The phrase, “Cleanliness is next to godliness,” is not found in the Bible but is regularly used, nonetheless, by Christians as if it were. Perhaps that is because there is great truth in this statement. Scripture does tell us that God “makes all things new.” Cleanliness—referring to both personal hygiene and keeping our environments neat and clean—is a reminder to us of how God restores things and does indeed make all things new. In this […]
Optimism is at the very heart of the Kingdom of God, and before we invite someone to consider following Jesus, we had better show some optimism. To be Christian is to have a disposition of optimism and not despair. We are not doomsayers. By the same token, we do not see the world through rose-colored glasses. We are realists. We see, feel, and experience pain, violence, sadness, hurt, and evil. However, our faith teaches us […]
On several occasions, Jesus accused the Pharisees of being “hypocrites.” The word hypocrite comes from the Greek word hypokrites, which means “an actor,” and we know that actors in ancient Greek theater wore masks to hide their true identities behind the identities of the characters they were playing. We sometimes struggle to be honest about our true thoughts and feelings. And yet, our spiritual and emotional well-being rely on the value of honesty—being honest with ourselves, […]
Lent is a good time for us to explore our values, and the Lenten discipline of almsgiving reminds us to cultivate the value of generosity. We tend to think of generosity as an occasional act of kindness expressed monetarily. We send a check to a charity, drop an envelope in the church basket, purchase Girl Scout cookies, or put some money in the red kettle or CRS Rice Bowl. These are indeed generous acts that […]
Being approximately 99% Polish (according to Ancestry.com), I have always taken a special interest in prominent Polish figures throughout history. One of my favorites is the famous 16th-century astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus, who was the first to propose a model that showed that the planets orbit the sun rather than the earth, as was previously believed. Inspired by his work, the phrase “Copernican revolution” has become commonplace for describing someone who needs to be less self-centered. […]
As kids, most of us dream of finding a buried treasure, something of great value. We use the word values to refer to those beliefs and principles that we believe are most important for guiding the way we live and work and treat ourselves and others. Lent is a great time to reflect on our values and to reshape them so that we truly treasure, or value, that which God treasures and values most. In this […]
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