More on the Meaning of Peace

At the end of his time with the Disciples, Jesus said to them  

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives.
Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. (John 14:27)

Christ Taking Leave of the Apostles, Duccio c. 1308
Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

What does Jesus mean by that?
This morning, I would like to point to the following thought:

A War To End All Wars

In Flanders Field

Flanders Field American Cemetery, Photo by Werner VC

A Tribute for U.S.A. Memorial Day 2013

Straw Bale Gardening: A Suggestion for Suburban and Urban (rooftop) Gardeners

This spring after reading an article about it in NY Times, I was inspired to learn more about the concept of straw bale gardening.  I ordered and read the book
Straw Bale Gardens: The Breakthrough Method for Growing Vegetables Anywhere, Earlier and with No Weeding by Joel Karsten.

American Society Encourages Slaughter of Innocents

There. I thought that headline might get your attention. Unfortunately, it is true, and I'm not talking about abortion.  I'm talking about how many innocents each year are slaughtered by gun violence.

"Should I Marry Him?" (Musings on Mother's Day 2013)

Mary Cassatt, Under the Horse Chestnut Tree

"If you want to gauge a man as marriage material, 

look at how he treats his mother.  

Because in ten years,

that's how he'll treat you."  

This was advice given to me by my grandmother, when I was less than twenty years old. Now, many decades later, I am more firmly than ever convinced that she was right.

Who Is My Neighbor?

A false god 

divides the world

 into 

friends 

(those the god loves) 

and 

foes 

(those the god hates); 

the true God 

loves all, 

and 

loves equally.

(Miroslav Volf)

Van Gogh, The Good Samaritan

Beggars in Modern Times

Acts Chapter 3

So one day, Peter and John were walking to the Temple to pray. As they were walking into the Temple gate, they were passing by this man who had been crippled from birth. Every day, someone carried that man to the gate so that he could beg from those who were going inside to the Temple courts.

Nicholas Poussin, Peter and John Heal the Blind Man at the Gate
Metropolitan Museum of Art 

BEGGARS

I don't know about you, but I've passed by this scene often, sometimes literally and sometimes figuratively. In the first part of this blog post, I'll talk literal. In the second part, I want to challenge each of us to think figuratively, in the sense of the bigger picture.