I’m not a bumper sticker guy, but mid-week after one particular Sunday sermon someone showed up in my office with a gift in hand, patterned on that sermon title: “Eschew Obfuscation.” You know: Avoid making things difficult to understand. I…
I’m adopting a patron sinner for All Saints Day
Recently, my spouse, daughter and I spent some time with a family in our small village. It was long overdue. A visit we wanted to happen back in early 2020, but you know, the world sort of shut down and…
Remembering Ralph Carmichael, the father of contemporary church music
It has been an unusual, loss-filled few weeks in the world of church music. One by one we have seen the obituaries of some of the major players come across our desks. A few weeks ago, long-retired professor of music…
What do you say when a mom wishes her child were dead instead of gay?
I squirmed in my seat, avoiding eye contact with the women in my small group. They offered encouragement to a woman sitting next to me. She spoke in halting sentences, wiping away tears with a tissue they offered. “It’s just…
Pastors in a no-win situation
“How many people should I be visiting a month?” I asked them. They blinked at me, confused by the question. “What I’m asking is, what will satisfy you? Is it 10 people? Twenty?” “Well,” she asked, “how many are on…
Conservative Christianity as threat to democracy
Christians should support democracy. This should not be a shocking statement. It should not even need to be said. U.S. Baptists, at least, used to be fairly clear about it. But today, it is becoming increasingly clear from looking around…
A doorway to the sacred: Encountering God in the theater
In one of my oldest memories, my little hand is held firmly in my mother’s as we climb a long, wide staircase. We are dressed in our finest shoes and dresses, matching the elegance of the great chandeliers, plush carpeting…
Shutting down the manufactured Critical Race Theory ‘debate’
On the home stretch of Virginia’s nail-biter of a governor’s race, Republican candidate Glenn Youngkin has been looking for a way to simultaneously present himself as part of the old corporate wing of the GOP who might have crossover appeal,…
The room where it happens
If you’re familiar with the Broadway musical Hamilton, then you’ve probably heard the song “You’ll Be Back.” Sung by the character of King George III, this song is a sharp shift in style and tone from the rest of the…
‘A Change Is Gonna Come’: Ahmaud Arbery and the call to transform injustice
Sam Cooke said it best in soulful, somber song: “A Change Is Gonna Come.” Cooke wrote this song in the early 1960s as a protest to support the Civil Rights Movement. It was a volatile season for this country, as…
Loving my neighbor in the Global South
I was born outside this country, this culture and this language. Seeing myself as a citizen of the world and part of the one human race, I wonder if I have any words to say to you who read this…
Tucker Carlson, ‘equal opportunity bigot’
Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and his husband, author Chasten Buttigieg, married in 2018 and have been wanting to become parents for a while. The excitement and joy they felt as they anticipated becoming parents were similar to what other…