“My children are geniuses” (and other exaggerations of the modern parent)

Every generation of parents loves their children and searches for the best ways to support them and prepare them for a successful start in life. Modern parents, however, often take this effort to extremes, complicating their children’s lives (and their own, just as much) in an attempt to clear a perfectly smooth path for their still-uncertain steps.

Silence after the storm: Friendship, between quarrels and forgiveness

Eskimos don't have the word "quarrel" in their vocabulary. They live in a particularly harsh climate, so no one wants to risk getting pneumonia (or dying) just to prove that they are right.

Sex should not be limited by any religious inhibition. True or false?

In a society marked by the disintegration of the Christian perspective on sexuality, what is there left for us to learn from Scripture?
good books

Reading for continuous growth

"The acquaintance with a single good book can change a life." – Marcel Prévos

Stuck in childhood | The Peter Pan syndrome

The fascination of the universe of childhood, with its multitude of stories, experiences and impressions, is unrepeatable. As adults, however, we are often unaware that monsters may lurk in the shards of that magical past, hidden among dreams, memories and kites, ready to reactivate and injure us, while simultaneously anaesthetising us with a familiar sense of déjà vu.

The secularization of Christmas

Although the holiday of Christmas does not have a biblical origin and did not exist in the days of the early church, most Christians around the world keep it as a reminder of the miracle of Jesus Christ’s birth. However, the religious significance of the holiday is waning in the Western world, as the number of church members decreases and Bible illiteracy increases.

Too tired to love?

Too tired to even touch hands, my husband, Bernie, and I crawled into bed. It was the end of a day in which we’d hardly spoken to each other, except to ask where things were or say where we were going—or had been. Our house had been full of guests for several weeks. To make matters worse, we’d just moved in and there...

An unexpected return, the premise for missing the meeting with Christ

How important is the second coming of Jesus Christ in traditional Christianity?

“A Time to Forgive” | Book Review

"A Time to Forgive" is the story of a pilgrimage through the void of pain and trauma. A father, devastated by the enormity of his loss, struggles to forgive his daughter's killer.

What is the purpose of my life on Earth?

The unverified stories of children dying, due to severe emotional and sensorial deprivation, despite being fed and medically cared for, spread the theory that one can die because of lack of love, although being well taken care of. However, if we look more closely at the historical and personal human experience, we find that it is not necessarily the lack of love that...

Children’s leisure time: then and now

I grew up on an unpaved, quaint side street in Ploiești, Romania. After school or during summer vacations my neighbours, M. and C., and I were an inseparable trio. We were almost always outdoors. If it wasn't too hot or raining, you could find us in one of our backyards.

Between 6 and 10 years of extra life make a difference

Over the past few years, several major media outlets have been talking about the increased longevity of Adventists compared to the populations they live among (CNN,  BBC, DW, NBC, CBS, ABC, CBN, National Geographic, Time, Los Angeles Times,  Huffington Post, The Atlantic, etc.).

The Akathist: Who do we stand up for?

According to Google’s online search trends, the most popular religious topic among Romanian internet users in 2019 was prayer. [1]

Books: from windows on the world to mirrors reflecting our inner selves

I’ll never be able to separate the memories of childhood from that of books. They intertwine like colours in fabrics, in a jumble of real and fantastical, bitter and sweet, joy and guilt.

In the world of “what if” | Why we are drawn to counterfactual thinking

The ability to imagine alternatives to events that have already occurred distinguishes humans from other creatures and machines—artificial intelligence has not yet succeeded in creating a device that can devise counterfactual scenarios. The fact that we can travel in an imaginary time and rewrite our actions and their outcomes can prove to be an advantage or can lead to dysfunctional emotional and cognitive...