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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
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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.

Author Don Lattin: Americans Are More Thoughtful About Religion Than We Think

August 13, 2015 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 5 Comments

As part of the THIRST temporary art installation, hundreds of prayer flags hang from the circular path from the pedestrian bridge down to Lady Bird Lake in Austin. Photo by BF Newhall

Religion writer Don Lattin says there’s more to religion in America than atheists vs. fundamentalists. The real story is less alarming and much more interesting. Read more.

Journalist Kay Campbell: ‘WWG Bows to the Enduring Mystery of the Universe’

August 6, 2015 By Barbara Falconer Newhall Leave a Comment

Barbara Falconer Newhall's book Wrestling with God: Stories of Doubt and Faith on sale at Book Passage bookstore, Corte Madera, California. Photo by Barbara Newhall

My Religion Newswriters Association colleague Kay Campbell says this about Wrestling with God: Stories of Doubt and Faith. Read more.

Does Islam Scare You? If So, Here’s Why

July 30, 2015 By Barbara Falconer Newhall Leave a Comment

Intricate blue, red and white tiles decorate the wall of a mosque in Istanbul. Does Islam scare you?  Photo by Barbara Newhall

It’s the puritanical Wahhabi Muslims and their global proselytizing efforts that are giving Islam a bad name. Here’s how. Read more.

Dying Jesus . . . Dying Churches?

July 23, 2015 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 5 Comments

The flogging of Jesus Christ, and crucifixion, a painting at the Melk Abbey, Austria. Photo by Barbara Newhall

I saw a lot of Jesus in the old European churches I visited last month. Sad to say, in church after church, Jesus was almost always dead or dying. Read more.

Was That Old Testament God Just Trying to Keep Us in the Game?

June 11, 2015 By Barbara Falconer Newhall Leave a Comment

Monopoly game board.. As played by that Old testament God?

The fiery, judgmental God of the Old Testament and Hebrew Scripture had a redeeming quality that he shared with my persistent little son Peter. Read more.

At Orinda Books: The Author Talked — And So Did the Audience

May 17, 2015 By Barbara Falconer Newhall Leave a Comment

Author Barbara Falconer Newhall and interviewee Sister Barbara Hazzard gave a book talk at Orinda Books in Orinda, California, May 16, 2015. Photo by Jon Newhall

It was an afternoon of lively interaction between author, audience, and Sister Barbara Hazzard, who read from the story she tells in “Wrestling with God.” Read more.

Coleman Barks and Rumi — What a Few Lines of Poetry (and a Witch) Taught me

May 9, 2015 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 2 Comments

A trail alongside Bon Tempe Lake in Marin county, California. Photo by Barbara Newhall

I’d always imagined Coleman Barks to be a stern scholarly type — till I emailed him for permission to use a few lines from his Rumi translations in my book. Read more.

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ON THE FUNNY SIDE

Widowed: He’s Pushing Up a Daisy

widowed: he's pushing up a daisy california-native-erigeron-daisies

I checked in on Jon the other day and I found him right where we’d buried him. He was pushing up a daisy. Just one.  Read more.

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Tw0-year-old girl giggles with bottle in crib. Photo by BF Newhall

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