Beyond Redemption?

Going down to a Samaritan city, Philip proclaimed the Message of the Messiah. When the people heard what he had to say and saw the miracles, the clear signs of God’s action, they hung on his every word. Many who could neither stand nor walk were healed that day. The...

Everything We Think We Know About Addiction Is Wrong

Loneliness is often the driving factor that keeps people in addition, as they would do anything other than face the realities of their lives and the consequences of their actions. Therefore, as this video points out: “The path out of unhealthy bonds, is to form...

The Fullness of Humanity, Found in a Funeral

This might come across as somewhat macabre, but I love being given the opportunity to officiate funeral services. It is one of the greatest honors to be included in a ceremony that marks a person’s transition to their new life and to remember the life that they lived....

The Blame Game

One day, a very long time ago, Jesus and his friends were walking down the street when they came across a blind man, and they asked him the same question that we always ask when we see someone suffering,“Whose fault is this? Is he responsible for his own misfortune or...

An Easter Reflection: “For They Were Afraid”

When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb and they asked each other, “Who...

A System Set to Fail

Last summer, I got a Facebook message from a relative of a family friend. Their daughter was locked up in a Philadelphia prison, and they wanted to know if I could host her for the night she got out and then put her on a bus back home. They assured me that she would...

Not Beyond Hope

Before I became a pastor, I worked as a math tutor at Furness High School in South Philly. All of my students had failed math at some level, and most of them hated every minute of our time together. I had this naive hope that I could inspire these kids to greatness...

A New Type of Prison Epistle

According to daily census data gathered by the Philadelphia Prison System, on any given day our city is home to nearly 7,000 incarcerated men. We spend seven cents out of every tax dollar on holding people in our jails, which is more than we spend on any other...