The lowest form of knowledge is opinion. It requires no accountability and understanding. The highest form of knowledge is empathy, for it requires us to suspend our ego and live in another’s world. — Plato Recently I was reading the…
Who moved the front door to the church?
A funny thing happened while we were socially distanced, worshiping online. When we returned to the church building, the front door was not where we left it, nor was it the same size. Instead, we found multiple doors resembling the…
If you are a pastor in an abusive church, please know that you are not alone
It happens almost every week. Over the last year, with recurring and uncanny regularity, a pastor or Christian leader reaches out to me to share their journey of leaving abusive churches or organizations. In each case, they know I’m no…
We are living through a pandemic of disembodiment
Half my seminary education was on Zoom. I completed the final year and a half of a three-year master of divinity degree from the desk in my bedroom. Like everyone else, the pandemic moved my life online. It’s a strange…
Going to church in Schmigadoon!
My gal loves corn puddin’ She eats it constantly Sometimes I get to wondering Does she love it more than me? My guy loves corn puddin’ I got the recipe So if he wants my puddin’ He’ll have to marry…
‘I don’t think I care about anything anymore’: How to be anxious and depressed during the end of the world
My son is 6 years old and in the first grade. He loves Lego, Harry Potter, outer space and finishing books as soon as he gets them. Inexplicably, my son maintains this stubborn inquisitiveness about the world around him even…
Love ’em and leave ’em: America walks out on Afghanistan
I’ve been trying to write a country song that people in Afghanistan can sing in the days to come. It also applies to lots of other folks America has pledged eternal love for, only to disappear when the thrill is…
Everything’s getting on my last nerve
I don’t know about you, but, I tell you, right now, pretty much everything is getting on my last nerve. People who refuse to get vaccinated are getting on my last nerve. Ditto people who won’t wear masks. Republican obstructionism…
On Afghanistan, there were no innocent choices available
There were no morally unambiguous options, no innocent choices, facing President Joe Biden when it came to deciding what to do about the 20-year U.S. military engagement in Afghanistan that has cost the lives of nearly 2,500 U.S. troops, 3,800…
Letter to the Editor: Strong words for Piper, yes, but necessary
Letter to the Editor August 18, 2021 Dear Editor: I am writing today both to thank you for the honor of having my latest opinion piece published and offer a brief and cordial reply to Jesse Walsh. First, I am…
Celebrating a new generation of ministers overtaken by ‘the call’
In the 50th year of my ordination to “the gospel ministry,” I can’t recall the exact time when I first experienced “the call” from God to do that. Given that I was Texas Baptist born and bred, I may have…
Afghanistan and America: Bloodlust and the failure of prophetic imagination
It is hard to be dispassionate when people have died fighting for a cause. Objectivity seems especially hard when it comes to the outcome after 20 years of United States-led war in Afghanistan. The U.S. invaded Afghanistan after Al Qaeda…