If I read my Bible correctly (and if I read my American history correctly), the only real hope we have for reconciliation isn’t actually through reading our Bible correctly. And it isn’t through winning an argument with someone who disagrees with us. Reconciliation only seems to happen in one way — through carrying crosses.
Letting social media choose your Lenten practice can be rewarding — and humorous
Finding fresh ways to observe Lent, year in and year out, can be challenging. While Catholics, Episcopalians, Orthodox Christians and others can rely on tradition to guide them, some Christians and churches are left to their own devices. Fortunately for those…
Ashes to ashes: Remembering where we came from
On the evening of January 18, 2005, the First Baptist Church of Jamaica Plain, Mass., burned to the ground. The building was one of the oldest in town, with a beautiful Hook organ, hand-carved wooden pews, and a steeple tall…
Pastors need Lent, too
Just as we had finished imposing ashes on the foreheads of worshipers, my friend and fellow pastor David Bennett turned to me and said, “Alan, remember you are dust and to dust you shall return.” And with those words, David…
Springsteen and Lent: Part I, Ash Wednesday
In graduate school, it can often seem as if all of the good ideas have already been taken. Someone smarter and older has already written on whatever idea you may have. To remedy this seemingly unending problem, one begins to…
What Ash Wednesday taught me about drones
Ashes Unveil What’s Inside of Me From ashes I come, and to ashes I will return. Last week, like many, I participated in an Ash Wednesday service. A time to stop. A time to recognize like all those who have…
Ash Wednesday gets us dirty — for good reason
Ash Wednesday is special day for many Christians. I grew up in a Baptist church and never got to experience it as a child. I wish I had because it is a beautiful display of the gospel and now one…
Ashy Baptists
Ash Wednesday is an occasion to mark the beginning of Lent and be marked by ashes. To receive ashes on our forehead and hear the words, ‘You are dust and to dust you shall return’ can be a powerful reminder…
Remember you are dust
Growing up as a Baptist, I didn’t hear much about Ash Wednesday or Lent. In my years in the States before going to Japan, including the nine years I was a Baptist pastor, I don’t recall hearing or making any…