“Father G” and his homies 26 years ago a young Jesuit Catholic Priest named Gregory Boyle began a ministry in one of LA’s more impoverished and troubled neighborhoods. He taught in Delores Mission (as well as in 25 juvenile detention centers) and was able to reach out the the neighborhoods and people that were suffering the ills of gangs and drugs and poverty. Determined to make a lasting change in the community, he used charitable gifts to purchase a…
The lights of Thessalonica from afar There are many sad stories in scripture, but one that has ever haunted me is that of Demas. We know almost nothing about him. Paul described him in favorable terms to the saints as Colossae (Colossians 4:14), and referred to him as a fellow-laborer to Philemon (Philemon 1:24). He undoubtedly spent significant time with Paul, since he was mentioned in epistles from both first and second imprisonments at Rome. We presume him to have…
“A man who doesn’t spend time with his family can never be a real man.” — Don Corleone When I first joined Tiffany’s family 26 years ago, I had the opportunity to have grandparents again. Mine had long since died. Both her grandmothers were wonderful women; I loved them like my own almost immediately. Each was unique but in one respect they were very much alike: they were both full-fledged members of the D-A-R and the D-U-P (I wish I…
For a significant portion of every work day, I spend time with people that are trying to change. Usually it’s their weight, their diet, their bad habits or their attitudes–things that are well within their ability to control. Sometimes they are things that we can’t control: their genetics, their medical problems, or other people’s choices. [There is often a disproportionate amount of energy directed at things that can’t be changed instead of things that can be changed–it’s more than a little…
Our church sometimes seems like a ‘put your money where your mouth is’ kind of organization that places high premiums on what we do as opposed to what we believe. I’m certainly an advocate of us acting the part of believers–I think it is an evidence of conversion. But, it is important to recognize that ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day’ and we are not ‘changed from a carnal and fallen state, to a state of righteousness‘ in an instant. That…
If you didn’t make it out to see the transit of Venus as it moved across the solar disk this afternoon you missed something pretty cool. Unfortunately you’ll have to wait a while to see the next one . . . December 2117 with an encore presentation in December 2125. We tried the trusty pinhole camera but resolution was too low. The astronomical glasses worked great for direct viewing. Not so great for trying to shoot a picture through an…
LOVE statue in Philadelphia(purple color in fountain for Lupus awareness) If you were to ask anyone what the city of brotherly love is, they’d quickly tell you it’s Philadelphia. That being said, it sometimes doesn’t always live up to the hype. We were treated great in Philadelphia and I enjoyed the visit, but that that couldn’t be said of an immigrant family with little kids on the plane out of there. One guy’s racial epithets and excursion over the line…
I’ve seen some cool things in Philadelphia that have been on my to-do list for a while. Yet waking back to the hotel after our stroll through some of Philly’s neighborhoods provided a veritable pearl of great price right below my feet at the corner of 12th & Market: a little robot on the crosswalk. Initially I thought it was masking tape. In reality, I think it’s made of crosswalk paint tape (one can’t pause very long to inspect this…
Yesterday I visited an awesome exhibit on the Dead Sea Scrolls at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. It was fantastic. I got my fill of Biblical antiquities and then some. I was flooded with all kinds of great impressions which will keep me thinking for a while. I was captivated by a coin hoard of Tyrian Shekels discovered under the foundation of a dwelling in Qumran. It contained hundreds of these shekels and would have been worth a fortune. Today…
I’ve always carried a pocket knife. I kind of feel lost without it. This quote got me thinking about the things I love to keep in my pockets.“No, there is no escape. There is no heaven with a little bit of hell in it–no plan to retain this or that of the devil in our hearts or our pockets. Our Satan must go, every hair and feather.”–George MacDonaldI have always been impressed with King Lamoni’s willingness to empty his pockets…