The great Reformer Martin Luther taught that every Christian has four “vocations” (callings) in life: family, church, work and community. Out of those four, the workplace calling might be the most difficult for everyday Christians to figure out. After all, even though a pastor or missionary might easily understand how their workplace is a calling, an everyday worker might find it more challenging. So, the question arises: “How can I, as a Christian, approach my workplace calling in a way that fully honors God?”    The purpose of work For starters, it should be noted that Scripture and history reveal […]

Allow me the privilege of introducing you to the Holy Spirit. Perhaps there has never been another person as misrepresented and misunderstood as He. He is not some mysterious, nebulous force that can be equated to the famous Star Wars saying, “May the Force be with you.” Nor, for those who know something of the Bible, did He show up on the scene for the first time on the day of Pentecost in an upper room on Mount Zion in the city of Jerusalem.    The Holy Spirit is God Let’s begin with a foundational statement. The Holy Spirit is […]

“Goodbye, Farewell and Amen.” A fitting title for the last episode of one of the most popular television series ever produced. In the midst of a chaotic war setting where doctors performed mostly “meatball surgery,” where the conditions were dismal at best, the pressure and the gore were never ending, and the coping mechanisms were as extreme as the living conditions, one character emerged as the “voice of reason” tending to the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of those around him. Father John Mulcahy, the Jesuit Roman Catholic priest assigned as the chaplain to MASH 4077, a mobile surgical hospital […]

“My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality. For if there should come into your assembly a man with gold rings, in fine apparel, and there should also come in a poor man in filthy clothes, and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say to him, ‘You sit here in a good place,’ and say to the poor man, ‘You stand there,’ or, ‘Sit here at my footstool,’ have you not shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my beloved brethren: […]

A 1986 movie entitled, “The Mission” tells a story of violence, tragedy, sin, penance, forgiveness, conversion and restoration. In one iconic scene the character, mercenary and slaver Rodrigo Mendoza, played by Robert De Niro must carry a large bag filled with weighted items wherever he went, to signify his sin and his punishment. The burden was excruciating, especially as they journeyed through the harsh rainforest and up the side of a slippery and ferocious waterfall. The climactic scene of the story is when Mendoza is released of his burdens and forgiven for his murderous behavior in view of his enemies by […]