During the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend I went to see the fine movie Hidden Figures. Already nominated for various awards, this remarkable film recounts the story of the contribution three black women made to Project Mercury at NASA…
We need each other
I need you, you need me — we’re all a part of God’s body. Stand with me; agree with me — we’re all a part of God’s body. It is His will that every need be supplied. You are important…
The many things I do not know about racism
Two years ago, Carol and I started attending a nearby African Methodist Episcopal Church. One other white person came from time to time. I liked it more when she was not there, because I enjoyed saying, “We were the only…
Liquid modernity: Churchly challenges in 2017 and beyond
In liquid modern life there are no permanent bonds and any that we take up for a time must be tied loosely so that they can be untied again as quickly, and as effortlessly as possible, when circumstances change. Those…
Losing our souls in a post-truth world
Is it just me, or does it increasingly seem many people are living in an alternate reality? People of all political stripes seemingly ignore irrefutable facts, and make up their own truths. This new cultural habit of ignoring facts en…
Requiem for the ‘cut’: Finding connections in a gentrifying neighborhood
Tony disappears behind the abandoned house at the curve, and he doesn’t reappear for a while. Another fellow follows him a couple minutes later, and also stays gone. In fact, he never reappears. Must be trouble, one assumes, given all…
Finding the courage to live into the new year
We’re just over a week in to the new year and based on my Facebook feed all the resolutions that were made just nine days ago are facing some pretty big uphill obstacles — at least the ones that haven’t…
We know, but sometimes we wonder
We knew about a week ago that it might snow this past weekend, but ministers have to be in denial about it at least until Saturday afternoon. During the senior adult luncheon last Tuesday when the mere possibility of snow…
The greatest challenge your pastor will face in 2017
Pastors across America will face a common challenge in 2017, and it could be you. Not that you’re a bad person or mean. But the greatest challenge for your pastor in this new year could be you — if you…
‘Give the King your justice, O God’
“Give the King your justice, O God,” the Psalmist writes to begin the 72nd chapter — the lectionary text for this day of Epiphany, Jan. 6, 2017. “That he may rule your people righteously and the poor with justice. ……
What Martin might say to us in a troubled time
It is the first week of January and I must admit to you that I have been dreading the coming moments for a few months. Back in early November, I assumed, like many others that these fears — fears about…
The new banana republic
The 20th century has been defined by the rise of the U.S. Empire. President Theodore Roosevelt introduced “gun boat diplomacy” and “speaking softly but carrying a big stick,” policies which laid the foundation for the development of today’s multinational corporations….