The Diagonal Way
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Theological reflections on creation's holy journey into the life of its holy Creator.
The Diagonal Way
4M ago
The Genesis flood: one of the archetypal stories of the Jewish and Christian scriptures. A text that’s been used to trace the beginnings of races, to combat scientific theories of evolution, and to demonstrate mysterious connections between distant religions and peoples of the ancient world. The flood. We’re only 5 short chapters into the book ..read more
The Diagonal Way
5M ago
The Prophetic Books are Faith-Forming Reading the prophets of Israel is tiresome work. I’m 31 chapters into Jeremiah, and I feel a bit like I did a few years ago at mile seven of a half marathon. The prophet has us listening in on metaphors that don’t quite land. I will dash the people of ..read more
The Diagonal Way
5M ago
Now and then I post annotated bibliographies of the reading I’ve doing lately. Here are the books I’ve spent most of my time with in the last few months. Fiction Children of the Arbat, by Anatoli Rybakov I can’t remember where I first heard of this book, but its publication was a major event of ..read more
The Diagonal Way
10M ago
In Isaiah, we learn that God’s mighty acts of liberation are a non-identical repetition of an old pattern. The Exodus story is the only story there is, even if it gets told in new ways. Isaiah’s Complex Setting The writings of this prophet are, to put it mildly, difficult. This is largely due to the ..read more
The Diagonal Way
11M ago
This summer I’ve continued my life-long submersion into Russian theological and intellectual culture. I’ve written previously of the theological disaster that is Patriarch Kirill’s current political stance. A new book by Sarah Riccardi-Swartz, alongside a no longer new book by Lesley Chamberlain, has given me deeper insight into this disaster. Especially as it relates to the ..read more
The Diagonal Way
11M ago
This past week I’ve been homemaking. Cooking, hosting family. Saying my prayers while watching the barn swallows on my patio hatch. Sitting and reading while my daughter rides her horse at the nearby farm. Rather than my usual meditation on text or idea, I’ll depart into the (for me, less safe!) literary landscape. Here are ..read more
The Diagonal Way
1y ago
Long plane rides provide guilt free screen time. Especially headed west when, the way I see it, one’s only job is to stay awake and fight the coming jet lag. It’s just self care, really. Which is how, in between Ghostbusters and Licorice Pizza, I found myself absorbed in the life of Tammy Faye Bakker and ..read more
The Diagonal Way
1y ago
Does tragedy serve a moral purpose? As my state carries on with funerals this week for the children and teachers killed in Uvalde, one moment in particular has been on my mind. It’s in a video someone took during that harrowing hour when the first responder team was still trying to figure out what to ..read more
The Diagonal Way
1y ago
The Prodigal Son as a Parable of the Trinity A reader of my book Leaving Emmaus: A New Departure in Christian Theology asked an insightful question about the Trinity. She was paying attention to my interpretation of the triune God through an analogy of gift exchange. I offer a reading in the chapter in question of ..read more
The Diagonal Way
1y ago
What is a church? Let’s consider it specifically: the particular communities where many of us gather on Sunday mornings. What is that? What do we imagine that we’re doing when we go there? Meaning and Voluntary Gatherings A conversation with a friend this week has me thinking about this question in a new way. Churches ..read more