So forgiveness pre-requires understanding the mistakes of the past? here hear re this opposing this me-first, America-first, white-first, male-first approach>…
Weekly lessons in theology and public life • Since 2011
Tag: featured
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Lesson 7: Balance and Moderation
Read MORE: Lesson 7: Balance and ModerationThe first thing mentioned by my class in Montgomery County, Maryland was how the Rule mandated treating work tools just as meticulously as worship articles. The group was surprised that a monastic community would think work was as important as…
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Lesson 6: Humility
Read MORE: Lesson 6: HumilityMy first response to Sister Joan remains that she seems to be writing about the self-evident. My second is she confronts exactly what is wrong with our present society. Her take on humility that she designates as the lost virtue…
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Lesson 5: God’s Presence
Read MORE: Lesson 5: God’s PresenceI really experienced what St. Benedict meant about the importance of conversation in any Christian community while teaching Sunday School last week. I was pointing out how much Luke-Acts associated the Holy Spirit with speaking boldly. A good one-third of…
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Lesson 4: Radical Individualism
Read MORE: Lesson 4: Radical IndividualismI am having a terrible time writing this series. I have studied, examined, and lived Christian community for such a long time that I do not know where to begin. As many of you know, my partners, Ed Keyser, Tim…
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Lesson 3: New Models
Read MORE: Lesson 3: New ModelsA change seems to have taken place in the relationship between church and society. Although it was long coming, most of us did not pay much attention until the recent presidential campaign. It was taken for granted that church and…
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Lesson 2: Church Community in History
Read MORE: Lesson 2: Church Community in HistoryLet’s take a quick look at various kinds of Christian community that have been practiced in our history. Most forms that served well in one period no longer worked in later ones, at least not in their original shapes. Even…
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Lesson 1: The First Christian Community
Read MORE: Lesson 1: The First Christian CommunityA number of my friends are raising questions about Christian community. They are finding our present forms fail to enrich, nourish, or inspire their lives. Many are frustrated after having tried one congregation after another. Our conversations have convinced me…
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Lesson 9: Eucharist as Ritual
Read MORE: Lesson 9: Eucharist as RitualThe most important challenge for a Eucharist liturgy is to express a community meal rather than an institutional ritual. The Church has not always done a very good job with this one. Too often, the service is regarded as fulfilling…
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Lesson 8: Eucharist as Thanksgiving
Read MORE: Lesson 8: Eucharist as ThanksgivingThe official title of the communion meal is the Eucharist, a Greek word meaning thanksgiving. By examining how this title applies we can learn a lot about the sacrament. First, thanksgiving is given a prominent place in the official account…
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Lesson 7: Eucharist as Remembering
Read MORE: Lesson 7: Eucharist as RememberingIn our technological society, we forget how important remembering the past is for keeping our balance in life. Faith, hope, and love have always been used to summarize how Christians make decisions. Faith primarily is trust in the story that…
Recent Comments
An extremely timely topic. Thanks, Fritz!
yes we need to forgive our leaders yet make sure they do the right thing – which they aren’t.