the Declaration of Independence in modern English (July 4, 2009)This unusually lengthy gracEmail is political rather than spiritual .... Independence Day in the USA marks the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. Because of the Declaration's significance, and because of its elevated formal language, I thought it might be interesting to restate it in simple modern English.
Is America God's nation? (4th of July)A gracEmail subscriber asks whether the United States is God's nation in any special sense, and whether Americans as such can claim God's Old Testament promises to Israel as his covenant people.
tax-time, God and Caesar (April 15)"In view of governmental waste and funding of some projects which I consider immoral," someone asks, "can a Christian properly protest by refusing to pay income taxes on April 15?" (which is annual income tax day in the USA.)
God's flag still there? (Memorial Day 2010) This Monday, May 31, 2010 is Memorial Day here in the United States of America. Regardless of our antipathy to any
particular conflict or even to war in general, on this national day of remembrance we honor the sacrifices of the fallen, the injured, and the
families of them all. On Monday, patriotic music will fill the air. Some songs will highlight our country's natural beauty, others the virtues of its
diverse and often dissonant people. Our national anthem recounts the heroics and horrors of battle, including the observation that "the rockets'
red glare, the bombs bursting in air, gave proof through the night that our flag was still there." The words stimulate a question in another realm.
Just what, I wonder, "gives proof" to this world that God's kingdom is present?
in remembrance (Memorial Day 2009)On this Monday, May 25, 2009, Americans will celebrate Memorial Day (originally Decoration Day), by remembering all who have given their lives in the military service of our country. Estimates of war-deaths vary, but one source reports 1,321,000 American fatalities from 1775-2009, nearly half that number during the Civil War alone. . . Our hearts go out to them all this weekend as we recall their sacrifices.
what about halloween?"Last year some people in my church hosted a Halloween party," writes a gracEmail reader. ". . . I was very uncomfortable with the . . . pictures of witches, ghosts and demons. . . . People tell me this is harmless fun. Am I making too much of this?"
ThanksgivingThis Thursday, November 26, 2009, is Thanksgiving Day in the United States. This year, I particularly give thanks to God for salvation now and forever, and also, here on earth . . .
grace -- thanks -- full circle (Thanksgiving)This week we USAmericans celebrate Thanksgiving Day, arguably our favorite national holiday. This traditional harvest festival traces its roots to 1621 when the English settlers in Massachusetts Colony celebrated an abundant harvest with a four-day banquet and invited the Wampanoag Native People to join them as their guests. . . . (Many people around the world have . . . also enjoyed family and feasts -- leave it to the United States to hijack the day with football!)