Spirituality & Health

A Kid Shucking Corn: Meditations on Being Present

My mother is a true-blue Midwestern farm girl, born and raised on an 80-acre homestead north of Detroit. We visited the farm often when I was a child, and even though most of the l…

Spirituality & Health

Pewless in Seattle

Americans love God, but according to the new Barna Group survey on religion in America, we don’t care to visit him all that often. According to Barna, while the number of Americans…

Spirituality & Health

Crossing the Threshold

There is a point at which things happen. Water in a teakettle must reach 100o C (at sea level) before it will boil. The air temperature must drop below 0o C before rain will turn…

Spirituality & Health

Pretty? Pay Up!

I’m not wealthy, nor did I ever think I would be, but I always felt I should have more money then I do. Now I know why I don’t: I’m not pretty. According to University of Texas ec…

Spirituality & Health

This Can Never Work For Me!

In this week’s discussion at our local meditation group, we finished up Chapter 4 in Goldstein’s One Dharma, the sections on prayer and on doubt. These generated a lot of interest,…

Spirituality & Health

Avoid Future Disappointment and Regret

I love watching television. I find it both entertaining and educational. Just the other day I was watching a commercial for gold-plated faux $50 coins and learned that by buying to…

Spirituality & Health

If I Had 1,000 Terrorists

“I would waterboard 1,000 terrorists to save one American life.” That’s what the bumper sticker read on the Ford Bronco driving in front of me this afternoon. It was a compelling …

Spirituality & Health

Are You Afraid of God?

Are you afraid of God? Millions of Americans seem to be. Their fear is tied to their belief in eternal damnation in Hell. The Hebrew Bible, the Christian Old Testament, knows nothi…

Spirituality & Health

5 Ways to Engage in Beneficial "Body Play"

Don’t think of exercise as a chore; instead, think of it as “body play.” Here are a few ideas to get you started on shifting that mindset, and making exercise more joyful: 1. Be l…

Spirituality & Health

Exercise: Body Play That Benefits the Soul

A patient came to see me for the first time recently. He arrived on foot, having run from his home several miles away. As it happens, this individual runs a fair amount. I do, too.…

Spirituality & Health

Religion By the Numbers

According to a study by University of Nebraska-Lincoln professor Philip Schwadel, the higher one’s level of education is, the broader and more liberal one’s religious beliefs becom…

Spirituality & Health

Jews Are Cool. Judaism? Not So Much.

Jews are cool. Not all of us, of course, but many. Some are humanist and some are Hasidic— being cool isn’t a denominational thing. It is a matter of being at home with yours…