When U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright was interviewed in May 1996 on CBS 60 Minutes news program, reporter Leslie Stahl spoke this comment and question: "We have heard that a half million c… — anonymous
by Ken Sehested
Last fall one of our local journalists, who has an “answer man” column devoted to readers’ questions, was asked about hospitalization insurance coverage, particularly why some of the services received were covered by 
insurance but others (the ones in small print about “out-of-network” exceptions) were not.
The hospital president wrote an explanation. This was my response.
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’Neath the canyons of vengeance
lies the valley of bones.
Many bones. Dry bones.
Bleached by remorse and hope’s demise.
Child of Eden’s failure and Noah’s fortune.
Forsaken.
Forgotten.
Forlorn.
Signs of the Times • 14 March 2017 • No. 112
¶ Processional. “Feast of St. Brigid of Kildare,” O’hAnleigh.
by Ken Sehested
Thanks to our recent presidential election, more people know the meaning of “misogyny.” As with so many lingering patterns of structural discrimination (which is different from, and far worse than, simple prejudice), gender inequity remains even in societies considered culturally “advanced.”
Within the Judeo-Christian world, resistance to gender equity has deep roots in Scripture and church history. While it is true that alternative texts and traditions can be identified in these sources, it is still imperative that we openly confront and address the elemental texts and pretexts authorizing overt and covert patterns of domination.
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The only way I know to pluck from the hearts of enemies their desire
to destroy us is to remove from their lives the sense that, for their own physical
and spiritual survival, they must. —David James Duncan
In the early weeks of 2011, during the Arab Spring uprising, Egyptian blogger Nevine Zaki posted a photograph from Cairo’s Tahrir Square. It showed a group of Muslims bowing in prayer, surrounded by other people standing hand-in-hand, facing outward, a human security wall. Zaki affixed this caption: “A picture I took yesterday of Christians protecting Muslims during their prayers.” [1]
Read more ›Signs of the Times • 3 March 2017 • No. 111
¶ Processional. “The Prayer of the Refugee,” Rise Against.
by Ken Sehested
“If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross, and follow me.”
—Mark 8:34
“I like my Bible tales, like Scotch, straight up. . . .”
—U.S. poet Maxine Kumin
by Ken Sehested
Years ago I preached a Lenten sermon in the form of a defiant open letter to God.
“Dear God. I’ll be brief. Like sucks. And, with all due respect, what does that make you, you being the author of life and all?
Signs of the Times • 23 February 2017 • No. 110
¶ Processional. “Create In Me a Clean Heart (Psalm 51),” Thingamakid children’s choir, Jacobs Jewish Summer Camp.
I pulled together my list of favorite songs about immigrants and refugees, shared it with some friends, got additional titles, for this chart of 26 songs (in no particular order). —Ken Sehested
• “Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor,” Irving Berlin, using lyrics from Emma Lazarus’ poem, performed by The Zamir Chorale
• “City of Immigrants,” Steve Earle
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