At the advent of a new church year this Sunday we are treated to the prophet Isaiah’s poetic and inspiring promise of a world one day at peace. Events on the Korean peninsula this week suggest suggest that long-awaited day has not yet arrived. . . .

With the hour of salvation nearing, the reading from the Letter to the Romans this Sunday suggests we should “make no provision for the desires of the flesh.” An excerpt from an interview with Pope Benedict XVI has created a stir this week . . .

Jesus compares his generation’s lack of spiritual preparation to that of Noah’s, which was “marrying and giving in marriage” when the Flood struck. According to a new study, the rate of marriage for 20-somethings in the U.S. has dropped . . .

We rejoice with the psalmist this Sunday at the prospect of going “to the house of the Lord.” If your own travel plans take you through an airport this busy holiday weekend, . . .

Isaiah envisioned all the nations streaming toward the mountain of the Lord’s house. The Catholic Church and four U.S. Reformed churches were in the house of Lord together, at least for baptism, . . .

“The practice of gratefulness that I’m concerned with is grateful living. That means every moment of your life you practice gratefulness. You practice awareness that everything is gift [and] the only appropriate response is gratefulness.”

Because of the rising cost of corn and other feeds, the wholesale price of frozen turkeys in the U.S. last week jumped 28 percent from a year ago to an all-time high of $1.09 a pound.