When I was a boy, it happened every New Year’s morning. My father would wake me up early and we would get in his truck and set out to meet most of his seven brothers for coffee and conversation at…
What to do when the neighbors are loud
Imagine the opening scene of Love Actually in Hugh Grant’s voice: “Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion’s starting to make out that we live in…
Let’s form a phalanx to defeat COVID
Due to the recent spike in COVID infections in New York City, our church has returned, once again, to virtual-only services. It was the right thing to do. It was the smart thing to do. But it also was the…
What if there were an ‘in memoriam’ for people like us?
On the evening of Dec. 30, NBC concluded the national news with its annual “In Memoriam” segment for 2021. Some 90 singers, musicians, composers, actors, filmmakers, television personalities, professional and amateur athletes, coaches and managers, writers, and even an Apollo…
This Christmastide, don’t stop with Baby Jesus
The birth story of Jesus has plenty to offer Christians during Christmastide — stunned shepherds, angelic visitations, mysterious visitors from the East, an inn with no room, and a manger. Even though there’s plenty to love, Christians ought to continue…
Facing white Christianity’s role in the Jan. 6 insurrection
On Jan. 20, 2021, President Joe Biden became the first commander in chief to use the words “white supremacy” in an inaugural address. Naming “the cry of racial justice 400 years in the making” and its corollary, “a rise in…
2021 BNG reading: These are a few of my favorite things
Raindrops on roses, and whiskers on kittens; Bright copper kettles, and warm woolen mittens; Brown paper packages tied up with string; These are a few of my favorite things. Mark Wingfield used this song from The Sound of Music to…
Cancel student loan debt for everyone
It’s not ideal or lifegiving for anyone to be forced to choose between buying groceries for their family or paying toward a student loan. As many prepare for 2022, we will again be faced with this predicament, because we have…
Five ways to help your pastor this year
At the dawn of a new year, many churches are adopting new budgets and making plans for whatever will come in this third year of COVID-influenced ministry. There are lots of decisions to be made, and not always enough information…
How code-switching might explain why people aren’t coming back to church
In March 2020, my congregation had just begun to stabilize from the loss of about one-third of the congregation and staff after we voted to welcome LGBTQ believers into full membership. It had been a long, difficult and meaningful season…
12 cures for the hollow church
It’s been several years since the huge oak on the property of First Church came crashing down into the empty parking lot one Saturday night. A blast of straight-line winds proved more than the 250-year-old icon could withstand. The tree…
New Year’s resolutions when you can’t count on anything except COVID
I am an old-school calendar guy. While I do use an Outlook calendar, my default calendar is a monthly planner. I use a color-coding system to write events on the calendar and tasks on the “Notes” column on the side….