Confessions of a Penitential Orderer

By Matthew S. C. Olver I despise the Penitential Order. Scratch that. I actually have come to think that the so-called Penitential Order in the 1979 BCP is theologically and ritually preferable. I just hate ... Read More...

Easter and the Asceticism of Festivity

By Timothy O’Malley If you are friends with clergy or other pastoral workers, the first days of Easter are a time of catching one’s breath. Yes, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Easter Vigil require a g... Read More...

The Church and the Cycle of Life

By Scott A. Ruthven As an Air Force Reserve Chaplain, I was given the opportunity to serve in a deployed setting as a Wing Chaplain. The number of military personnel killed in Iraq was minimal during my deployment; however, there were still a few. The proce... Read More...

The Blessed Virgin: The Air we Breathe

By Mac Stewart I recently came across a rather marvelous gem from the 19th-century Jesuit poet, Gerard Manley Hopkins. It is a poem entitled “The Blessed Virgin compared to the Air we Breathe.” While Marian ... Read More...

Recovering the Magic in Onward

By Sam Keyes Pixar’s new Onward, made available early on Disney Plus thanks to the pandemic, is a wonderful movie. Of course I was going to say that. It is the gentle apotheosis of so much fantasy nerd cultu... Read More...

Where to Look for New Life

By Wesley Hill During the afternoon of Maundy Thursday, as I sat writing in my office, the sun burst through the colorless gauze that had been hanging over Pittsburgh for most of Holy Week. I quickly checked my weather app to see how warm it was and decided... Read More...

Dogs, Easter, and New Creation

By Charlie Clauss There is one species on our planet that seems to be benefiting from Covid-19 stay-at-home orders: dogs. There are more dogs out on walks, it seems, than ever before. Many animal rescue orga... Read More...

They Were Amazed

By Chip Prehn What were the disciples expecting to see on that third day? They had been carefully taught by their extraordinary rabbi. He had successfully opened their eyes to doctrines which had been obscur... Read More...