I love this image of the wounded healer. We all have something that is broken. But we all can offer our love and care to those who are lonely, anxious, or in pain.
Book review: “The Wounded Healer” by Henri Nouwen
Book review: “To Heal a Fractured World” by Rabbi Jonathan Sacks
My favorite image from this book is of God willing to be overruled by his children: "My sons have defeated me, my sons have defeated me." When we see injustice in the world, even at the hands of a church, we should seek to confront it and make it better.
Book review: “The Best of Lowell L. Bennion” edited by Eugene England
Lowell Bennion is my hero. "Nothing matters ultimately in any setting—in marriage, the family, school, the church, the community, the world—except what happens to persons."
Book review: “Against Empathy” by Paul Bloom
Could trying to walk in someone else's shoes ever be a bad thing? Many would argue that empathy is central to the development of morality. Bloom argues otherwise: that empathy acts like a spotlight, biasing us to short-term answers and parochial solutions.
Book review: Paul Tournier’s “The Whole Person in a Broken World”
This is the next book by Paul Tournier that I was able to hunt down in the UW library system. It too is out of print and unavailable as an ebook, but thanks to the interlibrary loan system, I was able to get it shipped from the University of Oregon. Paul Tournier is a Swiss... Continue Reading →
Post-conference thoughts
It's been a few days since the end of conference, giving me enough time to piece together a few of my thoughts. I haven't had time to completely read through all the talks yet, so I may do a few follow-up posts with some more in-depth thoughts on specific talks or themes. But wow! What... Continue Reading →
“Making obedience your quest” can sometimes be a faulty objective function
I served an LDS mission in Hamburg, and later Frankfurt, Germany. A mission is an absolute transformative experience. For many, it is the first "away of from" experience, and requires a bit of growing up. It is also for some the first time that faith gets real, and not just something you do because you... Continue Reading →
That twice-blest gift: On giving and recieving mercy
I wish you all a beautiful Sabbath Day! I am sharing with you my remarks from sacrament meeting this morning on giving and recieving mercy in our lives. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they than mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the... Continue Reading →
PC or NPC, that is the question: A few thoughts on ministering
I wanted to piece together some thoughts surrounding the Church's newly minted ministering program that coalesced this past week after my stake conference. To me the spirit of ministering is profound: to care about another person to the point that you become a part of their life. I loved the way that President Jean Bingham... Continue Reading →
