In August 2013, I was serving as a pastor on the outskirts of Washington, D.C. All month long, there was a feeling of excitement in the air. That Aug. 28 marked the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington, the…
‘Who sets the temperature in the sanctuary?’ and other questions pastor candidates ought to ask
After seminary, I was coming to the end of my one-year residency as a hospital chaplain. I was a few months from unemployment and had turned up the heat on finding a position. After a miserable experience in a church…
The Supreme Court’s refreshing unity on religious freedom
If you want to read one U.S. Supreme Court opinion from the past term that doesn’t risk raising your blood pressure, I suggest Groff v. DeJoy. Plenty of the court’s decisions display deep divisions among the justices — divisions that both…
Voice from the past: Tom Graves’ 1991 speech accepting BTSR presidency
With the passing of Baptist educator and pastor Tom Graves this week, our friends at the Virginia Baptist Historical Society located the following transcript of an acceptance speech given by Graves on Jan. 31, 1991, when he was named president…
Letter to the Editor: No one has the authority to deliver absolution to Willie McLaurin
Dear Editor: The Willie McLaurin story came at a very bad time for the SBC, even though it would be hard to find a recent time without turmoil. After spending much of my career as an expert in fraud and…
Letter to the Editor: Gratitude for memory of Tom Graves
Dear Editor: It was with a significant sense of grief, and gratitude, that I read BNG’s recent article about the late Tom Graves. Having had the privilege of serving as president of the Presbyterian School of Christian Education in Richmond,…
Job description of a church member
These days, many have departed or disconnected from the local church. Some are burned out and some have just been burned by the messiness created by mean-spirited or misdirected church people. However, many other members and non-members are thinking in…
Religious freedom takes practice, not just legislation
Editor’s note: This is the fifth opinion piece in a new series on religious liberty authored by BJC Fellows and made possible by a grant from the Prichard Family Foundation. A few years ago, I met a woman who,…
3 ways to practice embodiment in a country that is censoring and capitalizing on our bodies
Since the overturn of Roe vs. Wade in June 2022, 13 states have banned abortion with another nine likely to follow. This means a staggering 48% of the nation would have laws banning procedures for women who need them. These…
Thoughts about the art and craft of teaching
This week I begin my 31st year of full-time teaching in the field of Christian ethics. In this post I want to think aloud about the art and craft of teaching. I believe the magic in teaching — at least…
America’s loneliness epidemic is the church’s calling
In a recently released advisory, the U.S. Surgeon General raised an alarm about the “devastating impact of the epidemic of loneliness and isolation in America,” citing harm to individual and societal health and calling on the nation to “prioritize building…
Another C.S. Lewis knock-off letter shows what evangelicals get wrong about sex
Note: This article includes an explicit discussion of sexuality. Desiring God’s latest installment of cheap Screwtape Letter knockoffs features Greg Morse attempting to mimic C.S. Lewis’ classic novel by writing a letter from a “marriage counselor” demon named Grimrod to his…