"Every person is a sacred mystery." A few years back, Ron Austin caught my attention with this little statement in a brief talk at Act One: Screenwriting for Hollywood. He was reminding us that each person has an essential beauty and mystery, and that to see each person we meet as sacrament is to heighten the …
Hunting for Books: Lead Me To A Good One
There were hundreds of books, and as always, the stakes were high. But you can't think about it that way. Who wants to remember that every single time you read a book, you--and the world--change? Choosing a book is like choosing anything these days. There are uncountable choices, and we are given that crazy …
Counting on the Sublime
The word "sublime" came across the Facebook news feed this morning. I fell in love with "the sublime" in an old treatise, either 1st or 3rd century CE, attributed to a Greek tradition calls Longinus. On the Sublime lifted me into the ether of literary contemplation back in graduate school, and I've been on the …
Going to the End
Run past the finish line, I was told. Endings are better than beginnings, a wise man said. Finish well, the old saying goes. Problem is, beginnings come much easier to me. Maybe to all of us. When watching actors audition, there is a moment I wait for, look for, anticipate with great hope. It's the …
How to Pray
The disciples wondered how to pray, and asked Jesus to teach them. The gospel of Matthew records the version of Jesus' reply we know as The Lord's Prayer. Simple, direct, covers all the bases; praise, petition, and ascribing appropriate glory. Paul says plainly, "Pray continually" or more famously, "without ceasing." And …
JEFF BERRYMAN 