The Patriarchate of Antioch issued the statement below on 23 July 2014. It is an important statement by one of the major Christian bodies in the Middle East. They have to live with the consequences of various international decisions. Statement from the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East in Damascus At a […]

If you click on the picture above, it will take you to a store where you can buy a “Mordor Fun Run” t-shirt. It is absolutely true that “One does not simply walk into Mordor.” But, why walk when you can run? Imagine running through the startling landscape of Mordor. It mixes the challenges of […]

As Fox News, along with other news outlets, is reporting, the House yesterday fell—yet again—into disorder as Tea Party Republicans rebelled one more time against their own leadership on the immigration issue. Fortunately, both the Veterans Affairs bill and the highway bill managed to pass, though it should be noted that earlier in the week […]

The comic above has a good point. Currently, there are people being killed in both Israel and the Gaza strip. Both sides have claims that have a certain justification for them. For Israel to exist, one has to say that Israel was justified in forcibly removing Arabs in order to begin a religious state. Since […]

There are lots of people who mistake their imagination for their memory. – Josh Billings Memory… is the diary that we all carry about with us. ~Oscar Wilde, “The Importance of Being Earnest” Memory is what informs us about our past. What we remember determines what we think about our past. But, our memories are […]

O CAPTAIN! my Captain! our fearful trip is done;The ship has weather’d every rack, the prize we sought is won;The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting,While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring:But O heart! heart! heart!O the bleeding drops of red,Where on the deck my Captain […]

Can people do good? Can people be good? Those questions keep being asked in certain Evangelical camps, even though Scripture speaks of good acts and “god-fearing” people who are not yet part of the covenant. Why is this so? Well, it is a matter of definitions or–rather–playing with definitions. Let me say a couple of […]

My wife and I are at my high school’s 45th class reunion. Yes, it has been 45 years since I graduated from high school in 1969. I am now a nearly bald, fat (oops, weight-challenged), happy grandfather. Back then, I was a confused 17 year old who probably should have waited a year or two […]

July 24, 2014: Meriam Ibrahim disembarks with her children Maya, in her arms, and Martin, accompanied by Italian deputy Foreign Minister Lapo Pistelli, after landing at Ciampino’s military airport on the outskirts of Rome. (AP Photo/Riccardo De Luca) Some good news arrived today on the international front. As many of you are aware, there is […]