What do you mean by that? Semantics Part II

We talked about denotation vs. connotation today in English class. It brought my last post to mind. Then I read this post, and it reminded me of this vision statement from the Dismantling Racism Task force of the United Methodist Church’s North Texas Conference (these thought trains can be dangerous):
Through the power of the Holy Spirit, [...]

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Offering belief in suffering

Kumalo said, 
…so in my suffering I can believe.
How? In the face of what he had suffered: a child condemned to death, a sister forsaking hope for sin, starvation among his people, how could he believe?
Kindness and love can pay for suffering.
The body of Christ rose up and held his hand, supported his frail body and [...]

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Can you see?

At the end of To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout has fallen asleep while Atticus is reading to her. While he is taking her to bed, she is recounting to him in broken sentences what has happened in the story to “prove” to him that she “heard every word.” The name of the book was The [...]

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Blog etiquette

I have been reading Losing My Religion for about a week now. I had made a comment on this post (read part I of the post here.) to offer another thought on the issue. I did so without bothering to read too deeply into Jeff’s blog. Had I done so, I could have crafted my [...]

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I feel; therefore, I am.

Jake says, “That was morality; things that made you disgusted afterward.”
Jake would fit in well in our culture. Morality by feeling guides the conscience of the country, bringing about the culture wars: abortion, sex, free speech, hate speech, restricted speech, the environment, capital punishment, racism, sexism, etc. Whether or not you agree with the concepts [...]

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Throwing the baby out with the bath water

Okonkwo is the main character in Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. The first chapter deals with the dichotomy between Okonkwo and his father. Because his father lived a life of sloth and weakness, Okonkwo was determined not to. “And so Okonkwo was ruled by one passion—to hate everything that his father Unoka had loved.” 
I [...]

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Prayer for strangers

Upon visiting In Progress today, I had the privilege of praying for several people I did not know. I had already spent some time in prayer and in the book of Romans, but the day and it’s to-do list was still hanging over me. The time spent praying for these folks refreshed me. This encouragement [...]

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