No John Deere required

As we are less than a month away from Easter, I am finding the story of my life to be a lot like the one Anthony De Mello told in his book, “The Song of the Bird.”

A man who took great pride in his lawn found himself with a large crop of dandelions. He tried every method he knew to get rid of them. They still plagued him.

Finally he wrote the Department of Agriculture. He enumerated all the things that he had tried and closed his letter with the question: “What shall I do now?”

In due course the response came: “We suggest you learn to love them.”

At last... the World Series!

I am a huge baseball fan as many of you know (Go 'stros! Go Reds!) and I have been following the World Baseball Classic this month. It has been interesting to watch. I always wondered growing up why it was called the World Series since it was always played in the U.S. between U.S. teams. I understand that for the better part of the first half of the 20th Century that baseball was predominatley an American sport but it is clear now with Mexico eliminating the U.S. that the sport can no longer claim to be American... it is a global sport much like soccer. Ok, not the best comparison at least when it comes to the crazy fans. I, for one am glad to see that we are embracing more of the international flavor in baseball and hope that the WBC emerges as something much bigger than most people give it credit for.

Hasidic Hip-hop

Last week a good friend of mine was visiting and he had this CD of an artist that I had never heard of.... nor was I really even interested at the time. Man, what a difference a week makes! I wished that I would have burned that CD while he was here, cuz I can't get this guy outta my head!

Matisyahu is a Hasidic Jew whose music is rooted in reggae and hip-hop. It is quite an ironic combination given the extremes of the lifestyle and musical genre (think something like the Amish in a hard rock band). His message is one that has strong spiritual and social implications that are sure to keep you hooked. Hey, I'm not even a fan of hip-hop but I find myself bouncing to the beat of the song! Check out his video and song "King Without A Crown" the lyrics can be found here in case he moves too fast for your listening.

When living feels just like death

One of my old college roommates, Evan, has a blog of his own called Nator's Revolution (you can also access it in my links Sidebar). In his most recent post, he shares his enlightenment on our disconnectedness from God at times. It challenged me to think about what the Lenten Season expects of us.

It is my understanding that Lent calls for us to recognize the disconnect of our soul. Christ's journey in the Gospels creates for us an inherent disconnect from the world in order that our soul may be nourished. I don't think that this time is meant to be the mountain top experience, although there is a progression toward that the closer we get to Easter Sunday. Maybe the paradox in Lent is that our identification with Christ even though we are living, it feels more like death. It is through this, that our faith breaks forth like the dawn.