In this Sunday's gospel the people ask Jesus for a sign they can "see and believe in." Beleaguered homeowners and businesses waiting for a sign that recovery in the troubled housing market is near may have received it: The U.S. Commerce Department reported Monday that new home sales in the U.S. rose in June by the largest amount in more than eight years.

The Lord promises to "rain down bread from heaven," says the reading from the Book of Exodus this Sunday. As water levels drop precipitously in Texas, the nation's most drought-stricken state, people are just praying it will rain.

". . . . Put away the old self of your former way of life" is the counsel in this Sunday's reading from the Letter to the Ephesians. In a signal that the U.S. is putting aside old ways of relating to Cuba, its diplomatic mission in Havana has turned off a news ticker critical of the Cuban government that has angered Cuban leaders since it was turned on ...

In the context of a harsh wilderness existence, it made sense to praise God for sending food from heaven "in abundance," as the psalmist does this Sunday. But in the context of affluent America, abundant food and poor eating and exercise habits have resulted in a tripling of the rate of severe childhood obesity in the U.S. in the past quarter century.

"We went down into the dungeons where the captives were held. There was a church above one of the dungeons, which tells you something about saying one thing and doing another."

According to a new Gallup poll, only 30 percent of Americans thought the Federal Reserve was doing an excellent to good job, the lowest rating among nine U.S. government agencies survey respondents were asked about.