( To GIVE CLICK HERE ) “It is a world of magic and mystery, of deep darkness and flickering starlight. It is a world where terrible things happen and wonderful things too.  ...." ( see below Buechner's conclusion...) It's the end of the year; the time most people think about giving to nonprofits and charity.                                 Ukraine is always on my mind. Every essay, news story, novel I read, every film I watch, lyric I listen to, speech I give, or sermon I rea

(Above, Drone attack at night, Daybreak and a ship on fire. Below that, anniversary roses on the kitchen window, in the distance, the ship on fire) ADVENT IN A TIME OF WAR  The Church has a calendar; there are seasons. They begin with Advent, the four Sundays and weeks prior to Christmas morning. The word Advent means “coming” or “arrival,” and by implication: waiting. The calendar is liturgical; it presents the church, and, of course, the preacher, with a selection of Biblic