To inspire and support all baptized people — By A. Wayne Schwab — These lines are intended primarily for individual Christians, seeking inspiration, support, and guidance for their daily life missions in Christ through Bible reading and worship. They may be useful to preachers and teachers as well. Church symbols call for imagination. How does […]
¡Viva México!
March 14, 2019
Nov. 29, 2013 The New York Times By Mark Bittman “Thanksgiving once marked the beginning of a season of belt-tightening, as fresh food became scarce. Now it launches a fury of gluttony — and it’s not as if we’re restrained at other times. Yet with obesity-associated Type 2 diabetes at record […]
The Minimum We Can Do
March 14, 2019
THE GREAT DIVIDE BY ARINDRAJIT DUBE, NOVEMBER 30, 2013 “During most of the 20th century, wages in the United States were set not just by employers but by a mix of market and institutional mechanisms. Supply and demand were important factors; collective bargaining and minimum wage laws also played a key role. Under Presidents Franklin […]
The Shanghai Secret
March 14, 2019
By Thomas L. Friedman Oct. 22, 2013 “SHANGHAI — Whenever I visit China, I am struck by the sharply divergent predictions of its future one hears. Lately, a number of global investors have been “shorting” China, betting that someday soon its powerful economic engine will sputter, as the real estate boom here turns to a bust. […]
Consumerism and the Commercialization of Childhood
March 14, 2019
“Consumerism and the commercialization of childhood” will be aided by an adaptation of Rescuing the Church from Consumerism by SPCK. In 2003, only 50% of those entering school could recognize their own name, speak articulately, or count to five – 81% knew the Coca-Cola logo and 69% knew McDonald’s Golden Arches. They know more about […]
Ruining Lives with Criminal ‘Justice’
March 14, 2019
“Ruining Lives with Criminal ‘Justice’” (NY Times, 7/30/15), Doug Deason, president of Deason Capital Services and the Deason Foundation, tells how he made a mistake when he was 17, and, with legal help, was lucky to get a second chance. [Use his story to practice discerning God’s work in a wholly secular report.] So many, […]
Safety Net Successes
March 6, 2019
“Safety Net Successes,” the 2/5/14 editorial in The Christian Century, to explore how “the war on poverty has not been won – but we know some of what works.” Biblical reference: “ I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink . . . I was […]
Why Blue States are the Real ‘Tea Party’
March 6, 2019
“Why Blue States Are the Real ‘Tea Party’” by Steven Johnson from the Sunday Review of the NYT (10/4/16). “A voter in rural Wyoming has more than three times the power of a voter in New Jersey.” The Electoral College is unfair in today’s USA. A related biblical theme: “For God does not show favoritism” […]
Good Lives Without Good Jobs
February 27, 2019
“Good Lives Without Good Jobs” by Michael Lind from The Sunday Review of the New York Times (9/18/16). “Politicians routinely promise that, if elected, they will create more good jobs, which are understood to be jobs with solid wages, regular hours and, perhaps, generous employer-provided benefits.” A related biblical theme: “. . . laborers deserve their […]
