What Is And What Should Never Be

It’s been a long time since I’ve posted. To all my degenerates out there: You’re the best. I’m exhausted. I’ve spent the past six weeks preaching, sometimes on both Sunday morning and evening. I’ve spent the past 6 days writing an essay worth 1/3 of my grade that determines whether or not I continue my research in the Ph.D. program in the fall. I’ve managed to avoid the many offers for coffee from parishioners in the past weeks, mostly citing my busy schedule as the culprit. The Mission society wants my participation, I have a presentation to give at the end of the week, another sermon due for Holy Week, and I my mind feels as empty as my soul. Today, I had coffee with a friend tasked with establishing a church plant among college students in Edinburgh. After an hour of contemplating the dimensions of secular society and its invasion of the church, we began to talk about things that are meaningful to people. Ironically, I found myself babbling about rhythm in ...

All of us need a little assurance. Each of us wants to know that we’ve made the correct decisions, whether large or small. Additionally, many of us want to know that when we’ve made poor decisions, there are still paths available to take us back to where we need to be. Each Sunday I sit in the center of St. Giles Cathedral as the congregation sings and celebrates her faith together. I often find myself captivated by the east window as my eyes and mind wander in search for something that will speak to me. It is the stunning window pictured below; a 19 th century stained-glass depiction of the ascension of Jesus Christ atop his crucifixion. The window falls within a series reflecting the Gospel narratives. Whether the craftsman (James Ballantine) understood the theological significance of the window, I do not know, but one would be hard pressed to find a more comforting and encouraging image to impress upon a congregation as they commune around the Holy Table each week. Nothing...