Who told you that you were naked? This past week, I attended the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Canada. I was a Commissioner, or a delegate, from the Presbytery of East Toronto. Each presbytery is able to send one sixth of its ministers and an equal number of elders to the […]
If most of us were asked to list words and phrases that describe the attributes of a healthy spiritual life, some of the words would be quite predictable. Kindness; forgiveness; generosity; compassion; patience; helping people in need, spending time in prayer, living with gratitude. All of which are good ideas. But what might […]
Last weekend, a fairly significant portion of the human race tuned in to watch the wedding of Harry and Meghan. Truth be told, I haven’t actually watched the whole ceremony yet. In this era of youtube, I assumed that there was a slight and passing chance that someone in the world might actually […]
A few weeks ago, Lesley and I made our way over to the Art Gallery of Ontario, one Wednesday evening. As many of you might know, the Art Gallery is free on Wednesday evenings, and though the gallery is certainly worth the price of admission at any time, “free” is also a rather lovely way […]
What’s up with the world? A legitimate question I think when we tune in to the news channel or glance at the news app on our phone or, for some of us still, read a newspaper. It seems to be a bit messed up. There is an unprecedented amount of uncertainty about where we are […]
There is an old story told about six blind men who are asked to describe an elephant. Having never seen an elephant, the blind men are brought to stand beside the elephant, and asked to describe, as accurately as they can, the nature of an elephant. The narrative contains different details, in […]
There are certain passages, in the texts of world literature, which are so profound and so moving that they bear repeated reflection. Words and phrases and ideas that are so achingly beautiful, and so reflective of the deepest experiences of the human condition, that we cannot help but return to them, time and again, […]
The image of the good shepherd is a profoundly important image in the biblical imagination. We have all heard those famous words from today’s suggested reading from Psalm 23 which describes the Lord as a shepherd who gently yet powerfully leads us to still waters and good pastures. We have all heard Jesus’ claim […]
Have you anything here to eat? Have you noticed? The world has moved on. The only place you might find chocolate bunnies now, if you are lucky, is on the discount shelves, probably with a broken ear. No more Easter bonnets, or Easter parades, or Easter egg hunts. Easter came early this year and […]
As many of you know, our usual practice, in worship, is to follow the suggested readings from the Revised Common Lectionary. Each week, the lectionary suggests four readings – typically one reading from the Hebrew Scriptures (or what we as Christians often refer to as the “Old Testament”), one passage from the Psalms; […]
