Jesus was a storyteller, a purveyor of parables. Although raised in a carpentry shop, not one of his parables is about woodworking. Instead, he chose other topics to illuminate eternal truths. By my count, 10 of his timeless-tales sprung from the fertile soil of agriculture. Some of his most searing teachings were gleaned from the prophetic lessons of the farm.

Wine country biodynamics

A week ago I had the chance to travel out into the country. I joined a couple of friends, and we slipped west on Highway 99, winding along country roads into the hills outside Newberg, Oregon. It was the sort of perfect day that rarely finds itself in a Northwest April.

I could not have predicted that we were about to experience one of those parable-moments. The meandering road led us to Soter Vineyards and the chance to spend the late morning walking among the acres and acres of young grape vines. We parked the car and climbed to the hill's crest to take in the 360-degree view. Farms, pastures, ...