Holding the Hot Potato
When Jesus told parables, he often avoided straightforward hero/villain figures. The prodigal son and his brother, the shrewd manager, the unjust judge — Jesus generally gives us surprisingly complex characters to wrestle with in his short stories. But the unforgiving debtor: obviously a bad guy.* He receives the mercy of the king, and then turns […]
Naming Ourselves – July 29, 2021
“We name ourselves by the choices we make, and we can help in our own naming by living through the choices, right and wrong, of the heroes and heroines whose stories we read. To name is to love. To be Named is to be loved. So in a very true sense the great works which […]
Name as Gift – July 28, 2021
“We, the creatures, are named, and our names are part of our wholeness. It used to be a moment of great importance when someone said, “Oh, don’t call me Mrs. X. Call me Anne—or Katherine. Alex or John. My name is a gift which I offer you.”… I love the rare moments when I am […]
Names or Numbers? – July 27, 2021
“To write a story is an act of Naming; in reading about a protagonist I can grow along with, I am more named. And we live in a world which would reduce us to our social security numbers. Area codes, zip codes, credit card codes, all take precedence over our names. Our signatures already mean […]
