The Jesus Room lies in the bowels of Richmond’s cavernous First Baptist Church, one of those stately old churches that takes up most of a city block. It’s a part of the basement floor of the church, comprising a community…
Homeless is not the way you want to spend your sunset years, but more and more older Americans find themselves there
Scott, a 63-year-old former chef and factory worker, was trudging toward the tent encampment where he lived on the outskirts of Richmond, Va., when he found fellow camper Ed sprawled on the path, unconscious. “It scared the hootenannies out of…
In defense of travel
If you’re still thinking about a quickie vacation trip to Europe this summer, don’t. The COVID pandemic seems to be over (we hope), so tourists catching up on pleasure travel have descended upon the usual spots in their millions. Coastal…
Loneliness is killing us
What more can we say of loneliness, the disease that afflicts modern Americans from depressed children to isolated elders? We know many of the causes: social disconnection, the decline of community institutions, the radical individualism we often mistake for personal…
Bar fights and honest conversations: How do we bridge the gap?
Confession: I’m a drinkin’ Baptist. That’s a dangerous combination, because Baptists love to argue, and alcohol loosens our tongues. Recently I almost got into a fistfight at my favorite bar with three guys — count ’em, three — at a…
Maybe Marie Kondo finally has come around to missionary Martha Myers’ mantra
Stop the presses: Marie Kondo, the “queen of clean,” confesses she can’t keep her own house perfectly pristine every single day. The 38-year-old mogul of a global “tidying up” empire is now the mother of three — her third child…
Two years after Myanmar coup, human suffering goes unnoticed
The brutal military coup that murdered Myanmar’s infant democracy two years ago continues to deliver death and destruction upon the civilian population, with no end in sight. Is anyone paying attention? Bombings and the burning of entire villages increasingly mark…
This will happen in 2023 (I think)
Predicting the future is a fool’s game. Right in my wheelhouse, in other words. Fools and pundits rush in where wiser souls fear to tread. With that boulder-sized grain of salt in mind, here are my predictions for 2023: Let’s…
Words, words, words
O words, how I love thee — when I’m not hating thee. What other product of the mind leads us to truth with one hand and deceives us with the other? What other human invention enlightens us and manipulates us,…