I traveled to Israel recently with a joint Jewish-Christian group composed of seminary students, pastors, church and synagogue members, and their families. One of my most memorable moments was celebrating Sabbath led by our Rabbi. As the sun was setting on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount, we recited …
Embracing Time Limits (Part II)
In early 1991, I transferred to Shell Trading’s Houston office as the northeast gasoline trader. I noticed that many of the energy traders were carrying a small daily planner. Each page contained the same daily layout: a to-do list, appointment calendar, and note taking area. The notebook was filled …
Embracing Time Limits (Part I)
I was cruising the sunny Caribbean this week. The outdoor temperatures ranged from the low 70s to the low 80s. The mornings and evenings were perfect for outdoor dining. Even when the sun was most intense, one could retreat to a shady spot and be cooled by a sea breeze. This was my second Caribbean …
Old Age
This year, I changed from my employer’s health insurance to Medicare. For most of my life, I paid Medicare taxes out of my salary. Now I receive Medicare health insurance until I die. I also pay for supplemental health insurance provided by my employer. Because of my retirement income, the …
Family Advantage
Three months after retiring from a long career, I started seminary as a full-time student. I was required to attend first-year student orientation. Frankly, I really did not want to participate in orientation. I was in my mid-fifties and had not been inside a university classroom in almost thirty …
Immigrants
In 2004, my wife and I accepted new assignments in The Hague (Den Haag per the locals), the capital of The Netherlands. We worked there for two years, then repatriated back to the United States. We did not speak Dutch, but the Netherlanders spoke fluent English and the office language was English. …
Church Buildings
In late 1981, I transferred from my first professional assignment in Los Angeles to Kingwood, a planned community located northeast of downtown Houston. Friendswood Development Company (FDC), a subsidiary of Exxon Corporation, developed Exxon’s extensive fee acreage into an award-winning residential …
Abraham’s Children
Why can’t Israeli Jews and Arabs live peacefully? How do these two religions and cultures interact within the State of Israel? This is a different problem from that experienced by the West Bank Palestinians who are within the occupied West Bank, where the majority population is Muslim. In Israel, …
Shorashim
Why can’t Israeli Jews and Palestinians peacefully co-exist? This question was posed in my last blog during my visit a few weeks ago to the Hebron Tomb of the Patriarchs (Cave of Machpelah). This question incorporates more than 3,000 years of complex Middle East history. Migrations, wars, and …
Machpelah
I returned to Austin late evening four days ago from a two-week tour of Israel and Jordan. My wife and I joined a Seminary-sponsored tour of the Holy Land. Named “The Friendship Tour,” it was a joint Jewish-Christian tour. The tour leaders were Rabbi Neal Blumofe, who teaches Old Testament and …