Trauma and the Death of the Body of Christ[i] When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who was also a disciple of Jesus. He went to Pilate and asked for […]
Category: Death
CAN THESE BONES LIVE?: PRACTICING SANCTUARY IN A VALLEY OF BONES
The following reflection was delivered at the Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary in Elkhart, Indiana on February 28, 2017. Ezekiel 37:1-6: The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he brought me out by the […]
M.I.A., Refugees, & the Church–“What’s up with that?”
After analyzing M.I.A’s latest song and music video, this blog entry raises questions about what it means to be church in the midst of the refugee crisis and argues that when refugees drown, we the Church drown too
“Pray for My Mom”
Augustine’s Confessions. Very few other books have left their mark on an entire civilization as deeply as this one narrative of sin and grace. Less an autobiography in the contemporary sense than a reinterpretation […]
The Gospel, Mercy, and Chemotherapy
The first time I walked into the “chemo room”, I wanted out. I was there to support my friend, but he was far calmer than I. Let’s just say that going into a doctor’s office […]
Holy Saturday: The Sparrow Still Falls
By John DeCostanza, Jr. “There’s an old Jewish story that says in the beginning God was everywhere and everything, a totality. But to make creation, God had to remove Himself from some part of the […]
“Die Before You Die”: Good Friday of the Lord’s Passion
Part of the wisdom of the passion liturgies is the extent to which the congregation participates in the reading: called to our feet, we read aloud, in unison, the words spoken against Jesus and […]
“He Became Perturbed and Deeply Troubled” – The Com-passion of Christ in the Face of Evil
Two weeks from the celebration of the Resurrection of the Lord, and one week from Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion, the readings from the fourth gospel, John 11, invite us to meditate on God’s […]
Rituals of Hope and All Souls’ Day
The theology of All Souls’ Day is often explained in connection with Purgatory; for example, Michael Rubbelke wrote a great post on Purgatory and prayers for the dead last year during Daily Theology’s Halloween-themed Shark […]
Finding Faith in The Simpsons: The Top Five Theological Episodes of The Simpsons
One of the longest-running comedies in history, The Simpsons is currently airing in a massive marathon on the FXX network. It’s an enormous Simpsons event: not only will it take nearly two weeks to air […]
