Forget “Merry Christmas” – a more appropriate holiday greeting is “Be not afraid” (perhaps the response could be “Thank you. Nor you”)  Not only would this better capture the tone of the Christmas story, echoing the angel’s greetings to Mary, Joseph, and the shepherds, it would better address the emotional...

Back in 2002, I attended a prayer service where the topic was idolatry. At the end of the sermon, the presenter stepped away from the lectionary and bowed right at a vase of flowers on the altar before going back to his seat. It seemed fitting in a service focused...