By Aileen Lawrimore What if, for you, it’s actually not the most wonderful time of the year? What if it’s your first Christmas (or your 51st) without your beloved? What if you’re fighting physical, mental or emotional illness? Or what…
‘I beg to differ’
By Jayne Hugo Davis “When I light a candle at midnight, I say to the darkness, ‘I beg to differ.’” This quote is attributed to an unnamed philosopher in the first century. I don’t know what caused this person to…
The urgency of mercy
By Molly T. Marshall Pope Francis is in the news once again; actually, is he ever not in the news? He has declared the coming year to be a Jubilee Year, a year where mercy triumphs over judgment. Walking through…
Learning from faith’s circumference
By Doyle Sager My acting experience is pretty limited. Besides a couple of high school plays, my only claim to fame is the role of a wise man during Maple Grove Baptist Church’s Christmas pageant (and I’m not sure I…
Winter’s here, but Christ is near!
By Elijah Zehyoue My friends, I hate to be a downer, but someone must say it: It’s December, and for where I live that means winter is here. Prepare yourself for winter. Prepare yourself for the snow, the cold weather,…
Brain trends, part 2: Designer brain
By John Chandler You have to love the evolution of the online dating scene. We’ve quickly evolved from a generic Match.com or e-Harmony into a world where customization rules. (Farmers Only, anyone?) My favorites are those that promise you will…
Before we say, ‘I forgive you’
By Starlette McNeill I am in a place that I had not anticipated and certainly could not have prepared for. It is the same feeling that I had after the shooting of nine bowed heads at Mother Emmanuel AME Church…
Apologies
By Bill Leonard In an essay posted on Christianhistory.net on July 1, 2007, Scott Manetsch writes: “Before dawn on the morning of August 24, 1572, church bells tolled in the Saint-Germain l’Auxerrois quarter of Paris. Just moments earlier, soldiers under…
The downside of diversity
By Amy Butler For some time I’ve been of the conviction that cultivating diverse communities of faith is critical to living the gospel. Some tell me creating a diverse community is just not a reality for their church; the community…