The Transylvania Times -

Several years ago, my son and I experienced severe turbulence on a flight back from Florida. He was only 10 at the time and as the plane was rocking back and forth, he asked me: “Will the plane crash?” His question is common when people on airpla...

By Dr. John Campbell My wife says that I am a connoisseur of “Cracker Barrel” restaurants. “Is there a Cracker Barrel you haven’t tried?” she asks. The food is not like home-made, but their menu is southern. Mind you, I have eaten at some o...

Tony was a Yankee from Pennsylvania. Don was a Southerner from Florida. Tony was white and prejudiced. Don was black and refined. Tony “Lip” Vallelonga was Italian; lived in the Bronx. His family was racist, often making derogatory comments about...

And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark...

The trial of Jesus is one of the most dramatic episodes in the entire Bible. The scene is set, thusly. After he is questioned by the chief priests and legal scholars, he appears before the Roman governor of Judea, Pontius Pilate. Incited by the...

A woman posed a question to Dr. Maurizio Fava, editor-in-chief of “Mind, Mood, Memory” of Massachusetts General Hospital: “Ever since my daughter was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, I’ve become aware how often people casually use terms like...

Oyster stew! Oh, how I hated oyster stew. On an occasional Friday night couples came over to our house to indulge in stew and afterwards play poker and gin rummy. Before being segregated to our rooms to make way for important “adult” activity,...

(This column is written in recognition of President’s Day.) One of the earliest books I read in elementary school was about George Washington. Of course, I remember the time young George chopped down his father’s cherry tree and when confronted...

The year is 1948; the location is New Jersey. A 24-year-old black man from Harlem enters a restaurant designated for whites, goes to the bar for a drink; the waitress says there is no service for blacks. The young man throws a glass of water at her,...

“Are You Lonesome Tonight?” Elvis Presley asks, “Is your heart filled with pain, shall I come back again? Tell me dear, are you lonesome tonight?” Elvis is tugging at the heartstrings of a lover. Picking up Elvis’s refrain, are you...

By Dr. John Campbell All aboard! You walk down the aisle and take your seat. You have just boarded the “worry train.” The train pulls out of the station and there you are, destination unknown. That’s the way with worry isn’t it? Away you go....

When she was 7, a friend on her school bus said to her, “you killed our Lord.” “I did not.” “Yes, you did,” the girl insisted. “Our priest said so.” Amy-Jill Levine’s friend had been taught that the Jews were responsible for the...

Christmas represents the birthing creativity of God, the Great Spirit. We honor not only the birth of Jesus as a specific event but the pervasive movement of creative energy from the earliest inception of the world until now. Indeed, birthing is...

By Dr. John Campbell Ever left a worship service feeling worse than when you walked in? Randy and Vickie felt that way. On the way home from church, they were feeling down about the sermon. Pastor Glenn’s topic that day was, “Whatever became of...

The Academy Award’s best picture of the year, “The Shape of Water,” is a fascinating movie. I thought it a fairy tale at first, but on closer reflection I believe there are resurrection themes in the movie. “The Shape of Water” follows a...

Speaking of unorthodox, look up Patch Adams on YouTube or the internet. There you will see a man with a thick handle-bar mustache, long hair in a ponytail with one side dyed, and colorful clown-like shirts and ties. Appearance is not the only...

Confession: I am a mentally challenged meditator. No, I don’t suffer from a disability, except when it comes to meditation (I am not including memory loss: for example, where are my glasses?). In the morning I set aside 30 minutes to focus on my...

Oh boy, did I feel ashamed. In front of my liberal work peers I told a joke with the “N” word. They just stared at me. As the only Southerner in a group of Midwesterners, I just wanted to go through the floor. Sure enough, not long afterward our...

By Dr. John Campbell Are you old enough to remember drive-in movies? You know, the kind where you pulled your car into a vacant slot, rolled down your window, reached for the speaker and placed it on your car window. A whole family could settle back...

My mother invited a young, single 21-year-old female co-worker from her office to our house on several occasions ostensibly to meet my stepfather’s bachelor brother. I was 14 at the time and, of course, found her early morning walks through the...

After almost unending rain had made the trenches unbearably muddy, Christmas Eve, 1914, in contrast, began on a crisp, clear morning. This reprieve lifted the spirits of soldiers on both sides of the conflict. Just five months into the war and one...

If you are among the many Americans who suffer from addictions, you know recovery isn’t easy. Family members also experience anxiety about the unpredictability of their loved one’s recovery. A traditional treatment approach is to try and manage...

Chronic fatigue is physically and emotionally draining. In 1998 and for seven years thereafter I suffered from chronic fatigue. Every day I would get up out of bed just as tired if not more so than when I went to bed. I just felt sick most of the tim...

In his book, “Finding Freedom,” Jarvis Jay Masters, a death row inmate, tells a story about how his cell neighbor, Omar, reminded him of the incivility outside prison walls. One evening Omar, yelled out, “Hey Jarvis, check out channel...

The 23rd Psalm carries a profound message about the rhythm of life. Sometimes our cup overflows; other times we walk through the valley of the shadow of death when we feel like our very self is on the line. There are many people who know both sides...