The alarm goes off long before you want it to. The snooze button is not worth it, but it is tempting. You have to get to work. Or you have to get to work at home. Or you have learned…
‘Stand and Fight’ or ‘Stop and Think’?
As we drive to my parents’ house, we see that the neighbors have a big sign in the yard. A normal yard sign in Mississippi is Congratulations Class of 2017 or Bitter Divorce Sale. I am suddenly self-conscious about our…
People I don’t need to listen to
The New York Times has too many pages. I download more podcasts than I can play. I cannot read half of what my friends post on Facebook — particularly one recipe-happy friend. I cannot hear, read, or notice a significant…
Underground church business meetings — and God actually shows up
Try to imagine the church business meetings that made this happen. During the early 1800s, the network of churches and individuals helping those escaping slavery was known as the Underground Railroad. My congregation, Plymouth Church in Brooklyn, N.Y., was “the…
President Trump, you could make things a little easier for preachers
Dear President Trump: I am sure you are getting letters from groups that feel like they are being mistreated. Muslims, Hispanics, African Americans, women, Jews, the poor, and the LGBTQ community have legitimate concerns, but have you thought about how you…
The many things I do not know about racism
Two years ago, Carol and I started attending a nearby African Methodist Episcopal Church. One other white person came from time to time. I liked it more when she was not there, because I enjoyed saying, “We were the only…
Mary and Joseph — and Kevin
Shivering, wet guests file into the fellowship hall. It is cold and raining on the Thursday before Christmas. Two hundred homeless people have come to church for chicken spaghetti. I pass a marker around my table. We fill out nametags….
Putting an end to prayer vigils
Jewish synagogues have been defaced with swastikas. Latina women have been threatened. Muslim women have been forced to remove their hijabs. On Veterans Day, Marie Boyle, a U.S. army veteran from the Philippines, was told to “Go back to Mexico.”…
Why New York needs churches
When my stylist at Supercuts finds out that I have only lived in Brooklyn for five months, she offers to explain New York to me. She looks me in the eye and says, “If you love New York, she will…
Too busy to sing? Try anyway
I go to work on Tuesday with a detailed to-do list. If everything goes perfectly, I will end the day writing a column for Baptist News Global. If I get through six of the 10 items, it will be a…
Abraham Lincoln, Susan B. Anthony and Adam Sandler: Signs of a church that is more than a museum
Years ago when attendance was pretty low, Plymouth Church in Brooklyn, N.Y., brought in a consultant who said, “You can either be a museum or a church.” The consultant had been going to the wrong museums. A good church is…
Holy smoke: Barbecue with a side of faith
I think of my vegetarian friends like I think of my Jewish friends. I love and respect them, but we are of different faiths. I believe in barbecue. To the casual observer those who gather for a church barbecue have…