Russell E. Saltzman

Ah, the winsome sounds of a grandson in meltdown sweep up to my study and inspire this reflection. I did not find it quite so irritating, I do not think, when the child that became his mother was doing the same thing at age four. In any case, he is learning: The sufferings of life begin early… . Continue Reading »

A Utah state senator, Aaron Osmond (10th District, Jordan), has proposed eliminating compulsory public school education. He is a member of the senate’s education appropriations committee. Critics suggest”among other things”that he is out to reduce the billions of taxpayer dollars required for public education. (He is also a nephew of Marie and Donnie Osmond, but that is unrelated to his political life in service to furthering Utah education endeavors.) In any case, we should look at his idea. Sen. Osmond complains that compulsory education… Continue Reading »

Now I find I am in that generation, according to someone from his generation, still using Facebook. Doesn’t everyone use Facebook? No, turns out, his generation doesn’t. Facebook was okay “for its time” but he and his crowd are turning to Twitter… . Continue Reading »

Vacation brought us this year to Washington, D.C. We went monument hunting in the dark. One can visit a lot of national monuments after hours: no crowds, no tourist trams, no hawkers, plus I could try my hand at night photography (hope you don’t mind if I show a couple results, dedicated to Lincoln and King). Take care where you park your automobile, however… . Continue Reading »

I know I do it, but not as often as I ought. That might explain why I can’t figure out how to explain it to anyone else: how to forgive someone. Clearly, though, forgiveness”the Christian sort”comes in different shades, because the reasons for its necessity are equally shaded … Continue Reading »

Oh, the things we endure for the sake of familial love: a snoring spouse, the clutter of children, an opinionated sister-in-law, and graduation ceremonies. Graduation exercises are a lot of things, but mostly they are boring. I challenge anyone who has ever been to a graduation to say otherwise… . Continue Reading »

My fourth son’s Afghanistan deployment ceremony was in March. It has taken me a while to sort through my still incomplete thoughts. We missed the actual ceremony. An overnight Kansas City snowstorm dropped eight inches over the seventy-five mile route to Warrensburg, Missouri, where it was held. … Continue Reading »

Well, I think we can pack up this Christian thing and take the rest of the day off. That’s if what Charles Freeman writes in A New History of Early Christianity can be believed. Freeman’s book (2009) received only a brief review from First Things… . Continue Reading »

Hello, senior seminarians everywhere. You are among the slew of new pastors soon to be unleashed upon unsuspecting congregations and parishes all across America. The Church of Christ trembles with excitement… . Continue Reading »

When Martin Luther began work on his Small Catechism in 1528, he intended to include a section on what he called the “theology of the cross,” a theologia crucis in contrast to a “theology of glory,” theologia gloriae. Luther thought this contrast so important that he planned to include a special section explaining it. … Continue Reading »