Trying to pray as, for, or with someone in the grips of uncertainty or lack of faith is a little like a modern poet’s trying to compose a new piece in the “genteel lyricism” of the 19th-century masters. Joy Ladin has written about how much of modern poetic expression is a skeptical reaction to the…
Tag: pastoral care
Am I Preaching a Genuine Word?
“Be still and know that I am God!” – Psalm 46:10 What does it mean for a preacher to stand before the people of God and say anything of importance about who God is, about God’s call upon our lives, or about God’s active work in the life of the world? How does a preacher…
The Transcendent and Pastoral Care
My sister and I recently got a dog. Well, to be quite honest, we did not so much get a dog as “borrow” our parent’s Cavalier King Charles Spaniel puppy at the beginning of quarantine. We thought Copper Penny would offer temporary therapy—just as we thought quarantine would be temporary. But here we are in…