As an urbanite and amateur urbanist, I’ve always loved the image in the Scriptures of the heavenly New Jerusalem, the city of God, to describe God’s work and our participation in it. Unsurprisingly, it’s an image that has been popular among mystics over the centuries as well, most memorably St. Teresa of Avila (1515-1582), whose … Continue reading The Soul as a Citadel
One of the interesting things about the Christian faith is that it is neither an individual matter of personal salvation, nor a matter of membership in a people, club or community. Rather, it is both at once; the two are inseparable, and — when things are working right (and of course we know they rarely … Continue reading Bound Together in Love
Over the past few years, an idea that has come to mean a lot to me is to hold things with an open hand, or to hold things lightly. I first learned this piece of wisdom from a friend back in Victoria in the context of ownership and possessions and the general spirit of acquisitiveness … Continue reading Hold Your Pains Lightly
Both of today’s New Testament readings for the third Sunday of Lent talk about light, a metaphor I’ve reflected quite a bit on in this space over the years, particularly in the context of the seasons of Advent, Epiphany, and Lent. It’s just such an apt image for the life of faith, with its ready … Continue reading Light in the Dark: A Reflection on John 9, Ephesians 5, and Julian of Norwich
There’s a paradox in the life of faith, attested to across religious traditions, culture, time, place and religious orientations: The more we come to know God, the more we come to know ourselves; and at the same time, the more we know ourselves, the more we know God. This is to say that these two … Continue reading Knowing God and Knowing Self
Matthew Root 