by Christian Coon | Mar 8, 2012 | BLOG
A 4th-century rabbi once declared that it was right and good that a person should say this blessing after using the restroom (or whatever the restroom was called in the 4th century): “Blessed is He who has formed man in wisdom and created in him many orifices...
by Christian Coon | Mar 8, 2012 | BLOG
Today’s reading Mark 7:24-37. One of the biggest questions that folks have asked over the years (centuries?) has to do with what’s sometimes called the “messianic secret.” After performing a healing, verse 30 notes that “Jesus ordered...
by Christian Coon | Mar 7, 2012 | BLOG
Something to think about for today’s reading (which is actually 1-23, not 1-25): It’s easy for us to criticize the Pharisees and other teachers for their seeming obsession with things like washing their hands. But we should also remember that many faithful...
by Christian Coon | Mar 1, 2012 | BLOG
There are some in our world who proclaim a prosperity gospel and part of that includes the belief that if you simply give more (usually money) to God, then you will receive more. There are lots of examples of this (here’s one using a prayer cloth as a way to...
by Christian Coon | Feb 29, 2012 | BLOG
We’re reading through Mark as a church during Lent and I read through Mark 4:1-20 today. One quick reflection: Whenever I think of the texts that talk about not worrying about today or no getting bogged down by the cares of the world, I immediately think about...
by Christian Coon | Feb 27, 2012 | BLOG
I felt really good about the sermon I preached yesterday and had a couple of very heartfelt compliments from people about it. After worship, there was the potential of a long, lazy Sunday afternoon at home and I haven’t had one of those in ages. And yet I spent...
by Christian Coon | Feb 16, 2012 | BLOG
I never thought I’d be posting about the Sports Illustrated (SI) swimsuit issue, but it arrived in my mailbox a couple days ago (I’ve been an SI subscriber for more than 20 years and a reader for as long as I can remember) and it brought up a couple things...
