It is hard not to argue that conservative Christians led the recent overturning of Roe v. Wade — whether they be evangelicals, Roman Catholics, Mormons or Eastern Orthodox. Since the rise of the Moral Majority, Paul Weyrich, the Christian Coalition…
Why men should be concerned about the abortion ruling
The Supreme Court ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization is a tragedy for the health care and reproductive justice of millions of women in America. But it’s not just women who should be concerned about the ravenous effects…
Why I’m a pro-choice pastor: I’ve listened to the stories of too many women
I am pro-choice. Just about all Baptist leaders were in the years leading up to and after the Supreme Court decision commonly referred to as Roe v. Wade was handed down. In 1971, 1975 and 1976, messengers to the Southern…
Who’ll bring the sackcloth and ashes to CBF General Assembly this week?
“Think they’ll have everyone wear sackcloth and ashes at CBF General Assembly this year?” I texted those words to a fellow Baptist clergywoman after reading the State of Women in Baptist Life report. I wasn’t kidding either. I desperately want…
Finding inspiration from Fannie Lou Hamer when freedom is under assault
This weekend, I have found strength and solidary in the words of Galatians 5: “Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit.” In this same chapter, we are told that it was for freedom that Christ has set us free. All…
The French Dreyfus Affair and Trump’s Big Lie
We are witnessing an extraordinarily disturbing juxtaposition in U.S. politics right now. In Washington, the January 6 Committee, primarily using testimony from Republicans and former Trump administration officials, is once again shredding Donald Trump’s Big Lie that the 2020 election…
Independence Day: Not to celebrate but to reflect
What do we call the American holiday coming up soon? The Fourth of July? Or Independence Day? A long-time friend answered that question for me in a dialogue we had two years ago. “It’s just the Fourth of July,” she…
Progress on sexual abuse in the SBC? Not so fast
As Russian tanks, troops and bombs poured into Ukraine, imagine if President Joe Biden had announced to the world: “This is shocking. We pledge to help Ukrainians save their lives and freedom for one year. Next year, though, we may…
Reflections on my mother’s funeral: The heart has reasons
While I was writing my first book, my 85-year-old mother died unexpectedly. She was in an assisted living facility, but she had no serious health issues. She entered the hospital severely dehydrated and was in acute renal failure, although she…
When ‘orthodoxy’ won’t hold: The SBC and the rest of us
In a May 26 New York Times column, “The Southern Baptist Moral Meltdown,” conservative commentator David Brooks wrote: “They dedicated their lives to a gospel that says that every human being is made in the image of God. They dedicated…
Seven suggestions for preventing conflict before it happens
As surely as we can expect thunderstorms in the summer, hurricanes in the fall and blizzards in the winter, the church is about to experience a season of conflict that threatens to unravel our faith communities. Much of this is…
The gospel according to mammals
If I were not a pastor, my life would look very, very different. In fact, after I graduated with an undergraduate degree in anthropology, I had two options to consider: one of my professors encouraged me to apply for an…