Steveawiggins

LATEST ARTICLES ( 4674 )

• Hidden Origins

  

  This blog was born at the very lake I’m about to leave. Although it’s relaxing, there’s an element of chaos to a family vacation that stirs up creativity. Read more

  Posted on 27 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Lions, Bears, and Caribou

  

  The place I’ve been spending this week is the habitat of grizzly bears, caribou, and mountain lions, none of which I’ve ever seen here. Two of these species vie... Read more

  Posted on 26 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Hearing Nature’s Voice

  

  Silence is a rare treat. I enjoy music and witty repartee just as much as the next guy, but silence is revelatory. At home and in hotels I sleep to the sound... Read more

  Posted on 25 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Traveling Unplugged

  

  Those who pay close attention, or who have nothing better to do in July, may have noticed that I missed a day posting on this blog on Saturday. That hasn’t... Read more

  Posted on 24 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• High Places

  

  I have gotten me away unto an high place. No, that’s no biblical, but it sure sounds psalm-like. Part of the anxiety I felt about the literary loss over the pas... Read more

  Posted on 23 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Written Resistance

  

  Power isn’t what you think it is. That’s something autocrats never really learn. Tod Davies explores this tale of our times in Report to Megalopolis, the... Read more

  Posted on 22 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Prelude to Chaos

  

  Liquids are the enemy. Don’t let the cuteness of this little guy fool you—there’s collusion here. For as well as creating life, and being necessary to sustain... Read more

  Posted on 20 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Religion in the City

  

  It’s 5 a.m., so what are all these people doing here? On the highway. It’s still dark and I’m on my way to the choice of public transit that will take me to... Read more

  Posted on 19 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Fair Weather

  

  “I just saw God up on your ridge.” (Kudos to anyone who can name the source of that quote!) Many years ago I read Stewart Guthrie’s remarkable Faces in the... Read more

  Posted on 18 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Starting Something

  

  Starting your own religion, I’m told, just takes patience. You may have to die before it gets off the ground, but if it’s a religion you’re starting you get to... Read more

  Posted on 17 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Not Final Words

  

  When death’s not the final word, it’s hard to argue. This is such a basic level of disagreement between religions and culture that it may be impossible to... Read more

  Posted on 16 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Not Quite Eschatology

  

  Realized eschatology, if you’ll pardon my French, is a term that describes the “already/not yet” aspect of the “end of the world. Read more

  Posted on 15 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Awakening

  

  Waking up for the first time in our new place, I felt a strange relief. I hadn’t realized how much you feel owned when you have a landlord. Read more

  Posted on 14 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Bitten by Religion

  

  The Essex Serpent isn’t what it appears to be. Sarah Perry’s debut American novel (although it’s her second elsewhere, publishing being the strange beast that i... Read more

  Posted on 13 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Paranormal Pilgrimages

  

  Although the Allegheny Mountains are hardly the Rockies—they’re much older and more gentle on the eye—they harbor many tourist locations. Read more

  Posted on 12 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Unnatural Connections

  

  The last time we moved internet service was just becoming an issue. When we first came to our Somerville apartment we had dial-up. Do you believe it? Read more

  Posted on 11 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Blogday

  

  Sects and Violence in the Ancient World is nine years old today. Not that I’m keeping count. Really, I’m not. WordPress sent me a notice, and they ought to know... Read more

  Posted on 10 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Net Worth

  

  —strange concept for a human being—is calculated on the basis of how much cash you’re “worth.” While on that lonely task of sorting through the attic, I came... Read more

  Posted on 09 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• The Moved Unmover

  

  To say it was an easy move would be a lie. I write this on a beautiful, cool, clear July morning. Only I can’t even calculate the last time I slept. Not new... Read more

  Posted on 08 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Moving Day

  

  So, it’s moving day. Amid all the packing and sorting—outside the regular 9 to 5—I realized that this was the first move I’ve made outside the constraints of... Read more

  Posted on 07 July 2018 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY