Hey Everybody! It’s been a while since I chimed in. The “monkey mind” is the hardest thing to subdue in meditation. In my own practice a simple Christianized version of Zen breathing works wonderfully. On the inhale (a good, deep, cleansing breath) think to yourself “Lord have mercy.” On the exhale think to yourself “Christ [...]

Actually I find great comfort in Merton’s words “I am wrong through and through.” It leaves no doubt. I do not have to suffer the illusion that my own force of will is the guarantor of my salvation. Instead, I rely on the grace of Christ Jesus. Grace. That’s the whole point. I do not [...]

Reading all of this reminds me about the time a very prominent pastor in our community who resigned after fifteen years with his church “out of the blue.” It didn’t make sense. His church finished a building campaign with a surplus that they tithed to the community at large, membership was growing, youth wanted to [...]

Grace, Felipe, & Steve, I grew up a New England Congregationalist (and I still am one.) We have whats called the “Community of Saints” and that is ALL who believe in Jesus Christ, alive or dead. So, I guess my Saints are Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, The Blessed C.S. Lewis, John Donne, Geroge MacDonald, [...]

Isn’t letting go of doubt the first true act of faith, belief? I can understand doubt as a tool in testing how God works in one’s life or doubt as to challenging the applications of scripture and doctrine. It seems to me in this arena doubt, is a natural and required part of anyone’s journey [...]

“A dragon tamed for Christ is a powerful ally.”
-?
I’m not sure who said the above. At first I thought it might have been C.S. Lewis but a search did not come up with any author let alone Lewis. Any one have a clue?

Brother, we dwell in the same valley! Somedays it’s almost comical, like the old Ziggy cartoon: “Just when I found out where it was at, somebody moved it.” That’s why I love the term ‘pilgrimage’. It implies the destination is secure; its just the journey that’s hazardous. The longer I “do” this the more I [...]

Why God is predominantly a masculine pronoun in the bible. First, the ancient cultural reasons 1. The ancient world was a patriarchal society. 2. The authors & scribes of both the Hebrew scriptures and New Testament were men. 3. Women, while empowered in some cultures of the day, for the most part, were ranked just [...]

Steve- If you haven’t read Nikos Kazantzakis’ The Last Temptation of Christ then you are in for a treat. Yes, the film was good but the book was so much better. Also, some would argue that Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress is Christian mystical fiction. It is one long allegory…and the most non subtle one in literature, [...]