To wrap up my “phrases” series, which I began back in April thinking it would only last a few weeks, I’m going to end with one I’m ambivalent about.  We each only get one life and each day is the only one of its kind.  Too often, we take for granted that we’ll have time to carry out the plans and dreams we talk of “someday” doing; if our days are repetitive (as most modern/postmodern ones are), we can lose track of how fast they’re flying by us, we can forget to treasure each one as if it’s our last because some day, it will be (has it already been a month since Robin Williams died?).  Carpe diem! say the dreamers (and John Keating).  Seize the day while you have a chance because you never know when you won’t get another.  A moment of silence for those lost 13 years ago on 9/11 in New York.

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“In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight” (Matthew 3:1-4).  Here was one passionate and eccentric man.  His clothing was camel’s hair, which makes my skin itch just to think about, and his food was locusts and wild honey – so, sweetened bugs.  Most scholars agree that John baptized Jesus and was related to Him in some way through their mothers, Elizabeth and Mary.  He was beheaded by King Herod at the demand of Herod’s wife, who hated John, presumably for publicly criticizing her…but we all know how the powers that be handle prophets.  I picture him roaming through the wild, whether desert or forest, calling out so that anyone within earshot could hear.  He may have been unusual but he was sincere.  His purpose was to prepare the way of the Lord. (more…)

It’s a sweet-sounding tribute to altruism, a tip of the hat to selflessness, a declaration of an other-centered  life: it is better to give than to receive.  It seems almost too obvious to state that the opposite – it is better to receive than to give – is surely false; beyond that, the clarification that “giving is receiving” almost always attends this well-intentioned phrase.  And, of course, it does come straight from Scripture: Acts 20:35 quotes Jesus as saying the phrase.  But it, too, is another one of those dangerous half-true lies and it’s not because no Gospel writer records Jesus saying, “It is better to give than to receive.”   (more…)

I’m not skipping the first half of the verse (Romans 12:15) – “rejoice with those who rejoice” – because I think it’s unimportant to do so.  Rejoicing with those who rejoice is just as vital to healthy relationships as weeping with those who weep; I just think that, because of our cultural fear of sadness, it’s easier to be with happy people (and be happy with them) than it is to stick around sad people, much less be sad with them.  It’s not that rejoicing with those who rejoice has no challenges: jealousy is but one of the barriers to truly being happy for and with one another.  But, in the recent uptick of posts by mental health organizations on social media these past few weeks, it’s become clear to me that there is a staggering number of people who are weeping alone. (more…)