The Southern Baptist Convention’s recent vote to further restrict women from pastoral leadership has reopened a debate many Baptists thought was settled long ago. Their denial of the Holy Spirit’s gift of ministry to women equally to men is reminiscent…
The arrogance of Jeffress’ claims about James Talarico
Robert Jeffress says James Talarico “twists Scripture.” The problem here is not Talarico but Jeffress. Of the U.S. Senate candidate from Texas, he said: “He is pleasant in his demeanor; he appears to know the Scripture. Even though he twists…
Shaving Dad goodbye
His cremation ashes will not be any different because I gave my dad a shave before the funeral home took his body from the house he’d lived in for 47 years. On the surface, logic says a shave before cremation…
From the South Side to the South Lawn and back again
The headline itself tells a uniquely American story. From the South Side of Chicago came a young community organizer searching for purpose. He eventually made his way to the South Lawn of the White House as the 44th president of…
Democracy as a moral practice, not just a system
I’ve noticed something in congregational life. When a question comes up that challenges long-held beliefs or traditions, anxiety can spread quickly. People sense that more than just opinions are at stake. For some, this affects how they read scripture. For…
Why are we still calling ourselves ‘moderate’ Baptists?
A few weeks ago, I sat with a Baptist leader who described himself as a “moderate Baptist.” He meant it as a compliment, and most people in our circles would receive it that way. After all, “moderate” is one of…
A chance encounter, a life transformed
Three years ago, I met Oliver Sakor at the baggage claim at the airport in Accra, Ghana. He was waiting there as he did most days, hoping travelers would trust him to carry their luggage for a little money. For…
The stories we tell define us
Ten years ago, a priest at an inner-city Episcopal church in Delaware (Saints Andrew and Matthew in Wilmington) invited me to lead a Lenten retreat on race and film for his congregants. His parish, he told me, was made up…
Whatever happened to heaven?
Coming to faith as a teenager in the 1970s, I inherited a more or less modern and impoverished Christian notion of heaven — heaven as the good place way out there somewhere that you hope to go to when you…
Y’all means all
I’ve often paused when reflecting on Jesus’ enigmatic words in Matthew’s Gospel: “While he was still speaking to the crowds, his mother and his brothers were standing outside, wanting to speak to him. Someone told him, ‘Look, your mother and…
The CBF witness is more important now than ever
When I was growing up in Eastern Kentucky, I spent most of my time inside the doors of our Southern Baptist church. Sunday mornings, Sunday nights, Wednesday evenings — I was there. We were one of those small “church plants”…
Consider the cost of staying in the SBC
Although I left the Southern Baptist Convention several decades ago, I still keep up with them, especially during their annual meetings. This year’s SBC gathering, like all the others since I left, both saddened and disturbed me, including the constitutional…