In a recent reflection piece stimulated by America’s birthday, David Gushee shared this snapshot of a divided America: “We are at least two different countries — a conservative, largely white, somewhat older, largely Christian country with a center of gravity…
Elie Wiesel: cutting and keeping
Elie Wiesel, Holocaust survivor, Nobel laureate, Andrew Mellow Professor of Humanities at Boston University, died July 2 at age 87. Had the Nazis had their way, he would never have survived past age 16, when the Allied troops liberated Buchenwald…
Still learning to see the third time across the Brooklyn Bridge
I like running to Manhattan and I love running back to Brooklyn — though running may not be the right word. I have trotted across the Brooklyn Bridge three times. I go slow enough not to miss much. According to…
Preaching with a prayer list
In seminary, I avoided taking the preaching courses until the very end. Instead, I preferred to preach the gospel to empty pews in our chapel on my lunch break and in between classes. In fact, I would offer the hymn…
Who is the Samaritan?
An ancient tension in Christian discipleship often trips us up. Are we capable of doing what God asks us to do? If we are, why do we not follow the divine guidance more? This debate is as old as Augustine…
What does it mean to have ‘The Conversation’ about human sexuality?
At the moment, both my present church and larger Baptist denominational fellowship (The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship) have initiated processes of deliberative dialogue around difficult areas of discernment in our life together. Though not directly meant to address convictions and practices…
High anxiety in the Church
Anyone feeling anxious? A better question: anyone not feeling anxious? God’s people in the 21st century suffer a serious malady. We mouth the words of faithfulness while we live lives dominated by anxiety and frustration. For every time we parrot “God…
Keep laying shells for the culture to find its way home
I am a father of two. So, this past week, I did my parenting duty: I took my kids to see the movie Finding Dory. As a writer and a preacher, I should probably watch more movies than I do….
What does ‘moderate’ mean?
“The first thing I feel disposed to share is what is apparent to us all, namely that if Jesus Christ had been a moderate he would never have been crucified.” These words came famously from the inimitable Will D. Campbell…
Considering the lilies and hard conversations
Their beauty is exquisite — the daylily blooms resulting from last summer’s sabbatical gardening. With coffee in hand, I journey each new day to see what surprise the garden holds. I count the blooms, marveling at their balanced symmetry, stunning…
CBF’s hiring policy: Déjà vu all over again
I came away from the 25th anniversary celebration of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship in Greensboro, N.C., renewed and invigorated. But amid the hugs and hall talk between sessions, there was a lot of worried, whispered conversation about what to do about CBF’s personnel policy which does not permit hiring non-celibate gays.
After all these years, why still Baptist?
I hear the question all the time. I meet someone for the first time at a party, they eventually ask what I do for work, and then the follow-up is some version of, “How are you Baptist?”