Larry's Page

I grew up in the church. My mother was (and remains) a devout Lutheran. I remember her taking me to church when I was quite little. I sat patiently in the pew, not really sure what was going on. But I received sound instruction in Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, Bible Camp and Luther League. I sang in the youth choir and I was an acholyte. I never attained Eagle Scout, but I earned my Pro Deo et Patria (God and Country) badge. Even when I was in high school, I'd stay out until 3 AM… Continue

I promised I'd tell folks a story about my wife if I got sufficient response to a question I asked on the Forum.

First, a kind of a warm-up while I waited for the returns to come in.

Before Brenda became a novelist she worked for a relatively prestigious newsletter put out by the Research Institute of America, back in the day when their newsletter came out in p… Continue

It is important to be skeptical of what science tells us.

We got back from Good Friday service at our church about an hour ago. It was a somber time. The holy table is stripped of all its furnishings and draped with a black sash. In place of the usual cross we have two logs lashed together. The processional cross is draped in black. The choir processed in in silence, and a the end of the service we filed out silently in the dark.

The first scripture reading was from Isaiah 52 and 53. The gospel was the crucifixion passage from Luke. The congregation d… Continue

I will be observing Lent this year. I am an Anglican. We’re a liturgical church that celebrates various seasons of the church year. On Ash Wednesday we will be given this charge from the Book of Common Prayer:

"The first Christians observed with great devotion the days of our Lord’s passion and resurrection, and it became the custom of the Church to prepare them by a season of penitence and fasting. The season of Lent provided a time in which converts to the faith were prepared for Holy Baptism… Continue