I’ve experienced many different kinds of transitions in my life. I’ve lived in Johnstown, PA; Pittsburgh, PA; Morgantown, WV; Miami Beach, FL; Tucson, AZ; St. Louis, MO; and Atlanta, GA. Movements from city to city represent one kind of transition I’ve experienced. I’ve held many different jobs: hospital chaplain, pastor,… Read More »Transitions and Transfigurations
It was a difficult year for me. It’s not easy to convey what it was like. To begin with, I’m one of those people who started working in high school with part-time odd jobs. I always had something going on. Then, unexpectedly, I lost my job and was receiving unemployment… Read More »My Experience with Transformation: A Surprising Re-Orientation
The following is a brief excerpt from my book, The Integrated Self: A Holistic Approach to Spirituality and Mental Health Practice. In this passage, I explain that the commonly used distinction between religion and spirituality is very narrow and prevents us from appreciating that spirituality is a dimension of all… Read More »Spirituality: A Dimension of Human Experience
I started college as a philosophy major. If I was to be ordained, it was recommended that I have a background in philosophy before studying theology. It did help me to learn to think more critically. However, one of the first courses I took in college was in theater arts. … Read More »A Life of Meaning
From time to time, I post a meme on my Facebook page and Twitter feed with quotes from spiritual writers I find inspiring. A few days ago, I posted this one with a quote from 13th Century Christian mystic, Meister Eckhart. Eckhart was a Dominican priest, philosopher, and theologian. In… Read More »Set on Fire
How do you conceive or understand prayer? Many of us understand prayer in terms of words: we ask for things. Whether the prayer is to God or the Universe, we make requests for something we believe to be good or to avoid what we believe to be bad. This is… Read More »Moving Deeper into Prayer
New Year’s resolutions. I almost hate to admit this publicly, but I really don’t see the point to New Year’s resolutions. How many people make resolutions? How few people keep their resolutions past the end of January? A couple years ago, I wrote about using goal theory to help succeed… Read More »A New Year and Resolutions
It happened one evening. I was making dinner while listening to National Public Radio. The program, Fresh Air, came on. I wasn’t very interested in the interview but left the radio playing while I continued to cook. I don’t remember the guest. I don’t remember the actual topic of the… Read More »Do You Think People Actually Change?
