This Is Our Time to Stand

On June Fourteenth, yet another heinous act of violence took place and staggered the nation. After allegedly taking months of planning, a shooter assassinated a Minnesota lawmaker and her husband and attempted as well to kill a second state elected politician. The murder spree unfolded over a roughly ninety-minute time span. The suspect, 57-year-old Vance … Read more

The Hardest Moral Task We Face

We are now in the season of Pentecost, remembering what it was like that day in Jerusalem when tongues of fire rested on the disciples, and ‘devout Jews from every nation under heaven and living in Jerusalem’ created a clash of languages. Out of the many, however, there came forth one that each understood. Peter … Read more

Pentecost People- Revisited

brucejjohnson_pentecost2025

As was indicated in my last blog, I find myself in a nostalgic place these days, reflecting on how blessed I have been in my life by so many “connections, gatherings and a sense of community,” all a part of a powerful, shared story. (Jean Houston) Today’s blog post reflects that sense of nostalgia. Its … Read more

The Secret Sauce

brucejjohnson-connection

Over the years, Lois and I have dabbled in doing diets. We tried the Atkins Diet, the South Beach Diet, the Mediterranean Diet, Intermittent Fasting, and our most go-to diet, WW (formerly, Weight Watchers.) I was saddened by the news last week that Weight Watchers was filing for bankruptcy, a victim of the new and … Read more

Salt of the Earth and Light of the World

The following biblical verses are recognized for their inspirational and affirmational qualities within the scripture.  One day Jesus gathered his disciples on a mountainside and preached to them about the kingdom of God and how to find a sense of blessedness in the way they live their lives.  These few lines, simple and straight forward, … Read more

The Boys in the Boat

The ‘snow birding’ Johnsons returned home from Florida last Friday to their lakefront retreat, much to the chagrin of the geese who obviously had their way with our property for the winter months. The grass was green and needed a mow. Tree branches, winter’s debris, were strewn all over the lawn, but the white dogwood … Read more

The Legacy of Pope Francis

Some of you may remember that one of my first Blog Posts was made on January 21, 2025. The title was Never Forget, Never Again, and I wrote it in observance of the International Holocaust Remembrance Day, January 27, 2025, the eightieth anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. In his remarks on the day of … Read more

A Message for Easter: We Are Back On!

Easter scene with cross. Jesus Christ. Watercolor vector illustration

There is a resounding line from the Palm Sunday account of Jesus’ entry into all the commotion and conflict in Jerusalem that never gets silenced. As Luke presents it in chapter nineteen, the crowds, filled with factions, are going crazy. One of my favorite Palm Sunday hymns is called The Palms, composed by Jean-Baptista Faure, … Read more

The Holy Week Narrative

Lois was more of a fan of the television series Yellowstone than I, (she wants a “Don’t Get Beth Dutton-ed” coffee mug), but together, we are keen on the prequels, “1883” and “1923,” the last episode of which dropped on April 6, 2025.  We loved the character of Elsa in “1883” and were brokenhearted to … Read more

“A Tradition Unlike Any Other” (Jim Nantz)

It is the week of the ‘Masters’ at Augusta National Golf Course in Augusta, Georgia. professional golf’s most prestigious tournament. The Golf Channel broadcasts daily a show called “Live from the Masters,” which includes interviews, analyses, and statistically projected outcomes. Lois and I were lucky enough to have landed tickets twice, once for Wednesday’s “Family … Read more