Several Saturday mornings ago my wife and I went out for breakfast. So did a great many other people! But regardless, we put our name on the restaurant waiting list for an available table and settled in to listening mode for our name to be called. Ahead of us was a large family and friends…
Several news media and most certainly on the NBC Nightly News, news anchors Lester Holt, Jose Diaz-Balart or Kate Snow will warn viewers that an upcoming story contains images which some “might find disturbing.” Really? It must be network policy to issue this warning before some judged to be particularly unsettling, televised mayhem is about…
In 1988, British writer, Roald Dahl wrote a children’s novel, Matilda. It is a story of a brilliant little girl who loves books and lives with uncaring parents. The novel has been adapted in several venues, most recently in the 2022 original Netflix film, “Matilda The Musical.” In “Matilda The Musical” Irish, child singer, and…
In 1968 a graduate student at the University of Southern California was in love with a young woman who was also a student at USC. While she enjoyed dating this young man, she also had other relationships in her life. This graduate student was a very troubled young man. He could not understand how her feelings…
One of the news feeds which takes up space in my inbox each morning highlights headline stories and events. Those highlights are often announced under a banner headline which reads, “Here’s what you need to know.” Highlights and summaries can be very helpful if one has trust in those who are preparing the highlights and…
The numbers are not exact. But in our time of assessing the numbers of people watching television for any given program, the estimates of numbers of viewers for any one program are close. According to Nielson Ratings then, it seems that I was one of nearly 30 million people in the United Kingdom and the…
Several weeks ago I had an extensive oral surgery procedure. The recovery period has had some unanticipated challenges the result of which is that, among other things, a liquid diet has been my daily experience for nearly a month. The months ahead will not be appreciatively different. I AM NOT COMPLAINING. ONLY REPORTING. The end…
Many years ago, there was a prominent member of the congregation I was serving who had definite, regularly voiced opinions about people who only showed up for church services on Easter Sunday. This congregant would announce that he – unlike his usual attendance on every other Sunday of the year – would not be attending…
Rollin Davis’s physical life of 79 years came to an end 19 years ago. Even though nearly two decades have passed since that sad day, Rollin often crosses my mind. I am sure that the reason for the frequent crossings is that during the latter years of his life, Rollin had made his way into…
Thirty-seven years ago it was common in Cleveland that luncheon and banquet planners invited a local member of the clergy to open community program events with a prayer. All those years ago I was beginning my pastoral responsibilities with a downtown Cleveland congregation. My name popped up on a luncheon banquet planner’s list and I…