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Pain and Redemption, Loss and Hope: Ponderings on the Significance of the Resurrection
My earliest memories of Easter include new church dresses with hats and patton shoes, intense searches for plastic eggs with the rare $2 bill stuffed inside, and loads of Cadbury chocolate, complete with the resulting stomach-ache. The day came and went with a little bit of anticipation, but nominal impact on my day-to-day life. As I grew up, the cognitive recognition that Easter celebrated something important, something critical, something that all of reality hinges upon, was not lost on me. However, the disconnect between head and heart can sometimes keep the significance of an event at a distance. I would reflect on its importance for a moment, perhaps at a…
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“You’ll Shoot Your Eye Out!” A Lesson in Unfulfilled Longings
One of my favorite holiday movies is the 1983 film “A Christmas Story.” The plot of this iconic film follows Ralphie, a young boy whose childhood will be complete once he acquires an official Red Ryder Carbine-Action Two-Hundred-Shot Range Model Air Rifle. Letting his desire be known to anyone who will listen, Ralphie's longing is repeatedly assailed by responsible adults all around: “You’ll shoot your eye out!”