There is no such thing as redemptive violence. Violence doesn’t save; it only destroys—in both short and long term. Jesus replaced the myth of redemptive violence with the truth of redemptive suffering. He showed us on the cross how to hold the pain and let it...
We worshiped Jesus instead of following him on his same path. We made Jesus into a mere religion instead of a journey toward union with God and everything else. This shift made us into a religion of “belonging and believing” instead of a religion of...
The community of Christ is called and equipped in baptism. In baptism we are taught to find our strength in God and God’s people rather than ourselves. We are prepared for the shock of moral transformation by a cleansing, cold bath. We are born, drowned, adopted,...
Shame seems most widespread and deepest among the very people who take rightness and goodness most seriously. It is a dimension of condemnation that reaches into the deepest levels of our souls. In shame we are self-condemned for being the person we are. It touches...
Each year, as winter takes hold and covers our days with its silent wonder, we are called to reflection. As the shadows grow longer and the nights deepen, we gather in our chapels of faith seeking [comfort and assurance from God]. We light our candles…we sing our...
But transformation, the mystery we’re examining, more often happens not when something new begins but when something old falls apart. The pain of something old falling apart—chaos—invites the soul to listen at a deeper level. It invites, and sometimes forces the soul...
Mature religion involves changing ourselves and letting ourselves be changed by a mysterious encounter with grace, mercy, and forgiveness. This is the truth that will set us free (John 8:32). Yet much of our history has involved trying to change other people--with our...