Anita Mathias's Blog on Faith and Art
I love Scandinavian summers, the evenings of late, late light, wading in or sitting around the lakes, with their characteristic red cottages on shore. Tuomiokirkko, Helsinki, the Lutheran church, a mass of domes Seurasaari island. The beauty of … [Continue reading]
I more or less decided to buy our house, after seeing pictures of it online: it had 9 of the 10 things I was praying for. And one of these was a massive garden. Much to my husband’s annoyance, when we viewed the house, I asked to see the garden … [Continue reading]
Arent de Gelder 1645-1727 Three white-clad men walk out of the desert, out of the shimmering sands. Calm holiness. Abraham, the Patriarch, “very wealthy in silver and gold, sheep and cattle and camels and male and female donkeys, menservants … [Continue reading]
So Bill Gothard, who taught 2.5 million people his 32 hour Bible course, is widely accused of sexual harassment, but wealthy Christians attribute their family and business success to him. 2.5 million people study the Bible for 32 hours! Despite … [Continue reading]
Image Credit Our family was discussing a writer who has done paradigm-breaking innovative work. "Is she a Christian?" my daughter Irene asked. “Yes. She’s a Christian. With a small C, I’d guess.” "What's that?” Irene asked. "Hmm… Someone … [Continue reading]
Image Credit I read a striking essay this week. Two women counsellors listened to my story. I was prayed for very gently. I was encouraged to forgive all the people I felt had done me real or imaginary hurts throughout my life. It took a long … [Continue reading]
In Creative Writing graduate school in the US, reading of the scandalous, chaotic and pain-filled private lives of the American poets whose luminous poetry I loved, I naively asked the professor if he thought one needed to be a good man or … [Continue reading]
Image Credit Penelope Swithinbank, an Anglican spiritual director and retreat leader, once told me an excellent way to get over the hump of forgiveness. Like many people, I can struggle to forgive for years, for decades, re-injuring myself … [Continue reading]