There was a time when the world believed the future would be better. That view held to the promise of better days within reach. But when that future arrived we found not a promise but what many saw as a…
Adventures in missing the point
It’s once again graduation season. And what does graduation season mean? No more school! No more books! No more teachers’ dirty looks … well, scratch that last part. As Alice Cooper sang in his 1972 single, “School’s out for the…
Learning to pray — again
By Bill Leonard “Abba Macarius was asked, ‘How should one pray?’ The old man said, ‘There is no need at all to make long discourses; it is enough to stretch out one’s hands and say, ‘Lord, as you will, and…
Christians must cry for justice when lives are taken unjustly
José Antonio Elena Rodríguez was only 16 when he was killed, walking home from a basketball game in October 2012. According to what news reports have pieced together, the unarmed child was shot 10 times, 8 in the back, by…
Congregational shifts are unsettling but essential
By Amy Butler It’s the first anniversary of my work as pastor at my church. To mark the occasion, I think it’s only appropriate to write a bit about — change. I think it would be a fairly objective statement…
Let’s bring back blue laws to increase church attendance?
Should we bring back Blue Laws to increase our Sunday worship attendance? No, but the thought of it does raise some interesting questions. What were Blue Laws? Actually there are still some around so “was” is not in every place…
Beatific: An order of worship of the life – and death – of a Baptist church
Bridgewater Baptist Church, Beatific Prelude Listen reverently as Charlie Haden and John Taylor play “Bittersweet,” the sound of this story. Greeting Imagine a young man, newly arrived in America, suitcase in hand. He strolls through Electric Park as fireworks…
The spiritual practice of pressing on
By Jayne Hugo Davis There are few places as special to me as St. John’s Abbey, a Benedictine monastery in Collegeville, Minn. The peace of the lake, the beauty of the art, the stability of the community, the ordering of…
How to bring dignity to firing church staff
Firing staff is never a pleasant experience. No one (except maybe Donald Trump on television) looks forward to telling a person that they now have to find another job. Firing people in an organization or church is often met with…