On Feb. 28, Elon Musk took aim at “empathy” on a Joe Rogan podcast. He said empathy is “the fundamental weakness of Western civilization.” Barely one month later, April 1, in a New Yorker interview, Al Mohler, president of Southern…
These teachers taught me how to do nothing
My undergraduate Baptist college adviser was looking over his glasses at me as I prattled on and on about all I was doing. In my final semester, I was taking 18 hours in an attempt to pull a final-semester 4.0…
Be like the Little Hummingbird
There is a children’s picture book called The Little Hummingbird that I absolutely love. It’s based on a fable by the Quechuan people of South America and tells the story of a forest ravaged by fire and the response of…
What Cara Meredith’s book gets right about church camp
After growing up in a Christian cult (Bill Gothard’s IBLP of Shiny Happy People), I found freedom working at a church camp one summer when I was 21. Showing up with my waist-length hair, ankle length skirts and long list…
7 organizational pitfalls that keep churches stuck
A veteran airline pilot once told me, “Even the most advanced aircraft won’t go anywhere without regular course corrections.” The same is true of churches. While rooted in timeless truth, churches must constantly assess whether they’re still aligned with their…
The theology of a predator
“I ain’t gonna take the blame for no bastard child! It would ruin me, man. You can understand that, can’t you? Listen to me, boy. She was … delusional. She was crazy.” So goes the frantic defense of Rev. Preston…
In conversation with Christopher B. Hays
Christopher B. Hays is the D. Wilson Moore Professor of Old Testament and Ancient Near Eastern Studies at Fuller Seminary, where his teaching focuses on biblical languages and the Hebrew Bible. In 1996, his father, Richard, a leading figure in…
An invitation to speak prophetically but not endorse candidates
On July 7, the IRS announced it no longer will enforce restrictions on places of worship endorsing political candidates provided those endorsements occur in the regular communication of the congregation to its members. This is a suspension of enforcement of…
A senior reflects on aging
Many of us recognize that our congregations are aging. Because we do not understand aging well, we may hesitate to really get to know older adults and minister to them. This article is written by an aging congregant and may…
Storytelling as creative resistance
I have no doubt that the daily drama of American crises is causing a lot of art to be created — and viewed. “Our truest response to the irrationality of the world is to paint or sing or write, for…
Swamp bait: The forgotten horror of feeding Black babies to alligators
In the depths of the Florida Everglades, a place teeming with mosquitoes, swamps and predatory reptiles, the U.S. government has endorsed what many human rights activists now call Alligator Alcatraz — a sprawling 39-square-mile detention facility for immigrants surrounded not…
When is the right time to speak the truth about toxic people?
As many of our readers know, I officiate a lot of funerals. In addition to nearly 17 years as pastor with responsibilities for such things, I officiate pick-up funerals for families who do not have a church or a minister….