From the far star points of his pinned extremities, cold inched in—black ice and squid ink— till the hung flesh was empty. Lonely in that void even for pain, he missed his splintered feet, the human stare buried in his face. He ached for two hands made of meat he could reach to the end […]

[vimeo 22716246 w=500 h=375] jeremycowart: “A Portrait of Christ” by Jeremy Cowart The process is a great way to understand Christ. (Source: https://player.vimeo.com/)

9.5 Theses on Beauty

By W. David O. Taylor Here then are 9.5 theses, a tenth of Luther’s number, in no particular order and by no means comprehensive. And a good cheer for not giving up on beauty altogether, because the world would be much poorer without it, theologically as well as actually. 9.5 Theses about beauty 1. Every […]

I pray that the dreams I have as an old man will lighten the vision in the eyes of young men.

Ash Wednesday

by T.S. Eliot Because I do not hope to turn again Because I do not hope Because I do not hope to turn Desiring this man’s gift and that man’s scope I no longer strive to strive towards such things (Why should the agèd eagle stretch its wings?) Why should I mourn The vanished power of the usual reign?  Because I do […]

We are fundamentally noncognitive, affective creatures. The telos [end] to which our love is aimed is not a list of ideas or propositions or doctrines; it is not a list of abstract, disembodied concepts or values. Rather, the reason that this vision of the good life moves us is because it is a more affective, […]

Responsibility of the Artist

cwmyers: “The ministry of Word and Sacrament is a single ministry, the Word proclaiming, and the Sacrament dramatizing God’s promises. Yet the Word is primary, since without it the sign becomes dark in meaning, if not actually dumb.” John Stott Such is the problem when literature (art) uses the richness of biblical imagery and narratives […]

So Hamlet, Solomon, and Josh Ritter Walk Into a Mousetrap.

Author’s Note: You should own Josh Ritter’s catalog.  Last summer I saw Josh Ritter in Dallas. Around the middle of his set, his band left him alone on stage and he stopped the show completely.  The stage lights were turned off, he unplugged his guitar, stepped away from the microphone and sang “In the Dark” (The […]

My Son

My second son, Clark Christopher, was born yesterday. Read the letter telling the story of his name. December 27, 2010 Your name is a story, and you will grow up in the telling of this story.  Over meals, in our going out and our coming in, even in your lying down, you will hear this […]

…the epistle endures. This should come as no surprise to Christians. While we are often described as a people of the book, an important chunk of that book is a collection of letters. Indeed, Christianity is unique in ascribing divine authority to human correspondence. While the form may vary, there is genius and power unique […]