“Preaching is the communication of truth through a man to men. The human element is essential in it, and not merely accidental”
Phillips Brooks, The Joy of Preaching, p. 68
Discombobulated, In Other Words
“He sat down at his desk. It, like the rest of the office, was in tatters. If decorators had terms for this kind of thing, they would probably narrow it down to a choice between High Disheveled and Early Hand Grenade”
Ecochondriacs, p. 128
Ponder for a Minute
“The minister must grow. His true growth is not necessarily a change of views. It is a change of view”
Phillips Brooks, The Joy of Preaching, p. 66
A Pleasant Surprise
“Many ordinary folks have noticed that the onset of panic has the unfortunate effect of scattering their wits. Hugh, whose wits were usually scattered already, discovered much to his great surprise that his panic was out there gathering up all his wits, and helping them all to walk in a straight line”
Ecochondriacs, p. 127
A Critique on the Stringent Side
“‘There is a section in my chapter ten where I, um, critique a paper you submitted to The Journal of Climate Change.’ This was a polite way of putting it. Larry had actually gone through her paper with a weed whacker, the kind with metal blades”
Ecochondriacs, p. 118
Barely Almost
“It was not a hit-and-run, but rather an almost-hit-and-run-even-faster”
Ecochondriacs, p. 115
Like Bubble Gum and Rocky Road
“He had found out she was a Christian during his first visit to the office, which is why he was willing to ask her out, but Christians come in all flavors, and some of them wouldn’t pair nicely with the flavor that Larry knew himself to be”
Ecochondriacs, p. 114
With a Scar on His Cheekbone
“Del looked around the room like he was about to see some classified material to a swarthy Russian named Oleg.”
Ecochondriacs, p. 111
The Manliest of Professions, Huh?
“That which ought to be the manliest of all professions has a tendency, practically, to make men unmanly. Men make appeals for sympathy that no true man should make. They take to themselves St. Paul’s pathos without St. Paul’s strength . . . Never appeal for sympathy. Let it find you out if it will. Count your manliness the soul of your ministry and resist all attacks upon it however sweetly they may come”
Phillips Brooks, The Joy of Preaching, p. 65
Or Any Other Kind of Fun House
The gym “was not anything like one of those techno-mart wall-to-wall muscle factories. He detested those. Mirrors everywhere, as though a gym was supposed to be some kind of a satanic and narcissistic fun house”
Ecochondriacs, p. 109