Faith

Cities are like gardens; we cannot command their growth ("The mayor's mission," Dec. 11). Families, like plants, need good soil in which to put down roots and flourish. The "good soil" of Baltimore has always been its churches and synagogues. These provided the moral and spiritual center around which families lived, neighborhoods grew and developed. Everything else - school improvement, crime reduction, entrepreneur investment, job creation, sanitation, family structure and functioning - depends on this moral and spiritual ground which, by the way, is not primarily the job of government.

Wedding Day: December 1, 2012 Her story: Faith Deutschle, 28, grew up in Dublin, Ohio, and now lives in Federal Hill. Her father, Jean Deutschle, is senior sales manager at Abbott Laboratories. Her mother, Marianne Deutschle is a pre-kindergarten teacher in Dublin. Deutschle is senior marketing consultant for LivingSocial. His story: Jason Albert, 35, grew up in Manchester, Maryland, and now lives in Federal Hill. He is general manager at the Delia Foley's pub in Federal Hill.

Osama bin Laden was killed by an elite group of Navy SEALs and, like many people, my first reaction was "wow. " After that, however, things got a bit more complicated as I struggled with my human and patriotic feelings in the context of my faith. Politically and strategically, the United States achieved an important symbolic victory in the death of bin Laden. I remember well the night of Sept. 11, 2001, when our congregation put aside a previously scheduled event to pray for those who lost their lives in the terrorist attacks.

Faith Child Development Center's pre-kindergarten class celebrated its graduation ceremony May 16. Colorful graduation hats decorated the bulletin board and graduation streamers hung from the ceiling. But the mood was far from cheerful after the event, as the staff of the school shut its doors to students and their families for the last time. On May 11, Faith Lutheran Church announced that Faith Child Development Center, which has offered classes for ages 2 through pre-k for 12 years, would not reopen next school year.

H ave you heard about the Jesus rifles? ABC News broke the story last week. It seems there was this fellow named Glyn Blindon, who used weapons of war to speak for his faith. Mr. Blindon, who died in a 2003 plane crash, was the founder of Trijicon, a Michigan company that has a $600 million contract to provide gun sights to the U.S. military. Apparently he had a policy, which survived him, of inscribing coded references to Bible verses on the gun sights he manufactured for high-powered rifles used by U.S. service personnel.

Just what is this little cub up to? Good thing its mama is there to catch him or her. The spectacled bear, just four months old, was playing at the zoo in Cali. (Tremarctos ornatus), born in captivity four months ago, is seen with its mother at the zoo in Cali Zoo in Colombia.

Has there been a more polarizing figure in professional sports over the past year than Tim Tebow? Whether it was his string of fourth-quarter comebacks, thrilling overtime playoff victory over the Steelers or public displays of his faith, Mr. Tebow generates a wide range of reactions from the public. Mr. Tebow's faith is an integral part of the player, the man and the human being. Today, when media outlets are littered with players' indiscretions and mistakes, it's refreshing to see someone who practices what he preaches.

I read with great interest that the supercommittee isn't quite sure they will be able to reach agreement on their assignment to find a deficit reduction package that will put this country back on the road to financial responsibility. What they might do is agree on is an outline of smaller concessions and defer the most difficult decisions until after the 2012 elections. This, of course, comes as no surprise to most Americans who have little faith in the ability of our elected officials to make bipartisan decisions for the good of the country instead of "kicking the can down the road" for someone else to deal with.

Colonial Players' current production of "The Diviners" is a powerful, poetic one. Winner of the 1979 American College Theater Festival, and written by Jim Leonard while in his mid-20s, "The Diviners" raises profound questions about faith, fear and family that remain relevant. Set in the fictional Indiana town of Zion during the Great Depression, the play centers around 14-year-old farm boy Buddy Layman, who has special abilities and handicaps. When the boy appears in the opening scene, he is about to discover underground water with his divining rod, seemingly a miraculous talent to the witnessing neighbors.

