My honeymoon with Catholicism’s newest pope is over. I’m done with getting all goosebumpy over Pope Francis and the tone he’s setting for his church. Read more.
DON'T MISS!
I've written hundreds and hundreds of posts over the years. To help you find your way to the best of the best, I've tagged my favorites "Don't Miss!" Scroll down here to find them.
Another way to locate Riffs on Life that you might enjoy is to click above on your favorite category – "My Ever-Changing Family," perhaps, or "Funny Button." You can also use the search box located way up top to hunt for stories by topic. There's fun reading at "garden," "aging," "kids" and, of course, "Jon."
Tori Isner, Poet: ‘You Are a Vehicle for Spirit’
Tori Isner is an adopted Lakota Sioux and — in my opinion — a poet. We’re honored, she says, “just to live, just to be.” Read more.
Weight Lifting Can Kill You — Shall I Email the News to My Weight-Lifting Son?
Weight lifting can kill you. Death by dead lift and dumbbell can sneak up on you long after you’ve put the weights back in the squat rack. Read more.
Author Don Lattin: Americans Are More Thoughtful About Religion Than We Think
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’
My Religion Newswriters Association colleague Kay Campbell says this about Wrestling with God: Stories of Doubt and Faith. Read more.
Dying Jesus . . . Dying Churches?
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.
Atticus Finch — Meet Mother Emanuel
“Go Set a Watchman” didn’t have a craft problem. It had a theme problem – in the character of a bigoted Atticus Finch. Read more.