Crater Lake
The Cascade Range, stretching along the West Coast from northern California into British Columbia, is by far the most volcanic region in North America. Seattle’s Mt. Ranier, Portland’s Mt. Hood, …
The Oregon Bach Festival
In days of violent acts and words, we all need times to center ourselves again in beauty that orders a world, in memories that give it meaning, and grandeur that …
How Many More?
How many children more must we sacrifice to Great God Gun? How many more must die to feed the greed of Smith and Wesson, Remington, and …
Aging in our Communities
Last week I had a public conversation about aging at our local library with Dr. Michael Pass, a local physician who has helped establish a very fine hospice program and …
Republican DTs
Like you, I have watched in shocked disgust the ascendancy of one we shall call DT in the Republican Party’s primary elections. For some this means delirium tremens. You know …
HB2, Bathrooms, and Politics
Some projects emerge out of long-desired purposes. For instance, I am now in the throes of creating as complete a catalog of Sylvia’s artistic work as I can. It spans …
Spirals and Labyrinths at Easter
This year our Easter experience emerged as an exploration of the spiral that is often seen to be at the source of all life, whether in the galaxies of space …
Trumpism and the Struggle for (Re)Public(an) Life
Like most Americans and many of you in other countries, I have been trying to put together my own understanding and response to the rise of a vicious demagogue to …
My Life with Words, Images, and Acts
Words, images, acts. They constitute the three-legged stool of my life. This is a matter of not only where I sit but of how I express myself in the world, …
The Gaul of Grace: Thoughts at Lent
It’s Lent again. It’s the season of the Christian year looking for a suitable practice beyond Mardi Gras and ashes. Do we give something up that’s “bad” for us? Do …
Identity and Conversation
Let’s see now. L G B….T…Q?… I?? I. I’ve been thinking a lot in the past few years about the alphabet of identities. If we haven’t been struggling to articulate …
The Gift of Mother Emanuel
Last week Sylvia and I went on a long-planned visit to Charleston, South Carolina, a beautiful and historic city we had not seen in twenty-five years. Founded in 1680, its …
How do you know?
“What do you know?” Who hasn’t uttered this frequent throw-away line in our everyday discourse. Not so usual would be to say “How do you know?” And yet, this could …
Reflections on the Lake Junaluska Peace Conference
Last Sunday we concluded four days devoted to the Lake Junaluska Peace Conference, we have been involved in for the past seven years. This year’s theme was “Longing for Peace/Exploring …
Remembering Jim Fowler
My dear friend of fifty years, James W. Fowler III, died on October 16 after a struggle with Alzheimer’s disease that lasted over 12 years. Jim was famous for his …