Author Archives: watchwordsblog

At such a time as this it is easy for the tyrannical despiser of men to exploit the baseness of the human heart, nurturing it and calling it by other names. Fear he calls responsibility. Desire he calls keenness. Irresolution becomes solidarity. Brutality becomes masterfulness, Human weaknesses are played upon with unchaste seductiveness, so thatContinue reading “The Tyrannical Despiser…”

Jesus himself did not try to convert the two thieves on the cross; he waited until one of them turned to him. Dietrich Bonhoeffer Meditation: When Christians misunderstand the New Testament as “a marching order to convert everybody they meet to Christ”, this behavior often feels to those pursued as manipulative, boundary violating and obsessive.Continue reading “Jesus waited…”

If the people we love are stolen from us, the way to have them live on is to never stop loving them. James O’Barr Meditation: “There is nothing that can replace the absence of someone dear to us, and one should not even attempt to do so.  One must simply hold out and endure it. Continue reading “Never stop loving…”

Nothing that we despise in other men (women) is inherently absent from ourselves. We must learn to regard people less in the light of what they do or don’t do, and more in light of what they suffer. Dietrich Bonhoeffer Meditation: When I experience and don’t like certain traits and behaviors in others, it isContinue reading “Compassion…”

“We must be ready to allow ourselves to be interrupted by God.” Dietrich Bonhoeffer Meditation: Parenting is a journey of constant interruptions. Your kids wake you up at night. They call from school with a fever to be picked up. They hurt themselves, right when you try to get some work done. They cry when theContinue reading “Interrupted…”

Christianity stands or falls with its revolutionary protest against violence, arbitrariness, and pride of power, and with its plea for the weak. Christians are doing too little to make these points clear … Christendom adjusts itself far too easily to the worship of power. Christians should give more offense, shock the world far more, thanContinue reading “Christianity – Selling out?…”

You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today. Abraham Lincoln Meditation: Just as democracy in German more than eighty years ago, the democratic system in the US today experiences the perversion of basic ethical values as for example “decency”, “order” or “assumed values of right and wrong”. As we are watching theContinue reading “Responsibility…”

Where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, where ignorance prevails, and where any one class is made to feel that society is an organized conspiracy to oppress, rob and degrade them, neither persons nor property will be safe. Frederick Douglass Meditation: These days many people wake up in the middle of the night feelingContinue reading “Where Justice is denied…”

You can talk yourself into a good emotional state. I stop for a second, take a deep breath, and think about something that’s beautiful. A beautiful thought for me is cutting the umbilical cord for my child. I can guarantee you that your emotional state will change. Montel Williams Meditation: Life can be very stressful.Continue reading “Take a deep breath…”

I might sound audacious, but the Mahatma has been a great inspiration. He had the conviction to live with his beliefs in the face of total disbelief. R. Madhavan Meditation: We are living in times when our leaders embody a spirit of total disrespect, disinformation and disdain for moral and ethical values. As I amContinue reading “Those Who Inspire Us…”