justice

January 25, 2025

The gospel and Mr. Trump

For some, the work of Christmas ended when they put the tree on the curb and the decorations back in their boxes and finished their gift returns. But for those who take the gospel of Jesus Christ seriously, for those who take the name of the Lord – Christian – not in vain but authentically Continue reading

Ruminations

Bishop Budde, Howard Thurman, inaugural address, justice, Mariann Edgar Budde, mercy, Mike Collins, National Prayer Service, peace, President Trump, the gospel of Jesus Christ, The Work of Christmas, the year of the Lord’s favor, Thump’s inauguration
September 18, 2023

Love in difficult conversations

To love someone, to be in authentic relationship with someone, is to value that person. It is to recognize that person as having an essential, indispensable role to play in God’s ongoing creation, even if I don’t have a clue what that role might be. It’s to recognize that without that person, I can never Continue reading

Ruminations

agreement, Christian love, community, differences, difficult conversations, disagreement, divisions, factions, gospel, inquiry, inquisition, Irshad Manji, Jeremiah, justice, kingdom of heaven, law of God, law of life, Listening, namaste, new covenant, opinions, peace, reconciliation, reign of God, table of grace
June 11, 2023

Three simple rules

“If the foundations are destroyed,” the psalmist wondered, “what can the righteous do” (Ps. 11:3)? It’s not an idle question; it’s a pressingly relevant question for today. After surveying a range of opinions about the state of the nation, New York Times staff writer Katherine Miller last December wrote, “There’s an argument that this is Continue reading

Ruminations

anarchy, democracy is crumbling, do good, do no harm, doing things with great love, foundations, fullness of life, great love, Hosea, justice, Katherine Miller, kindness, knowledge of God, living in anarchy, Micha, rebuilding national life, relationship, religion, Saint Teresa, social disintegration, stay in love with God, steadfast love, walk with God, worries
July 24, 2022

Teach us to pray

One of Jesus’ disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1). If there’s ever a time when we need to learn how to pray, this is it. Following every mass shooting, as predictable as sunrise, the comments come, mostly from politicians and public officials, about communities being in their “thoughts and prayers.” Continue reading

Ruminations

a precarious life, Anne Lamott, community, effective prayer, God at the ceneter, healing, Help, ineffective prayer, Jabez, justice, living in community, Make America Great Again, make the nation great again, Our Father in heaven, peace, prayer, prayer for shooting victims, prayer of Jabez, prayer of Jesus, precarious, principles of prayer, relationship with God, Thanks, the Lord's prayer, thoughts and prayers, to pray, transformation, transforming prayer, what is prayer?, Wow

About Me

Rich Neal is, in no particular order, a wordsmith and graphic designer; lover of typography, books, and publishing; photographer; contemplative; saunterer; and a retired and still-active pastor. He claims neither special wisdom nor particularly deep insight into life, only occasional glimpses of what lies behind the veil along the way. He shares them here in the hope of connecting the pieces of life’s puzzle that come to him in the journey and would consider it a gift if sharing them also connected him with others who travel an unmarked path toward the same unknown end.

justice

The gospel and Mr. Trump

Love in difficult conversations

Three simple rules

Teach us to pray