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Barbara Falconer Newhall

Veteran journalist Barbara Falconer Newhall riffs on life as she knows it.

  • A CASE OF THE HUMAN CONDITION
  • MY EVER-CHANGING FAMILY
  • WRITING & READING
  • MY ROCKY SPIRITUAL JOURNEY
  • WIDOWED
  • FUNNY BUTTON

My Rocky Spiritual Journey

You don't have to be a big believer to find something interesting to read here . . . You'll find excerpts from the spiritual journeys of people I've met on the religion beat as well as reports of my own fraught encounters with religion and spirituality . . . as well as updates on my book, "Wrestling with God: Stories of Doubt and Faith," from Patheos Press.

Beauty Makes Me Happy — Why?

May 3, 2025 By Barbara Falconer Newhall Leave a Comment

Beauty-Makes-Me-Happy-Why? Omega-cabinetry-liberty-hardware

Beauty makes me happy — why? What is it about beauty that causes me to loose myself in it?  Read more.

Have Americans Forgotten That Humility is a Virtue?

April 19, 2025 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 6 Comments

feet-in-a-stream

Have Americans forgotten that humility is a virtue? A couple dozen Christians met at my church on Thursday for a reminder.  Read more.

The Human Need to Name Things — While Standing in a Patch of Weeds

February 8, 2025 By Barbara Falconer Newhall Leave a Comment

The Human Need to Name Things

We can’t help ourselves. We like to name things. We have a human need to name things, including the colors of the weeds in a weed patch.  Read more.

Huston Smith on the Most Important Thing You Can Do in 2025

January 4, 2025 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 2 Comments

huston-smith-most-important-thing-you-can-do-in-2025

After nearly a century devoted to the study of life and truth and the meaning of it all, religion scholar Huston Smith had some advice for his fans.  Read more.

Christmas Carols — Listen Here for the Real Thing

December 21, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 6 Comments

christmas carols  creche-san-miguel-mexico

Tired of the safe, watered-down Christmas music now playing in shopping malls? Try these Christmas carols, the real ones.  Read more.

Our Globalized, Multi-Faith World

November 30, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 6 Comments

globalized, multi-faith world, religion-bookshelf

We live in a globalized, multi-faith world. Can we respect and appreciate each other’s traditions and still hold on to our own dearly held convictions?  Read more.

Help ‘Wrestling with God’ Find Its Readers

November 23, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 4 Comments

wrestling-with-god-by-barbara-falconer-newhall-new-cover

“Wrestling with God” is a multi-faith book and a great gift for the upcoming holidays. It’s what our strife-ridden world needs right now.  Read more.

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LET’S CONNECT

ON THE FUNNY SIDE

Help! My Kids Aren’t Perfect After All

Little girl with broken arm & chicken pox marks. Photo by BF Newhall

The kids were still pre-schoolers at the time, and it had been another night of sleep deprivation for me. “Tell me it gets easier,” I said to my friend Nancy. “Well, actually it gets harder,” she replied. Nancy has a daughter three years older than Peter. She keeps me briefed on the parenting realities ahead. Read more.

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  • A Case of the Human Condition
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  • My Rocky Spiritual Journey

 
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TO MY READERS

Please feel free to share links to my posts with one and all and to quote briefly from them in your own writing, remembering, of course, to attribute the quote to me and to provide a link back to this site.

My Oakland Tribune columns, btw, are reprinted by permission of the Trib. With the exception of review copies of books, I do not accept ads or freebies of any kind. Click on the "Contact" button if you have questions. Enjoy!

 

DON’T MISS!

Displayed at the East Bay Heritage Quilters show "Voices in Cloth 2016" quilt show in Richmond, CA.. a detail of "Hopscotch," by Susan Fuller. Photo by Barbara Newhall.

East Bay Heritage Quilters — Quilts, Dazzling Quilts

The Pentwater Michigan marquee announces book talk by Barbara Falconer Newhall on her book, Wrestling with God. Photo by Barbara Newhall

My One-Woman Road Trip Begins — Grosse Pointe to Pentwater

A granite boulder in Yosemite's high country. Photo by BF Newhall.

Photo Op: Yosemite Rocks — And Sometimes It Rolls

baby-shoes-hidden-in-a-wall

What to Do With Those Battered Old Baby Shoes? Hide Them in a Wall, of Course

MORE DON'T MISS!

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