Always Reforming

Originally written on 04/18/16. It's difficult to comprehend you, It's painful to absorb you, I strain to see the order, Sometimes impossible to see, O, Death, I know you have no sting, But sometimes I still feel it. It's hard to anticipate you, It's dreadful to see you coming, How quickly you're upon us! How suddenly the world grows dark! O, Death, I know you have no victory, But sometimes I feel the loss. There is a difference Between knowing  And being able to let go, My mind understands, But my soul still aches, O, Death, I know you are defeated, But sometimes I still fear you.

It is nearly impossible today to turn on the TV or to open a social media app without being bombarded by racial tension.  Cops are shooting people, athletes are kneeling and tweeting, and rioters are destroying their own cities.  It would be an understatement to say that our current situation is unsustainable. Conversations regarding racial issues always seem to gravitate towards  blame .  Whose fault is it?  Upon whom can we place the blame for the current state of our society?  Who should make reparations for past sins that have led us to this point?  White men?  Black men?  Fascists?  Marxists?  Western Civilization?  Colonialists?  The Patriarchy?  A number of options have been proffered, but, of course, there is no individual group or cause that is responsible for the economic and social unrest that plagues our nation.  It is a complex problem with a variety of causes, the chief of which is simply human depr...

One of the aspects of my journey to Anglicanism has been learning to view Roman Catholics and Eastern Orthodox Christians as brothers in Christ.  This is not to say that they don't have serious theological errors (don't worry--I'm not going back to Rome or Constantinople), but I do think we can learn from them and that we should respect them as brothers in Christ who hold to ancient Christian traditions.  The Reformed tradition, of course, is novel by comparison, as much the Reformers claimed to be restoring seminal Christianity.   I know many Reformed believers who view Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy as non, or even anti, Christian.  Having been raised Reformed Presbyterian, I certainly grew up with this impression.  Reformed people generally desire to be as exclusive as possible.  It's not their fault--it's in their blood.  They have spent the past five centuries trying to maintain the truth as those around them have compromised. ...

Is this the end? Of an era? Of a life? Is this an identity lost? A path forsaken? Or is this the beginning? A regeneration? A rebirth? Is this a moment  For self-determination? For redefinition? Conflicted, I am Overwhelmed By this  Confluence of changes, By this Preponderance of goodbyes, By this Copernican Revolution Revolving around me. So much of who I was, I am no longer. I see Your hand Slowly closing the door, Into the distance I see Familiarity recede, This chapter is over, I am ready for the next.

As we reflect on the past year, we are faced with a difficult question: are Americans trustworthy?  That is, should the American populace be trusted to make decisions for themselves?  Can we rely on the average American to make the proper, moral, responsible choice?    The ruling class in America would respond with a resounding " NO! "  After all, the elites think very little of their subjects.  Every public health order issued drips with disdain and assumes that hell itself would break loose if average citizens were given liberty.  Government bureaucrats and wealthy tycoons, together comprising our unofficial aristocracy, seek to protect us from ourselves with an almost religious fervor. Given the behavior exhibited by many throughout COVID, it seems that most Americans concur with this assessment of the common man .  They do not want freedom.  They do not want liberty.  They handle responsibility, that indispensable concomitant of fr...

'Twas a good Friday, You might say, the very best, For fallen mankind. 'Twas a bad Friday, In fact, the worst day of all, For the Son of Man. The robe, placed for sport, The crown, thorny yet regal, The backbreaking cross. The feet that crushed hell, The hands that worked miracles, Pierced by transgressions. The Lord brutalized, Yahweh hung upon a tree, The Almighty slain. Blood and water spilt, But not a bone broken, proved That it was finished. 'Twas a bad Friday, In fact, the worst day of all, For the Son of Man. 'Twas a good Friday, You might say, the very best, For fallen mankind.