Category Archives: ways of knowing

Unnatural Acts

Posted on April 2, 2013 by hessd

In the war currently being waged about gay rights (are there any?), there are people who say there is nothing at all wrong with homosexuality and people who say there is everything wrong with it.  It almost goes without saying … Continue reading →

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It’s Providential. And That’s the Bad News.

Posted on February 17, 2013 by hessd

“What luck!” says the woman with the secular vocabulary.  “No,” says the man whose mouth is full of theology, “It’s providential.”  Does that exchange make any sense at all? Yes and No, I would say, if asked.  (On a blog, … Continue reading →

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What is God like?

Posted on January 28, 2013 by hessd

This is one of those “Why is the grass green?” kinds of questions.  I do want to try to answer it in the third of the pieces that make up this blog, but I have two prior questions. The first … Continue reading →

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The Value of Routines in a Marriage

Posted on January 4, 2013 by hessd

I have been a husband for a long time now and I have learned something about being married.  At the very least, I have learned something about being a husband in the kind of marriage I want to have.  Just … Continue reading →

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What We Know About God

Posted on December 30, 2012 by hessd

On Christmas, the New York Times published this op-ed piece by Maureen Dowd.  It is, in fact, a reflection by Father Kevin O’Neil.  Dowd asked him if he could write something that reflected his faith and his practice in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Theology, ways of knowing | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

The Gospel According to Gupta

Posted on October 23, 2012 by hessd

The question that has been on my mind for the last several weeks is this: “What do we mean when we say that a story is true?”  Is it just an old-fashioned way of saying that it is accurate?  I … Continue reading →

Posted in Biblical Studies, Movies, ways of knowing | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Walter Possum’s Apprenticeship

Posted on August 20, 2012 by hessd

If our fathers are around, we learn from them.  That’s pretty much how it goes.  We learn good things and bad things.  We learn character and settled habits and gestures and verbal tics the father himself doesn’t even know about. … Continue reading →

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Robots are better than anything

Posted on June 22, 2012 by hessd

Not, as in the earlier post, “better than nothing.”  Let me say up front that this whole “social robot” thing scares me.  It’s creepy, but the path to there from here is lit up like a strip with landing lights. … Continue reading →

Posted in Living My Life, Love and Marriage, Paying Attention, ways of knowing | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

My Father’s Magic and How He Worked It

Posted on June 17, 2012 by hessd

When I was in my 20’s, I had the rare privilege of watching my father teach an adult Sunday School class, using abysmally bad materials.  The classes were a lot better than the materials.  That puzzled me. I got the … Continue reading →

Posted in Getting Old, Living My Life, ways of knowing | Tagged | 2 Comments

Squeaky Clean Hearts and Teeth

Posted on June 15, 2012 by hessd

The pivot point of today’s reflection is going to be squeaky clean hair (point 1) and “you can tell it’s working by the tingle” toothpaste (point 2).  After that, all bets are off but this might be the time to … Continue reading →

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