Category Religion
Revisiting St. Paul’s
I find myself once again in Badenweiler for a few days before heading home to Canada. I thought it would be appropriate to share again some thoughts from my first visit here in 2015. As you have probably noticed if you have been reading this blog for a while, I am interested in churches. It’s […]
Drawings On The Wall
The urge to draw pictures predates written language, as can be seen in cave drawings in Europe that the experts say date back thousands of years. So it is no surprise to discover that people used to draw on church walls too. Other than the odd mural, which usually isn’t in the sanctuary itself, I […]
Uncomfortable Memories
I live in a town haunted by memories. That no-one talks about. At least to me. Sulzburg was once the center of Jewish culture in southern Germany. In the middle of the 19th century, a third of the town of 1,200 was Jewish. There was a synagogue, a rabbinical school, a choral society, a cemetery. […]
Our Second COVID Easter
So here we are again. Didn’t they tell us last year was a one-time event? But let’s not go down that rabbit hole, or at least not today. We may be in the middle of an apparently unending global pandemic, but there are some universal truths that still remain. The biggest is that which we […]
Canceling Easter
Sometimes you have to fight back. Sometimes you have to say “enough is enough.” The virus that just won’t go away has stymied politicians as they attempt to deal with a public health “crisis” that just doesn’t seem that urgent after a year. We’ve gotten used to COVID-19 and government interference in our lives, both […]
The Twist
I’ve shared this song with you before, but it has been six years and warrants another listen. Easter songs are full of joy. On Good Friday there’s a different feel. We know today that joy is indeed on the way, but it is still a somber occasion. So many of the lines from this song […]
What Village Is That?
Today is Palm Sunday. Seems like a good time for some church pictures. “What village is that” is a fairly common question my wife of I will ask as we walk though our area of Germany. So many little places in the distance, and in four years there are still a few we haven’t explored. […]
Replay: The Dark Church
Let’s take a trip back today, to when travel was something people did on a regular basis. Our destination is the Cappadocia region of Turkey and a cave they call the “dark church.” I shared this post with you for the first time in January 2015. They call it “the dark church” because it gets […]
Religious Freedom – But Only For Some
In Algeria on Sunday the government, deciding the pandemic risks are somewhat lessened, issued an order allowing mosques to re-open. Conspicuously absent was any mention of other religions. Churches must remain closed. But restaurants can re-open. Algeria has ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, guaranteeing the right to freedom of religion, including […]
Wanna Buy A Car?
Those who aren’t sports fans watch the Super Bowl for the commercials. It is the most watched television event of the year, with advertisers paying millions of dollars for a short spot and putting their most creative advertising minds to work on the product. As a Canadian, I rarely watch the game – and if […]
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