(Editor’s note: This is the third in a series of commentaries by Barry Howard reflecting on his experiences in Italy. The first is available here and the second is available here.) By Barry Howard As our Eurostar train from Rome…
What kind of Baptist are you?
By David Gushee My last column was filed from Australia, and this one is inspired by a question I often received when first meeting Baptists in Sydney. The question was: “What kind of Baptist are you?” Which meant: “What branch…
Who really holds the keys?
(Editor’s note: This is the second in a series of commentaries by Barry Howard reflecting on his experiences in Italy. The first is available here). By Barry Howard This year our sanctuary choir and orchestra — as they do every…
Getting a life — and giving life
By Amy Butler When young pastors ask me for advice on self-care (insert uproarious laughter here) I always say that one very important part of survival in the trenches of ministry is getting a life. Outside the church. While one…
Baptists lift voices in Vatican
By Barry Howard The group gathering in St. Peter’s Square dressed in formal attire on this hot Thursday afternoon in July was attracting a lot of attention from locals and from tourists. The men in the group were decked out…
Religion and foreign policy
By Suzii Paynter “Once considered a private matter by Western policymakers, religion is now playing an increasingly influential role — both positive and negative — in the public sphere.” This is the opening sentence of a major foreign policy report,…
Nothing worth proving can be proven
By Jim Denison “Donkeys kill more people annually than plane crashes. No piece of paper can be folded in half more than seven times. Walt Disney, the inventor of Mickey Mouse, was afraid of mice. A duck’s quack doesn’t echo…
Clergy and grief
By Bill Wilson A friend and I were talking a few weeks ago and she made the following statement: One of the hardest parts of long-term ministry is burying your friends. I buried a dear friend on Monday. It was…
A Baptist in a clerical collar?
By Eugene Curry Those careers that are part of what may broadly be construed as the “service sector” often involve some means of identification. Policemen sport badges, waiters don aprons and nurses wear scrubs. The idea is that such tell-tale…