The Civil War began in April 1861 when Fort Sumter (in the harbor of Charleston, S.C.) was attacked by local rebels. Even with all the rhetoric for years, the United States was caught off guard. What became the Confederate States…
Rethinking Western Christianity on Palestine
The Gaza war has exposed a painful truth: the silence and complicity of many Western Christian leaders and churches in the face of atrocities against the Palestinian people. This silence shakes the very foundations of our faith and values, forcing…
There is no Jesus in MAGA
A lot has been written and much more will be written about the times in which we live. This era will be studied with amazement, bewilderment and shaking heads. How could America have elected a twice-impeached convicted felon to another…
The Boston Tea Party 2.0: Today’s 24-hour economic blackout
In an unprecedented demonstration of financial solidarity, millions of Americans, especially African Americans, are mobilizing for an economic blackout today in what has been dubbed “The Boston Tea Party 2.0.” This 24-hour economic shutdown aims to send a resounding message to…
The case against conservatism run amok
I used to think I was a conservative because that’s what I was told I should be. Then I met some real conservatives and some real liberals. It’s all relative. Surely there is a case to be made against liberalism…
‘Therefore God gave them over in the desires of their hearts …’
I continue to try to make sense of living as a Christian in a time when a distressing number of my coreligionists have thrown their support behind a fascist regime that stands against everything I think is good and holy,…
Meditating on Psalm 37
In a little while the wicked won’t exist! If you go looking around their place, they won’t be there. But the weak will inherit the land; they will enjoy a surplus of peace. — Psalm 37:10-11 I am reading Psalms…
Letter to the Editor: Don’t forget monastic business models
Dear Editor: Editor Mark Wingfield’s opinion piece of February 23, “Should Everything Be ‘Run Like a Business,” echoes the growing frustrations of many churchgoing Americans — that the corporate drive for eternal profit and the political knife of efficiency to…
America has walked away from the battle for international goodwill
Imagine for a moment that you’re cleaning your couch and as you clean you find an assortment of coins that add up to a dollar. As you count the coins, consider these coins as a reflection of the federal budget….
The silence is too loud!
On a cold day in January 1983, I sat on a bus in Beirut, Lebanon, stunned by my inability to speak. I was with a handful of my fellow Americans who had been invited by Americans for Middle East Understanding…
‘See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil’
As Christians in America, we are called to be salt and light in a world that desperately needs guidance, truth and justice. However, there seems to be a growing trend within the Christian community to adopt the posture of “see…
No safe spaces, no sacred places
Executive orders now say immigration officers can arrest migrants at schools and churches. The violation of the church or a school as a sanctuary is an anti-Christian act. If this administration claims Christianity, then why is everything it does opposed to…