Category Religion

A Principled Man

Canadian politician James Lunney made the news last week as he resigned from the governing Conservatives in order to speak freely. Normally when a politician says he wants to speak freely you can expect him to criticize his former party, suggesting that he was muzzled, but that is not the case here. Lunney, who announced […]

Mythical?

Did Jesus Christ really live? Or was he a myth, invented and foisted on a gullible public? My friend Bruce sent me the link to a newspaper report that had surprised him and asked for my comments. It was the usual Easter season attack on the historicity of Christianity. I guess the timing surprised him, […]

Thoughts for an Easter Morning

The foundations of the earth shook when the words were first uttered. Angels danced with joy. Christ is risen! Friday had been about despair and shattered dreams. How could everything have gone so wrong? It wasn’t supposed to end like this! But it was. God had a plan. Christ is risen! Saturday was no better […]

The Twist

Sometimes a song strikes a chord in your soul. I was going to write extensively about this song (actually I did, I’m just not going to post it) but then decided it speaks for itself. Especially on this Saturday between Good Friday and Easter. The original is below; the version above is live and reworked. […]

Jerusalem Dragnet

As a radio guy I have a great appreciation for the traditions of the medium. I missed the golden age of radio drama. By the time I was born television, though still in its infancy, was beginning to take off. Pictures were replacing the aural landscape that dominated North American entertainment for three decades. Some […]

What If?

Never answer a hypothetical question. If you do it will only get you in trouble. That’s my advice when giving media training to politicians. Speculation on what they might or might not do in a specific situation that has not or did not occur can commit them to a path they later regret. Better to […]

Is Tradition Important?

Who cares about tradition? The Pope misses his late night pizza runs, which I guess is his tradition. In a recent interview the Pope Francis I revealed that he doesn’t expect to be pope for very long, maybe three to five years. He has already been sitting on St. Peter’s throne for two. And thus […]

The Un-Canadian

Ted Cruz has declared his candidacy for the Republican Party nomination for the 2016 American presidential election. He is unlikely to win. He is the first to declare his candidacy. Voting day is still 20 months away. Historically those who declare first don’t capture the prize. I suspect party members become tired of them over […]

Buyukada Orphanage

I wrote about visiting one of the Princes Islands in Istanbul, and my interest in the abandoned building at the top of the hill. I recently discovered there is more to the story of that abandoned orphanage than what I learned on the trip. It has fairly recently been part of an important court case. […]

Don’t Ask Me!

Why do people ask me what my favourite Bible verse is? I just don’t get it. Is it some type of spiritual test, to see if I am good enough? The Bible is a universal book. Each person reacts to it differently. It feels a little weird to me to single one verse out for […]