered everything that came his way so you would know that it could be done, and also know how to do it, step-by-step. He never did one thing wrong, not once said [...]
Good morning... God's friendly mystery takes different forms and the living Christ rays out in all directions, God's Word made flesh, the Light of life for all people. Parts of God's colorful prism resonate differently with each of us, but let's enjoy this sacred song and celebrate together this God-given, glorious day. At the beginning God expressed himself. [...]
Good morning... "I'm glad God is not fair," said the middle aged man who battled through life-shattering addiction to become a husband at age forty-two and a father at forty-four then again at forty-six. His story reminds me of the quote that ends Falling Upward by Richard Rohr. "Just remember: no one can keep you from the second [...]
Good morning... "I don't know exactly why or even when the idea came to me that I should keep a ledger on deep-felt thoughts," writes Betty Skinner the heroine of our semester's book, who is gracefully celebrating her 94th birthday today. "I have experienced that on one level, in matters of the heart, we are all alone, isolated, [...]
Good morning... On Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, I read aloud to each class the series of Scripture verses filling yesterday's post. We opened our inner ears to notice the words touching our hearts, then we popcorn-ed out our phrases beneath the heading "Our Hidden Life." As we recorded our reflections, together we scribbled God's answer to our deepest [...]
Good morning... Teaching my favorite book on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, I ponder the title, The Hidden Life Awakened. Beneath our many layers, I wonder, "God, what is this 'hidden life' secreted in our depths?" The Word of God illuminates our answer. God said, Let Us [Father, Son, and Holy Spirit] make mankind in Our image, after Our [...]
Good morning... Before the world began, God hardwired us for abundant life, on earth as it is in heaven. Have you ever come on anything quite like this extravagant generosity of God, this deep, deep wisdom? It’s way over our heads. We’ll never figure it out. Is there anyone around who can explain God? Anyone smart enough to [...]
Good morning... I have heard the expression: "Hurting people hurt." This week I was introduced to the flip side: "Healing people heal." Pondering this phrase in the wee hours of the night, I open an email from Jan Johnson, a California professor from my spiritual direction training program. For me, Jan puts flesh on the bones of these [...]
