“I will ask off work if you really want me to. But I think you need to do this trip solo. And just heal.” Heeding those words from my wife, here I am, south of Daytona Beach, Fla. — in…
EvvyLUtion, Christian higher ed and the cricket problem
“Brad, I’ve got a big ask.” It was the vice president for church relations at the Baptist university where I taught in East Tennessee. Our relationship dated back to his being a guest preacher at two churches I served. He…
Should joining a church be as easy as getting a prescription for Viagra?
“All in favor, say ‘Aye.’” “AYE!” the congregation heartily said. “Any opposed?” And with a saccharine smile, the pastor would say, “Of course there’s no opposition,” then turn to the newly approved church members and say, “Welcome. Stand here with…
Tennessee gubernatorial candidate would ban mosques
With a toothy laugh, Tennessee GOP primary gubernatorial candidate Monty Fritts defends his pledge to ban Muslim mosques and other “pagan” houses of worship. The primary election is August 6, and state representative Fritts faces two opponents: Sen. Marsha Blackburn…
Half-truths and the Six Commandments
“The Ten Commandments are displayed in the Supreme Court of the United States.” “There are more trees in the United States today than when the pilgrims first landed.” What do these two claims have in common and so what? It’s…
Don’t let John Piper determine whether your loved one ‘should’ be cremated
In the 1970s, my father opposed the switch in women’s basketball from half-court to full-court play. He was so dogmatically conservative, he nearly did not receive tenure at a Southern Baptist college. But when he died, per his wishes, he…
Shaving Dad goodbye
His cremation ashes will not be any different because I gave my dad a shave before the funeral home took his body from the house he’d lived in for 47 years. On the surface, logic says a shave before cremation…
Colorizing the SBC’s one-paint-can resolution on euthanasia
Cancer has reduced my father’s robust frame to skin-covered bones. His bombastic voice has deflated to a chirping whisper. But his 84-year-old blue eyes still sparkled when he abruptly made a comment that, to fully appreciate, requires decades of context….
Orange you aware of the problem with banning Roots?
Tennessee news has my stomach churning. To comply with the legislature’s newly mandated guidelines, Knox County Schools recently banned several books including Alex Haley’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel Roots, which depicts the horrors of enslavement. Two weeks later, the county…
The dying art of parenting
I’m sitting at a sunroom table, my 84-year-old parents to my right and left. Dad just asked Mom, “Did you find my will in the safe deposit box?” She had. Moments ago, to make sure they had their bases covered,…
Ben Sasse’s courage, grace and metastasized Calvinism
Two tensions can be true at the same time. We can admire a person’s courage and grace without blindly accepting their well-intentioned but dangerous beliefs. Many Christians recently shared on social media a segment of Scott Pelley’s 60 Minutes interview…
Church names the FCC might fine you for saying on TV
Editor’s note: This piece is funny but in a way that might be offensive to some readers. Proceed with caution if you don’t care for the humor of fifth-grade boys. At a Friday lunch of Baptist college professors, a…