I stand in awe of Karl Barth (1886-1968), generally acknowledged as the greatest theologian of the 20th century and one of the greatest of all time. My awe is not simply at his theological depth and understanding of Scripture; I'm awed at the sheer quantity of what he wrote and published. His greatest contribution to …
The Logos of Advent
Advent is a time of rich liturgical and popular traditions in the western churches, especially in the Catholic, Anglican and Lutheran churches. But it is a much undeveloped liturgical time in the eastern churches, where it is primarily observed as a fasting season, probably thanks to the disproportionate influence of monastics in the evolution …
We are not neutrinos!
On a recent trip to Germany we visited friends in the city Karlsruhe, a typical German city of medium size. I did not know at the time - but found out just days ago - that Karlsruhe is the site of a very important experiment in physics: the Karlsruhe Tritium Neutrino Experiment, Katrin for …
Searching for a Human
Άνθρωπον ζητώ ("I seek a human being.") Diogenes, the great 4th century BC philosopher, spoke those words as he walked around with a lamp in broad daylight. Diogenes the Cynic, he is often called, one of the founders of Cynic philosophy - but don't confuse Cynic philosophy with the cheap cynicism most of us engage …
Two Questions for the self-important in each of us
We are in Greece for a long overdue vacation. We stopped in Germany on the way to Greece to visit some friends. My German vocabulary consists primarily of lines from the Wagner operas. Not exactly useful when traveling in modern Germany. So I find myself in the position of most tourists - in a foreign …
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The true heart of Islam
It is commonplace for people in this country to speak of Islam as incompatible with Western 'values'. I myself have fallen into that trap more than once - even in these pages a couple years back. Muslim leaders have often been attacked for not speaking out against terrorism. The fact of the matter is that …
Does the Orthodox Church have a political theology?
Lately I have been reading some pieces of political theology coming from a variety of Christian sources. And I'm not referring to political agendas or endorsement of political parties. Political theology is not partisan politics under the cover of Christendom. What is political theology? True political theology is neither Left nor Right. Political theology is bringing the …
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Thoreau’s Conscience
Every time I turn to the Journals of Henry David Thoreau, I always find the wisdom that I need in my life and is so sadly lacking in our world of experts and talking heads. Here is a sampling from my perusals today. In his journal entry for August 18, 1854, he describes in great …
God of the gaps is no God
I love reading from Bonhoeffer's writings, especially in the series of the complete works in English translations put out by Fortress Press. Bonhoeffer is perhaps best known for his "Letters and Papers from Prison," written between April 1943 (when he was arrested for conspiring against Hitler) and January 1945, three months before he was executed …
Behind the Curtain
The Guardian newspaper published an article today about the super-rich of Greenwich, Connecticut, and how they benefit from a tax code loophole called "carried interest". As a result of this loophole, they pay taxes at a much lower rate than most Americans. People are beginning to wake up, and today's article in the Guardian was …
Ancient Answers 