Charis

While the world focuses its attention on Abdul Rahman, Compass Direct reports that two more Afghan converts to Christianity are in jail, and a third has been hospitalized after being beaten for his faith…. If you would like to learn more about persecuted Christians and find opportunities for helping them, these are good sources:…

For my birthday, I bought Madeleine L’Engle’s Bright Evening Star, a series of essays on the “Mystery of the Incarnation.” The first of these is “A Sky Full of Children”; the title refers to the stars, each one created and named by God. L’Engle offers some things to think about:…

A few weeks ago, God brought to my attention that I have a worry problem. This was news to me. I’ve known worriers, and I don’t act like them. I’m not the kind who frets over how to pay an unexpected bill or tosses and turns, fearful for the future of my children. Even so, I see that I have a problem with worry. Here’s what happened:…

One Million Dads sent an email asking members to contact Revlon and Dyson about their advertising during ABC’s new show Sons and Daughters. The email included the dialogue between a mother and her 13-year-old daughter regarding her parents’ level of intimacy. The mother says that sometimes after couples marry, they discover that sex just isn’t […]

In his commentary on last night’s Oscars, Marc Newman concludes,

The one thing said at the awards ceremony that rang true was that while technological advances in film making will continue, what remains the same is the importance of story. Every culture in the world has them. They are used to make sense of the world. They are the means by which Christians have been entrusted with spreading their faith—we tell the story of Christ and then testify to our own. Stories invite more stories. So if there is anything to applaud about the tales that pour relentlessly from Hollywood, it is that these films provoke confrontation and response. May we be as bold in telling His story, and our stories, as Hollywood is in telling theirs.

Cultural critic Marc Newman makes a compelling argument for the power of Christians to impact Hollywood. In “The Academy Awards: Whose Vote Really Counts,” he discusses this years Oscar contenders and their monetary value to the studios. He writes:

The collective domestic box office of all five Best Picture nominees currently stands at about $230 million. That is nearly the domestic gross of The Chronicles of Narnia: the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe—if you are willing to knock off $50 million from Narnia’s take to date.…

from Lent and Easter Wisdom:

The greatest light comes from the commandment to love God and neighbor. In this commandment, human freedom finds its most complete realization. Freedom is for love: its realization through love can reach heroic proportions.—Pope John Paul II

In thinking about yesterday’s post, I see that part of Jesus’ agenda was love. To write that seems incredibly foolish in a sense…

from Lent and Easter Wisdom: In the passage for today, the Pope works from Mark 10:33, “We are going up to Jerusalem.” He says, “This journey to Jerusalem…is the model for the Christian who is committed to following the Master on the way of the Cross.”

This prompted me to read Mark’s account of Jesus’ journey to his crucifixion. I hesitated to write “to his crucifixion,” though Mark 10 is the third time that Jesus clearly predicts His death to the disciples. Yes, Jesus knew He was headed for death, and He knew that His death was necessary. My hesitation comes from the fact that Jesus didn’t go to die, He went, in the words of John Paul, “to complete his redemptive mission.”…