One morning this fall I sat outside attempting to pray, but found myself instead preoccupied by a practical problem.
Category Archives: Blog
The Pope, the Rabbi, and the Golden Phone
When the Pope invited the Chief Rabbi to Rome, the latter was impressed by the golden telephone on the pontiff’s desk.
He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands
Back in the 90’s an acquaintance of mine, whom I’ll call Robert, had a mental breakdown. Initially hospitalized, he was later moved to a group home where he spent three years.
Let Fiery Preachers and Prophets Arise!
A friend told me of being at an A.A. meeting where a young woman expressed thanks to God for delivering her from a terrible drug addiction.
Captivated by Cutlery: The Fascination of the Ordinary
This morning I enjoyed a few moments gazing into my cutlery drawer. I can’t remember ever doing this before. Cutlery is not something one looks at, particularly, it’s just there—useful, shiny, not unattractive, but not noteworthy.
Artificial Stupidity: My Misadventure with Chat GPT
As I head into holiday time, I thought it would be good to invite a guest to write my next blog post. So I asked my friend Chatty, aka Chat GPT (an AI program), to imitate my style with a new blog post.
What Is the Good News? Hear ye, hear ye!
One of my own favorite lines I’ve ever written is in my book Champagne for the Soul where I say: “If you don’t know the good news, keep asking and asking until the answer that comes provokes an eruption of joy.”
Of Pencils and Shavers: The Complexity of the Ordinary
I hope I live long enough to see the next generation of electric shavers. Indeed I wonder if there has ever been a new generation of this appliance, since the ones today don’t work much better than the one my dad loaned me for my first shave back in the 1960’s.
TESTING 1-2-3: A Spiritual Sound Check
Life is a great mystery, and we have many questions.
Especially we wonder about evil and suffering.
Why? Why? Why?
Tiny Expanses: Small Is Beautiful
While writing a book called The Consolation of the Ordinary, I tried to come up with as many synonyms as possible for ordinary: daily, everyday, mundane, quotidian, common, and so on. Only late in this process did it occur to me that one such synonym is small.