Jim’s Blog

Most of us may not want to admit it but we like being in control. Overlooking the constant impact of that which we can’t control (like our autonomic nervous system, our internal organ function, our general genetic makeup, etc, etc) we flatter ourselves with our self discipline, fitness and diet values, money management, social interactions, […]

I’m sitting by our fireplace in early morning with my Bible and a coffee. As the fire crackles I’m listening to a playlist of sacred music on Spotify. A group of nuns are singing the beautiful Prayer of St.Patrick by Margaret Rizza: “Calm Me Lord as You Calmed the Storm”. The lyrics are powerful: “Calm […]

Recently as I was researching the comments of Jewish rabbis on the biblical book of Genesis I came across a treatise on what one of them called,”The power of return”. His thesis was that God places a high value on repentance. His grace is catalyzed by the sinner who confesses and then turns his back […]

As Los Angeles fires raze entire neighborhoods, the Middle East balances on a razor’s edge, Sudan’s millions face impending starvation, and America swears in a new/old president, we wonder what 2025 will bring. In the vortex of constant change we long for some sort of relief, a return to a semblance of equilibrium, a glimmer […]

The new year has come. Who knew we’d see 2025? I remember the prophets of doom warning that the 21st century might never come to pass. Now we’ve already lived a quarter century in this millennium. And, even though there are crises of magnitude everywhere, our world is still turning and there is hope. Nevertheless […]

I’m writing today (Christmas Eve) in the beautiful Laurentian Mountains of Quebec. We’re at the home of one of our sons. It’s snowing with about a metre already guaranteeing a white Christmas. It’s an idyllic setting. Our 12 grandchildren range in age from 24 to 8 and when we’re all together it’s raucous and fun […]

Christmas for millions around the globe is the highlight of the year. “Peace on earth, goodwill to men” springs from the intuitive knowledge of God that we all possess. There is an upward call in our souls. This may be the impetus throughout the ages to build churches with a steeple causing us to look […]

There’s a lot to be said in terms of this era of the internet in which we live. Information, communication, and interaction globally is literally at our fingertips, our computers and smartphones connecting us instantly to the world. Indeed no generation in history has been so connected. The downside, of course, is that we’re also […]

I’m writing this brief blog on November 11th, the day when the free world remembers the fallen in two world wars and scores of regional conflicts. For many of us who are a bit younger than those who participated in battle it seems surreal as we hear accounts of the personal horrors that they went […]