Thirty-six years ago this month, I learned a lesson in generosity that inspires me to this day. I was 23 years old, had just completed a bachelor’s degree in journalism at the University of New Mexico and was heading to…
Hope for a new year out of the historical disunity of our United States
It’s not about Donald Trump. Nor did our current dis-unity start with him. In his excellent book, American Nations, Colin Woodard shares helpful insights into what lies at the heart of much of our current public discontent: We began this…
What to preach the Sunday between Christmas and New Year
A few days ago, something amazing transpired at a fast-food drive-through window in Atlanta. A young woman named Feroza Syed was waiting in her car to reach the service window when she happened to notice something bizarre happen at the…
Will Southern Baptists ever list racism among the odious evils they must stand against, like abortion?
In October 1973, I was a first-semester religion major at Bishop College in Dallas, a Black college founded in 1881 by Baptists. Having turned 17 the prior month, I was in awe of the many teenage preachers on the campus….
Merry Christmas anyway
We are saving money — no plane tickets, no fancy restaurants, no Nutcracker this year. We are not seeing everyone we wish we were seeing, not doing everything we wish we were doing, and not having the Christmas we wish…
Facing life’s realities at Christmas: Listening to Rachel
It was Christmas Eve in the small New England church where I preached my first-ever Advent sermon, Dec. 24, 1971 — the first of four years I served as the congregation’s pastor while studying at Boston University. The First Community…
To the shepherds: Reframing Christmas in a pandemic
The Advent season for the Christian faith community is really important. It’s the season before Christmas that symbolizes a deep sense of longing — a longing for something that is not here yet but is hoped for. Hope that is…
Advent reflection: The shadow of the Spirit
The angel’s announcement to Mary follows the same pattern: “And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most…
Humor: What an honest Christmas Eve order of service might look like this year
Columnist Brett Younger didn’t send us a traditional column this month. Instead, he sent us a humorous, yet not-so-humorous example of what an honest Christmas Eve worship order of service might look like. He reported that even the church administrator…