Moving Miss Peggy, Robert Benson (Abingdon) Robert Benson is one of our finest writers. If you have not read him, I suggest you do so now. Miss Peggy is Robert’s mom, and this masterful story narrates Peggy’s diagnosis of dementia…
OPINION: Relegation or responsibility?
What is another word for “thesaurus”? Roget has given every writer a treasure book for alternative ways of saying the same thing. The usage of words rises and falls in the marketplace of ideas and culture much like the tides…
TRENDING: SEKAP
Here’s a no-brainer trend: blogs, Twitter and Facebook pronouncements by public religious leaders going viral with all kinds of unintended negative consequences. Besides making me shake my bald head, it raises the question of what the “best practices” trend will…
VITAL SIGNS: Third pig thinking
You remember the story of the Three Little Pigs, don’t you? Sent out by their mother to make their way in the world, they live in fear of the Big Bad Wolf. Their first order of business is to build…
EDITORIAL: Egyptian hope
According to a recent Associated Press report, for many years Egypt’s Christian minority refused to become involved in politics for fear of reprisals. They relied, instead, on their church to make their case to those in power. When Hosni Mubarak…
OPINION: Of cucumbers and pickles
Until recently, I hated pickles. I didn’t like the smell or the taste but mostly it was the concept. I felt queasy about eating something sitting in a jar for who knows how long. It seemed too akin to embalming,…
OPINION: The Trayvon Martin case as a symbol
Anyone who followed the Florida v. George Zimmerman court case closely was probably not surprised by the verdict. Even to this legal layman, who saw only snippets of the arguments provided by the media, it seemed that the prosecution’s task…
OPINION: A personal affirmation of Suzii Paynter and CBF
I grew up in Atlanta, Ga. If Texas is the belt buckle of the Bible Belt, Atlanta is that belt’s designer label and matching handbag. Whereas the Church should be a socially-engaged witness in its particular context, my Atlanta church…
REVIEW: In ‘World War Z,’ humanity is on its own
Zombies are hot. They are the new “in” storytelling device. World War Z, loosely based on Max Brooks’s novel of the same name, is the latest to make use of the walking dead as a metaphor. The story focuses on…
OPINION: What now?
The news has finally broken. The most anticipated Supreme Court decisions in a long time were finally released last week. A sharply divided court has ruled that the Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional as far as its implications for…
OPINION: Piggies matter: A perspective on Baptist meetings
Within the short span of eight days, I attended the General Assembly of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship as well as the biennial meeting of the American Baptist Churches USA. Somewhere in the midst of meetings and reunions and worship services,…
REFLECTIONS FROM NEW YORK: Prayers for all peoples
Imagine you’ve invited your Jewish neighbors over to your house for dinner. Immediately after serving your guests, you question whether or not you should offer a prayer. You think to yourself that both Christians and Jews believe in God, so…