A picture may be worth a thousand words, but occasionally a gasp is a more appropriate response. Such was the case during an evening of sorting through old photos from the attic of my wife’s family home. Her father died…
Heaven and hell: Trick or treat?
Mallory Challis’ recent analysis — “Most Americans believe in heaven or hell, but their ideas aren’t always biblical”— of what people believe about the afterlife begs a question: Which works better to incentivize behavior, heaven or hell? It’s a variation…
When voting based on the economy is the wrong thing to do
There’s a long tradition in American politics of voting based on economic interests. We shouldn’t be surprised that gas prices and food prices have a direct bearing on who people vote for or against. But there are good reasons not…
Catering to the crazies
I get it. This is not a very nice or appropriate title for an article. It’s a bit pejorative and judgmental and doesn’t sound very much like Jesus. However, I’m quoting a pastor who called recently to seek counsel about…
A conversation with Anthony Reddie about the importance of James Cone
Last fall, I had the great honor of serving as a visiting fellow at the Oxford Center for Religion and Culture, headed by the renowned Black liberation theologian Anthony G. Reddie. Anthony and I became fast friends, and we had…
On Marjorie Taylor Greene declaring Raphael Warnock is not a Christian
Marjorie Taylor Greene, having, in my imagination, matriculated at the All-American Nationalist Theological Institute in Dalton, Ga., has set up shop in the halls of Congress to make declarations about people being Christian or not being Christian. Greene, no shrinking…
Want to get a sense of what it’s like to be a clergywoman? Watch ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’
When Iron Man, the first installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, was released in 2008, my husband and I went to see it on one of our weekly date nights. We were obviously out of ideas for activities that would…
Two burgers and a shake
David is in the mood to talk. Me, too. I haven’t seen him for a while. We spend at least half an hour bantering about life, God and the devil. “He’s after me,” David tells me, referring to Old Scratch….
Peter’s un-healing of Petronilla’s holy ‘palsy’ in the Coptic Act of Peter has a lesson for us today about disability
The Acts of Peter is a fragmented, early Christian text made up of three parts: the “Coptic Act of Peter,” the “Acts of Peter the Apostle,” and the “Martyrdom of the Holy Apostle Peter.” These writings are not included in…
How men have controlled women using the Bible
Christianity has utilized a biased reading of the sacred biblical texts to privilege men as leaders in church, home and in most vocations. From the Old Testament to the 21st century, men authored, translated and edited most of Scripture and…
Hooray for the hymnal!
Colossians 3:16 says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.” Several months…
Learning humility together as we read the Bible
Just as the Bible itself was a community project, so also God invites us to interpret Scripture in community. Yet anybody who has been in church for five minutes knows Christians disagree on how to apply the Bible in everyday…