There's no way for any of us to know how Josh Hamilton feels these days, but if you ask him he will do his best to let you know. That says a lot in itself. The guy who might have the best idea about what swirls through Hamilton's head is Dodgers coach Manny Mota. It was Mota who had the misfortune to line a ball into the seats at Dodger Stadium in 1970, striking 14-year-old Alan Fish in the head. The teenager died four days later. "I'm sad for Josh, because I know how he feels now," Mota has said.

We write as members and leaders of Maryland's faith community. We are glad that a special session of the Maryland General Assembly to resolve the state's budget impasse now seems likely. We cannot stress strongly enough how vital it is to fashion a full fix to the doomsday budgetary scenario We each witness in our own congregations and communities the harm the Great Recession has wrought. Now is decidedly not the time to slash more from a state budget that already has left families and communities reeling.

What's purple, white and can hang on your tree's blind side? It's a Michael Oher-nament! Hallmark has just released a sneak preview of it's 2012 Keepsake Ornaments -- and the Ravens offensive tackle has made the cut. It's a first time a Raven has become an ornament -- something the Hallmark company considers and honor. "We chose Michael Oher to become a Hallmark Keepsake Ornament because of his ability on the field and the story of what he had to overcome to get there," Hallmark spokewomanm Jaci Twidwell told The Sun. "He's a great ambassador for the Ravens and is an overall good person.

On Sunday, I attended mass with my 79-year-old grandmother. Two months ago, she lost her husband, my grandfather. Ever since that day, she could not have a more positive attitude about moving onward in her life. This strength she so fervently displays day to day, she wholeheartedly attributes to her faith. As her top admirer, and as someone who had considered herself a faithful Catholic for much of her life, I decided to begin attending church again to discover this unyielding faith my grandmother seems to possess.

Inside Baltimore's St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church early Saturday, the Rev. Michael Pastrikos stood on the dais and chanted prayers before an ornate altar adorned with icons of holy figures. The smell of spiced incense filled the dimly lit sanctuary as the faithful slipped into pews and counted down the hours until their Easter celebration would begin. They were among the many Orthodox Christians and others around the world and throughout the region celebrating the holiest of weekends using a Julian calendar different from that observed by other denominations.

Some churchmen take exception to some of President Barack Obama's positions on matters of faith. I suggest these men of faith take a closer look at the true meaning of religion. All three Abrahamic religions - Christianity, Judaism and Islam - have as their central theme the commandments to protect the widow and orphan, to clothe the naked, feed the hungry and shelter the homeless. That is termed social justice. All this talk about contraception, in my mind, is just superficial chatter totally missing the central message of religion.

The media -- mostly national but some in Baltimore -- took aim at Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco back in February when his agent, Joe Linta, told The Baltimore Sun that “if the game is about wins and losses, he has to be in the top five [quarterbacks].” That comment was often taken out of context. Linta's point was that Flacco is a winner -- his 44 regular-season wins are the most by any quarterback in his first four NFL seasons -- and he was suggesting that Flacco should get paid as such . After all, Linta is tasked right now with convincing the Ravens to give his client a lucrative contract extension.

"Today, I quit being a Christian." With those words last week on Facebook, Anne Rice delivered a wake-up call for organized religion. The question is whether it will be recognized as such. "I remain committed to Christ as always," she wrote, "but not to being 'Christian' or to being part of Christianity. It's simply impossible for me to 'belong' to this quarrelsome, hostile, disputatious, and deservedly infamous group. For 10 years, I've tried. I've failed. I'm an outsider.

It is always difficult to write about fans. Well, that is not true. It's actually very easy to write about individual fans. They have wonderful, meaningful memories of how they fell in love with a team. They speak eloquently about what their favorite sports and players mean to them. It is difficult to write about fans as a group. About a "fan base. " Because, really, there is no such thing. Each person's feelings about say, the Orioles, are as unique as their fingerprints.

I wanted to share a story with your readers regarding a recent interaction with State Senator J.B. Jennings and relay how he has renewed my faith in our elected officials and the political process. I am a resident of Senator Jennings' district, in Eastern Baltimore County. I'm not active in politics, I've never met Senator Jennings, I don't donate any money, and I'm not a "power broker" in any sense of the word. I'm simply a constituent. I'm also a member of a local law club that has monthly meetings.