A writer is nothing without other people. You don’t think of this when you think of them. Their kind are usually tucked away, secluded and trapped inside a room where daylight breaks in from a single window. The scene outside…
On the life and death of Wendell Berry
I cried when I learned Wendell Berry died. A couple times, actually, and I’m probably not done. The man meant a lot to me. Have you ever read a book that met you at exactly the right place in your…
Wolves in whose clothing?
There is a document with the seal of the United States government on it, and it teaches that a category of children does not exist. It is called “Wolves in White Coats.” The Department of Health and Human Services released…
Saying no to Dolly
This week has been full of reading stories of and tributes to Dolly Parton, moments when her life connected with theirs. What a treat! I’ve also been replaying my own life choices this past week, because I said no to…
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…
When political leadership uses religion as a tool of power
One of the most troubling trends in modern leadership is the growing use of religion as a political instrument. The practice is not new. Political leaders, especially where democratic institutions are weak, have learned that religion reaches people at the…
There was more to Aunt Leila’s dining room table
Growing up in Youngstown, Ohio, I lived with a sense of youth and an aloofness to social issues. It’s not that I didn’t care about the struggle for fairness, equality and love or even about social justice; none of that was…
Lonely people who need the church
Please don’t tell me if The Martian makes it home or the Gone Girl is gone for good. For reasons I can’t explain I read novels 10 to 15 years after they are on the bestseller list. I just read…
In Texas, this math doesn’t add up to gospel
For most of my life I knew a truth about myself that I could not say out loud. I carried a badge in a Texas town. I raised children. I have been married to the same person for 46 years….
America’s Pyrenees
On February 3, 2025, I sent Sen. Roger Wicker, my senator, the senior senator from Mississippi, an urgent email. It read in part: “Sen. Wicker, PLEASE stand up to the President! Shutting down USAID invites China to move into the…
Greg Abbott washes his hands of hospitality
There is a particular kind of Texas story that keeps repeating itself, and it repeated again this month. Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport planned to install a modest set of foot-washing stations — sinks, essentially, in existing restrooms — so Muslim…
The tragic targeting of Christians by the Trump administration
Conservative Christians and members of the Trump administration have proclaimed this current government as a defender of Christianity and religious freedom. These proclamations are completely dismissive of numerous instances to the contrary, including the latest heartbreaking news that our government…