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LIVE UNITED and a community that cares

Two weeks ago, the fourth edition of LIVE UNITED in Music took the stage, starring Michael Cavanaugh and the music of Billy Joel and Sir Elton John. It is hard to imagine a better combination of community, connection, and talent assembled in one place. That is exactly what happened on October 18 and has happened since 2019 when the vision of a signature community event came to life on October 12, 2019. Joined by local and national talents like Tess Marshall, Mallory Scoppa Gardner, Kimbo Reichley, Abby Traxler and new stars like Stephanie Nappi and Isabel Butters, LIVE UNITED in Music is ...

Ignore no more — Iran’s regime is too bad to succeed

The Oct. 7, 2023 invasion of Israel by some 6,000 Hamas gunmen has changed America’s political conversation in multiple respects. Who knew, for example, that there actually exists a pro-slaughter constituency on the far left and college campuses, at least when it comes to Jews, spawning chants by professed progressives of “We are Hamas! We are Hezbollah!”? Who imagined that, as a recent House Committee investigative report demonstrated, Harvard University officials who consider themselves moralists would email each other rejecting the use of the word “violent” to describe the ...

Should the Fed cut rates again?

If you’re like most Americans and you’re barely keeping up with your credit card bills, you’re not alone. The share of credit card balances that are past due reached the highest level ever in the first quarter of this year, according to data the Philadelphia Federal Reserve has tracked since 2012. When the Federal Reserve’s key interest rate falls, borrowing costs for consumers also fall, influencing the cost of financing purchases with credit cards, car loans, and personal loans. Easing borrowing costs can be the difference between businesses choosing to hire new workers or ...

Society needs therapy — better therapy

Our local school board voted down a social-emotional learning curriculum. My feelings about this are mixed. Social-emotional learning integrates lessons of morality and getting along with others into the variety of classes many students take. This makes some sense. Schools have our children for the best hours of their days and such lessons of self-and-other awareness are necessary for growing up. The home is the best place for these lessons, but more often than we would like to think, it is not happening. In fact, parents can be very destructive to their children. The board voted this ...

All the righteous of the world

Scripture tells us that all the righteous of the world have a share in the time to come. With Israel under constant rocket attack from terrorists and their sponsors, it sometimes feels to a Jew like we are alone in the world. Bob Dylan in his classic, Neighborhood Bully, wrote an ode to the Jews of Israel which is as current today as when it was written. The second verse of the song reads: The neighborhood bully he just lives to survive He’s criticized and condemned for being alive He’s not supposed to fight back, he’s supposed to have thick skin He’s supposed to lay ...

Deepest gratitude for our brave first responders and our caring community

On the evening of Wednesday, October 23rd, life at Calvary Baptist Church changed forever. Our weekly Prayer Group and Bible Study had just ended, and by 7:45 p.m., the church stood empty. But just 20 minutes later, the unimaginable happened—a fire broke out in the very building where we’ve worshiped, prayed, and served for generations. As a volunteer firefighter for over 45 years, I know the swift, life-altering impact of that call for help. But nothing prepared me for being on the other side of the flames—standing not as a firefighter, but as a pastor, helplessly watching the ...