DANIEL, an "e" partner ...

On a more personal level...

I belong to a number of blogs. One of them, LECTIONARY EPISTLE NOTES is committed to reading, studying and commenting on each week's lectionary epistle reading. It was monitored by Rev. Daniel Berry. One day I became aware that the weekly email NOTES had stopped coming.

In the back of my mind I started to think: was my junk mail collector getting better; was I too liberal; did I offend someone? I was too busy to do the fact checking until tonight when I got a "NOTE" saying that Daniel -- who kept it going -- had died of a massive heart attack over the holidays. So who cares? I do for one.

You see Daniel was on the opposite end of the theological spectrum as I am. After we began a series of private messages, we both knew it. That did not stop us from communicating albeit just over the internet.

And it was Daniel I wrote to when, after all these years, I realized I did not have a concrete understanding of "salvation." Driving home one night something told me, "Ask Daniel." I asked the right man. Despite our differences he walked me though my own exploration. Though him and with Him, I re-discovered salvation.

I don't claim to "know" this blind pastor from a tiny Texas town, I cannot go to his services ... I was not even aware he was married ... I just know that for weeks on end we wrote back and forth about a host of issues; one very important one for me, and that this self described "Orthodox Presbyterian" help me along the way.

Daniel, Daniel may flights of angels see thee to thy rest ...