Process Myopia
How did we end up pairing this vibrant institution with this provocative quotation? The embarrassing truth is, it was process myopia. We did this without realizing we did this.
Pop Christianity
Serving Hospitality
It would have been easier if St. Andrew’s, Sutton, Ont., had done nothing. But then they went and did it, they looked into their hearts, they discerned the Spirit at work in their community, and they decided to launch a mission.
Challenging Questions
Many years ago, someone told me, “If you don’t want to hear the answer, don’t ask the question.” So, I would like to acknowledge two important instances where the Presbyterian Church has had the courage to ask the question, even if it is challenged by the answer.
Be Church
I’ve been thinking a lot recently about what it means to be church. What is church? What is worship?
The Gospel
A young person said to me recently: “Do you ever feel that religion is too complicated?”
Doing It All Wrong
Through it all, through the dark shadows, the mood lighting, the strange and disturbing dioramas, which were ubiquitously familiar, through the growing sense of horror as we moved for a long time through the subterranean passages, I heard Charlie Farquharson’s prophets screaming in my head, “You’re doing it all wrong!”
That’s Some Team
A few years ago I approached Presbyterian World Service and Development with the idea of doing a profile of Guy Smagghe. I had travelled with […]
Conduit to Conversation
Every now and then comes a letter than is a conversation-ender and just plain stupid. Here is an example.
A Word of Hope
On the last day of General Assembly, five people from across the country shared their reflections on two questions: What does it look like for […]
Importing Confidence
We need new immigrants to revive us and teach us to be passionate about our faith. But first, we’ll need to acknowledge their existence.
Faithfully Tolerated
Church world could be a great television setting—it’s got drama, power struggles, pettiness and backbiting. Sometimes it’s a miracle that people go to church at all.
Advocating for Advocacy
While reading old newspapers recently (as one does) I came upon a curious headline: “Sterilization of retarded discussed.” It’s a small story, a few column […]
Extremist in Love
Martin Luther King, Jr. was a man of faith in action. He was also a deep theological thinker. Here are a few noteworthy excerpts from his writings on faith, liberal theology, and why the church is not the hope of the world.
Idiotic Metaphors
I was just a boy in Pakistan when Mohammed Ali fought Joe Frazier through 15 grueling rounds for boxing’s heavyweight championship in the spring of […]
Suffer the Ninety-Nine
There has been much debate about the purpose and meaning of the loosey – goosey Occupy movement, as a wide array of folk tented down […]
Christmas Got Run Over by a Reindeer
This will be my 40th Christmas in Canada. Our first was spent in the Leaside home of friends from Lahore. It was a modest celebration, […]
A Web of Intimacies
Imagine doing hospitality, pastoral care, community – building, worship, Bible study, hymn sing, teaching, theology, spirituality, learning, questioning, sharing, amongst much else, all at the […]
Do Something
Early in his book, You Want Me to … WHAT?, Norm Grant tells the story of Mary Clarke, an otherwise happy and content woman, on […]
The Vision Thing
I had lunch once with a very successful documentary filmmaker. We talked about the business side of making documentaries in Canada—there are a lot of […]
Frustrated Visions
‘Vision’ is an awkward word. We know what it means, or think we know what it means, but rarely use it properly. ‘Visioning,’ the verb […]