Getting through this bloody pandemic is hard. We need endurance: what David Brooks calls "the knowledge that the only way out is through and whatever must be borne will be borne."
Category: Theology
On the Inconvenience of Surrender
C.S. Lewis once wrote that surrendering yourself is the only way to find your true self. It's a true and inspiring sentiment which, unfortunately for Christians, is diametrically opposed to just about everything a culture bent on consumerism and expressive individualism stands for.
How to Be Brave in a Pandemic
What is courage, and how do we get more of it to face the difficult days ahead? Insights from sci-fi, art, and social activism.
Fani’s Vision in ‘A Hidden Life’
What enables you to endure suffering? What gives you the hope to go on? In Fani's case, it is a glimpse of a restored world where everything sad comes untrue.
Forget Thyself
"The self-forgetful person would never be hurt particularly badly by criticism. It would not devastate them, it would not keep them up late, it would not bother them. Why?"
Cynicism and Joy
In two paragraphs Henri Nouwen conveys incredible insight on the nature of darkness and light, cynicism and joy.
Waiting Is One of the Worst Parts of Suffering
One of the worst parts of suffering is waiting. Yet few times of year are better for waiting than Advent.
An Objection about House Churches and Liturgy
James K.A. Smith's argument for the power of historic liturgy seems difficult to accept if you meet in a house church.
‘Like a Pitiful Mirage’: Various Writers on Suffering and Hope
I'm walking through a trial that has led me to study what different thinkers say about suffering.
Book Review: ‘You Are What You Love’ by James K. Smith
What if we are not primarily thinking creatures, but creatures of habit? What if we are not driven mainly by what we know, but by what we love? My review of this incredible book by James K.A. Smith.
Richard Rabil, Jr. 