Embassies and consulates are a country’s storefront. In them, nations typically endeavor to put their best foot forward because they know that these outposts not only represent their country, but are quite probably all that most will ever see of it. The idea is to impress, to make a statement Read more…
“Go about this trip confidently and being friendly, but never betraying yourself as a first timer [to Nigeria],” my friend, Jwan Zhumbes, the Anglican Bishop of Bukuru, had warned me. “Do not ask questions that will sell you off as someone who has never been here before … And answer, Read more…
Yesterday, my last day in Nigeria, began uneventfully. A rooster in a field near the house where I am staying awakened me as usual. Unfortunately, it was his habit to awaken me several times during the night. I am convinced he is blind and has no idea when it is Read more…
In his introduction to The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis, who very much believed in an unseen spirit world, wrote: There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an Read more…
At this moment, I am on a flight following the spine of the Andes northward from Santiago, Chile to Lima, Peru. Running some 4,300 miles, the Andes are the longest continuous mountain range in the world. Looking out on the endless snowcapped peaks, I am reminded of the 90s film, Alive. Read more…
“Don’t go. I swore I would never go back there,” came the voice of my friend Jay Smith on a trans-Atlantic Skype call. “I’ve been in over sixty countries. I’ve been all over Africa. I lived there, and I’ve never felt unsafe the way I did in that country. There is something Read more…
When a Christian foundation interviewed college nonbelievers about how and why they left religion, surprising themes emerged. LARRY ALEX TAUNTON BRIAN SNYDER / REUTERS “Church became all about ceremony, handholding, and kumbaya,” Phil said with a look of disgust. “I missed my old youth pastor. He actually knew the Bible.”I Read more…
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Being a sports fan these days almost requires a law degree. What with all the legal troubles of athletes, who can keep up? Lawyers certainly have the edge in the fantasy leagues. The rest of us keep one on retainer. Still, even they might have some difficulty predicting outcomes. Will Read more…