It was still dark the morning that ICE agents knocked on Erika Fierro’s door. Her two young children were still asleep. Her husband, Jesus, had already left for work at his construction job. Jesus was not coming back today. This was the first information the shadowy figures at the door gave to a groggy mother […]
Do you know this Jew?
Dimitri Klepinin was an Orthodox priest, a Russian emigre in Paris. The 35 year old husband and father of two went to aid a remarkable and dynamic nun, Maria Skobtsova in her work among the poor, outcast, and marginalized in the city. On June 14, 1940, this ‘flock’ of homeless people, poor families, mentally ill, […]
Mental Illness, Stigma, and My Dad
Twelve years ago my father died of pancreatic cancer. I got to spend many evenings with him in the month before he died. In the last week of my dad’s life, he shared with me one of his greatest fears. It’s probably one that most fathers, if they are good fathers, fear at the end […]
Why Water? A Reflection on Holy Theophany
In the Orthodox Christian Church, the Feast of Holy Theophany is traditionally one of the most important and significant days in the liturgical year, second only to the Feast of the Resurrection (Holy Pascha, Easter) and on par with Holy Pentecost (The Descent of the Holy Spirit). In the early Church this “Holy Day” was […]
Politics and the Heart
It’s almost election day. Is anyone else exhausted? I can only speak for myself, but I sure am. I have experienced an especially oppressive spirit over the past few months, and in conversations with others, I’m pretty sure I’m not alone. I think it’s more than just news fatigue. I think there is something spiritual […]
On Water and Loss
What do you say to someone who has suffered a great loss? This is a question all of us face at some point in our lives. It’s certainly a question pastors, chaplains, and anyone whose work focuses on offering consolation to the broken-hearted encounter regularly. As a trained disaster/crisis chaplain I have been deployed twice […]
The Klan Comes to Town
Originally published in the Journal Review, August 2014 When I was twelve years old my parents took me to a Ku Klux Klan rally in downtown Crawfordsville. It wasn’t because they supported the Klan, quite the contrary. Rather, they wanted me to see, to be exposed to the fact that this was a real and […]
