When I taught ESL (to adults), one of the things I liked to spend at least a few minutes on as they rolled around every year were American holidays. Most holidays are fairly simple to describe and explain, but Halloween is not one of them. I tried a couple of times to look at theContinue reading “Changing Halloween Traditions”
Category Archives: Christian Apologetics
A Tale of Three Churches
I recently had conversations with two brothers from another church in my community about the lockdowns during COVID, specifically regarding church closures in our state (California). This caused me to think more about the responses of their church, my own church, and another church (also in our community) to the lockdown directives. To begin with,Continue reading “A Tale of Three Churches”
Conversations about Other Beliefs
I was born in 1960 and grew up in a monolithic belief system. My father was a pastor in a small town (~600 people) where many people attended church, as did farmers who lived nearby. Even among people who didn’t, it seemed that most of them had an underlying, unspoken respect for the Bible, evenContinue reading “Conversations about Other Beliefs”
Watch Your Language!
It has been my impression over the years that foul language of various kinds has been increasing, especially among younger generations. A couple of recent incidents–one I overheard that was profoundly wonderful and another that I heard about on the news that was profoundly disturbing–prompted me to research the use of profanity and people’s attitudesContinue reading “Watch Your Language!”
Changing Language, Changing Perceptions
Euphemisms are a common, indirect way to refer to something that many people would consider unpleasant or embarrassing. For example, unemployed people might say that they are “between jobs.” Another euphemism that I recently came across for unemployment that made me laugh is “embarking on a journey of self-discovery.” A common euphemism for a past-dueContinue reading “Changing Language, Changing Perceptions”
To the Remnant 