What it Means to Take Ourselves Seriously Mark Williams, Ph.D. Professor of Rhetoric, California State University, Sacramento (from the regular Column: “Meaningful-Faith: Words, the Word, and a Life of Substance”) The problem with having political or social power is that it often leads a person to take himself seriously. And of all the pathetic creatures on this earth, none are …
“Fruit of the Spirit – Peace, Pt. 2” Ep. 16 – with Dr. Paul Patton
In this podcast, Paul talks about envy as an obstacle to internal and communal well-being, and an enemy of the third Fruit of the Spirit, peace. In the cultivation of peace in the garden of our life, Patton asserts that the awareness of our own patterns of envy—weeds that can choke the precious plant of peace—should be acknowledged, monitored, and …
“Fruit of the Spirit – Peace” Ep. 15 – with Dr. Paul Patton
In this podcast, Paul talks about the third “Fruit of the Spirit,” peace, and how the “peace of Christ” is to rule or “umpire” in our heart. As “umpire of the heart” (Colossians 3: 15), such peace—or lack thereof—tells us if our word or action is in keeping with the love and wisdom of Christ. A lack of peace in …
Devotional: Joy in the Morning
Joy in the Morning Terri Lynn Cornwell, Ph.D. Virginia University of Lynchburg Scripture: Psalm 30:4-6 – New Revised Standard Version:4 Sing praises to the Lord, O you his faithful ones, and give thanks to his holy name. 5 For his anger is but for a moment; his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the …
What Matters
What Matters Mark Williams, Ph.D. Professor of Rhetoric, California State University, Sacramento (from the regular Column: “Meaningful-Faith: Words, the Word, and a Life of Substance”) Social media has carved the eight minutes and forty-six seconds leading to the tragic death of Mr. George Floyd into an inescapable national monument. Conversations and exchanges of words that do not fit that definition …
Arguing: Its Meaning and Glory
Arguing: Its Meaning and Glory Mark Williams, Ph.D. Professor of Rhetoric, California State University, Sacramento (from the regular Column: “Meaningful-Faith: Words, the Word, and a Life of Substance”) I realize it is obvious, but we increasingly find ourselves in difficult days (like fish dropped into molasses) where the most obvious things (if we stay here, we will die) need to …
A Confused and Convicted Vicar
A Confused and Convicted Vicar Tom Carmody, Ph.D., Professor of Communication Studies, Vanguard University Five years ago, my wife and I took our first trip to England. As a newly ordained Anglican transitional deacon I was especially excited to visit the historic “Mother Church” of my denominational tribe. We took the train down from London and arrived in the late …
Zombie Jesus, Nazi Christians, Jacques Derrida, and Morality: Some Easter Reflections
Zombie Jesus, Nazi Christians, Jacques Derrida, and Morality: Some Easter Reflections (from the regular Column: “Meaningful-Faith: Words, the Word, and a Life of Substance”) Mark Williams, Ph.D. Professor of Rhetoric, California State University, Sacramento In my church, Easter is a season celebrating the bodily resurrection of Jesus and it lasts fifty days. On the internet, Easter is a season of …
Christians: Sending out an S.O.S – The Case of Jim Bakker
Christians: Sending out an S.O.S Brandon Knight, Ph.D. Asst. Professor of Communication William Carey University In the earliest days of quarantine, I found myself scouring media and listening to medical experts, hoping to discover what would be an answer to the elusive question of our odd circumstance. Or, if I am being honest, I was looking for an emotional cure-all—something …